10/27/2016
10 Big Legal Mistakes Made By Startups
1. Not making the deal clear with co-founders
2. Not starting the business as a corporation or LLC
3. Not coming up with a great standard form contract in favor of your company
4. Not complying with securities laws when issuing stock to angels/family/friends
5. Lack of employment documentation
6. Not carefully considering intellectual property protection
7. Not taking into account important tax issues
8. Coming up with a name for the company that has trademark issues, domain name problems, or other issues
9. Not having a good Terms of Use Agreement and Privacy Policy for your website
10. Not having the right legal counsel
As lawyers and venture capitalists involved with startups, we have seen plenty of legal mistakes made by entrepreneurs and startup companies. The following are some of the more common and problematic legal mistakes we have seen.