Legal Basics: The Corporate Charter and Bylaws

Thursday, August 6th, 2009

In many of our  posts we presume the reader has at least a passing familiarity with basic legal concepts, so periodically we like to take time to explain some of our legalese. This post introduces the two documents that govern the operations of most corporations: the Charter and the Bylaws.
The Charter is the document filed [...]

Legal Basics: Formalities of corporate decision-making

Wednesday, July 15th, 2009

Corporations typically have a three-tiered governing structure: the shareholders elect a Board of Directors to oversee operations and the Board appoints officers to run the day-to-day business. While a corporation’s officers make the vast majority of business decisions ad hoc, sometimes approval of the corporation’s Board and/or shareholders is required. Entrepreneurs are often dismayed by [...]

Common Legal Pitfalls to Avoid

Friday, June 26th, 2009

There are many ways in which a business’s prospects can be harmed in the early stages of a company’s development, and the last thing a start-up wants is to be on the cusp of receiving financing only to learn that a potential investor has uncovered a legal “gotcha” in the course of its due diligence. [...]

Choosing the Best Form of Entity for Your New Company

Thursday, May 14th, 2009

For many entrepreneurs, their first experience with corporate law occurs when they decide to organize their fledgling business into one of the several forms of business entities permitted by law in most states. For the first time business owner, the options presented by legal counsel can be confusing, in part because the differences among some [...]