The Ecosystem: pro bono support helps founders and builds communities

Pro bono law programmes often target good causes or groups unable to afford legal help. But there are also law firms that provide pro bono help to would-be start-ups, offering the expertise needed to get tech company founders underway.

“For the start-up and venture team there is a sense of wanting to pay it forward,” said Amalie Paludan, senior associate at the law firm Kromann Reumert in Copenhagen. “That’s in the DNA of the ecosystem. If we all help out as best we can, the ecosystem will grow, ventures will grow, and more investors will emerge.”

It is also extremely rewarding on a personal level. “It is inspiring beyond belief to see how much energy and how many ideas there are in the university, and how much [of] that can be leveraged into businesses,” she said.

At Imperial College London, pro bono legal advice comes from a group for law firms working together as the Green Tech Legal Collaborative (GTLC).

“By providing holistic legal and compliance assistance and guidance to green tech start-ups at a crucial stage of their development, we hope and anticipate that they will succeed in meaningfully and positively impacting climate action for a better and healthier planet,” said Victoria Nicholl, head of incubation services at Imperial.

Nicholl devised GTLC with Mia Motiee, legal counsel at Bloomberg, who developed the initial idea and enlisted law firms to join the programme. Now in its fourth year, the pro bono support provided by GTLC is well in excess of £2 million.

Pro bono help is not limited to the legal advice. The technology consultancy Tretton37 recently launched a pro bono scheme for social impact start-ups Startup Boost, offering help with programming, design and strategy. It is supporting 10 companies this year, five in Africa, four in Europe and one in the Middle East.

Public relations agencies, such as Cherish PR in the UK, have also helped start-ups with pro bono communications support. But is in the law that pro bono support has the greatest impact.

Open to all

Kromann Reumaert has a longstanding tradition of pro bono work focusing on youth and education issues. Pro bono work with start-ups is a more recent addition, engaging the firm’s substantial start-up and venture practice. It works with various universities and start-up hubs in Denmark, most significantly with DTU Skylab, the Danish Technical University’s innovation and entrepreneurship centre.

“We’ve partnered with DTU Skylab since 2017, and we have been the pro bono partner for all of the start-ups that use it,” said Paludan. To date, more than 350 start-up teams have benefited. These include companies such as Uvisa Health, which is developing a home-treatment device for common vaginal infections, and Molecular Quantum Solutions, which provides computational tools to accelerate R&D in the pharmaceutical, biotech and chemical industries.

All potential founders and young start-ups coming through DTU Skylab are eligible for support under the scheme. Most are technology start-ups hopeful of substantial future growth.

Teams can request a consultation with Kromann Reumert’s lawyers during one of the regular open days they hold at Skylab, or just walk in when there is a free spot. Many are students or early-career researchers, but DTU faculty members with start-up plans are also encouraged to take part.

Both senior and junior members of Kromann Reumert’s 22-strong start-up and venture practice contribute to these consultations, usually working together.

The advice given needs to be of the same high quality as that received by any paying client, Paludan said. “We don’t send an associate who is just starting out, who may have limited knowledge […] They might join us and listen in, but they do not yet have the experience to advise.”

This is seen as a good forum for legal skills development “There is a similarity in age and mindset between our younger lawyers and the founders, and that makes it a safer space in which to start practicing giving advice, which is a big part of being a good start-up lawyer.”

Common start-up concerns are covered in group sessions during each open day. “There are certain questions that all teams have, about vesting, about how to fundraise or to set up a business, and we cover those in talks that anyone can come to.”

Kromann Reumert lawyers have made podcasts that cover the basics of start-up law, saving time in the one-to-one meetings. Teams are offered an hour of the lawyers’ time, but there is high demand and efforts are being made to keep the maximum time to 45 minutes.

Other common questions cover shareholder agreements, intellectual property, contracting, bringing on board the first customer, and corporate partnerships.

The pro bono consultation is firmly focused on advice, not carrying out tasks. “We couldn’t work for them without being their attorneys, covered by a formal client-attorney agreement,“ Paludan said. “And while we could be their attorneys on a pro bono basis, that is not part of the partnership we have with DTU Skylab.”

There is also a feeling that paying for legal services is a useful discipline for a young company to learn. “A start-up might be a new business, but it is still a business. Setting aside money for legal services is part of good budgeting.”

For teams that want to formalise the relationship, Kromann Reumert offers a package covering early tasks in a start-up’s life. In some cases, this turns into a longer-term partnership, which fits with the model of accompanying start-ups from the earliest stages through to scaling up and exit.

“Some of my best clients have come from DTU, but we don’t think about this as a sales channel,” Paludan said. “However, it certainly does happen that DTU teams become paying clients.”

Strength in numbers

Meanwhile, GTLC has a highly selective focus on environmental start-ups, most often those developing climate-related products. There is a rigorous and competitive selection process to access the support.

In its first year GTLC set out to help six start-ups, but has since expanded and the present cohort includes 20 teams. These are drawn from Imperial’s Enterprise Lab, and Undaunted’s Greenhouse accelerator, which specialises in climate tech start-ups.

Applications for support are evaluated by a steering committee comprising staff from Imperial and founding law firms Bloomberg, Ropes & Gray, and Willkie, Farr & Gallagher. “This committee shortlists candidates for interviews, where they pitch their ideas and discuss their legal needs,” said Sara Roberts, incubation services manager at Imperial.

During the application and interview process, start-ups are required to demonstrate their potential contribution to green and sustainability goals.

Start-ups that have met these requirements include BlueNose Technologies, which has developed a wind deflector to reduce the fuel consumption of commercial ships, and Cyanoskin, which has developed an algal paint that removes carbon from the air. Fibe is developing sustainable textiles by extracting fibres from potato harvest waste, while Evotrack has an AI tool that helps prospect for potential sites for electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

GTLC also stands out in drawing its pro bono support from a large group of law firms, with nine involved in the present cohort.

“Given the diverse nature of start-ups and their legal needs, bringing together a range of firms allows us to offer a much deeper and broader scope of support to the start-ups, something that wouldn't be feasible for one firm acting alone,” Roberts said.

Each start-up is assigned a team lead from one firm who coordinates the legal support, but the work itself can be distributed across multiple firms, depending on the specific needs of the start-up and the expertise available within the GTLC network.

“For any new questions that arise as the year progresses, the firm lead will handle these within the existing team where possible, and then go out more widely to the participating firms,” said Roberts. “The focus is always on collaboratively addressing the start-ups' legal needs, ensuring they receive comprehensive support regardless of which specific firm handles each individual matter.”

More than advice

Another distinction is that the GTLC goes beyond simply advising the start-ups. “The firms undertake the actual legal work required, which is one of the key factors that sets this programme apart,” Roberts said.

Less experienced associates always work with appropriate supervision. “This approach provides invaluable hands-on experience for junior legal professionals, allowing them to engage directly with clients in a way that's often not possible in traditional settings,” Roberts said. “This benefits both the lawyers, who gain valuable skills and experience, and the start-ups, which receive comprehensive legal support tailored to their needs.”

Legal issues addressed range from corporate governance and fundraising, to dispute resolution and intellectual property protection, through to regulatory matters.

There is no strict cap on the assistance each start-up can receive, but care is taken to balance the expectations of the founding teams and the capacity of the volunteer lawyers. Start-ups can also apply for support in successive years.

The law firms can, at their own discretion, also continue to offer pro bono support outside the context of GTLC, or move to commercial footing. “We would view it as a positive outcome if start-ups became paying clients when they leave the programme and are able to afford the support,” Roberts said. “It would show that a strong relationship with deep trust has been formed.”

Beyond the direct legal support to start-ups, GTLC also fosters a broader awareness within Imperial of legal issues and trends. “The GTLC firms are passionate about supporting the ecosystem and ensuring start-ups are well-informed about the legal landscape,” Roberts said. “They have contributed to masterclasses to support this, and we're actively working on developing more to share with the wider network.”

There is also a catalytic effect on the entrepreneurial ecosystem at Imperial. “The legal support provided by these firms enhances the chances of survival for our start-ups in a fiercely competitive environment,” said Roberts. “By helping them thrive, they’re not only strengthening the Imperial entrepreneurial ecosystem but also inspiring more students to consider launching their own ventures, which brings immense value to our community.”

Elsewhere in the Ecosystem…

• The UK is testing options for universities to share technology transfer support with 13 pilot projects across the country. Most projects have a regional focus, bringing together research-intensive universities with institutions where spin-out creation is less frequent. Other partners include hospitals, public sector research institutes, angel investors and consultancies. Several projects also focus on specific sectors, such as healthcare and advance manufacturing. The initiative picks up a recommendation in last year’s review of university spin-outs in the UK.
   
• ÄIO Tech, a 2022 spin-out from Tallinn University of Technology, has raised €6.1 million to build a demonstration plant in Estonia. The company uses engineered yeast to transform by-products from wood and agricultural processes, such as sugars extracted from sawdust, into food-grade fats and oils. The venture capital comes from Voima Ventures, 2C Ventures, SmartCap and Nordic Foodtech VC.
   
• Michelle Lu and Kier Storey, two engineers formerly employed by chip designer Nvidia, have raised $24 million to launch Vsim. Based in Manchester, the company will develop robotics simulation technology that speeds up the training of AI agents.