Thousands of companies are formed every month in the United States, many lacking the full force of funding that is required. Startups are a tenacious element of the business sector—most often founded by entrepreneurs who are skilled in the essence of what they are offering but that also most often lack the legal knowledge to protect their newfound venture. It’s important to find a lawyer who works in synergy with your startup strategy will protect you from avoiding costly mistakes. What follows are a few key reasons why.
How to Know You Need A Business Lawyer
An article that was published on Bothsidesofthetable.com offers some invaluable advice for those who are wondering when they will need startup lawyers. In the article, they specifically advise that the best time to find a lawyer is well before you actually even start the entity. In this manner you can avoid common legal mistakes that might be made early on, and can better position your business to be legally safeguarded in the future. Now if you have already created your business, obviously you can’t have had a lawyer beforehand or rewind. Getting a legal team on board as soon as possible will only work to your benefit.
Borrowing From Peter to Pay Paul
It’s ill advised to recruit investors or friends to borrow money from to pay for your startup lawyer. If the entity lacks the necessary funds to retain a lawyer, you can always consider offering stock or equity and making arrangements with a willing law firm to reduce your startup expenses overall. Most startup lawyers are readily willing to negotiate—especially if they think you have a winning business idea and a sound backing to make it a successful venture.
Choosing the Appropriate Lawyer
Determining which startup lawyers to use can be a confounding task. It’s advised that you take your time and really research and explore your options. Professional referrals always help. However, one should really take their time, verify credentials and seek multiple consultations before deciding upon one law firm over the other.
Managing the Cost of Legal Representation
Legal representation does not often come that cheaply. Lawyers have a number of overhead costs that they have to account for and their rates typically reflect those, the region in which they practice and their experience set. You can better manage these costs by using a retainer and billing setup that is only charged when the lawyer actually does work, most often billing in quarter hour increments. By only utilizing startup lawyers when you really need their legal advice, you can reduce your associated expense with them early on.
Why Partners Make Sense
Consider using partnered law firms as your business lawyers. One reason is that many have entire departments that are dedicated for your company. Often, the primary partners contribute to a number of the associated legal endeavors, offering you the experience and amenities that only large law firms can.
The very nature of startups is that they can be risky business for the investors and the founders. One of the most important aspects involved with any startup entity is found in protecting its assets. The wise will always seek legal consultation to assure that they have the best protection methods in place.