New Ventures Strategic Partner Spotlight: Dwight D. Myfelt
Dwight is counsel in the firm’s Immigration practice group. He provides guidance regarding employment-based immigration to clients in diverse industries, with significant experience in the information technology/high-tech and manufacturing sectors, as well as in the health care field. His work with employers includes obtaining employee visas and providing guidance about establishing long-term immigration programs that cover recruiting foreign national workers, securing employment authorization and retention planning. Dwight also has extensive experience advising companies on I-9 employment authorization, eligibility verification and compliance issues, an area new ventures often struggle with, including I-9 self-audits and representing clients in federal audit proceedings. I-9 compliance is particularly concerning, given the potential for civil and criminal liability for improper employment verification. Dwight also provides guidance to employers regarding their use of third-party recruiters.
Startups Streamlined – Navigating Cincinnati’s Thriving Startup Ecosystem – July 24
Join us for the next Startups Streamlined, featuring Thompson Hine alum Emma Off, CEO & President of CincyTech. The Cincinnati startup scene is vibrant and growing, characterized by a supportive ecosystem, access to funding, corporate partnerships and a collaborative community. Our discussion will spotlight industry developments and recent issues that impact startups, founders and venture capital investors. We’ll explore trending topics such as immigration issues, venture debt and offer insights and guidance relevant to your startup or high-growth business. Our panel, led by Lindsay Karas Stencel, will delve into the entrepreneurial landscape of Cincinnati, uncovering the opportunities and dynamics driving Cincinnati's thriving startup ecosystem and exploring its potential for growth and innovation. Register here.
Obtaining and Maintaining Business Certification
By Lindsay Karas Stencel and Andrés M. Vera
Obtaining business certification can be a vital part of a company’s success in competing for government contracts set aside for small businesses and businesses owned by people from historically underrepresented groups. Of equal significance for many companies that have received certification is maintaining that certification as their businesses grow and mature, which, if not handled correctly, can jeopardize a company’s future access to additional contracts. Continue reading.
TechChicago’s Capital Summit – Securing Growth Capital: Later Stage Fundraising Strategy Panel
Aisling O’Laoire, New Ventures counsel, will be joined by three other esteemed panelists to discuss “Securing Growth Capital: Later Stage Fundraising Strategy” on July 24. The Capital Summit will be held in Chicago from July 23-24 and offers track-based programming focused on fundraising within the current state of our venture ecosystem.
The Capital Summit is part of TechChicago Week (TCW), which showcases Chicago’s vibrant tech ecosystem with a week of culture, inclusive access, opportunities, conversations and community. This event combines culture and technology to create an innovative experience for everyone. The conference aims to engage the region's diverse tech community, including tech companies, founders, startups, corporations, VCs, youth, nonprofits, operators and engineers/techies. We look forward to seeing you there.
Data Insights – Q2 Report
Carta’s First Cut report looks at median valuations and round sizes from Seed through Series E across the 45,000+ startups on Carta today. We break out each stage individually (and don’t miss the download at the end to see primary vs. bridge rounds as well).
So, any major findings?
- Valuations continued to rise, albeit gently and not uniformly across stages.
- Round sizes seem to have plateaued in many places.
The long-awaited arrival of clear positive news may again be delayed another quarter (or a half year). Yes, valuations have risen, but total fundraising is still rather lukewarm.
***Data provided by Carta Insights
QuickLaunch: Experienced Guidance for Startups and Investors
Our QuickLaunch program is tailored to entrepreneurs, startups and investors, providing guidance on growth and funding cycles and offering cost-effective counsel on day-to-day legal matters from formation to funding to exits. Our seasoned team helps navigate the confusing waters of growth, funding, expansion and those tricky legal issues that can arise, often at fixed or budgeted pricing by using our firmwide proprietary SmartPaTH™ tool. To learn more about our tailored, value-enhancing solutions, please visit our QuickLaunch site.
For more information, please contact a member of our QuickLaunch team.