Employment and Equity Advisory

Some people join your journey early. Before the revenue, before the recognition, when it’s still just a vision and a lot of hard work. Others come in later, bringing capital, connections, or expertise that changes your trajectory. The question is the same: how do you keep them?

We help founders and business owners design and implement employment and equity arrangements that turn the right people into long-term partners — structured to reward contribution, built to protect the business, and documented so there’s no ambiguity when it matters most.

The questions are always the same. How much equity? What kind? Who gets what and when? What happens if someone leaves before the company takes off? How do you protect your IP and trade secrets while still bringing people inside the tent?

These are exactly the questions we help you work through. From employment agreements and handbooks to stock option plans, RSUs, ESOPs and restricted stock, we design arrangements that keep the right people in your corner for the long haul.

Building out your team?

Every hire and every contractor engagement should start with the right paperwork — an employment agreement or independent contractor agreement that’s clear on role, compensation, IP ownership, and confidentiality. We also help you build the infrastructure that comes with a growing team: offer letters, NDAs, onboarding documents, and employee handbooks that reflect how your business actually operates and protect it as it scales.

How much equity and what kind?

The right instrument depends on your stage, your structure, and what you’re trying to achieve. We help you choose among stock options (ISOs and NSOs), RSUs, and ESOPs, granted under a properly designed equity incentive plan and option pool, and document it cleanly so there’s no ambiguity later.

Who gets what and when?

Equity without a vesting schedule is equity without protection. We structure vesting schedules, cliff periods, and acceleration provisions that reflect what people are actually contributing. Built to last whether the relationship runs two years or ten.

What happens when someone leaves?

This is the question most people don’t ask until they have to. We build exit terms into every arrangement from the start so the departure is clean, the cap table stays healthy, and there are no surprises on either side.

How do you protect the business while bringing people inside the tent?

Sharing equity means sharing information. We make sure every arrangement comes with the appropriate confidentiality, IP assignment, and non-solicitation protections so the people who know the most about your business are also the ones most clearly bound to protect it.

For equity arrangements tied to a fundraising round or cap table restructuring, see Fundraising & Venture Financing.

Joining a new role or reviewing an offer?

Employment agreements, equity grants, and compensation packages can look straightforward and still contain terms that matter enormously. Non-competes that follow you to your next job. Equity that vests on a schedule you didn’t fully understand when you signed. IP assignment clauses that reach further than you’d expect. We advise employees and executives reviewing offers, negotiating terms, and making sure what they’re signing reflects what they were promised before they start.

Employment and Equity Matters We Handle

• Employment agreements and offer letters
• Independent contractor and consulting agreements
• Employee NDAs and confidentiality agreements
• Onboarding documentation
• Employee handbooks and workplace policies
• Equity incentive plan and option pool design
• Stock option grants (ISOs and NSOs)
• Restricted stock units (RSUs) and restricted stock agreements
• Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs)
• Advisor and consultant equity agreements
• Vesting schedules, cliff periods, and acceleration provisions
• 83(b) elections
• IP assignment agreements
• Cap table impact and dilution guidance
• Employment agreement review and negotiation for incoming executives and senior hires