Choosing A Corporate Attorney
Jan 20 2008

Picture by Sandy Blanchard
rocks-across-water-sblanchard.jpgChoosing a corporate attorney is an interesting endeavor.  I have avoided using attorney’s for Babble Soft in the past because a) they are very expensive, b) sometimes they make you feel like they need to review everything you do for fear of some horrible thing happening, and c) I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with my life what my strategic business plan was.   Since I have a new business strategy and have decided to raise funds, an attorney is a must have.

I’ve met with a couple and spoken to a few more.  The first I spoke to was the attorney at my first company and although I would love to work with her we both agreed that the firm she is at now is catered more for more established businesses (i.e., very, very expensive).   It is so much better to understand that up front because we have worked on many outside projects together, and I consider her a friend.

The second attorney I spoke to was referred by another entrepreneur in the area.  I liked her and her partner but a few things gave me pause.  One potential area of risk is the fact we might end up doing business with the other entrepreneur’s company which might result in a conflict of interest.  They had good rates and good experience but did not have an in-house tax attorney.  Since Babble Soft is currently an LLC and we’d like to continue as an LLC for at least our first round of financing, having someone who understands the tax implications could be important.

The third attorney I met had done some pro-bono work for me a year or so ago because I guess he knew I couldn’t afford his services at the time.  What I liked about him is that he does have a tax attorney in his firm, has represented several small companies in the technology space, one of my business Advisor’s has worked with him in the past, he was on time for our meeting, said he could help with introductions to potential investors, and he sent a brief follow-up note after our meeting expressing his interest in working with me.  However, his rate is $125/hour more than the attorneys at the second firm I spoke with!

Special thanks to @princess_belle who blogs at GloKay, @chelpixie who blogs at Chelpixie.com, and LPT who blogs at Direct2Dell who tweeted me things to think about and questions to ask the attorneys.  I plan on making a decision in the next couple of weeks so if you have attorney stories or suggestions to share with me or the blogosphere, please leave a comment.  Thank you!

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