No, You Don’t Need a Holding Company for Your Startup

One question I seem to be hearing more often from prospective clients lately: “How do I set up a holding company for my startup?” The answer is you don’t. Or, perhaps more precisely, you shouldn’t. A holding company is a company that owns other companies. The classic and most successful example is Berkshire Hathaway, the … Read More

What You Need to Know Before Buying or Selling a Business in Colorado

Most business owners and many lawyers underestimate the nuances of how state and local laws can affect the purchase or sale of business. While many of the laws and legal boilerplate that you might see in a purchase transaction will be consistent across state lines, there are some critical ways in which they differ. Understanding … Read More

Summary of Colorado Blue Sky Laws

Summary of Colorado Blue Sky Laws (Updated)

I’ve found that while entrepreneurs have an excellent sense of the law when it comes to term sheets and venture deals, they have a much more limited understanding of securities laws. What’s worse, many lawyers I’ve talked to aren’t aware of the details of Colorado’s securities laws, either. Most competent attorneys know about the basics … Read More

Splitting Equity

How to Split Equity in Your Startup (updated)

Most startup founders have a pretty basic understanding of how to split equity in their startup. “I want to split equity 70-30” or “I want to split it 50-50.” That’s an okay starting point, but it doesn’t get you all the way there. To get it right, you need to understand the little nuances. And … Read More

The One Thing People Who File Trademarks On Their Own Always Get Wrong

You don’t need to be an experienced attorney to file for a trademark. It’s not that hard. Don’t get me wrong: If you don’t know what you’re doing, there’s a good chance you’ll get it wrong. But it’s not that hard to do. You’ll have to spend a whole bunch of time online reading and … Read More

Five Ways to Handle Startup Founder Disputes

Conflicts with your business associate(s), particularly for start-ups, can be difficult. Most importantly, you want to address and resolve those conflicts before they interrupt your bottom line—building a successful company and promoting a solid venture. It cannot be said enough: Start-ups and any other business relationships should be grounded in written documentation. If you have … Read More

Seven Rookie Mistakes Startups Make When Raising Money

1) Working with the Wrong Kind of Investors There’s a saying in the startup world: “the first money that goes in determines how much money, if any money at all, comes in after.” Regular startup investors are an incestuous lot, and they’re usually a pretty sophisticated group, too. If you look at the resumes of superstar … Read More