Defining the Founders’ Roles and Responsibilities in Your Technology Startup

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You’ve decided to start a new technology company with several colleagues from your past and present employers, and a college friend with a background in finance.  Everyone is excited about the new venture.  That excitement, however, sometime clouds what would otherwise be the group’s methodical planning process and thoughtful execution of the business plan to …Read more

California’s SB 113 May Offer Valuable Tax Planning Opportunities for Family Businesses

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On February 9, 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 113 into law.  SB 113 changes several provisions of California’s tax laws that affect family businesses and offer valuable tax planning opportunities that business owners may wish to take advantage of.  Specifically, SB 113 reinstates the business tax credits and net operating loss (“NOL”) …Read more

Productive Uses of ADR to Resolve Disputes in Family Business

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Family businesses enjoy dynamics that don’t exist in other businesses. While there are numerous benefits to a family business, close familial ties can sometimes mean disagreements feel more personal. Familial issues may also arise outside the business that can lead to internal disagreements within the business that can adversely affect the company. Think Yoko Ono. …Read more

Continuing the Family Business After Its Founder Dies

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Managing a family business is difficult enough when the founding generation is still alive. When the founders pass, however, the legal, business and family issues become much more complex because the adult decision makers that everyone relied upon, respected, and listened to, are gone. The children of Robert Smith – Mary, Josh and Matthew – …Read more

How to Better Run Your Family Owned Business

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Defining and navigating roles and responsibilities in any business is fundamental to the success of that enterprise. To create a culture of professionalism and accountability, every member of the team must have distinct and clear responsibilities. This is often easier said than done in the unique environments that frequently define family businesses. Often, a family …Read more

How Founders of New Companies Can Protect Against Personal Liability

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Starting a business can be the first step in a thrilling adventure, one that you have perhaps dreamed of for years. But as you start your venture you’re mildly terrified of the outcome. When launching a new business, budding entrepreneurs can hardly slow down long enough to do the bare minimum of forming the proper …Read more

Fiduciary Duties of Directors of Biotech Companies in the Age of the Theranos Fraud

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Theranos, Inc. was a high-flying former biotech company headquartered in Silicon Valley that claimed to have developed a point-of-care blood test that would allow health care professionals to assess the risks many diseases posed to a patient based on a few drops of that patient’s blood. The company’s valuation, before delivering a single product to …Read more

Downloading Pirated Software Without Installing It is Still Copyright Infringement

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If your business creates software or simply uses it to perform work – let’s face it, what business doesn’t use software in one way or another – we encourage you to take note of a recent ruling made by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The case – Design Data Corp. v. …Read more

How Agreements Help Avoid Conflict Among Business Partners

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Many business people fail to enter into appropriate ownership agreements that could protect them if the business fails, a partner dies, or the owners decide to part ways. Many entrepreneurs believe the legal fees and hassle needed to obtain properly drafted ownership agreements outweigh any potential benefits. When a new venture is launched, and money …Read more