by Mike Baker | Jun 1, 2019
Few tax code sections are as technical or punitive as Section 409A. If you get things wrong, you’re staring a 20% penalty in the face… plus acceleration of tax, plus interest, plus an additional 5% penalty if you happen to live in California. But there is good news....
by Mike Baker | Mar 1, 2019
It’s a badge of honor for a founder to be able to say, “we started this company in my garage.” After all, notable companies like Apple started that way. On the other hand, founders do not enjoy living in their parent’s garage. When the typical lifecycle from formation...
by Mike Baker | Feb 1, 2019
So, you want to grant a stock option in a privately-held corporation? Here’s how, in 10 easy steps… Step 1: Have legal counsel prepare an equity incentive plan, form of option grant notice, option agreement, notice of exercise, and board and stockholder consent. These...
by Mike Baker | Jan 2, 2019
The other day I received this email from a corporate attorney: “I just got docs for these guys. They are an LLC that elected to be treated as an S-Corp. Why in the world would anyone do that? Ah yes, why would anyone do that? The story goes like this: A company starts...
by Mike Baker | Nov 1, 2018
Any time someone calls me and asks about “warrants” I immediately ask, are you talking about a “compensatory warrant” or a “non-compensatory warrant”? The person on the other end of the phone isn’t always sure. This stems in part from the fact that the paperwork to...
