As you may already know, Swedes love their summer vacation. And we´re not talking about a one week road trip to Oregon, we´re talking about four, five or even seven consecutive weeks of lazy summer days and nights. Us Swedes at USLawforNordics are no exception, and we will take the whole of July off. Before we do, we wanted to reflect over the year that has passed.
The last nine months have been truly exciting for us. We launched our website in October, and since then we published at least one weekly blog post, written by ourselves and our US lawyer friends. We tried hard to be relevant to our readers, often publishing posts based on questions we received. We intended to create a mix of topics, so everyone could find something for their business and situation. Every Tuesday we met with Nordic entrepreneurs during our “Ask the Lawyer”-session at the Nordic Innovation House, in Palo Alto and we discuss how to get the legal stuff right from the start. In addition, we received lots of email questions, started blogging in the SWEA magazine, and have been on panel discussions in both Silicon Valley and in Sweden regarding “the legal stuff” to consider before entering the US market.
Most of the entrepreneurs we met are startups, but we also engage with larger and more mature companies. Some are already in the US, but most are still in the Nordics thinking about moving here. We have helped identify their legal needs, given our best tips on how to get legal help in US and introduced them to immigration lawyers, contract lawyers, insurance brokers, VCs…
Top 4 questions (so far) from entrepreneurs:
- What kind of visa do I need? Can I go to the US and start setting up my business on an ESTA? How long will it take me to get a VISA?
- What are the risks of entering the US market? Can my Nordic company, or even myself as an individual, become liable if something goes wrong in the US? What insurance coverage should I get? How should my terms of service be drafted?
- What will the tax consequences be if I establish a business in US?
- What kind of entity should I set up in the US, if any? Should I work with partners and agents instead?What are the differences between an LLC and a corporation from a tax, liability and cost perspective?
We met extraordinary people. We learned so much. And had so much fun.
We look forward to seeing you in August again. Until then – enjoy your summer, especially the bright Nordic summer nights if you´re lucky enough to get to experience them!
Olivia, Sara and Maria
