Some of the key things that should be dealt with on day one include:

• Corporate structure: Firstly, there are more options than a standard private limited company. We are used to advising clients on the best structure for them, whether that be for a tech start-up, charity, fund or international family office. Secondly, in very general terms, appropriate structuring can help segregate risk and liability.
• Relationship between shareholders: We find that so often founders of businesses neglect to make proper arrangements to cover the relationship between themselves, other shareholders and directors. These arrangements are important to get right; they ensure everyone knows where they stand, avoids a lot of difficulties if relationships sour and can remove issues on future fund raises.
• Ensuring you have the legal basics right: There are lots of small legal points that are easy to deal with if you know about them, but also easy to miss if you don’t. These include making sure the business actually owns the IP it is developing, it has all the company registers it is required to have by law and it is not inadvertently breaching employment law.
• Leasing your first office: There is so much more to leasing an office than just identifying the right premises. It is important that the terms you agree with the target landlord are reflected in the binding documentation and there are no hidden financial liabilities or burdensome obligations. You will also need to ensure you register your lease (if for a term of more than seven years) with the Land Registry and you may need to pay stamp duty land tax / make a return to HMRC.
• Setting up employment infrastructure: Putting in place workplace policies as well as working with third parties to arrange a payroll, enrol into a pension scheme and sign up for employer’s liability insurance. You may also want to think about how best to protect the business, through confidentiality obligations and post-termination restrictions (such as non-compete clauses) in service agreements and employment contracts.

We will help to simplify things, not over-complicate them. We have an experienced, pragmatic and responsive team who can provide you with a cost-effective service.

We can help you with:

• Shareholders’ agreements
• Seed capital funding
• SEIS and EIS advice
• Identifying the best structure for your business
• Protecting intellectual property
• Data protection advice
• Employment advice (including contracts, policies, employee management, hiring, dismissals, litigation, and settlement agreements)
• Bespoke contracts
• Standard terms and conditions
• UK immigration, including sponsor licence applications, sponsor licence compliance, sponsor licence management, Visa applications and Right to Work check compliance
• Lease negotiations and post-completion regulatory matters

Recent start-ups the team have assisted include:

• Acting for a series of start-ups from London Business School
• Acting for serviced office provider Kitt
• Advising over 15 start-up investment managers on structuring and regulatory issues
• Helping establish multiple international family offices