Founders ADA Website Accessibility Compliance: A Founder's Guide to the 2024 DOJ Rule and Demand Letters Most founders assume mobile-friendly means accessible. It doesn't — and courts are enforcing WCAG 2.1 AA against DTC brands and SaaS startups with increasing frequency.
Founders Non-Compete Agreement Enforceability in Texas: A Founder's Guide After the FTC Ban Failed The FTC abandoned its non-compete ban in September 2025. Non-compete agreement enforceability in Texas is now governed entirely by state law. Here's what founders can actually enforce—and how to draft agreements that survive judicial review.
Founders FTC Click-to-Cancel Rule Compliance: What DTC and SaaS Startups Must Do Now The FTC's Click-to-Cancel Rule was vacated by the Eighth Circuit, but enforcement hasn't stopped. Here's what DTC brands and SaaS startups must do for subscription billing, free trials, and cancellation flows under ROSCA, state laws, and class action risk.
Founders What TRAIGA Requires From Texas AI Startups: Compliance, Governance, and Enforcement TRAIGA compliance for Texas AI startups: prohibited practices, disclosure obligations, NIST safe harbor, AG enforcement with $200K penalties, and how it compares to Colorado and EU AI laws.
Founders Does Your Startup Have a National Security Data Problem? The DSP Compliance Checklist Founders Are Missing Your privacy program does not cover the DOJ Data Security Program. Since October 2025, the DSP and PADFAA restrict which vendors, investors, and engineers can access your users' data based on ties to Countries of Concern. Here is how to find your exposure.
Web3 NFT vs. Token: The Legal Distinction Every Founder Should Understand Before Launch Founders treat "launching a token" and "dropping an NFT" as the same decision. Legally, they aren't. Fungible tokens and NFTs diverge on securities law, IP ownership, and tax — how Howey, copyright's signed-writing rule, and the IRS collectibles look-through apply to each.
Web3 SAFTs vs. SAFEs for Web3 Startups: How Pre-Token Funding Actually Works Founders get told to "use a SAFT" as if it were the crypto version of a SAFE. It isn't. A SAFE converts into equity; a SAFT converts into tokens whose securities status the SEC litigated against in Telegram and Kik. Here's how pre-token funding actually works in 2026.
Founders The GPL Trap: How Open-Source Licenses Can Force Your Startup to Open-Source Its Proprietary Code GPL and AGPL-licensed dependencies can force your startup to publish proprietary source code. Here is how copyleft licenses work and what to do about them.
Founders The Howey Test for Founders: When Your Token Is a Security Most founders launching tokens don't have a clear framework for whether they're issuing a security. The Howey test has four prongs, and the SEC has applied each of them to token issuers in ways that would surprise most founders who think 'utility' is the safe word.
Founders Founder IP Assignment: Why You Can't Raise Without It and How to Get It Done Investors find missing IP assignments at Series A more often than any other diligence issue. Here's what needs to be in place — and what your options are if formation was sloppy.
Founders Texas Non-Competes: What Employers Can Enforce After Recent Case Law Texas non-competes are not unenforceable — but they are far more complicated than a form clause. This guide breaks down what the Texas Covenants Not to Compete Act actually requires, what recent case law says about reasonable restrictions, and how to draft agreements that hold up.
Founders Starting a Business in Texas: Entity Types, Franchise Tax, and Structural Decisions Texas-based founders who aren't on a VC fundraising path can save time and money by forming here. This guide covers entity types, the franchise tax's $2.65M threshold, operating agreement requirements, and annual compliance obligations.
Founders Amazon Seller Agreement Red Flags: What You're Actually Agreeing To Amazon's Business Solutions Agreement has real teeth: 90-day payment holds, perpetual IP licenses, de facto price parity enforcement, and immediate suspension with no appeal outside Amazon. Here's what's buried in the terms you already agreed to.
Founders FTC Endorsement Rules for Product Sellers: Reviews, Affiliates, and Influencer Campaigns Most DTC brands know they need disclosures. Fewer know that review gating is a federal violation, that #ad in a bio isn't enough, and that the FTC has levied multi-million-dollar penalties against fashion and beauty brands for exactly these mistakes.
Founders The State Privacy Law Patchwork in 2026: Which Laws Apply to Your App and What They Require Twenty states now have active privacy laws. This guide maps which ones apply to your app based on your user base, explains the California/Texas/other enforcement tiers, and covers the five elements every privacy notice must include.
Founders Employee vs. Independent Contractor in 2026: The Tests Every Startup Must Pass Before Classification The DOL's 2024 rule reinstated a multi-factor economic reality test that puts most startup contractor arrangements under real scrutiny. Here's what the tests actually require and where the misclassification risk is highest.
Founders At-Will Employment in Texas: The Doctrine, the Exceptions, and the Termination Mistakes That Create Exposure Texas founders rely on at-will more than the law justifies. This guide covers the five state-law exceptions, federal overlays like the NLRA and FMLA, what employment agreements do to at-will status, and the documentation that limits termination exposure.
Founders Non-Compete Agreements After the FTC Rule Litigation: What Texas Startups Can Enforce The FTC’s sweeping non-compete ban is on hold after a Texas federal court enjoined it. While the legal battle continues, Texas has its own enforceable framework—and most startup non-competes still fail it. Here’s what the law actually requires.
Founders DAO Liability: Are Members Personally Exposed? Lessons from the CFTC's Ooki DAO Enforcement The CFTC's 2023 judgment against Ooki DAO established that decentralized structures don't prevent regulatory enforcement—and three courts have since confirmed that governance token holders face unlimited personal liability as general partners. Here's what that means for your protocol.
Founders CCPA and CPRA for Consumer App Founders: What Applying to California Users Requires Most founders assume CCPA only applies to enterprise companies. It doesn't — a consumer app with 100,000 California users is covered regardless of revenue. Here's what the thresholds, six consumer rights, and 2025 CPPA enforcement actions mean for your product.
Founders The 83(b) Election: What It Is, How to File It, and Why Missing the 30-Day Deadline Is Permanent If you received restricted stock at your company's formation and didn't file an 83(b) election within 30 days, the tax savings are gone forever. Here's what the election does, the math, and how to file it correctly.
Founders Product Liability for DTC Brands: When You're the Importer, You're the Manufacturer Most DTC founders assume their factory contract and supplier insurance protect them. They don't. US law treats importers as the manufacturer when the foreign supplier is unreachable — strict liability, CPSC reporting duties, and recall costs all land on the brand.
Founders SAFE vs. Convertible Note: What Pre-Seed Founders Need to Understand Before They Sign Everyone tells pre-seed founders to use a SAFE. Here’s what SAFE mechanics, convertible note interest, and the post-money revision actually mean — and when the answer isn’t a SAFE.
Founders Subscription Billing Compliance: ROSCA, the FTC Click-to-Cancel Rule, and What DTC Brands Must Do Now The FTC's 2024 click-to-cancel rule was vacated by the Eighth Circuit in July 2025 — but ROSCA, Section 5, and state automatic-renewal laws remain fully operative. This guide covers what DTC brands and subscription operators need to know, from California's AB 2863 to the $100M Vonage settlement.
Founders Employee Handbook Essentials for Startups: The 8 Policies You Need Before Your Fifth Hire Most startups skip the handbook until they get a demand letter. Then they download a template that creates new problems. Here are the 8 policies every startup needs before employee #5 — and the 2 things most templates get dangerously wrong.
