TL;DR: A Statement of Work (SOW) is the document that defines the specific work to be done, the deliverables, timeline, and price, for a particular project or engagement. It usually sits underneath a Master Service Agreement (MSA), which sets the overarching legal terms that apply across every project. The MSA handles the “how we work […]
09
Jul
Jul
TL;DR: A contract lawyer’s cost depends far more on how they bill and how complex your contract is than on the document’s title. Hourly rates for business and contract lawyers commonly run from around $150 to $500+ an hour in major markets, but the more predictable route is fixed-fee pricing, where a straightforward contract can […]
08
Jul
Jul
TL;DR: A cap table shows who owns your company today. A fully diluted cap table shows who could own it tomorrow, once every option, warrant, SAFE, and convertible note that can turn into shares actually does. Most founders track the first and are blindsided by the second. Understanding fully diluted ownership, and the “shadow cap […]
07
Jul
Jul
TL;DR: AI vendor contracts are not just software contracts with a new label. They quietly take rights that ordinary SaaS agreements do not: the right to train the vendor’s model on your data, ownership or control of the outputs you generate, and broad protection for the vendor when the AI gets something wrong. The two […]
03
Jul
Jul
TL;DR: Hiring an international contractor exposes your business to four main legal risks: not owning the IP they create, misclassifying them as a contractor when the law treats them as an employee, relying on a weak or missing written contract, and, the one most people get wrong, choosing the wrong governing law. Our firm’s view […]
21
Jun
Jun
TL;DR: What happens to equity when a co-founder leaves depends almost entirely on one thing: whether vesting and leaver provisions are in place. Vested shares are generally the departing founder’s to keep. Unvested shares can usually be reclaimed by the company. If there is no agreement at all, the founder typically keeps their full stake, […]
10
Jun
Jun
TL;DR: A most favoured nation (MFN) clause in a SAFE or convertible note lets an earlier investor automatically claim the better terms you give a later investor. If you offer a lower valuation cap to close a strong investor down the line, the MFN clause can pull that lower cap back to your earlier investors […]
30
May
May
TL;DR: A convertible note is a short-term loan that converts into equity when your next round triggers it. Convertible note agreement drafting decides the principal, the interest, the maturity date, the valuation cap, the discount, and the conversion triggers. These clauses control your dilution and your risk. Quick overview: This guide walks through what a […]
28
May
May
TL;DR: A SAFE note review is a lawyer or advisor checking your Simple Agreement for Future Equity before you sign it. The terms that matter most are the valuation cap, the discount, whether it is pre-money or post-money, the MFN clause, and the conversion triggers. These quietly decide how much of your company you give […]
25
May
May
When a contract dispute lands on your desk, the first instinct is usually to ask who is right. The more useful question, at least to begin with, is how you are going to resolve it. Because the route you take, mediation, arbitration, or litigation, will shape the cost, the timeline, the privacy, and often the […]