On Monday of this week, a divided U.S. Supreme Court decided a landmark employment law case.  In Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, the U.S. Supreme Court found that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits sex discrimination in employment, includes sexual orientation and gender identity.  Title VII applies to employers with 15 or more employees in 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year.  Title VII prohibits discriminating against an individual with respect to employment decisions, compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of an individual’s race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.   

We know there are a lot of you out there with ideas, but you may not know the best place to start, or how to get involved in the startup community. Maybe you’d like to work for a startup, or maybe you’d just like to check out the state of entrepreneurship in Indiana. Luckily, Indianapolis has a thriving startup community, complete with individuals and organizations ready to help you succeed.   

The list below may not be everything that’s going on in Indianapolis, but if you start here, we are confident that you will be able to network your way to the events and associations that are right for you.

Growing startups often reach a point at which fundraising is either necessary to continue the growth of the business, or appealing for other reasons. If you are considering taking on investment funds for your startup, there are several basic considerations you should keep in mind. This post covers two aspects that may often be overlooked by founders, causing potentially significant issues for your business and fundraising in later stages.  

You're thinking of starting a business. You might have researched the requirements for legally forming a business in your state, which usually means filing certain documents with the secretary of state. Is this all you need to do? Are there any additional documents or agreements you should have in place? While your state may not require additional documents be filed, many companies will want to create additional internal documents governing the company, perhaps for the reasons described in this post.

Common formation documents include bylaws or an operating agreement, depending on the type of entity you filed; resolutions confirming your officers and/or board members, and setting forth the ownership of your company, if there are multiple owners or members; and certain agreements for founders, depending on your business, which may include intellectual property transfer agreements, or vesting agreements for the founders' equity.

At Gutwein Law, we understand navigating tax credits can be difficult. So, we've put together a list of tax credits for Midwestern states to help you get started. Ready for today's blog post? Good! Make some noise for Illinois!