Kleinbard’s attorneys are well suited to provide sophisticated and practical counseling and transactional expertise to assist a young company from its formation through its various growth cycles. The Firm prides itself on the fact that entrepreneurial clients routinely return for advice as they launch additional ventures. We combine the technical expertise required to navigate complex transactions and regulatory regimes with the savvy advice start-up companies require before they have built a management infrastructure to support the venture. The founders of a new company need to focus their attention on the business — our job is to tailor your entity and capital structure to provide maximum flexibility and benefit as your business grows.

Our services for this sector include:

  • Formation and structuring of business entities;
  • Business counseling;
  • Corporate finance, including both equity (angel investment, venture capital, and private equity) and debt (institutional and innovative);
  • Joint ventures and strategic alliances;
  • Acquisitions and dispositions;
  • IP protection and licensing;
  • Tax advice and counseling (including succession and estate planning);
  • Employment law and the structuring of arrangements with independent contractors and consultants;
  • Executive compensation;
  • Employee benefit plans;
  • Real estate; and
  • Government relations.

Examples of our recent representations of emerging businesses include:

  • Representing an angel investor in a start-up retail company focusing on clothing and housewares made from sustainable materials.
  • Representing a direct response marketing company that uses social networks to generate publicity for brands and retailers in its initial round of equity financing.
  • Representing a strategic partner in a joint venture with a healthcare technology company providing its initial round of preferred stock investment, and the structuring and negotiation of a related licensing and marketing agreement.
  • Representing a management team in a telecommunications start-up company in negotiating and structuring the “sweat equity” component of the capital structure as well as its executive compensation arrangements.
  • Representing a start-up options trading company in the acquisition of software and related equipment in return for a net profits interest.
  • Representing a start-up company in connection with successfully obtaining one of the first supplier licenses under Pennsylvania’s Gaming Act.