Strategic Alliances and Joint Ventures inevitably involve both high risk and high reward to their partners. These strategies can bridge gaps, accelerate growth and increase valuation through consolidation.
These transactions involve many issues similar to new startup ventures, but with other kinds of risks inherent in the consolidation. Both types of alliances demand carefully planned, special corporate governance considerations to address questions of intellectual property, capitalization and funding, management, employment, stakeholder democracy, fiduciary duty (vs. independent contractor relationships), representative party roles, dispute resolutions mechanisms, corporate accountability, exit strategies and procedures.
Strategic alliances can be structured as “teaming agreements.” A large organization can team up with a smaller specialized organization to make proposals to prospective customers who want the resources that only the team can provide.
Even before a teaming agreement contemplating a joint sale or joint service, two organizations can team up for a “joint development agreement.” Such agreements bind the two parties to jointly develop a new product or new service that they will then jointly exploit for sale to customers.
The depth of our legal experience in navigating these relationships is what sets us apart from other boutique law firms.