Navigating the challenges faced by an emerging venture requires partnering with lawyers who understand the legal and business needs of innovative, high-growth startups – whether related to formation, financing, expansion or exit.
Our Emerging Growth / Venture Capital team consists of startup lawyers with extensive experience residing coast-to-coast – from California to New York to London. To deliver you the personalized expertise emerging companies need, we work closely with our interdisciplinary teams and colleagues in Reed Smith’s leading industry groups: Life Sciences Health Group, Financial Industry Group, Entertainment & Media Group, and Intellectual Property, Technology and Data.
We also actively represent venture capital funds, private equity funds and corporations that make venture investments with targeted due diligence, negotiating financing documents and addressing portfolio company matters throughout the life cycle of an investment.
We have relationships with a wide range of investors including corporate venture capital (CVC), venture capital, private equity, angel and high net worth individuals. Given the growing percentage of CVC investments, our experience with CVCs differentiates our team’s ability to advise on any early to expansion stage financings in today’s investment climate.
Reed Smith has dedicated global teams in the life sciences and health care, financial and entertainment & media industries. With these firmwide committed resources, our team is well positioned to address any specialty or regulatory issues that an emerging company may face. Additionally, our startup lawyers are able to advise issuers and investors in the areas of fintech, artificial intelligence, edtech, robotics, medical devices, clean technology, software, online services, digital media, cloud computing, e-commerce and information technology.
Our lawyers understand the dynamics of innovative businesses in rapidly expanding markets around the world, and the objectives of the investors providing capital to fuel that growth. We regularly advise at all stages of a company's development cycle, including:
- Company formation
- Strategic legal and business advice, as well as day-to-day guidance
- Private financing including: angel funding, venture capital funding, corporate venture capital and private equity
- Development and growth capital financing
- Venture debt financing
- Refinancing and restructuring
- IPOs
- Mergers & acquisitions
- Counselling on intellectual property matters
- Commercialization technology transactions and commercial licensing
- Employment, equity and other benefits and compensation matters
- Tax expertise
- Regulatory advice
- Litigation services and other forms of protection
Our international network of contacts allows our team to provide you with targeted referrals to appropriate sources of financing, potential strategic partners, or acquisition targets, along with advisors for your management team and board of directors. By connecting you with the right people, and providing insightful financial strategies and strategic direction, we can often help you obtain the advice and capital you’ll need to build a successful future. We also provide focused local support with a strong understanding of regional culture and resources. We have robust relationships with local investors, accelerators, incubators and industry associations and forums from Silicon Valley to New York and beyond.
