Promise Legal Staff

Alex is a tech nerd trapped in an attorney’s body. Get in touch at txhq.org/blogcard

Legal Tech & Automation

Implementing a No-Code Internal Wiki and Automation Stack for Law Firms

Most law firms still run on email threads, shared drives, and “ask the one person who knows.

Startup Central

How Angel Investors and Legal Counsel Can Partner for Successful Early Rounds

Angel money is often the first real “outside capital” a startup takes — capital that comes with expectations, documentation, and a cap table that…

Startup Central

Accounting Services Agreements: What Startups Need to Know Before Signing

Many startups and small businesses outsource bookkeeping and tax work long before they hire an internal finance team.

Startup Central

Understanding 4-Year Vesting with a 1-Year Cliff: A Complete Guide

Vesting is the process of “earning” equity over time. In the common 4-year vesting with a 1-year cliff pattern, you don’t earn anything until you hit…

Game Studios

Distribution Platform Agreements: What Indie Developers Need to Know About Steam, Epic, and Console Store Terms

Steam's Steamworks agreement, Epic's developer terms, and console store contracts impose real legal obligations on indie developers — not just revenue splits. Here's what each platform actually claims, what it can do to your game and account, and what you can push back on.

EdTech

FERPA Edge Cases for AI Features in K-12 Products

AI-generated risk scores, learner profiles, and behavioral analytics are education records under FERPA. Here's what EdTech founders need to know about the school official exception, directory information limits, consent workflows, and the state laws that go further.

Health Tech

Negotiating HIPAA Business Associate Agreements with Digital Health Vendors

HIPAA's statutory floor for BAAs is lower than most covered entities realize. This guide covers what to demand in BAA negotiations with digital health vendors — from permitted use scope and AI training prohibitions to breach notification, audit rights, and PHI disposition at contract end.

Hardware Founders

Invention Assignment Clauses — What They Actually Claim (And What They Don't)

Your employer's invention assignment clause probably claims more than you assume. Here's what the four standard categories actually cover, where state law protects you (and where it doesn't), how the prior inventions schedule works, and what engineers should do before starting any personal project.

Hardware Founders

Moonlighting from Arm, NXP, or Samsung Austin — What Your IP Assignment Clause Actually Claims

Austin chip engineers sign IP assignment clauses that reach off-hours work. Here's what "related to company business" actually sweeps in, why Texas has no statutory floor like California's Labor Code § 2870, and the hygiene steps to take before starting any side project.

EdTech

Parental Consent UX Patterns That Pass FTC Scrutiny

COPPA requires verifiable parental consent before you collect data from children under 13 — and a checkbox doesn't cut it. Here's what the FTC actually enforces, which consent mechanisms are approved, and a practical UX checklist for EdTech product teams.

FERPA

FERPA and EdTech Vendors: The Compliance Gaps Schools Cannot Fill for You

Schools execute data processing agreements with EdTech vendors, designate them as school officials under FERPA, and route student information through platforms built and operated by private companies. What those agreements cannot do — despite what many vendors implicitly rely on — is transfer the legal compliance obligation for COPPA consent from the

Health Tech

FDA Regulation of Software as a Medical Device: A Founder's Guide to SaMD Pathways

FDA regulates software as a medical device based on what it does, not what it looks like. This guide covers the SaMD definition, IMDRF risk classification, 510(k)/De Novo/PMA pathways, FDA's PCCP framework, and clinical evidence requirements for founders.

Health Tech

Clinical AI Vendor Contracts: A Due Diligence Checklist for Healthcare Organizations

Three regulatory regimes converge when you onboard a clinical AI vendor: HIPAA, Texas TRAIGA, and the EU AI Act. This guide walks through the due-diligence questions that matter most — training data integrity, BAA alignment, model transparency, and contract red flags.

Games

Legal Foundations for Indie Game Studios — The Complete Guide

Building a game is hard. Keeping everything you built is harder — and most indie studios don't realize how much is at risk until a contractor dispute, a platform delisting, or an FTC enforcement action arrives. The legal structure you build around your studio determines not just whether you

Games

Loot Box Laws by Jurisdiction: What Game Studios Must Know in 2025

Belgium criminalizes paid loot boxes with criminal fines up to €800,000 and prison sentences for non-compliant developers. The Netherlands reversed its own €10 million fine against EA after a court found the mechanic integrated into gameplay was not a standalone gambling product. The United States has never enacted a

Games

Age Ratings and COPPA Compliance for Kids' Games: ESRB, IARC, and FTC Enforcement

Most game studios assume an ESRB or IARC rating handles their legal obligations to younger players. It does not. In January 2025, the FTC fined HoYoverse $20 million — not because the studio targeted children, but because its anime art style and influencer marketing made the game appeal to them. Age

Hardware Founders

Semiconductor Export Controls: What Engineers and Hardware Founders Need to Know About the EAR

The EAR reaches inside US chip labs, R&D teams, and employee rosters. ECCNs, the deemed export rule, Entity List obligations, October 2022 China chip rules, and a practical compliance checklist for semiconductor engineers and hardware founders.

Musicians

Label Deal Red Flags: What to Negotiate Before You Sign

Taylor Swift's masters, Madonna's 90% touring share, California's broken 7-year rule for musicians: what every artist should fight for before signing a recording contract.

Streamers

COPPA on YouTube and Twitch: What Streamers Actually Need to Know

After Disney's $10M FTC settlement, COPPA enforcement is hitting creators directly. What streamers need to know about Made for Kids, Twitch's age rule, the 2025 Final Rule, and the contract terms to push for in brand deals.

Legal Tech & Automation

How AI Actually Makes Law Firms More Efficient (With Real-World-Style Case Studies)

In a law firm, efficiency isn’t “doing work faster” at all costs. It’s shorter cycle time (turnaround), healthier margins (less non-billable drag),…

Streamers

FTC Endorsement Rules for Streamers: What to Disclose and How

An FTC compliance guide for streamers on Twitch, YouTube, TikTok, and Kick: what counts as an endorsement, the "clear and conspicuous" disclosure standard, format-specific rules for live/VOD/Shorts, streamer-specific pitfalls, and what FTC enforcement actually looks like under the 2024 Final Rule.

Hardware Founders

Hardware Startup Fundraising: What's Different from SaaS

Hardware startups need more capital, structured differently, across more rounds than SaaS. This guide covers the fundraising mechanics, investment instruments, non-dilutive capital access, and IP structures that define the hardware financing landscape.

EdTech

COPPA's April 22 Amendments: What Changed for EdTech Operators in 2026

The FTC’s 2025 COPPA Final Rule took effect April 22, 2026 with no grace period. Here’s what changed for EdTech operators: new biometric and geolocation data categories, data minimization and retention requirements, unbundled consent mechanics, and an expanded verification menu.

Visual Artists

Copyright vs. Trademark for Artists: Which Protection Do You Actually Need?

Most artists know copyright protects their work — but not what trademark does differently, or when they need it. Here's the practical breakdown: copyright protects the art, trademark protects the brand, and some marks need both.

EdTech

Drafting Direct Notice Under COPPA: What EdTech Operators Need in Their Disclosure

COPPA requires a direct notice separate from your privacy policy — two documents with two different legal functions. Here's what EdTech operators must include, from the statutory checklist to the 2025 amendments.