Speaking Engagement
Keep up with the latest legal and industry insights, news, and events from MoFo
19 Jan 2026 - 19 Feb 2026
You’re invited to Morrison Foerster’s ScaleUp Speaker Series—a complimentary series that will provide insights into the legal side of founding a startup. This weekly seminar will arm you with the knowledge needed to manage the legal aspects of launching, funding, and growing a startup, and ways to avoid common mistakes that can have serious consequences down the road.
We are hosting this cycle of the ScaleUp Speaker Series on Fridays as virtual-only events, including several bonus sessions on Thursdays.*
Topics covered by this one-hour session include:
- Types of impact investors
- Impact deal terms
- Impact instruments
To register for upcoming events in this series, see our full schedule below:
To attend a session, please register by clicking its title (in orange text) below. You must register for each session individually.
Week 5: Most Common Legal Mistakes of Startup Entrepreneurs – February 20, 2026
Learn more than a dozen common mistakes, their impacts on startups, and how to avoid them in the first place.
Week 6: Antitrust Issues for Startup Companies – February 26, 2026
Learn about basic antitrust laws and principles, the current antitrust enforcement landscape, antitrust risks in interactions with peers and competitors, and other relevant topics relating to antitrust and competition in the startup space.
Week 7: Startup Equity Incentives – February 27, 2026
Learn the basics of customary equity incentives and how they are used to attract and retain top talent in a competitive market. We will discuss founder vesting, restricted stock, and stock options (including incentive stock options (ISOs) and nonqualified stock options (NSOs)).
Week 8: Follow-On Venture Financing Complexities – March 6, 2026
Learn how startups and investors manage down rounds, recapitalizations, pay-to-play financings, and other complexities that arise only in the second and subsequent rounds of financing.
Week 9: Selling Your Startup – March 13, 2026
Learn the differences among acquisition structures, and master fundamental terms for mergers and acquisitions, and receive an overview of definitive M&A agreements and processes.
Week 10: Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) – March 20, 2026
Learn about the steps necessary when considering an IPO, including the process and timing, and continuation as a U.S. public company.
Week 11: Raising Capital from Foreign Investors: CFIUS Basics – March 26, 2026
Learn about the underlying regulatory framework of foreign investments in U.S. startups, how founders should think about approaching foreign investors for investments, and how U.S. investors will likely view startups with foreign investments.
Week 12: Open Forum Recap – March 27, 2026
Join our interactive, open forum where you can ask our experienced startup attorneys questions on topics raised during earlier sessions or startup legal questions generally.
For more information on our ScaleUp programming offered in Austin, Boston, New York, and Palo Alto, please visit us at MoFo ScaleUp.
*Week 6: Antitrust Issues for Startup Companies; and Week 11: Raising Capital from Foreign Investors: CFIUS Basics are bonus sessions and will be held on Thursdays.
