Smith Anderson Lawyers Merrill Mason and John Therien Invited Speakers at NCSU

At the invitation of NCSU College of Engineering Professor Stephen J. Walsh, Smith Anderson lawyers Merrill M. Mason and John R. Therienrecently gave students in Dr. Walsh and Dr. Tom Miller's Entrepreneurs class a real-world sense of what actual start-up companies face from idea to inception.

Their interactive presentation "Legal Issues for Start-Ups and Intellectual Property Basics" provided an overview of the important issues facing start-up organizations including key terminology; the role of the corporate lawyer; corporate entity advantages and disadvantages; how to incorporate; stock-related issues; early business matters to address; tax considerations; board of directors; and how to protect your Intellectual Property assets.

Attendees at the Council for Entrepreneurial Development (CED) Opportunity Conference in December 2006 also heard Mr. Mason present this material.

For a copy of Mr. Mason and Mr. Therien's PowerPoint presentation, please contact Eileen LePage at elepage@smithlaw.com.

Mr. Mason practices in the areas of corporate and securities law. He represents emerging and entrepreneurial companies and focuses his practice on venture capital; securities; mergers and acquisitions; intellectual property; and general corporate matters.

Mr. Therien focuses his practice primarily in the areas of technology licensing and commercialization, life sciences and the acquisition and protection of intellectual property rights.