Is this program for you?
Your company generates between $2 million and $50 million in revenue and you would like to grow substantially and sustainably. Or you may have some cash from operations, you have been capitalized by a venture capital or private equity group, or have taken on venture debt. At the same time, your varying legal needs are increasing. You have patent applications to file, employees to hire (or fire), leases to negotiate, customer or vendor contracts that have to get done (and quickly), or perhaps you would like to “clean up” your organizational documents and key person agreements so they match reality. Maybe you are contemplating the acquisition of an accretive company. At the same time, you have to fend-off the barbarians at the gate (yes, you are starting to have some litigation or threats of litigation).
You want help with your legal needs, but quality of service and value are equally important to you. You must optimize your legal spend and control your “burn rate.”
The problem is that you can’t afford a full-time general counsel or have not yet found a one who is the right fit for your organization. Or maybe you have a GC (or you are one) who is “drinking from the firehose.” You are looking for a better way to organize your outsourced legal needs. To date, you have relied on very expensive, somewhat disinterested outside counsel, who are not always responsive. Perhaps you juggle multiple attorney relationships. Worse, because of the fear of unpredictable legal bills, delays, or both, you sometimes handle legal tasks without counsel review.
We would like to learn more about your company and its future vision and plans. Spruce Law has built a platform of legal experts uniquely qualified to serve growth stage companies, and we routinely work with companies like yours to customize an engagement structure to meet all of your core legal needs. Spruce Law is the only boutique-sized firm in the Philadelphia-area market that can efficiently service all of your core legal needs.
Our firm was literally built to help you at this point in the growth of your company. Our team is staffed with numerous experienced former GCs from companies such as GlaxoSmithKline, Arkema, Sunoco, as well as numerous growth stage companies like yours. Our bench is several industry experts deep in each core practice area.
Experience + Innovation = Efficiency.
Our highly-pedigreed and experienced attorneys are on par with those working at large law firms (where we used to work) but Spruce Law’s innovative business model enables us to provide comprehensive legal coverage with preferred billing agreements and hands-on, highly-responsive service. To do this effectively, we cannot take on every client or engagement. We are selective. If you have received these materials, we are interested in learning whether we could add value for you.
How Does GSCLS Work?
This is what your legal team might look like if you structure a Growth Stage Core Legal Services engagement with us.¹
All of your core legal needs will be streamlined through a single point of contact who will serve as your Legal Quarterback to ensure each matter is handled responsively by the best attorney for the job.² He or she will also make sure that each legal bill that you receive is fair and is commensurate with the value conveyed. You will now have a team of legal advisors who will cover all of the core services areas that must be leveraged to protect your business as it grows. Your legal needs and costs will be managed and streamlined under one predicable engagement structure.
Here are the next steps:
Step 1 (Interview Phase) – Several members our firm will meet with you and/or members of your C-Suite to learn more about your growth plans, legal needs, and your historical and anticipated legal spend.
Step 2 (Assessment and Proposal Phase) —We then assess your legal needs and present you with a proposal, complete with appointment of the very best Spruce Law attorney to be your Legal Quarterback and the full team of experts that will likely support your account. We do not believe in “one-size-fits-all.” We customize each engagement. We have structured retainer-based agreements, volume-based billing contracts, and fixed-fee or modified fixed-fee engagements to strategically meet our clients’ legal needs.
Step 3 (Execution Phase) — Your Spruce Law Legal Quarterback will begin managing all of your legal needs and efficiently leveraging to your team. Routinely, your Quarterback, or a member of the team, will work from your office on a scheduled basis (e.g., once a week or two times per month) to get to know your internal team. Your Quarterback will routinely conduct “account team” meetings “off the clock” with all Spruce Law team members who work on your account to ensure that everyone is aware of the key issues facing your company and how we can best assist growth initiatives.
“We rely on Spruce Law for our primary day-to-day legal needs, such as customer contracts, real estate, and risk avoidance. Our account manager is an experienced former GC who has worked in our industry sector. He makes sure that each matter is done quickly and by the best attorney for the job.”
Ned Moore, Co-Founder and CEO, Clutch
¹ Each Quarterback and member of a Core team are carefully chosen for each client relationship based on a number of factors, most important of which is experience in the client’s industry sector.
² Spruce Law can handle almost all matters “internally” by leveraging to its team of on-staff industry and subject matter experts. However, if we do not have a specific expertise that you need “in-house” we will leverage our expansive rolodex of “outside” counsel relationships to your advantage and will find the best, most-qualified counsel for each job. We also routinely team with your existing attorney relationships to maximize value and institutional knowledge.