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Dear Founders: Here Are Three IP Mistakes to Watch-Out For

Scott Edward Walker

Over the past six months, my firm has been engaged by a number of startups with significant intellectual property (“IP”) problems. In a couple of cases, the founders played lawyer on their own; in the other cases, the founders either used (i) a Web service that did not address IP issues or (ii) an inexperienced law firm.

IP 52
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Revisiting Paul Graham’s “High Resolution” Financing

Both Sides of the Table

When I first read Paul Graham’s blog post on “High Resolution&# Financing I read it as a treatise arguing that convertible notes are better than equity. He’s fine with equity provided it’s cheap to paper it legally. Photo credit: D. Blanchard/O’Reilly Media. and not a min.

Finance 286
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How to Scale a Venture Capital (or Private Equity) Fund

David Teten

Sophisticated VC and private equity funds have a wide array of options for leveraging outside operating executives. Another example is Correlation Ventures ($300M+ AUM), a VC firm which co-invests in financings with at least one other new outside VC. – Provide hands-on operational support for portfolio companies.

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The Legal Side of Entrepreneurship

YoungUpstarts

Craig Schmitz, a partner in the Technology Companies Group at law firm Godwin Proctor LLP who works on corporate, governance, board and fundraising issues, and Erika Fisher, an associate in the firm’s Business Law Department who deals with IP, fielded questions about the legal issues startups face. ” The Cost of Financing.

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Flexible VC, a New Model for Companies Targeting Profitability

David Teten

From traditional equity VC, Flexible VC borrows the option to pursue and reap the rewards of an outsized exit. Flexible VC 101: Equity Meets Revenue Share. Equity Ownership. Yes, typically preferred equity. On average, founders own just 43% of equity by Series B , declining thereafter. Flexible VC offers you this.

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Startups Need the ‘Why’ Before the ‘What’ to Build

Startup Professionals Musings

Although their book is written for businesses of all sizes, I believe the principles apply especially to startups as follows: Increase return on equity invested. Attract investors and financing. Intellectual property (IP). ” They emphasize that before the “What” should come the “Why?” Scalability.

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Can You Replace Lawyers With Software?

The Startup Magazine

You need lawyers to help you with incorporation and IP creation. Because this typically consists of filing straightforward paperwork with your local government, you probably shouldn’t use a lawyer unless you are trying to divide equity upon formation. You also need lawyers to help you write contracts for clients and staff. Regulation.