Start-up Law

Early Stages

We work with early stage companies from their initial start in the “garage” and founding teams as small as “two guys [or girls] and a dog” to mid-size family-held businesses and professional organizations in all areas of their formation, including: advice on choice of entity, capital structuring, stock option planning, documentation and maintenance; drafting and adopting bylaws; board formation matters, corporate compliance and policies; employment, board advisory, consulting and confidentiality agreements; and establishing processes and policies for protecting clients’ intellectual property, along with counseling on various aspects of transfer of intellectual property from founders, universities and other third parties to the startup venture.

We work closely with founding teams in structuring founder stock in a manner that protects the entity’s interest while minimizing areas of conflict between the company and its founding teams or outside investors.

Seed and Angel financings

We work closely with our early-stage company clients in their capital-raising efforts and structuring seed and angel financing rounds. Because of our deep experience, we are able to counsel our clients in structuring seed and angel financings in a manner that works for both the company and its potential investors and can be achieved in a timely and financially conservative manner. We also have strong relationships with the angel investment community that we leverage for our clients’ capital-raising efforts by making introductions, supporting the process and counseling the founding teams on preparation and execution of seed and angel financing rounds. Our attorneys are at the cutting edge of evolving models of early-stage seed financings, including convertible promissory note financings, SAFE financings, and series seed equity financings.

Venture Financings

Legal professionals at the firm have collectively represented more than 400 companies on their venture financings and other outside rounds of financings over the course of their careers. We understand how difficult and time-consuming the process of raising outside venture capital is for a startup enterprise, and we bring the experience of having represented venture investors on venture financings for the benefit of our company clients in structuring and negotiating term sheets for financings so that the parties can focus on what is truly important and not get lost or distracted by the legal mumbo-jumbo. While representing our startup clients in the early stages, we pay special attention to legal structuring and processes that will be important in a venture financing process so that the startup can close the diligence process and legal documentation in a timely and cost- effective manner.

As part of our representation of startup companies in their early stages, we also review client business plans and meet with founding teams to assist them in identifying their key strengths and weaknesses before approaching financing sources, help clients identify appropriate financing sources and assist with introductions to those sources, in light of their business models, organizational needs, and strategic direction, attend board meetings, and offer strategic advice and assistance in forming and maintaining an effective board of directors during a company’s initial phase.