Alumni create LegoLex, a legal startup that helps early stage ventures hit the ground running

Three years ago, IE Law School alumni --Justas Pangonis, Calum Hedigan, and David Fahraeus-- along with two IE professors, Jesús Loma and Tomás Pardina, created LegoLex, a legal startup focused on early stage startups, assisting them with all the legal hoops they have to jump through in the most pragmatic, cost-effective manner.

The journey of LegoLex has been full of twists and turns. Starting out as an Exclusive International Network of Specialist law firms, in the early years they focused on assisting venture-funded scaleups in their expansion efforts, connecting them quickly with the best lawyers in their destination jurisdictions.

Due to the COVID pandemic, however, companies continuing in their international expansion slowed down, or even stopped entirely, in many target industries and they had to adapt quickly in order to survive.

In this quest for survival, they discovered a glaring problem in the market faced by countless startups. A vast number of law firms currently assisting startups in their early stages don’t seem to understand the real needs of entrepreneurs. Moreover, they charge these startups thousands and thousands of euros for fundamental legal documents, leaving entrepreneurs with a burning hole in their wallets for some expensive templates.

“Traditional law firms are not adapted to the needs of fast-moving startups, especially at the beginning of their entrepreneurial journey. Our objective is to help them understand what it is they need to do in order to be as well protected as possible and set a strong foundation for an exciting future without breaking the bank.”

At LegoLex, they have created startup packages that include the legal documents every startup needs at a fraction of the price. But, having an un-tailored template isn’t going to do you any good. If you really want to set up a strong foundation, you need an advisor that can guide you through your journey and adapt everything to your specific needs. That’s where their own entrepreneurial experience comes into play. They have experienced first-hand the highs and lows of being an entrepreneur, and share with all of their clients the various tips and tricks that can help you avoid the most common pitfalls and delays faced by startups.

“Legal knowledge should not be privileged information. The law is a tool that everyone should know how to use in order to make the most out of every opportunity they have. We want to share that knowledge with startups so that they better understand the complex legal world that goes hand in hand with starting a company.”

Since the pandemic hit, they have created partnerships with various incubators, accelerators, and startup hubs and are giving free workshops to their entrepreneurial communities on topics such as “Don’t get Zuckerberged: The Importance of Shareholders’ Agreements from Day 1” and “The Fine Print: What you need to know about contracts.”