Early-Stage Businesses

Early-stage businesses, whether in startup, capital-raising, growth, and/or emerging company/emerging growth mode – and whether in technology, biotech, or another dynamic field – promise exciting opportunities for their entire communities of founders, principals, employees, investors, and business partners, as they also face challenges and risks to realize their goals.

Gibbons is deeply experienced and heavily involved in advising early-stage clients for both companies and investors, allowing us to recognize trending issues and solutions on either side. We also maintain many close, longstanding relationships with parties on both sides, allowing us to make key introductions for our clients, including assisting clients in the Gibbons Corporate Legal Incubator Program.

These clients include, on the company side, those involved in technology, software, SaaS, hardware, media, digital marketing, web apps, telecommunications, info-tech, and green tech; biotech, pharmaceuticals, and life sciences; and all other B2B, B2C, consumer, commercial, and industrial goods and services. For investors, our clients include angels; VCs; private equity; family offices; corporate/strategic investors; and lenders.

We advise and handle matters with respect to:

  • Formations/structures – domestic and cross-border
  • Capital raising, including seed, angel, venture capital, and capital markets
  • Financing through straight debt, convertible debt, mezzanine, equity, and grants
  • Single and multi-investor financing
  • Acquisitions, mergers, divestitures, and full business sales
  • Restructuring and recapitalization
  • Securities law, securities transactions
  • Technology licensing, tech transfer, IP protection
  • Employment law, executive compensation, and benefits
  • Tax structures, planning, disputes, and other matters
  • Corporate governance and business control
  • Strategic relationships
  • Regulatory
  • Real estate requirements
  • Dispute resolution, business, commercial, employment, government, and related issues
  • The Gibbons Corporate Legal Incubator Program

Our Early-Stage Business attorneys advise, guide, negotiate, structure, document, and close angel, venture capital, debt, and other financings, as well as joint ventures, licensing, strategic alliances, and supply chain arrangements, helping our clients achieve favorable terms and conditions while avoiding pitfalls and minimizing risk. We help with client business plans, organizational structures, and investor strategies and presentations. We provide the full range of corporate services that emerging companies require as they grow, mature, and prosper. Most importantly, we understand the mindsets of the enterprise and the investor and provide practical advice and solutions.

Our Early-Stage Business practice is further enhanced by our leading Private Equity practice, where we represent venture capital and private equity firms in fund formation and portfolio investments, as well as with issues throughout the investment cycle. We have also represented a large array of other investors, including family offices, corporations, insurance companies, and pension fund investors in direct and secondary investments in private equity, venture capital, and real estate funds.