Futureworks Incubator’s Legal Workshop at Brooklyn Law Incubator and Policy Clinic from SecondMuse on Vimeo.

Legalese can be a tough, expensive language to learn. Especially for hardware startups with small teams, innovative products and early-stage cash flow. Futureworks Incubator teamed up with Brooklyn Law Incubator & Policy Clinic, Gray Legal and Myers Wolin to lead a free workshop on incorporation, IP, patents and other startup essentials. Hosted at BLIP in Downtown Brooklyn, we learned a few essential lessons that we wanted to share. Check them out below – as well as a video from the workshop and a handful of pictures from the evening.

5 Legal Lessons

1. Things that are patentable:
   • A process
   • A machine
   • An article of manufacture

2. Try to file a provisional or nonprovisional patent or trademark application before you go on Kickstarter or showcase at Maker Faire or other presentations.

3. Even if you don’t have a budget, you can still start getting protection. Talk to Daniel at Myers Wolin.
4. If you expect venture capital dollars it’s Delaware C-Corp or bust. If you want to save money on taxes and don’t expect VC money in the near future, go with an LLC or an S-Corp.
5. If you start or started a business with a partner or co-owner, you need to create an entity (LLC, S-Corp etc) right away! This protects you from your partner’s mistakes.