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Silicon Valley is the capital of venture capital and the acknowledged headquarters of disruptive ideas, fierce determination and hard work. That aura of potential casts a golden glow on the zillions of Bay Area trying to make it big. It sometimes seems that if you’re blessed to work where unicorns graze, there’s no doubt you’re on the path to success. But what if you’re not in the San Jose-to-San Francisco corridor?

As a founder, you need to be scrappy, take care of that bottom-line. We get that, we’re all for a DIY approach when it makes sense (psst we even help you do that through our very free document generator). But, there is a fine line. There comes a time where you need to rope in the legal pros—a lawyer’s experience and knowledge that comes from hours and hours of advising , doing deals and even cleaning up DIY-that-went-wrong is your best bet for the long-term.

Since the 1849 gold rush, California has had a reputation as a great place to seek—and find—your fortune. The Golden State is home to the Golden Gate Bridge, the Golden State Warriors and, in Silicon Valley, golden opportunities. But, as you might suspect, California sometimes operates like its own country, with laws that aren’t like anyone else’s.

Most companies will eventually face the unpleasant task of terminating an employee or group of employees. When they do, it’s critical that they follow best practices and comply with applicable laws for many reasons, ranging from maintaining employee morale to minimizing legal risk. As a founder, here are some of the steps you should take when faced with a potential employee termination.

Terms of use and privacy policies govern the relationship between a company’s website or app and its users, and establish the guidelines for how that company must treat users’ information. Here, our emerging company lawyers explain who needs these agreements and why they matter.