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startups

Congress Just Changed How Startups Can Raise Money. Are You Paying Attention? 

Business Law /

Congress Just Changed How Startups Can Raise Money. Are You Paying Attention?  You have been pitching at demo days, accelerator events, and university programs.  You probably assumed that was fine.  For years, the rules around general solicitation, meaning publicly promoting a fundraise to unverified investors, have created legal risk when founders raise capital in open settings under certain exemptions. A […]

Congress Just Changed How Startups Can Raise Money. Are You Paying Attention?  Read More »

tariffs

VCs Are Pulling Back Because of Tariffs. What Does That Mean If You Are Raising Right Now? 

Business Law /

VCs Are Pulling Back Because of Tariffs. What Does That Mean If You Are Raising Right Now?  You have been building your deck. Refining your pitch. Getting warm intros.  Now you are hearing “not the right timing” more than you expected.  It is not just you. Investor caution has increased in response to macroeconomic uncertainty, including global trade tensions and tariffs. A

VCs Are Pulling Back Because of Tariffs. What Does That Mean If You Are Raising Right Now?  Read More »

low valuation

My Next Round Came in at a Lower Valuation. How Much Equity Am I About to Lose? 

Business Law /

My Next Round Came in at a Lower Valuation. How Much Equity Am I About to Lose?  Nobody raises expecting a down round.  But valuations reset. Runway runs short. And the term sheet that arrives looks very different from the last one. Inside it, in many cases, is an anti-dilution provision that can significantly affect how equity is redistributed, often before founders fully

My Next Round Came in at a Lower Valuation. How Much Equity Am I About to Lose?  Read More »

startup

My Startup Sold for $20M. Why Did I Walk Away With Almost Nothing? 

Business Law /

My Startup Sold for $20M. Why Did I Walk Away With Almost Nothing?  You built the company. You took the risk.  Then you sold. The proceeds went almost entirely to your investors.  This is not a hypothetical. It happens regularly to founders who sign liquidation preferences without modeling what they mean in a mid-range exit. The clause is standard. The math, for most

My Startup Sold for $20M. Why Did I Walk Away With Almost Nothing?  Read More »

company counsel

Who Represents Who?  

Business Law /

Who Represents Who?   How VC Lawyer Dynamics Work in a Fundraise.  When you start a priced round, you very quickly meet “the lawyers.” What’s less obvious is who they actually work for and whose interests they are paid to protect. If you assume everyone is there to “get the deal done,” you can miss the fact that counsel

Who Represents Who?   Read More »

investors

Do Investors Get Veto Power Through Protected Provisions? 

Business Law /

Do Investors Get Veto Power Through Protected Provisions?  “Wait… can they actually block this decision?”  That realization usually comes too late.  On paper, protected provisions look like routine investor protections. In reality, they are one of the strongest control mechanisms in US venture deals. These clauses do not just give investors visibility. They give them veto power

Do Investors Get Veto Power Through Protected Provisions?  Read More »

funding

Part 2: What’s Getting Funded in 2026 and What it Means for Your Next Round. 

Business Law /

Part 2: What’s Getting Funded in 2026 and What it Means for Your Next Round.  If you missed Part 1, we explained why funding feels harder even in a record-setting quarter.  Find it here: [LINK]  In Part 2 we explore what these changes looked like in the first quarter: which companies got funded and what their funding rounds suggest moving forward into the second quarter.  What’s getting

Part 2: What’s Getting Funded in 2026 and What it Means for Your Next Round.  Read More »

startup funding

Part 1: Startup Funding is at Record Highs, so Why Does it Feel Impossible to Raise? 

Business Law /

Part 1: Startup Funding is at Record Highs, so Why Does it Feel Impossible to Raise?  If fundraising feels harder right now, you’re not imagining it.  Only about 18% of founders say it’s easy to raise in 2026 and nearly 4 out of 5 expect difficulty.  That sentiment is showing up across the market. Founders are spending more time fundraising, having more conversations, and getting fewer firm commitments. At the same time,

Part 1: Startup Funding is at Record Highs, so Why Does it Feel Impossible to Raise?  Read More »

hiring

“Can I Just Hire Someone as a 1099 in California?” 

Business Law /

“Can I Just Hire Someone as a 1099 in California?”  “I’ll just pay them as a 1099, it’s easier, and they said they’re fine with it.”  This is one of the most expensive assumptions a founder can make.  In California, worker classification isn’t based on what you agree to. It’s based on how the relationship actually works. And if it looks like employment, the

“Can I Just Hire Someone as a 1099 in California?”  Read More »

hiring

“I’m hiring my first employee in California, what do I actually need to do?” 

Business Law /

“I’m hiring my first employee in California, what do I actually need to do?”  “I just need to pay someone to help me… how complicated can it be?”  If you’ve thought that, you’re not alone.  For most founders, the first hire feels like a simple milestone. In California, it’s not. It’s a legal event with compliance requirements that start before your employee’s first day.  Miss

“I’m hiring my first employee in California, what do I actually need to do?”  Read More »

general counsel

“When Do I Actually Need a General Counsel and What Should It Look Like?” 

Business Law /

“When Do I Actually Need a General Counsel and What Should It Look Like?”  In the early days, most startups handle legal work one task at a time.  A contract here. An equity grant there. Maybe outside counsel for a financing round. It works well enough when decisions are occasional and the stakes are manageable.  At some point, that approach stops working. 

“When Do I Actually Need a General Counsel and What Should It Look Like?”  Read More »

investors

“Will I Make Money on Exit Or Will My Investors Take Most of It?” 

Business Law /

“Will I Make Money on Exit Or Will My Investors Take Most of It?”  Intro  Most founders focus on valuation when negotiating a term sheet.  But few recognize that in many real exits, valuation matters less than liquidation preferences, the clause that decides who gets paid first and how much.  A term like “1x non-participating” sounds founder-friendly. In practice, depending on how

“Will I Make Money on Exit Or Will My Investors Take Most of It?”  Read More »

data room

Could Your Data Room Be the Reason Your Next Raise Falls Apart? 

Business Law /

Could Your Data Room Be the Reason Your Next Raise Falls Apart?  Investors don’t just evaluate your pitch deck.  Once they’re interested, they open your data room—and what they find there either builds confidence or quietly kills the deal.  Most founders underestimate how much a disorganized or incomplete data room affects investor perception. It signals operational immaturity, slows diligence, and creates unnecessary

Could Your Data Room Be the Reason Your Next Raise Falls Apart?  Read More »

business entity

LLC vs. C-Corp vs. S-Corp: Which One Actually Makes Sense for Your Startup? 

Business Law /

LLC vs. C-Corp vs. S-Corp: Which One Actually Makes Sense for Your Startup?  Choosing your business entity is one of the first legal decisions you’ll make as a founder.  It is also one of the few early decisions that directly affects how you raise capital, structure ownership, and scale the company later.  Many founders optimize for simplicity at the

LLC vs. C-Corp vs. S-Corp: Which One Actually Makes Sense for Your Startup?  Read More »

term sheet

What’s Normal vs. Predatory in a Seed Round Term Sheet? 

Business Law /

What’s Normal vs. Predatory in a Seed Round Term Sheet?  You finally have a term sheet in front of you. That’s a meaningful milestone.  But for most first-time founders, the challenge is not getting the term sheet. It’s understanding whether the terms are standard, or quietly structured against you.  Most investors are fair. Some are not. And the difference is written directly

What’s Normal vs. Predatory in a Seed Round Term Sheet?  Read More »

startups

What Legal Support Do Startups Need at Each Stage of Growth? 

Startup Attorney /

Most founders think about legal support in the moment.  But startups don’t grow in isolated moments.  They grow in stages, and each stage brings different legal risks, decisions, and opportunities.  The question isn’t just, “Do I need a lawyer?”  It’s more helpful to ask, “What kind of legal support do I need at each stage of building this company?”  Think through each stage of

What Legal Support Do Startups Need at Each Stage of Growth?  Read More »

Should I Incorporate in Delaware or California? What First-Time Founders Need to Know 

Business Law /

Most founders hear the same advice early on:  “Just incorporate in Delaware.”  Some follow that advice without asking why. Others incorporate in California because it feels simpler and more local.  Both choices can work.  But both choices can also create real problems later if you don’t understand what you’re deciding when you incorporate.  This guide breaks down the Delaware vs. California decision in plain

Should I Incorporate in Delaware or California? What First-Time Founders Need to Know  Read More »

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