Latest from the Office of Small Business Advocacy

I’ve written previously about the SEC’s catchily-titled Office of the Advocate for Small Business Capital Formation (OASB). In summary, the OASB was created to support emerging companies through education and guidance on capital raising and other formation/start-up issues, to provide analysis and policy recommendations, and (as the name suggests) to advocate on behalf of emerging companies and their investors, with an eye to the perspectives of, and impacts on, small businesses. 

In January 2026, the OASB released its Staff Report[1], required as part of the Office’s statutory mandate, summarizing its work and presenting research and information on capital formation and

2026 Legal Guide to Privacy and Data Security Now Available

Is your business or non-profit organization compliant with federal, state, and global data privacy laws?

Our 2026 edition of A Legal Guide to Privacy and Data Security, a comprehensive resource designed to help businesses and organizations understand and manage the rapidly evolving landscape of privacy and data security laws in the United States and worldwide has been published by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).

Corporate Formalities: A Necessary Long Game

A common pitfall of many entrepreneurs and startups is a failure to adhere to even minimal corporate “formalities” or good governance practices that can contribute to their long-term upside (positively or negatively). Corporate formalities entail things like entity formation, taking minutes at meetings, keeping reasonably detailed and up-to-date records, and the like. 

For entrepreneurs, the most important place to start is choosing the appropriate type of business entity and filing the necessary documents to legally form that entity with the appropriate state authority.

Artificial Intelligence and Your Business: What Founders Should Know Before Making Representations and Warranties

Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer just a buzzword; instead, it’s a practical business tool that companies of all sizes are integrating into operations, products, and services. From automating routine tasks to generating insights from data, AI is transforming how entrepreneurs build and scale their businesses. But with great opportunity comes important legal and strategic considerations, especially when it comes to what founders say about AI in contracts, pitches, and marketing. I have already seen representatives and warranties regarding the usage of AI in real-life contracts in my practice! I guess the world really evolves FAST (I still remember the time when I used a flip phone and dictionary)!

Chiefs Touchdown for Kansas?

On Monday, December 22, shockwaves were sent through the City of Kansas City, Missouri, as the City’s beloved Chiefs announced that they were headed to Kansas beginning with the 2031 NFL season. The reaction around the news was split on social media, and for good reason. The Chiefs have been located in Kansas City – and the iconic Arrowhead Stadium – since 1963, when the legendary Lamar Hunt moved the Dallas Texans to Kansas City. Since that time, the Chiefs have been a staple in Kansas City. As someone who grew up in the area (and as a humongous Chiefs fan), I know how much of a stronghold the team has in the area.

From Handshake to Evidence: Bridging the Gap Between Trade Practice and NGFA Rules

Most grain companies run on muscle memory.

Contracts get written, confirmations go out (or should have gone out), trucks roll in, grain gets shipped out, the year marches on... It’s a system held together with an unspoken understanding among everyone involved. 

When something unexpected happens, it usually gets resolved. It always does…until it doesn’t.

Tokenization. The Future of Capital Raising?

A few years ago, I was involved in an interesting project where we attempted to “tokenize” the ownership interests of a company which owned as its only asset an apartment complex in Kansas City. We were trying to represent the rights of several owners of the company through a cryptographically secured digital token recorded on distributed ledger technology (DLT). DLT is a digital system that records details of transactions in multiple locations at the same time as opposed to on a centralized database.