Category: Start Up Information

Equity Crowdfunding for Startups

Written by JGPC Business Law on May 21, 2016.

How to use Equity Crowdfunding to Fund Your Startup Equity crowdfunding has only recently become available to startups in the United States. Not long ago, startups that sold stock to investors over the internet risked running afoul of federal securities law regulators. If you were caught soliciting investors online in violation of federal securities laws you were in violation of federal civil and criminal laws and regulations and subject to prosecution by federal and/or state agencies. This has...

Crowdfunding Models For Startups

Written by JGPC Business Law on May 15, 2016.

4 Crowdfunding Models Your Startup Can Use to Raise Capital Have you been thinking about using a crowdfunding model to launch your startup? Then you may want to understand the 4 basic types of crowdfunding models and the financial and legal implications of each one. Before you go online and start asking friends and family for money, get yourself up to speed on the various crowdfunding models available and the benefits and drawbacks of each. The Four Basic Crowdfunding Models The Crowdfunding models...

The JOBS Act

Written by JGPC Business Law on May 7, 2016.

The JOBS Act and What it Means for Your Startup The Securities and Exchange Commission has been issuing new regulations to define the details of what the JOBS Act really means. Some new rules will take effect on May 16, 2016. There are several important titles to the JOBS Act. We’ll cover them here. We will continue to cover more about the JOBS Act – especially the Crowdfunding and general solicitation exemptions – in the future. What is the JOBS Act? In 2012 Congress passed the Jumpstart...

Securities Law for Startups Part I

Written by JGPC Business Law on April 29, 2016.

(Part I – The Basics) Is your startup planning to raise money from outside investors? Then you might want to have a basic understanding of securities law. Don’t worry. You don’t have to become an expert. But you do need to know what securities are and how (and why) they are regulated. In today’s post we are going to get you up to speed on the basic securities law issues that startups face. In a future post, we will show you how to raise capital using the major federal and state securities law...

What is Crowdfunding? (and how can it help your startup?)

Written by JGPC Business Law on April 22, 2016.

Crowdfunding is an innovative way to raise money for a project by pooling small contributions from a large number of people. It’s a simple idea that – when combined with the reach of the Internet – can lead to profound consequences. Barack Obama’s unlikely 2008 campaign was largely paid for by small contributions to his online crowdfunding machine. And Kiva.org – a crowdfunded micro-lending site – has helped over 1.9 million low-income entrepreneurs and students get small...

“Close Corporation”: Probably Not The Right Choice

Written by JGPC Business Law on March 15, 2016.

One type of entity people sometimes ask us about is the California statutory “close corporation.” In general legalese a “close corporation” means a closely held corporation, a corporation that has only a few shareholders, usually people who work for the corporation. But there is a California statutory creation for small closely held (small number of shareholders) corporations created by the California legislature in the early 1990’s for people who wanted their corporation that functioned like...

4 Steps For Start Up Capital

Written by JGPC Business Law on February 26, 2016.

Startup Capital: How to Get Funding Without Losing Control of Your Business Raising startup capital is one of the first steps to getting your startup business going. But the process is not simple. If you aren’t careful you could lose control of your business to someone else. In today’s post we are going to show you the basics of raising startup capital in a way that will keep you in control of the business you create. Special Note: If you need startup advice about structuring your startup you...

What’s the Best State to Incorporate In?

Written by JGPC Business Law on February 6, 2016.

When you first startup your business you’re going to get a lot of advice as to which is the best state to incorporate in. Some of that advice will be solid. Some of it will be well-meaning, but misguided. Some of it will be wrong-headed and dangerous. So we want to warn you. If someone tries to tell you that they know “the best state to incorporate your business in,” without first thoroughly checking the facts in your particular case, they probably don’t have a clue what they are talking about....

Trademark Issues: A Cheat Sheet for Entrepreneurs

Written by JGPC Business Law on November 30, 2015.

Understanding trademark issues isn’t easy. Today’s post will give you a quick overview of some issues that entrepreneurs and established businesses face when establishing and keeping trademarked status. When entrepreneurs are selecting a name for their company they tend to think that if they form a corporation or and LLC with a name or they have a domain name that they have the right to use that name in their business. That’s not necessarily the case. The fact that you have a corporation named...

Ownership Issues For A Startup Business

Written by JGPC Business Law on November 25, 2015.

Ownership issues for your startup: Getting clear about who owns what? Not being crystal clear about ownership issues can come back to haunt the founders and investors of a new startup. Founders are sometimes pretty sloppy when they start up their business about who the owners actually are. As soon as possible, if you are serious about getting into business, you need to form an entity and allocate ownership interest to people. In other words you need to issue stock or membership interests to people...