Employees & contractors
Your first10 hires matter.
Build clear working relationships from the beginning.
Talk about your startup
01 / THE PROBLEM
The team is growing faster than its documentation.
The role, work location, and actual relationship matter when engaging a team member. Coordinate classification and local employment requirements with qualified employment counsel where needed, alongside ownership and confidentiality documentation.
+02 / COMMON FRICTION
Small gaps.Bigger questions.
01Informal engagement terms
02Ownership of deliverables unclear
03Equity promises ahead of approvals
04Classification questions unresolved
03 / HOW ETHAN CAN HELP
Understand the business.
Then the documents.
Start with your objective and the documents already in place. Identify the decisions that need attention, discuss practical options, and coordinate the work needed to move forward.
The role, work location, and actual relationship matter when engaging a team member. Coordinate classification and local employment requirements with qualified employment counsel where needed, alongside ownership and confidentiality documentation.
+04 / WHAT THE SERVICE MAY INCLUDE
The workbehind the next step.
- Offer letters and employment agreements
- Contractor agreements
- Confidentiality and invention assignment
- Advisor agreements
- Equity grant coordination
The scope is agreed for each engagement. Some questions may require coordination with tax, employment, or other specialist advisers.
07 / WHEN YOU MAY NEED THIS
Hiring your first employee?↗Working with contractors or advisors?↗+FOUNDER FAQ
Good questions.Clearer next steps.
General information only.
Not legal or tax advice.
01What is an option pool?
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An option pool is equity reserved for grants under a company plan. Its size and treatment in a financing can affect dilution. A hiring plan is a useful starting point for discussion.
02Who owns code created by a contractor?
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Payment alone does not necessarily transfer copyright. Work-made-for-hire rules are limited. Review a written assignment, licenses, and any pre-existing or third-party code.
03When should a startup use outside legal counsel?
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A useful time is before a consequential commitment: issuing equity, accepting investment, hiring, transferring IP, or signing a material contract. The scope should reflect the company’s stage and needs.
+PEOPLE, OWNERSHIP, POSSIBILITY
Build together.Think ahead.
Clear expectations give founders and growing teams a common starting point.
YOUR NEXT CHAPTER STARTS WITH A CONVERSATION.
Let’s talk about
what you’re building.
Tell Ethan where the company is today
and what needs to happen next.