Author: Ryan Roberts
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Knights In Shining Armor & Wolf Tickets
Why does it seem like those who claim to be the “miracle solution” for your startup end up letting your startup down? Of course, as a service provider to startups I’m in a bit of a quandary writing this post. (Your startup might need a lawyer; it might not.) But if a lawyer or any…
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The When to Incorporate Decision-Matrix
In a recent post, I detailed some incorporation-related points of interest if I launched my own startup. The post presumed I made the decision to push forward with the incorporation of my startup. But how do you know when the time is right to incorporate your startup? Advice Varies There’s a wide range of counsel…
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If I Launched a Startup
Here’s what I’d do in the beginning if i launched a startup: Startup Incorporation (1) Entity Choice: Corporation or Corporation(2) State of Incorporation: Delaware(3) Authorized Shares in Charter: 10,000,000 Shares(4) Type of Shares: Common Stock(5) Par Value of Common: $0.0001(6) Initial Founders Issuance: 8,000,000 Shares(7) Founders Equity Split: Depends on the Team, But Quickly and…
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Model Seed Funding Doc Myths
A variety of model startup seed funding docs have been released in the past year or so: TechStars Series AA Preferred, YCombinator Series AA Preferred, and TheFunded Founder Institute’s Plain Preferred. And as I mentioned last week, Fenwick & West and Andreessen Horowitz released the Series Seed model documents. The standardized seed funding document movement…
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It Is Not Your Baby Anymore
Many entrepreneurs treat their startup like their baby. And rightfully so. The entrepreneur has likely shed blood, sweat, tears, and some cash on the startup, therefore the entrepreneur wants to keep the startup in its grasp and control at all times. But once you issue equity in exchange for services or investment, your startup isn’t…
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Model Series Seed Docs
“The Series Seed Documents are a standardized set of documents that can be quickly and easily deployed for a seed investment: to help get a company financed properly, legally, quickly, and intelligently.” The drafters, Fenwick & West and Andreessen Horowitz, imply these docs should be used for $500,000 to $1,500,000 investments. The drafters are “open…
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Startup-Advisor Dating
I get about 4 emails a week from law students and attorneys with questions about launching a law practice. It’s an awkward and humbling experience for me. I’m not a law practice management expert and several years ago I had many of these same questions. But I try to answer as many emails and calls…
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White-Label Mobile App Users: Who Owns Them?
As mobile applications continue to gain popularity, more white-label mobile app deals are popping up. And while both the startup and the large company will certainly contract with respect to intellectual property asset ownership, an asset that may be overlooked is the ownership of the white-label mobile app’s users. Worst-case scenario, ownership of the white-label…
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The 5-Second Guide to Choosing Your Startup’s Legal Entity
Corporation. Because if you can log on to the Internet, you can handle the complexity of a corporation. Don’t be scurred.