1Incorporation
Most US startups incorporate as a Delaware C-Corp. It's what investors expect and provides the most flexibility for equity.
Incorporate early—before you have co-founders, employees, or revenue. It's much cleaner to assign IP and equity to an entity than to individuals.
Use a service like Clerky, Stripe Atlas, or a lawyer. Don't try to DIY your incorporation.
- Delaware C-Corp is the default for a reason—don't get creative
- Incorporate before writing any code as a team
- Keep your cap table clean from day one
2Founder Agreements
All founders should have vesting. Even if you're best friends now, circumstances change. 4-year vesting with 1-year cliff is standard.
Define roles, responsibilities, and what happens if someone leaves early.
Put it in writing. Verbal agreements between founders cause 80% of startup breakups.
3Intellectual Property
All IP must be assigned to the company. Use a PIIA (Proprietary Information and Inventions Assignment) for founders and employees.
If you built anything before incorporating, formally assign it to the company.
File provisional patents early if you have novel technology. It's cheap insurance.
4Employment Law
Classify workers correctly. Misclassifying employees as contractors can result in massive penalties.
Offer letters should be clear about at-will employment, equity grants, and confidentiality.
Follow local employment laws. California, for example, has strict rules about non-competes.
- Use standard templates from a startup lawyer
- Set up proper payroll from the start
- Document everything, even with early hires
5Contracts & Terms
Have Terms of Service and Privacy Policy from day one. These protect you and are required by app stores.
Use standard contracts for customers and vendors. Don't sign anything non-standard without lawyer review.
Read what you sign. Especially investor documents.