Working Effectively with Startup Founders: a Practical Guide for Attorneys
Working Effectively with Startup Founders:
A Practical Guide for Attorneys
COURSE DESCRIPTION
Course Description:
This program examines how attorneys can build strong professional reputations and productive working relationships within the venture-scale startup ecosystem. Drawing on 25 years of experience as a founder, mentor, advisor, investor, and community organizer, the instructor shares practical insights into how founders and investors perceive and interact with attorneys in early-stage environments. The course highlights common communication patterns, expectations, and dynamics that shape trust, clarity, and fit in attorney–founder relationships.
The session focuses on practical, founder-informed guidance for improving the quality of early interactions, communicating more effectively with startup clients and prospects, and developing relationships that support better long-term outcomes for both attorneys and founders. The program does not address legal ethics rules or provide legal advice; it instead presents observational and experiential perspectives intended to help attorneys engage more constructively and confidently in founder-focused settings.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will be able to:
Identify key factors that shape founder perceptions of attorney interactions in early-stage startup environments.
Recognize communication patterns that support clarity, trust, and effective rapport with venture-scale founders.
Understand common behaviors that founders experience as unhelpful or misaligned, and adjust practice approaches accordingly.
Develop strategies for building long-term reputation within startup communities through consistent, value-oriented interactions.
Integrate founder-informed relationship practices into broader practice-management workflows, including intake, follow-up, and event participation.
INSTRUCTOR BIO
Instructor Biography:
Bob Crimmins is General Partner of Startup Haven Ventures, a pre-seed venture fund, accelerator and nation-wide network of venture-scale startup founders and investors.
Bob is a longtime participant in the venture-scale startup ecosystem with more than 25 years of experience as a founder, mentor, advisor, investor, and community builder. He has founded multiple venture-backed companies, has mentored and advised hundreds of early-stage founders, and has spent two decades observing how founders and investors engage with attorneys across a wide variety of contexts. Through this work, he has gained deep, practical insight into the communication patterns, expectations, and relational dynamics that influence the effectiveness of attorney–founder interactions.
Bob’s perspective comes from extensive, first-hand observation of thousands of direct founder interactions and through his experience hosting more than 500 startup founder/investor events. His primary work has focused on helping founders navigate early-stage challenges and helping ecosystem participants—including attorneys—engage in ways that support clarity, trust, and effective professional relationships. He is not a lawyer and will not provide legal advice; his guidance is based solely on observed behaviors and dynamics within the startup environment.
(Note that this course is pending MCLE accreditation in Washington and California. As such, MCLE credits for this course cannot be guaranteed at this time. All attendees will be notified if and when accreditation is received. )