Leading legal advisers to the entrepreneurial community
The entrepreneurial, high-growth arena in Scotland is thriving and our specialist team is recognised as leading legal advisers to this business community.
Along with advising many individuals and businesses, we work closely with the organisations and investors who have helped to drive this growth.
Our lawyers work closely with businesses at every stage of their life-cycle, from inception right through to a successful exit. We have extensive experience of helping young, innovative companies secure the necessary investment to fuel their growth into strong, successful businesses.
As legal ambassadors to leading business accelerator Entrepreneurial Spark, we provided mentoring and advice to hundreds of companies within its incubators across Scotland.
We also work closely with many other entrepreneurial support organisations including Scotland’s network of angel investors and venture capitalists. In addition we have strong relationships with the public sector and banking institutions which support entrepreneurs and high-growth companies.
Lead Partner Paula Skinner was named in The Lawyer Hot 100 2015 as one of the leading corporate solicitors in the UK for her work with entrepreneurs and high-growth businesses.
Contact us
Thank you for your enquiry. Someone from our team will be in touch with you in due course.
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Paula Skinner
Partner
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Jo Nisbet
Partner
Why choose us?
Entrepreneurs and growing businesses face specific challenges which require specialist advice. We understand these obstacles and opportunities, working in partnership to help our clients build and grow successful businesses from sound legal foundations.
From our offices in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Thurso and Inverness, we deliver legal advice in a clear way, focused on business rather than the law. As a full service commercial law firm we can also provide a number of additional services which may be crucial to you and your business. Moreover, we can be with you for your entire journey - you will not outgrow us. We have teams within our firm regularly dealing with high value transactions so we can secure your needs at every stage of your business’ life cycle. We also like to open doors and facilitate introductions to other larger, blue chip clients which are often highly beneficial to early stage businesses.
The majority of our work in this area is provided on a fixed-fee basis as we know that certainty on legal costs is important.
We are happy to arrange an initial meeting at no cost, and can also assist with introductions to investors, banks, accountants, surveyors and brokers who have expertise in this area.
Our services include:
"As a start-up, one of the most crucial things to get right is finding the best possible advisors to provide counsel on critical issues such as law, so we count ourselves lucky to have brought Harper Macleod on as partners from the beginning. The fact that Paula and the team have worked with us since the very start means that not only do they get what we're all about and where we're trying to get to, they also know what it has taken for us to get this far – and that is really important.
They have played a big part in the Entrepreneurial Spark story and have been an invaluable support for me as my role has changed over the years. They've also won the confidence and trust of our amazing Chiclets by sharing their knowledge in a way which makes the seemingly impossible seem possible. From supporting hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of Chiclet crowdfunding campaigns, to providing advice on basics such as legal structures and co-founding team equity options, the Harper Macleod have helped many Chiclets over the past four years.
Entrepreneurs have to be ruthless, with a smile of your face if possible, as time is your most precious commodity. One of the biggest compliments I can pay is that all of Harper Macleod's people understand what being an entrepreneur is all about and know where your time must be spent in order to establish and protect your business, and let you GoDo."
Lucy-Rose Walker, Chief Entrepreneuring Officer (CEO), Entrepreneurial Spark
"Whilst in the middle of an investment phase the advice given by Harper Macleod was always solution driven. There was always an attempt to understand the rationale of both parties before giving appropriate advice. This made the final completion meeting non confrontational and both parties ended up achieving their own goals in a stress-free environment. This refreshing style added great value to the process and the team deserved a big thank you for taking this approach."
Brian Williamson, Managing Director, Jumpstart (Scotland) Limited
"Working with Harper Macleod was a pleasure due to the fact that they brought a great deal of prior deal experience to the table. This meant that they could take a considered outlook on some of the critical business decisions that would result from the investment, as well as providing pragmatic insights to achieve a great result. We enjoy working with an integrated firm that allow us to tap into different specialities that will enhance our business as we grow post-investment."
Jamie Graves, CEO, Inquisitive Systems Ltd
When you’re starting a company your resources are horribly limited and a good legal framework can seem like one of those things that has to wait until later. It really can’t. You have to get your shareholder and options agreements solid from day one for your own protection. Because Harper Macleod made quality advice accessible to us from the very outset of this company’s formation, we’ve been able to successfully tackle all the challenges that come with a growing company - from an early change in co-founders, to employment issues and multiple investment rounds. It is precisely because the team at Harper Macleod so completely understand the entrepreneurial mindset - especially our desire to go fast, break things and worry about the rules later - that I so value their expertise and pro-active guidance. They tell me when I really must follow the rules and when to invest in a legal safety net for the future protection of the company - and because they consistently keep that advice relevant to our stage of growth, I listen.
Vicky Brock, CEO, Clear Returns
"I was delighted with Harper Macleod’s professionalism and service in the Chromacity deal and also with their patience and advice in what turned out to be a complex and prolonged investment process involving many parties. Jo, Paula, Jamie and their team did a fantastic job for our investment group (EOS, Kelvin and Investing Women)."
Kevin Grainger, Founder and Gatekeeper, EOS Technology Investment Fund
"I’d like to thank Harper Macleod, and Paula Skinner’s team in particular, for their advice and support in helping us reach this stage so quickly. We’ve been very fortunate to work with a number of great partners from the start, and without them it just wouldn’t have been possible. Our work so far has had a positive impact on the huge upsurge in the number of new business incorporations, and better still those who go through our programmes have an 80% survival rate which is way above average. We can’t wait to take our success story to benefit a wider audience."
Jim Duffy, CEO, Entrepreneurial Spark
"We were very impressed by Harper Macleod’s sector-specific expertise and attention to detail throughout the process of completing our recent investment in Sirakoss."
Sinclair Dunlop, Managing Partner, Epidarex Capital
"Jo, Gail and Paula delivered on all fronts regarding our recent demerger. They managed all parties concerned in the demerger, keeping them to the tight deadline and achieving a favourable outcome for my company. This I would put down to the conscientious approach taken with regard to all matters to achieve my aims."
HM CLIENT
"Harper Macleod helped guide me through the ‘first round’ investment process and made sure I fully understood everything that I was signing. I would encourage all new businesses/entrepreneurs to engage with HM as they truly are helpful and all round ‘Good Guys’ which is a breath of fresh air!"
Tracy Eker, Flexiworkforce Ltd
“With the pace at which the Project Pie franchise is developing, it was important that we completed our investment deal within short timescales and this is where having Harper Macleod on our side was invaluable. They’ve become an extended part of our team, and we have benefited from both their specialist franchising knowledge and access to the firm’s strength in depth. We need everybody on board thinking commercially, and that’s what they do so well.”
John Canavan, The Canavan Co (UK) Ltd
“This was a complicated process however Paula, Jo and the rest of the people we dealt with at Harper Macleod went out of their way to make sure that it ran like clockwork. It felt like they wanted to make the deal happen just as much as we did and this level of buy-in and pro-active approach to getting things done was exceptional, and hugely appreciated.”
Alex McNutt, Bell Fire and Security Holdings
Work examples
Epidarex Capital II, LLP
We advised Epidarex Capital, a life sciences venture capital fund, on its £2 million investment into University of Glasgow spin out Clyde Biosciences Limited and its £3.1 million investment in Aberdeen University spin-out Sirakoss Limited. Epidarex Capital is a dedicated life sciences venture capital fund investing in both the US and UK. Clyde Biosciences Limited has developed technology to test drug toxicity levels for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. The Investment will allow Clyde Biosciences to grow internationally and build its team. Sirakoss is a business which has developed synthetic bone graft substitutes.
Jumpstart (Scotland) Limited
Venture Capitalist
We advised high growth company Jumpstart (Scotland) Limited on a £3.4 million investment from the Business Growth Fund. Jumpstart was founded in 2008 to help guide UK businesses through HMRC’s R&D tax relief process and is recognised as one of the largest and fastest growing R&D tax specialists in the UK.
EOS Syndicate Management Limited and Kelvin Capital Limited
Our start-up and investment team advised angel syndicates EOS Syndicate Management Limited and Kelvin Capital Limited on the investment of £520,000 into Chromacity Limited – a Heriot-Watt university spin out company which makes lasers for the life-sciences industry and spectroscopy market. The investment was led by EOS Syndicate Management Limited, which was joined by Kelvin Capital and matched funding from Scottish Enterprise’s investment arm, the Scottish Investment Bank (SIB). Chromacity has developed unique tunable lasers for life-sciences microscopy, with industrial and scientific applications.
The investment provides growth capital for Chromacity to increase its development capacity as it commercialises the technology for a wider range of applications.
Viopti Limited (trading as Polaroid Contact Lens Solution)
Various Funding Rounds
We have advised Viopti on a range of matters including its four investment rounds totaling almost £1million. We have been responsible for drafting and reviewing all investment documentation and negotiating with all parties involved. Viopti is a company developing and commercialising eyecare products to be used when traveling.
Inquisitive Systems Ltd (trading as ZoneFox)
We advised Inquisitive Systems Limited (trading as Zonefox) in May 2014, September 2015 and February 2017 in relation to its funding rounds of £450k, £650k and £3.6m from Archangel, TRI Cap and the Scottish Investment bank.
Zonefox was launched by Jamie Graves in 2010 and the company’s software monitors and records activity on its clients system in order to detect possible security breaches. We have also provided assistance in relation to commercial contracts with key customers and intellectual property advice.
Alphabet Babies Limited
Seed Angel Finance
We have advised Alphabet Babies, an Entrepreneurial Spark alumni, since incorporation and have recently advised on the investment in excess of £100k from Equity Gap and Scottish Enterprise. Alphabet Babies are developing a range of language, literacy and communication programmes for babies and children.
Flexiworkforce Limited
Seed Angel Finance
We advised Flexiworkforce, the first recruitment website focused on the UK’s flexible working market, which obtained three rounds of investment from Business Angel syndicate Kelvin Capital. Our team advised the company from an early stage in relation to its fundraising, making the initial introduction to Kelvin Capital.
Clear Returns Limited
We have been advising Clear Returns Limited, a multi award winning predictive analytics consultancy software business, from start up in 2012 on all aspects of its growth. This has included several rounds of investment from both a syndicate and also from individuals, helping the company move to its next phase of growth. Clear Returns Limited is a great example of a client which we have worked with from incorporation to investment, advising them along the way not only in terms of the investment deal but assisting them with their ‘investor ready’ preparation and other legal challenges along the way.
External recognition
Paula Skinner was named in the The Lawyer Hot 100 2015 list of stand-out lawyers in the UK. Paula is also ranked as a notable practitioner by Chambers UK Guide to the Legal Profession. One client noted that Paula "was really good to work with, informative, closes things off and knows how to get the right result."
Working in partnership
We have worked closely with some of the leading organisations in the Scottish entrepreneurial ecosystem, from business accelerators to investors, and publicly funded organisations to networking communities. These include:
ScottishEDGE
Harper Macleod has been working closely as a partner of ScottishEDGE, the funding competition aimed at Scotland’s top early stage and high-growth businesses. Our involvement has seen us work with a number of the finalists and winners of ScottishEDGE helping them on their way to success.
Startup Grind
Startup Grind is a global start-up community aimed at start-up and high growth companies and started in Glasgow in 2014. Harper Macleod has been partners with Startup Grind since October 2014 and attends the monthly networking events in both Edinburgh and Glasgow which host a vast range of businesses. The events allow businesses to liaise with professional advisors, successful entrepreneurs and other early stage businesses with Harper Macleod providing legal assistance to some of the businesses.
LINC
LINC Scotland is the national association for business angels in Scotland. Harper Macleod has been a corporate partner of LINC since 2014 working to provide innovative solutions and stimulate the market for new investors and those who want to get involved.
Entrepreneurial Spark
Entrepreneurial Spark was the world’s largest free business accelerator for early stage and growing ventures, prior to its network of accelerator hubs being acquired by RBS. Through our association, Harper Macleod provided legal services and advice to budding entrepreneurs in areas such as corporate structure, intellectual property, franchising and investment. We assisted a large number of Entrepreneurial Spark companies raise seed capital.
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