Me Too You

My new book: Virtual Incorporation

After a year in the making, my co-authors, Julie Tower-Pierce and Paul Gilles, and I are so excited to announce t he rel ease of our book Virtual Incorporation: A Lawyer's Guide to the Formation of Virtual Corporations. It is published by the American Bar Association and is available for pre-order now. This was so much fun to write and I can't wait to see where the discussion leads.

Don't be afraid to negotiate

Cross-posted from my business law blog, Whereas.

I work with many of clients that are just getting started in the business world. They have something of value, a large company wants to work with them, but somewhere in the contract process, they start doubting themselves. Maybe I have just seen so many negotiations, but I always feel that it is fine to ask for what you think is reasonable. After all, the goal in a contract negotiation is to get to a win-win. So don't be afraid to voice your concerns, ask questions, redline an agreement, ask for a Word version of an agreement that your large company counter-party has sent to you in PDF format. Negotiate! A draft of a contract that your counter-party has sent to you is just that - a draft. Sometimes the language that ends up in drafts is just standard language that the larger company may use as a starting point. If you see something that seems really unreasonable, it is likely inviting negotiation. So start the discussion.

A note about negotiation on the legal stuff: the technicalities of the legalese in contract can get complex, so if there is something that you don't understand, ask about it and consider hiring a lawyer to help you. Be aware that every word counts and that legal rights and obligations have real value (for instance, a more expansive warranty is worth something).

A note about negotiation on the legal stuff: the technicalities of the legalese in contract can get complex, so if there is something that you don't understand, ask about it and consider hiring a lawyer to help you. Be aware that every word counts and that legal rights and obligations have real value (for instance, a more expansive warranty is worth something).