Structure, ownership, key contracts, compliance, disputes and anything that could affect value or the deal closing on agreed terms. The goal is surfacing material issues early, not overwhelming the deal team.

If a buyer asked for your corporate documents, key contracts and ownership history today, could you produce them quickly and cleanly? Most businesses find gaps they didn't expect — finding them first is far better.

It depends on the timeline. The sooner gaps are identified, the more options there are to fix them — clean-ups done before a process starts almost always produce better outcomes than those done under diligence pressure.

The level of diligence should match the risk of the deal. What matters is that issues most likely to affect value or completion are properly understood before terms are locked in.

Ownership clarity, key contracts and material liabilities. A focused, risk-prioritised review under time pressure is usually far more useful than a comprehensive one that arrives too late.