Years ago now I wrote a post called Zoom Past Legal Zoom. For years it has been one of the most read posts on this site and no post on the site has more comments. In that post I talked about how Legal Zoom does NOT give out legal advice and how the company’s
Prospective Franchisees Need to Research Further Than FDD for Details
I read an interesting article from Entrepreneur on the Key to Understanding a Company’s FDD (franchise disclosure document). It’s an article I’d recommend prospective franchisees read but they better be prepared to go deeper if they really want to understand a Company’s FDD. The author recommends checking three key sections of the FDD:
- Item 3
Careful Planning Necessary When Using Retirement Monies to Fund Startup Business
Accountant Joe Kristan of Roth & Co. has an informative post on the IowaBiz Blog discussing the dangers of using IRA retirement monies to fund a startup business. In the situation described, a would-be entrepreneur took about $320,000 from his 401K and rolled it into a self-directed IRA. From there, the entrepreneur invested almost
Vote ‘Yes’ to Renovate and Update Polk County Courthouse
I generally try to stay away from politics on this blog but there is an important vote on November 5th regarding Measure A: The Polk County Public Safety Judicial System Bond. I encourage you to vote ‘Yes" for this measure.
Our Polk County Courthouse has been in use for over 100 years. While it
Due Diligence Training Through Plains Angels: Classes of Stock and Corporate Structure
Those interested in raising investment capital for their business, or those interested in making investments in businesses, may want to take advantage of the monthly due diligence/investor training provided by Plains Angels.
Plains Angels is a group of Midwest angel investors that have now funded various projects here in the Midwest. The group is
U.S. Patent Law Changes: The First-Inventor-to-File One Year Grace Period
* This is a guest post from Jessica Susie of the Brick Gentry Law Firm. Jessica is a registered patent attorney.
The America Invents Act, which President Obama signed into law on September 16, 2011, has been gradually overhauling the United States patent system. March 16, 2013 marked the biggest change – the United
How to Deal with Partner Disputes
I saw an interesting article on the LexBlog Network regarding how to deal with partner disputes. The post written by Texas restaurant lawyer, Matthew Sanderson, dealt specifically with restaurants, but the information contained in the post is applicable to any business. Sanderson recommends the following when a dispute occurs:
- Avoid the conflict by identifying
Plains Angels Investing in Iowa Companies
The Des Moines Register reported that investor group Plains Angels has invested $750,000 over the last eight months. This is great news for Iowa startup companies. Venture capital in Iowa has lagged and groups like Plains Angels are definitely trying to change that.
There is a $300 application fee to present before the Plains Angels’
Iowa Business Court Judges Selected
In January I wrote about the new Iowa Business Specialty Court Pilot Project. This week the Iowa Supreme Court announced that three judges have been selected to hear cases for the business court. The judges include:
- Judge Michael Huppert of the 5th Judicial District, which includes Dallas, Polk and Warren counties;
- Judge Annette Scieszinski
5 People You Need To Meet When Starting Your Business
There are 5 people every entrepreneur should meet when starting a business:
- Lawyer;
- Accountant;
- Banker;
- Insurance Agent; and
- Marketing professional.
How do hire a lawyer that’s right for you? See my article on my new site, Iowa Business Law Services.
As we are now in the heart of tax season, many business owners are