Jayaram Law, counsels startups from around the United States on a litany of issues and in a number of industries, including information technology, healthcare, real estate development, and employment verification, to name a few. The Firm’s approach to counseling startups is interdisciplinary, and draws from a broad base of transactional, litigation, and IP experience to implement business-minded agreements in a sound legal manner.
During these representations, we have advised clients experiencing many of the same obstacles and hurdles in getting their ventures off the ground and into firm footing. By doing so, we have compiled a list of 10 questions that you should be asking your startup lawyer before engaging in any commercial enterprise. This list will be followed on a regular basis by posts addressing each question presented below.
1. Do our key employees have agreements preventing them from participating in our startup?
2. What corporate form works best?
3. How should we structure the ownership?
4. What contracts will we need to sell our goods or offer our services?
5. How do we protect our IP?
6. Do we need a privacy policy and terms of use?
7. How do we form a Board of Directors?
8. Should we hire employees or independent contractors?
9. How do we raise capital?
10. What operational liabilities may we face?