Legal Question in Business Law in California

Hire a good law firm with business formation and intellectual property depth.

In my experience as a business lawyer (15 years) and before that as an entrepreneur (20+ years), I've come to conclude that many business start-up questions can be answered, or don't even need to arise because you already know the answer, by obtaining and skimming two or three of what I call "paperback self-help law books." These are how-to manuals for people who want to start businesses without the lumps, bumps and miscellaneous mistakes that someone would tend to make without an MBA, expensive consultants and tons of experience.

I suggest getting several because (a) they don't necessarily cover the same topics, and (b) each author will have different advice and a different way to phrase it. Skim them to become acquainted with the contents, then when specific issues and problems arise, go back and study the details.

Suggested publishers: Nolo Press (e.g., "How to Form Your Own California Corporation) and Berkley Books ("The Entrepreneur's Guide to Patents, Copyrights, Trade Secrets, & Licensing").