Private members-only forum

What legal tools/services does everyone use? Building my stack.

Started by jchen92_15 · Feb 13, 2025 · 22 replies
For informational purposes only. Not legal advice.
JC
jchen92_15 OP

Honestly, building my startup toolkit. What does everyone use for: contract signing, cap table, legal docs, trademark search, etc.? Looking for the go-to stack honestly.

FO
ForensicAcct_13

My stack (Series A, 15 employees):

E-signatures: DocuSign (switched from HelloSign, DocuSign has better template features)

Cap table: Carta (pricey but worth it for 409A + investor portal)

Contract templates: Terms.Law generators + Stripe Atlas docs

HR/Payroll: Gusto (handles offer letters, tax forms, benefits)

Registered agent: Northwest ($125/year)

Legal counsel: Goodwin (expensive but knows our space)

TM
trying_my_best_1

Budget version (bootstrapped):

E-signatures: PandaDoc free tier or just DocuSign monthly when needed

Cap table: Spreadsheet until you raise (then Pulley, cheaper than Carta)

Contract templates: YC's open-source docs, Shake, or here

Trademark search: USPTO TESS (free)

Legal counsel: LegalZoom for filings, local attorney for real questions

SO
statute_of_limitations_ed

New AI tools worth trying:

Contract review: Spellbook, Lawgeex — can catch issues in vendor contracts

Research: CaseText CoCounsel, Harvey — for quick legal research

Drafting: Claude/GPT-4 — surprisingly good for first drafts of standard agreements

Still need a real lawyer for anything consequential, but AI is great for first passes and understanding what you're looking at.