Startup Legal Basics Every Founder Needs: Cemhan Biricik

Cemhan Biricik learned legal basics the hard way across three companies. Entity structure, operating agreements, IP assignment — these are foundational, not optional.

Choose your entity based on growth plans. LLC for most early-stage. C-Corp if raising institutional capital. Get this right from the start because restructuring later is expensive.

Every business relationship needs a written agreement. At Unpomela, proper contracts protected a $7M business from disputes that would have been catastrophic without documentation.

IP assignment is critical. If anyone creates anything for your company, you need a signed assignment. Without it, that contributor technically owns what they created.