Posts Tagged ‘silicon valley startup attorney’
Consider a Business Valuation Before Starting Negotiations to Sell Business
If you are contemplating the sale of your small business or start-up, then you should consider procuring a valuation of your business before you enter into any negotiations. If you are reluctant to invest in such a valuation, consider this: would you enter into negotiations to sell your most valuable personal asset–which for most would…
Read MoreWhy it Pays to Take the Time to Review Disclosure Schedules
If you are in the middle of negotiating an asset purchase deal, you are likely to come across a number of pages that are labeled as “disclosure statements” or “disclosure schedules.” If you are a small business owner or entrepreneur, you are likely to glance right over these blank pages and ignore them entirely, and…
Read MoreThe Dangers of Accepting an Earn-Out When Selling Your Business
If you are an entrepreneur, start-up, or small business, it is highly likely that you looking to sell all or part of your business. In my career, I have worked with numerous entrepreneurs, start-ups and small businesses who consulted me about a deal proposal they received. In the majority of these cases, the first proposal…
Read MoreStart-ups Should Consider Corporate Collaboration Opportunities in their Growth Plans
It has been my experience that many of the start-ups and small businesses I’ve come across in my practice over the years have been very focused on the pursuit of financing opportunities for their young businesses, but they often overlook collaboration opportunities with larger companies that may be available and be just as beneficial to…
Read MoreBe Cautious in Making Decisions to Share Equity in a Start-up or Small Business
In my practice, it is not unusual for start-ups or small business owners to call me to discuss a deal they are contemplating which will involve sharing equity–even a significant amount of equity–with new business partners. In these cases, the client is typically considering this equity share either because of cash constraints or because they…
Read MoreSeeking Venture Capital Investment? Don’t Rule Out the Possibility of Angel Investment
As a tech start-up lawyer, I receive almost daily inquiries from start-ups and entrepreneurs about how to obtain venture capital investment. I encourage many of those making the inquiries to explore the possibility of angel investment as well. In general, I find that start-ups and entrepreneurs are less familiar with the angel investment concept than…
Read MoreDoes a Start-up Need to Be Based in Silicon Valley to be Successful?
Does a start-up have the best chance to succeed if based in Silicon Valley? Or would the same start-up be just as successful, if not more successful, if it were based somewhere else? This firm has developed a large client base supporting start-ups and tech-focused small businesses outside of Silicon Valley, so we have personal…
Read MoreTrying to Keep Legal Costs Low? When Should you Consider Breaking the Bank on a Lean Budget?
In my experience, most entrepreneurs, start-ups, and small businesses want to limit their legal budget to the extent possible. But at what point will not finding the money to spend on legal fees do more harm than good and end up costing you more money? In my practice, virtually all of the expensive legal problems…
Read MoreChallenging the Silicon Valley Belief in the Necessity of Venture Capital
I would argue that there is a widely held belief among entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley that you can’t build a successful company without venture capital money. However, the average company in Silicon Valley or the rest of the United States never receives an investment of venture capital. Are the companies launched without an investment of…
Read MoreNegotiating Your First Big Deal as a Start-Up or Entrepreneur? How to Pick the Right Lawyer to Get it Closed
If you are a start-up or entrepreneur and are on the verge of landing your first big business deal, you may be wrestling with the idea of hiring a lawyer for the first time to assist you on negotiating and reviewing your important business contract. It may be tempting to call the firm you are…
Read MoreDo entrepreneurs focus excessively on landing venture capital?
In my work with entrepreneurs and new business ventures, I am often surprised to find how many of them are convinced that they cannot build a business without venture capital financing and how few of them have even considered the idea that there might be very good reasons why they should not pursue venture capital…
Read MoreResponding to an Infringement Letter as a Start-up
If you receive an infringement demand letter as a start-up, is the best response a combative response? I discussed this issue in the Silicon Valley IP Licensing Law Blog in the context of a start-up CEO who won a patent infringement suit against an alleged patent troll at the link below: Should You Follow the…
Read MoreChoose the Name of your Start-Up Wisely
When you decide to start a business, or get “pushed” into it as many people are when their salaried job suddenly disappears, it’s easy to overlook the importance of choosing a name among all the other decisions you are having to make. In my recent blog post to Silicon Valley IP Law Blog, I addressed…
Read MoreHas Your Start-Up Lost its Focus Over Financing?
As anyone who has ever started a business well knows, one of the great challenges is to stay on focus and avoid distractions that create barriers to your success. But in Silicon Valley, it is not uncommon at all to see entrepreneurs who seem to have lost their focus and who are chasing goals other…
Read MoreWhat Makes a Successful Start-up?
This is an interesting Forbes opinion piece on what makes the few start-ups that succeed different than the majority that fail. As a lawyer representing many entrepreneurs and start-ups, I think understanding the market and having a good grasp of how to market to potential customers is critical. I also think that you have to…
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