Startup & AI Blog

Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
May 2, 2024

FTC Bans Noncompetes, Litigation to Follow

The FTC bans noncompetes nationwide, citing violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act. This has major implications in many industries, such as tech and professional services. Read on for details on the FTC's rule and upcoming litigation.

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Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
May 2, 2024

When You Need an Attorney

Your company is humming along, but you're faced with a problem: you need to hire and update the cap table, you're going to sign an LOI or NDA with a potential customer, and you're looking to hire more than 5 employees domestically. Here, I describe common scenarios where it makes sense to engage an attorney to help you untangle and prepare the right documents so you can get back to building your company.

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Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
April 25, 2024

Legal Advice v. Legal Information

Knowing what's legal advice and what's legal information will help you put context around what you read online, what advice you hear, and how to decide what to do next for your company.

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Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
April 19, 2024

Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) & Federal Tax Savings

QSBS is a hot topic amongst founders and early employees when it comes to the potential federal income tax savings. Here, I'll describe the requirements for a stock sale to qualify as QSBS so you can sell your stock at the right time and reap huge tax savings.

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Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
April 12, 2024

What's Next After Incorporation: Corporate Governance

Running a company is more than building a product and getting a bank account together. It also involves something called corporate governance, which is a framework of processes to document key company decisions, such as appointing officers and issuing equity. It's a necessary part of running a startup properly, getting funding, hiring and retaining top talent, and scaling up. Read on for basics of corporate governance, and when board consent is required for certain company actions.

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Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
April 5, 2024

What's Next After Incorporation: Operations

Most founders aren't worried about operations; they're focused on building great products customers love. But, some tasks need to be done to get the company off the ground and ready to start hiring, building, and taking in revenue. Learn more about what to do to get yourselves set up.

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Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
March 29, 2024

What's Next After Incorporation: Legal

What other legal docs does a startup need after incorporating? Here, I discuss what founders and the company needs to get going and focus on building amazing products.

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Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
March 22, 2024

When to Use an Attorney to Incorporate

Not sure when to work with an attorney to incorporate? Here are some cases where it's helpful to work with corporate attorneys and other specialists.

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Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
March 15, 2024

Selecting Entity Type for Incorporation

Ready to incorporate but not sure how to select an entity? More information on most popular options for startups looking to raise from US VCs and why.

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Early Stage Startup Series

Michelle Ma
March 8, 2024

When Should You Incorporate?

Tips on when incorporation is appropriate and business critical.

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AI Talk

Michelle Ma
March 4, 2024

Patent inventors can only be natural humans & other USPTO Guidance

Only humans can be inventors on patent applications and other USPTO guidance for AI companies.

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Intro

Michelle Ma
February 27, 2024

Who's This Blog For?

This blog is for early and growth stage startups in the SaaS and AI space, who want to understand where aspects of their business touch on legal.

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