IP Licenses Are IP Leases
An intellectual property license is a lease for use of Intellectual property. If attorneys and their clients understood this elemental principle, then licensing negotiations would often be less complicated, less fought over, and less expensive. Certain words are used in the same manner in both types of agreements, such as the words “term”, “termination”, and […]
Recording Virtual Meetings
The general advice from risk-averse attorneys is straightforward: don’t do it! This advice is premised on four key considerations. First, litigators and corporate counsel do not like surprises. They do not like shaking their heads when they have a great case….until watching the recording of the meeting. Second, with phone calls to people around the […]
Successor Liability
Buyers of businesses prefer asset sale transactions to avoid inheriting some or all of the liabilities of the seller. It is commonly known buyers are not responsible for sellers’ liabilities that are not assumed by the buyer in the asset purchase agreement. Sloppy drafting and inexperience are the main reasons exceptions to this rule are […]
When Good Non-Recourse Loans Go Bad
More than $5 trillion of commercial real estate-related debt is scheduled to mature by the end of 2024. Significant demand to refinance debt over the next fourteen months will occur regardless of economic conditions. But current and anticipated economic conditions for commercial real estate owners are not promising. Finding affordable refinancing opportunities will grow increasingly […]
Force Majeure Clauses Remain Very Important
Simply adding “pandemics” or “Covid-19” to force majeure clauses is lazy lawyering. Courts analyze force majeure clauses according to their specific language. Ironically, this is one area where attorneys are failing to put in the time—billable time!—to ensure their clients are properly advised. The following are issues that are commonly overlooked: How does climate change […]
Delving Into Hotel Management Agreements
Third party management companies provide great value for hotel owners. Yet owners and their attorneys often do not look for third party managers that provide the best possible suite of services or cost savings because they do not know what to ask. The following points address issues owners and their attorneys should look for or […]
Trade Secret Insurance Considerations
Trade secret insurance protects businesses from financial losses resulting from the theft, misappropriation, or unauthorized disclosure of their trade secrets. A broad definition of trade secrets requires information to be (a) protected as confidential and proprietary; and (b) have economic value because the public does not have access to the information. That being said, do […]
Smart Ways To Minimize Legal Risk
Smart businessowners understand managing legal risk increases a company’s bottom line and, therefore, its value. More than ever, attorneys are the generals leading defense preparation and implementation to protect the company’s assets from attacks coming from every direction. It is well understood business risks are frequently unintended or unforeseen. When this happens, the company faces […]
Can You Do the Side Hustle?
Millions of full-time employees are creating new businesses as second sources of income with the goal of transforming the new businesses into primary sources of income. This begs a simple question: what is the legal framework governing side hustles? From a practical perspective, an employer expects its employees to do their jobs. In formal […]
Do You Know What Is In Your By-Laws?
If your answer to this question is no, then you may want to consider brushing them off for many reasons: estate planning, corporate governance, and preventing (or preparing for) disputes are common reasons why people undertake a review. Within each of these contexts, if any changes need to be made then it is better to […]
