Christian Meisser - LEXR | Legal Advice For Early Stage Startups

Timestamps:

1:50 – What mistakes do Swiss startups make repeatedly when it comes to the legal aspect?
10:54 – How to get out of a tricky contract
26:30 – How to handle investors
40:00 – HR: attracting and retaining talent
48:50 – Should you have a strong legal partner on your side?

The Episode In 60 Seconds

There are 5 legal areas every startup should have covered:

Corporate law

Have a clear agreement in place of how the departure of a co-founder would be handled.
Critically look at shareholders agreements and make sure you understand the implications in case of an exit.

Contract law

Make sure that any IP produced for you by a third party will also belong to you.
Always read contracts before signing. In the B2B business, there is no 30 day return policy.
Ensure liability caps on sales contracts in case your product causes unintentional harm to your client.

Regulations

Be aware of how tougher privacy and data protection laws affect you and your business model.
Know which sectors you need special licenses for.

HR law

Make sure your employee contracts contain a provision for IP created by employees.
Sign any employee contract by hand.
Consider employee stock option plans.

Intellectual property

Software is usually protected by copyright rather than patent law. The only way to effectively protect your code is by not disclosing it.
For hardware, be aware of existing patents and consider patenting yourself.
Consider protecting your company name if it is crucial for your business.

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