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A number of people have asked this question in one form or another so I’ll try to answer them all at once.

First, a lawyer is probably the wrong person to ask this question of ;) We’re biased, naturally, and like any other service provider, most lawyers you ask this of would have a hard time dissuading you from using their services.

But in general, I believe that there are some basic aspects to incorporating and creating the right relationships between founders and with employees and service providers that must be done properly at the outset to minimize the risk of additional cost and difficulty later on. Starting out with the right capital structure, shareholders agreement and agreements with other stakeholders can avoid serious problems later on.

Specific businesses often present particular legal challenges, so it’s not really possible to generalize an answer to the question otherwise. As with everything, sometimes yes, sometimes no.