Kingsport Startup Attorneys & Lawyers

What is an Exclusivity Clause?

An exclusivity clause is part of a bigger legal document that restricts the signer from buying, selling, or promoting any goods or services from any person or company other than the issuing company associated with the contract. In other words, the company or individual works exclusively with the issuer of the contract. Many company owners who are excited and eager to get started in business may overlook the clause. But violating an exclusivity clause can come with stiff penalties and fines. It is also very difficult to break this clause of a contract without being held responsible for the penalties listed.

A violation of an exclusivity clause may result in a cancellation of the contract, leaving the signer responsible for any goods or services purchased. But this scenario is likely the best case, since the contract issuer can take more extreme legal action. In some cases, violators of exclusivity agreements have been restricted fr

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What Is Startup Capital?

Startup capital is the money needed to start a new business. Startup capital might be needed to pay for office space, permits, licenses, inventory, product development, manufacturing, marketing, or any other expense that results from starting a new business.

Alternate Terms

Seed capital, startup funds, working capital, or seed money.

Types of Startup Capital

For each stage of its life, a company has different financial needs. Each level of funding plays a unique role in that stage of your business.

• Seed capital is used for initial research and planning before starting the business.

• Startup capital pays for rent and supplies during the first year or so of your business.

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What Is DMCA Protection?

The DMCA, or the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, protects creative works on the internet and contains the legal foundation for rights management in digital works. It covers things such as articles, videos, and photographs.

The DMCA protects both copyright owners and internet service providers (ISP), otherwise known as online service providers (OSP). To warn would-be content thieves away, you can use a DMCA Protection Badge on your website.

Copyright Owners

The DMCA gives copyright owners a simple and straightforward way to get their content removed from websites that don't have permission to use it. They can do this by sending a DMCA takedown notice to the ISP that hosts the offending conten

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The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or JOBS Act, is a law signed into effect by President Obama in 2012, designed to promote the growth of jobs in small businesses. Its goal is to make it easier for startups to raise the money and equity they need to grow, and give startups and small businesses more access to capital.

Why Is the JOBS Act Important?

The JOBS Act has seven sections overall, but three key sections are pertinent to investors.

• Title II allows public advertisements of securities offerings to accredited investors.

• Title III opens the door to equity crowdfunding directed at the general public and gives non-accredited investors more opportunities to invest in startups.

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What is a Cap Table?

A capitalization table (or “cap table”) is a spreadsheet that, generally speaking, lists all of a company’s securities (stock, warrants, options, etc.) and who owns them. Put another way, a cap sheet is a ledger that lists the investors in a company, along with each investor’s percentage of ownership, equity value and dilution, and other related information. Cap sheets are most commonly used in the early stages of a startup or venture, often created before any other initial company documents are created. A fully diluted cap table will show the percentage ownership in the company for each investor, assuming that all convertible notes will eventually convert to equity.  

The simplest form of a cap table lists a start-up's shareholders and how many shares each shareholder owns. Since ownership of shares will change as investors and employees come and go, a cap table needs to includ

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