Formation
Delaware Franchise Tax Explained: Why Your Bill Looks So High
Why the default calculation method produces scary bills, and the election that fixes it.
Startup Legal Guides
Useful legal thinking for founders.
High level legal concepts boiled down into practical startup-legal guides for busy founders who need
to make strategic decisions
about formation, fundraising, equity, IP, contracts, and diligence.
Equity
409A Valuations Explained
What a 409A is, why you need one before granting options, and what happens if you skip it.
Hiring
Employee vs. Contractor Classification for Startups
What regulators actually look at, what misclassification costs, and the IP trap founders miss.
IP
Trademark Basics for Startups: When to File and When to Reserve a Name
Why a company name isn't a trademark, when to clear one, and what to expect from the USPTO process.
Cross-Border
The Delaware Flip: How International Founders Redomicile to Raise US Capital
What a flip is, why investors want to see one, and what the process actually involves.
Start
Startup Legal Checklist for First-Time Founders
The core legal items founders should clean up before hiring, raising, or signing meaningful customers.
Formation
Delaware C-Corp vs LLC: What Startup Founders Should Choose
Why venture-backed startups usually choose Delaware C-corps, and when that answer is less obvious.
Founder Equity
Founder Equity Split: Legal Issues to Consider Early
How to think about ownership, vesting, control, and resentment before the cap table becomes archaeology.
Founder Stock
Founder Vesting Explained
What founder vesting does, why investors expect it, and how it protects the company from awkward math.
Fundraising
SAFE Notes Explained for Startup Founders
A founder-level explanation of SAFEs, valuation caps, discounts, MFN provisions, and common traps.
Fundraising
What Legal Documents Do Startups Need Before Raising Money?
The documents that help a financing move quickly instead of turning diligence into a scavenger hunt.
Diligence
Startup Legal Due Diligence Checklist
What investors and acquirers usually review, and how founders can prepare before the request list lands.
IP
IP Assignment Agreements for Startups
Why every founder, employee, contractor, and advisor touching product should sign the right IP paperwork.
Advisors
Advisor Equity for Startups
How much equity to give advisors, what to document, and how to avoid paying for vibes in common stock.
AI
Legal Issues for AI Startups
The legal issues AI founders should track around data, IP, privacy, contracts, and enterprise customers.