This last tuesday, we had LawyersLounge, the first of its kind in Montréal. The goal was simple: raise awareness of legal issues that tech entrepreneurs have to go through, and at the same time, connect with practising lawyers willing to reach out to the community.
Like accountants and other professionals who support tech entrepreneurs (VCs?), lawyers solve specific problems that require education, experience and savviness to find the right structure, and help the company save time & money. Many technology entrepreneurs, especially those who come from a heavy engineering background, or first-time entrepreneurs, are tempted to shy away from legal issues, perhaps by lack of understanding, perhaps fearing the costs associated with legal counsel, or perhaps with a conviction that all available time and resources should be allocated to product design and development. And they can choose freely to do so, but at their own expense & peril, as the business will lack the sound structure for growth and will lack the framework regulating business partnerships.
Spiegel Sohmer recognized that, and made the right decision by working on an educational event, focused on helping entrepreneurs and also by connecting with the community. Last tuesday, it was good to see 65+ tech entrepreneurs networking, talking to lawyers and getting friendly legal counsel for free, establish relationships, and also connect with tech entrepreneurs. Phillips Lounge, a select bar located downtown, provided the tasteful yet business-y settings for the event.
Everyone appreciated the keynotes at the beginning, with each presentation getting precise questions from the audience, from Frank Zylbergberg keynote on setting up a company, Adam Saskin’s talk about non-competition agreements, and Michael Citrome’s humourous yet practical presentation on how to fire your co-founder.
Evan Prodroumou was also invited — the serial entrepreneur was on the top list, with the wikitravel success (sold to a travel company), and the micro-blogging statusnet, which raised funding from MontrealStartup / RealVentures. It’s great to see a clear, down-to-earth and filled with tips presentation! Everybody in the audience knew they were getting top advice, only possible after years of business experience.
Slides are available on slideshare
Thanks to everyone who made this event a success — the NewTech group, Spiegel Sohmer and especially Mike Citrome who took the initiative, Evan Prodroumou and his generosity, other lawyers who were present at the event, and of course everyone from the community who came to the event and spread the good word around.
