Jay Sachetti joined Jeff O’Brien, partner at Husch Blackwell and Dyanne Ross-Hanson, president of Exit Planning Strategies talked about the market for mergers and acquisitions, exit planning opportunities for companies that don’t end up for sale and how companies can maximize their eventual sale price during an early October panel at the first Upsize on Tap event at Summit Brewing Co. in St. Paul.
When the state Legislature passed a law requiring employers to provide paid leave and safe time for employees, Justin Bieganek started hearing differing details from friends, colleagues and peers.
Customers like the predictability that comes with two young programs offered by Leonard, Street and Deinard, the Minneapolis law firm, says attorney Scott Erickson. He's with the privately held and closely held companies group.
First Counsel is for early-stage businesses, and is the more popular of the two programs. For $10,000 a year, customers receive the legal services they need to start a business, such as counseling on the right type of entity, forming the business, searching the name, getting business licenses and permits, preparing agreements, and then handling routine legal matters that come up.
The program is geared for startups, although many customers have been in business for several years but neglected the legal work. In those cases attorneys will go back and put in place whatever is missing.
Out-of-the-ordinary legal matters are extra, but it's up to the attorney to say when something doesn't fall under the program, Erickson says. The law firm has developed the program over the last couple of years.
Core Counsel was rolled out more recently, and that's for companies further along the road. "It has a broader menu of legal services," Erickson says. "It's a little bit like we're the general counsel for a client, but we're in a law firm."
The annual fee is fixed for Core Counsel as well, but negotiated in advance based on the legal needs of the company. The range is anywhere from $5,000 a year to more than $50,000.
In both cases, Erickson says, clients like "predictability in fees, and predictability in results." Both programs include unlimited phone consultations, and Erickson says attorneys like that feature because then clients call more often and attorneys learn more about their businesses.
Scott Erickson, Leonard, Street and Deinard: 612.335.1468; sc************@*****rd.com; www.leonard.com
