Based in our Waltham, Massachusetts office, the WilmerHale Venture Group provides the legal guidance emerging companies need to go from start-up to venture capital financing, through IPO and beyond. Our team-oriented approach to service gives clients the flexibility to call on a number of lawyers, and enables us to cost-effectively provide clients with the highest levels of responsiveness and access to lawyers with the most appropriate experience.
Enabling Breakthroughs
We are dedicated to representing technology companies in their formation and early stages of growth and are nationally renowned for our experience in the areas most important to a company’s success. We have a practical understanding of the business needs of emerging companies, and are extraordinarily proud of the clients we have had the privilege of working with, many of whom have helped change the way we all work, think and live.
Getting Started
Thousands of early-stage technology companies have relied on us for legal representation and advice. Many of them have gone on to successful initial public offerings and market leadership. We guide entrepreneurs and new ventures as they form their new businesses, develop financing and growth strategies, and structure practices relating to the development, acquisition and commercialization of intellectual property and human capital.
Emerging technology companies rely on us for practical business and legal advice in the areas where they need it the most. We review business plans, work with founders to identify the businesses' key strengths and weaknesses before approaching financing sources, develop strategies to obtain funding and negotiate venture capital term sheets for initial and later-stage financings. We attend client board meetings and offer strategic advice and counseling, as well as guidance on forming and running an effective board of directors. Since 2000, we have handled more than 1,200 venture financings raising over $12 billion.
Intellectual Property: Safeguarding, Sharing and Capitalizing on Ideas
Technology start-ups face a difficult dilemma—protecting their innovations in an environment where speed to market is often critical. We offer the legal and technical expertise and the practical experience necessary to provide our clients with prompt, efficient and cost-effective service in the most complicated intellectual property matters. Early guidance on intellectual property matters is critical in establishing and protecting what often becomes a company's most valuable asset. We help ensure that the arrangements among start-up companies and their founders and other third parties provide companies with the intellectual property rights they will need to be successful.
WilmerHale was one of the first major law firms to establish a practice solely dedicated to intellectual property. Our corporate and intellectual property lawyers advise our clients on protection of trade secrets, proprietary information, copyrights, domain names, trademarks, patents and other intellectual property issues—without losing speed or momentum.
Licensing: Going to Market
While developing and executing an effective licensing strategy and building strategic relationships can greatly accelerate the time to market, there are many risks if these arrangements are not executed well. We have significant experience in structuring, negotiating and documenting strategic alliances, joint ventures, licenses and other agreements with potential partners, vendors and customers. More than 70 of our intellectual property lawyers are registered to practice before the US Patent and Trademark Office. In addition, over 160 of our lawyers hold scientific and technical degrees in fields such as biochemistry, biomedical engineering, microbiology, molecular biology, genetics, immunology, chemistry, chemical engineering, computer science, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering and physics.
Executive Compensation, Labor and Employment: Building the Team
The battle for talent has never been more intense. Attracting and retaining key people at all levels of an organization is essential for short- and long-term success. Our corporate lawyers team up with our labor, employment and employee benefits lawyers to advise clients at all stages of development on executive compensation, benefits, labor relations and immigration matters. We frequently advise entrepreneurs on the intricacies of stock options and other equity incentives, and on entering into non-compete and employment contracts.
Public Offerings: Funding the Future
WilmerHale’s lawyers have broad experience representing emerging and established companies and major investment banks in all types of public financing transactions, including initial public offerings, follow-on public offerings, Regulation S placements, PIPE deals and Rule 144A offerings. Since 2000, we have served as counsel in more than 350 public offering and Rule 144A placements raising over $125 billion. Over the past decade, our IPO practice—which ranks among the top in the United States—has handled more IPOs in the eastern US, as both issuer counsel and underwriters’ counsel, than any other law firm.
We have been involved with public offerings by US and foreign companies on numerous markets, including the New York Stock Exchange, Nasdaq, the London Stock Exchange, the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Le Nouveau Marché, EASDAQ, the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, the Copenhagen Stock Exchange and the Swiss (SWX) New Market.
Mergers and Acquisitions: Finding Synergy
Bringing together complementary technologies and businesses is essential for achieving critical mass in the high-tech economy. But finding the right partner is only half the battle; bringing together separate entities on the most advantageous terms is just as important. Whether it be an asset purchase, stock purchase, technology license, merger or business restructuring, our corporate lawyers have structured, negotiated and documented thousands of M&A transactions for high-technology companies, both nationally and internationally. Since 2000, we have participated in more than 900 mergers and acquisitions valued in excess of $500 billion, ranging from sales of VC-backed companies to multibillion-dollar global mergers. We assist our clients not only in negotiating friendly acquisitions, but also in planning for and defending against unsolicited acquisition offers and implementing anti-takeover strategies.
Tax Issues: Minimizing the Burden
Our tax lawyers work with our corporate lawyers with a view toward optimizing tax treatment and assuring compliance with applicable tax laws. We have particular expertise in advising on tax issues relating to the formation of business ventures of all kinds (including S corporations, limited liability companies and limited partnerships), mergers and acquisitions and international tax matters relating to inward investment and foreign operations. We also assist founders and entrepreneurs in developing tax strategies for compensation and benefit planning, including founders' stock, restricted stock and stock options.
Real Estate: Housing the Team
As companies expand, leasing or ownership of real estate becomes an important consideration. The firm first began developing a specialty real estate practice over thirty years ago. Since then, the practice of real estate law, like the real estate industry itself, has changed dramatically. Today's sophisticated real estate transactions demand skillful legal counsel and practical guidance on a wide array of complex tax, environmental, permitting, corporate and finance issues. With extensive experience to draw upon, our real estate lawyers can effectively assist an emerging company from negotiating its first lease to building its own campus.
Private Client Services: Success
Our private client lawyers provide advice on personal wealth and financial planning issues, particularly in the context of IPO planning for key executives and investors, and strategic philanthropy and related charitable giving. In addition, our investment advisory subsidiary, Hale and Dorr Capital Management LLC (registered with the SEC in 1988), now manages nearly $2 billion in assets and provides high quality one-on-one investment advisory services.
International Transactions: Going Global
We routinely assist our clients in connection with their international activities and serve as U. counsel for non-US investors and multinational corporations. We have extensive experience in cross-border licensing arrangements, joint ventures and financing. Our offices in the UK and Germany advise companies on issues associated with international acquisitions and strategic alliances.
View the WilmerHale Venture Group page to find a list of members.