TL;DR: A shareholders’ agreement earns its value the day shareholders disagree, not the day it’s signed. The provisions that matter most in practice are the ones most founders skip in the excitement of starting a business: how decisions actually get made, what happens when two equal shareholders reach a genuine deadlock, who has first right […]
Category Archives: Contracts & Agreements
23
Feb
Feb
TL;DR: A SAFE and a convertible note both let an early-stage company raise money without setting a valuation today, but they are structurally different instruments. A SAFE is not debt: no interest, no maturity date, no repayment obligation. A convertible note is a debt instrument: it accrues interest and carries a maturity date that forces […]
24
Jan
Jan
Short answer: You should hire a contract lawyer before you sign, not after something goes wrong. For most individuals and small businesses, that means a flat-fee review or drafting engagement rather than a retainer. The rest of this guide covers when you actually need one, what it costs, and how to tell a good contract […]
17
Jan
Jan
Overview Any Contract in Dubai and the UAE operate under a unique legal framework that blends civil law principles with Sharia law influences and free zone regulations. Whether you’re signing an employment contract, leasing commercial property, entering a partnership, or agreeing to a service contract, understanding what you’re committing to isn’t optional, it’s essential. In […]
16
Nov
Nov
TL;DR: Founders tend to focus on valuation, investment amount, and dilution percentage when reviewing a term sheet, but the clauses that actually determine your outcome are usually elsewhere: liquidation preferences, anti-dilution protection, board control, vesting resets, and drag-along thresholds. A term sheet with an impressive valuation and terms that destroy founder economics is a worse […]
16
Nov
Nov
TL;DR: A shareholders’ agreement and your company’s Articles of Association do different jobs, and confusing them is the single most common drafting mistake. The Articles are a public, statutory document filed with the Registrar of Companies, governed by the Companies Act, 2013, and legally binding on the company itself. A shareholders’ agreement is a private […]
15
Nov
Nov
TL;DR: A founder agreement needs to answer six questions precisely, not generally: who owns what percentage and how that changes with future funding, how equity is earned over time rather than granted outright, what each founder’s role and decision-making authority actually is, what happens if a founder leaves voluntarily or is removed, how IP created […]
22
Sep
Sep
TL;DR: A contract lawyer who has never worked on an AI or technology deal can still draft a competent, enforceable agreement, but competent is not the same as adequate here. AI and tech contracts raise a specific set of questions, who owns AI training data and outputs, who is liable when an algorithm makes a […]
09
Sep
Sep
TL;DR: A breach of contract happens when a party fails to perform a duty the contract actually specifies, without a legal excuse. Not every shortfall counts equally: a material breach defeats the whole purpose of the contract and can justify ending it, while a minor breach only supports a claim for the specific loss it […]
09
Sep
Sep
TL;DR: Yes, and a lawyer’s real value here is rarely about finding a clever loophole. It is about running a proper diagnostic on your contract and your situation, identifying which legitimate exit route actually applies to you, and then executing that route strategically, through negotiation, a formal demand, or litigation as a last resort, rather […]