Frequently Asked Questions

We offer two types of services: long-term client representation and office hour consultations.

Long-term clients partner with our clinic throughout a semester to address ongoing business matters that require sustained legal support. This includes complex work like entity formation, multi-party contract negotiations, intellectual property registration, and comprehensive regulatory compliance.

Office hours provide focused, short-term assistance with specific legal tasks. Think of it as a quick consultation to help you move forward on a particular issue, whether that's completing a government form, understanding a filing requirement, or getting clarity on a specific legal question about your business.

We can guide you through tasks like filling out formation paperwork, explaining trademark application requirements, reviewing a single contract, answering questions about employee versus independent contractor classification, or clarifying a regulatory obligation.

We can provide one focused service per office hour visit. For example, we cannot review multiple contracts, address several unrelated legal issues, or provide ongoing representation in a single session. If your needs are more comprehensive, you may be a better fit for our long-term client representation program.

We assist with:

• Setting up a business organization
• Structuring relationships among founders and investors
• Negotiating a lease
• Drafting and negotiating contracts
• Advising on employees and independent contractors
• Protecting intellectual property
• Applying for licenses and permits
• Understanding and complying with regulations
• Forming and advising nonprofit organizations

We do not handle litigation, patents, complex tax matters, securities, public mergers or acquisitions, or international trade.

We serve low- and moderate-income entrepreneurs, small businesses, and nonprofits that cannot afford traditional legal counsel.

Our legal services are completely free. Clients are only responsible for outside costs such as government filing fees and required applications.

We accept new long-term clients primarily in August and January. We review applications on a rolling basis during these periods.

Yes! You can sign up for office hour consultations on an ongoing basis throughout the year.

Fill out our application form on this page. Tell us about your business, your legal needs, and whether you're interested in long-term representation or office-hour consultations.

For long-term representation: If selected, you'll meet with our team for an in-person interview and sign a retainer agreement outlining the scope of our representation before any legal work begins.

For office hours: We'll contact you to schedule your consultation session and confirm the details of your request.

Our law students provide legal services under the supervision of experienced faculty attorneys.

No, we do not handle litigation or court representation.

We prioritize businesses that have not received significant outside funding or financing from investors. However, we encourage you to apply and explain your situation—we review each application individually.

Yes! We work with entrepreneurs at all stages, from initial concept to growing businesses.