Andre is a partner at Fasken, a leading international law firm where he maintains a broad corporate law practice. Andre advises venture capital firms and emerging, high-growth companies all across Canada. As Co-Chair of the Emerging Companies Group at the firm, he is a recognized leader in Ontario’s tech ecosystem and a tireless advocate for his clients.

Andre acts as the go-to external counsel for all legal matters to companies and venture capital investors around the world, regularly speaking at legal tech conferences and events.

We ask Andre everything we need to know before taking a company public. He details the importance of intellectual property, common mistakes made by investors and founders, and how to set up your company for success.

We learned so much from this episode that we’re still expecting to receive an invoice of billable hours from the firm. Good thing you can listen to this for free!

2:30 - Intro to Technology & Law   9:50 - Common mistakes made by start-ups 17:40 - Critical factors to consider before fundraising (due diligence) 20:15 - Liquidation preference (Important!) 24:00 - Equity vs. Debt Financing  26:50 - Common mistakes made by Investors 30:38 - An interesting deal handled by Andre (litigation to M&A) 36:40 - Tech Conferences 38:58 - IPO vs. Staying Private 43:50 - Advice for future tech lawyers 46:34 - Lightning Round