Duane Morris LLP - Venture Capital/Emerging Companies

Venture Capital/Emerging Companies

For entrepreneurs, early stage companies and developing mid-sized companies, Duane Morris attorneys provide a wealth of guidance and counsel to help them balance the need to raise capital with preserving their long term business goals and flexibility. We fully understand the private and public markets and when it is appropriate for a business to access capital from those markets. We regularly advise our clients on timing, structure and the appropriate type of capital to access when they are seeking funding. We have helped our clients through all stages of the business cycle, including start-up, venture financings, debt financings, going public, strategic growth, changes in the business model,

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going private, M&A, bankruptcy and distressed asset transactions. Our focus is on our client’s vision and goals and our aim is to help our clients create value and opportunity. We appreciate the difference between helping our clients simply raise capital and helping our clients find the right investors, with the right relationships, to partner with to grow the business.

Experience and Insight

This level and depth of experience enables us to leverage for our clients our working relationships with top-tier lenders, investment banks, venture capital firms and their portfolio companies, emerging and middle-market companies and individual investors and entrepreneurs. Duane Morris’ extensive industry experience is complemented by its presence in cities across the United States, giving our lawyers keen insight into many local and regional markets, as well as access to national and international markets that only a large, international law firm can provide.

With a wealth of legal experience across a variety of industries as varied as biotech, pharmaceuticals, internet technologies, fashion and retail, Duane Morris provides a full range of corporate, finance and business advisory services to our clients. We have experienced practitioners in many areas such as intellectual property, domestic and international tax, antitrust, ERISA, corporate governance, employment, technology, environmental and real estate as well as highly regulated areas such as healthcare, life sciences, securities and energy. Our practice is very diverse, making us well equipped to handle virtually any legal issue that our clients face.

At Duane Morris, our long history in the venture capital markets gives our attorneys the knowledge to guide clients from a legal perspective and the experience to analyze the most effective business strategies at every stage of their growth. We work with clients to not only spot opportunities but to avoid common missteps and plan effectively for likely developmental issues through smart structuring and tax-advantaged approaches. Our experience encompasses all sides of the transaction: from debt to equity, from investment to realization and from buying to selling.

Entrepreneurial Spirit and Business Orientation

The Harvard Business School, in its 2006 case study on the firm, reported that Duane Morris itself "valued an entrepreneurial, business-oriented focus" in running the firm and that many clients recognized a kinship. The case study went on to say that this resonates with clients because they not only could see Duane Morris' entrepreneurial spirit, but also could also see that the firm understands that money is not an abstraction. Because Duane Morris' business orientation, as an organization it understands what it is to lose money and to make money, this helps our lawyers put themselves in our clients' position when business decisions need to be made. We believe that only when client and counsel are able to share the same strategic vision can the best business results be achieved.

Our venture capital group has served as counsel to numerous companies who are seeking venture investment and has considerable experience in structuring venture capital and other equity and mezzanine investments. Our understanding of the special circumstances faced by emerging businesses is evidenced by the programs Duane Morris has created, such as Venture Fridays (providing start-ups, early-stage and emerging growth companies an opportunity to present their business plan to our attorneys) and our Emerging Company Pricing Plan (an alternative fee program designed specifically for certain growth companies). We advise our clients in all aspects of their businesses, including intellectual property, contracts, transactions, tax, labor and employment, immigration, international operations and regulatory issues. Our daily and intimate involvement with venture capital funds, angel investors and emerging companies allows us to provide sound business advice as well as solid legal counsel on varied and complex issues. We are actively involved with our clients and have helped numerous companies raise venture capital financing.

For More Information

For additional information, please contact George J. Nemphos or any of the practice members referenced in the Attorney Listing.