At Foundry Group, we take a strong interest in the policy and legal ecosystem that affects the start up industry. We’ve been among the first to support initiatives like Startup Visa and patent reform and have been active in city, state and national politics in the hopes of keeping the U.S. the center of the…
Three keys to a building a strong ecosystem for startups are: (1) entrepreneurs; (2) technology; and (3) investors. For a long time, newer entrepreneurial communities have relied on the first two segments to attract the third. We are now realizing that to sustain and grow a vibrant entrepreneurial community, we need to support all three….
Given my background as a recovering lawyer, I’m often asked by portfolio companies, friends, other VCs, etc. for attorney referrals. I don’t get asked too often on routine matters, but the really important “bet the company” stuff where counsel selection is critical. Fortunately, I’ve had the pleasure to work with a lot of good folks…
One of our portfolio companies, Sympoz has announced the launch of their programs targeting startup entrepreneurs. Even better, the series stars some of my favorite people in startup land: my partner Brad Feld, along with Brad Bernthal of the University of Colorado Law School and Mike Platt , partner at Cooley LLP. We teach you everything that…
I am deeply disgusted to report that the good name of LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbel is officially worthless. This institution which has built its reputation on providing accurate information to lawyers and the general public about lawyers is now nothing more than a marketing organization. Their ratings can not be trusted. How do I know? Simple, they recently…
More and more I’ve been hearing about companies not filing Form D’s in conjunction with their financings. The reason: We don’t want the press picking up on our fundraising / we want to control the message / we are stealth, etc. This post isn’t about the value of being stealth. I’ve always thought stealth mode…
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about lawyer attendance at board meetings. Normally, most venture-focused law firms attend board meetings free of charge. And like most things in life, people value things by how much they pay for them. (If you don’t believe me, check out the healthcare and education industries, to name a few)….
The Wall Street Journal published an article today called “First Thing We Do, Let’s Kill All the Law Schools.” The basic premise is that the costs are outweighing the benefits. The authors claim that the total cost of going to law school is around $275,000 which leads to higher legal fees to citizens as it…
As Dean Phil Weiser develops Colorado Law and meets the opportunities and challenges ahead for legal education, he is building his team with a number of positions open. If you are interested, or know great candidates who are, they can reach out to Phil directly (phil.weiser@colorado.edu) and read more below: An Academic Entrepreneur to Build…
Recently, the New York Times published an article called At Well-Paying Law Firms, a Low-Paid Corner. In short, the paper is reporting that some very well known firms are hiring lawyers at cut rate prices (less than half) of what associates on partner track are making at the firm. And these cheaper resources are performing…