Please Join Us for Our Startups and Emerging Companies Seminar
Kick-start Your New Year!
We have joined forces with Puget Sound Business Journal to present our first annual seminar geared toward entrepreneurs, startups and emerging growth companies on Thursday, December 4. The seminar will be focused on bringing your 2014 to a successful conclusion and kick-starting the new year!
Highlights include:
- Five fast-paced, pragmatic presentations from legal and other experts purely from the startup perspective;
- A panel of experienced investors providing tips on setting valuation with an “in-the-trenches” moderator; and
- One-on-one access to attorneys from various disciplines to answer your specific legal questions.
Agenda:
7:30 – 8 a.m. Registration and Breakfast
8 – 8:15 a.m. Welcome and Introduction
8:15 – 9:15 a.m. Your Identity: Getting It Right From the Start
Frances M. Jagla, Lane Powell PC, and Wendy Wheeler-Jacobs, Addison Whitney
Your company and product names are important to you and to your customer. Explore the naming process with brand development and trademark experts to find an effective and cost-efficient way of creating and protecting your brands in a global marketplace.
9:15 – 10 a.m. Funding Your Business Without Going to Jail
Brian B. DeFoe, Lane Powell PC
Recent changes in federal and state law allow for greater flexibility in selling your company’s securities to the public. However, that flexibility isn’t limitless, and there are some traps for the unwary. During our discussion, we will review traditional and new structures for conducting securities offerings, as well as structures that may avoid application of those laws altogether.
10 – 10:15 a.m. Break
10:15 – 11 a.m. IP Investment 101: How to Gain the Edge Over Your Competition
Gregory F. Wesner, Lane Powell PC
Intellectual property (IP) acts as a deterrent and a barrier to competition, and it has intrinsic value. Learn how to identify which IP types are right for your startup, how to protect your IP on a budget and hedge your bets with an IP investment.
11 – 11:45 a.m. Beyond Cash: Using Equity to Reward Your Employees
Craig A. Day and Jeremy Babener, Lane Powell PC
Understanding the various forms of equity compensation that can be used to reward employees and how each is treated for tax purposes will enable you to offer packages that maximize the benefits to your employees and minimize the costs to you. During our discussion, we will give you the information you need to make informed decisions about how to reward employees with equity compensation. We will also provide you with practical advice on how to avoid some of the most common tax problems we come across in our practice.
11:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Lunch
12:15 – 1:15 p.m. Investors Panel: The Question of Valuation From Three Unique Perspectives
Moderator: Frank Paganelli, Startup Consultant
Panelists: Ken Glass, Angel Investor; Brock Mansfield, Keeler Investments Group; Amy McCullough, Trilogy Equity Partners
An experienced startup consultant will ask an angel investor, a family-office professional and a venture capitalist everything you want to know about valuation from their unique perspectives.
1:15 – 2:15 p.m. Top 10 Questions I Wish I Had Asked My Employment Lawyer
Katheryn Bradley and Sarah E. Swale, Lane Powell PC
This is your opportunity to get answers to the questions you’ve always wanted to ask. Can we agree to hold off on paying employees until we make it big? Can we use independent contractors to save money? Do we need to offer paid time off, sick leave and health insurance to our employees? Can we pay everyone a salary to avoid overtime? And, why would we need an employee handbook?
2:15 – 3 p.m. “Ask the Attorneys” Session
Attorneys from various practice areas including IP, Business, Labor and Employment, and Corporate Finance will be available to answer any of your questions.