Introduction

In a post covid world, the growth of Technology Companies have been phenomenal, making them indispensable in our day to day life. In fact, technology companies comprise about 1/5th of fastest growing companies in Forbes 2020 fastest growing companies list. 

In fact, the Technology sector has been the most consistent performer in the past few years.
Add the effect of the pandemic to that and you would see that the reliance on technology has increased manifold. 

It is a well known fact that more than 1/5th of the Fortune 500 and 1/4th of those in Tech sectors are based in the United States, highest for any country.

It follows that both the work related to technology and resultant compliance and enforcement in the United States has also increased manifold. Consequently, there has been a huge upsurge in the legal work available for lawyers across the globe and specially in the hub of emerging technology, i.e. United States.

In fact, in the United States, most of these companies have to struggle with multi level regulations and compliances.

This increase in the pace of legislation and compliances have also increased the amount of work available for lawyers who are well versed in these newly emerging areas. 

Most of these regulations applicable to the tech industry are very specific in terms of compliances and issues involved and often involve multi sectoral knowledge.

It is not easy to find legal professionals who are skilled in such sector specific laws. Those that are skilled in such areas, can charge a bomb. With average rates per hour of lawyers of even solo lawyers and small firms being at USD348 (see here), and big law firm payments for even associates even reaching at USD1000 per hour (see here), this isn’t an affordable game for startups at all. 

Most companies would be looking to use attorneys only when there is no other alternative. If there were options of other legal professionals available for work such as research, compliance or drafting, which might not really need a qualified lawyer, they would gladly take it. 

Seemingly, they have found an alternative

Do you know what it is?

Well, most of the technology companies, especially the major players have pledged to have ‘Remote Work Forever’.

Needless to say, smaller companies, especially emerging startups are not far behind. 

When you hire remote employees, you can benefit from massive talent arbitrage benefits.

There is a disparity in legal payments even between different states in the United States. Obviously, if companies were to hire remote paralegals from developing countries, they would incur 1/10th the cost of what they would incur in the US for their legal requirements.

This is the reason why there is a surge in freelancing opportunities on the likes of platforms like Upwork and Fiverr.

This surge shows massive opportunities for lawyers and legal professionals from India.

The only real requirement is that you should have the ability to do the work. As well as anyone in the US would do. If you have this, you can avail of incredible opportunities.

We, at LawSikho have always thought about how to skill Indian lawyers to avail opportunities in sectors and in geographies where the demand is higher than the supply. We aim at disrupting the USD 250 billion legal industry in the US by skilling Indian lawyers to secure this opportunities remotely.

We have always curated courses that keep pace with the current development and skill gap, not just in India but across the globe. 

This course therefore, looks at introducing the participants to different businesses within the domain of technology and how these businesses work, and then goes on to discuss the applicable laws to those business models and the work that can be taken up in that domain. In the current course, we will do a deep dive into specific sectors, skilling the participants firstly about the business in those sectors, secondly about the legal requirements in that sector and thirdly, about how to reach out and grab the opportunities.

Who should take this course?

• Lawyers who want to build an independent practice or start their own law firm and perform remote work for US startups, tech companies, and US lawyers 
• Litigators whose practice is severely hurt by the pandemic and who want to perform freelancing advisory work at US market rate on the side not only to survive  but also to grow financially, and still have sufficient time to focus on litigation,
• Young lawyers who want to work in top law firms or in the technology law practice of boutique law firms,
• Lawyers who want to assist Indian SAAS startups with technology work when they expand to the US 
• Young lawyers and law students who intend to pursue an LLM and settle abroad in the long term 
• Law students who are interested in building a career in technology laws and want to start building their track record during law school itself
• Chartered Accountants and Company Secretaries who want to add a new dimension to their practice and provide high value services to their clients in an emerging area, that is, technology laws.
• In-house counsels who aspire to work for global technology companies 

What will you learn from this course?

• You will gain an understanding of the US legal system and understand the various legislations applicable to technology companies both at state and federal level.
• You will gain an understanding of different legislations in the domain of cybersecurity, data protection and privacy, electronic payments, records and signature.
• You will develop a working knowledge of drafting different technology contracts, do the compliances and auditing work under different laws in technology sectors, which is of high relevance for clients when they engage remote freelancers. 
• You will gain an understanding of the contract structure for technology contracts, limitations of their enforceability and negotiation mechanism.
• You will gain an understanding of how contract structures and negotiations vary across the globe in line with federal and state level compliances across jurisdictions.
• You will get access to our carefully curated contract drafting checklist to ensure you do not miss out on any important clause specially catering to technology contracts across the globe.
• You will gain an understanding of different types of e-commerce contracts such as website development and services agreement, software maintenance agreement, online shopping site conditions of use, etc. 
• You will gain an understanding of different technology laws & contractual work in the technology sector of the United States.
• You will be introduced to different types of technology agreements, including those related to Websites, Softwares, Video-Games, Subscription, Data Processing including the key provisions and various stages of negotiations.
• You will develop an understanding of the ever evolving landscape of the e-commerce industry including the evolving business models, key agreements governing them, their marketplaces, compliance related work.
• You will be introduced to different aspects of the ecommerce industry including customer relationship management, disputes between the customers and vendors, IP disputes and other key legal issues that arise while advising them.
• You will develop an understanding of the ever evolving landscape of the food-tech  industry including the business models of kitchen, restaurants, cloud-kitchens with special emphasis on their relationship with technology giants such as Swiggy and Zomato.
• You will develop an understanding of the HealthTech Sector, the different business models in that sector and legal work in that sector
• You will be introduced to different modes in which technology can be transferred from one entity to another including licensing, assigning, franchising and factors governing them.
• You will also learn the governing factors in making decisions while comparing these models enabling you to choose the most appropriate model for your clients.
• You will be introduced to the essentials of the licensing, assigning and franchising agreement with special emphasis on cross-jurisdictional technology work.
• You will also gain an understanding of different data protection laws in the United States including  state laws like California Consumer Privacy Act and Federal laws such as the Privacy Act among others.
• You will be able to understand the different compliance requirements across major jurisdictions in relation to data protection and privacy laws.
• You will gain an understanding of the legal landscape governing electronic payments across the globe with special emphasis on the United States.
• You will gain an understanding of laws related to securities and commodities broking in the United States.
• You will also be introduced to the different aspects of digital lending and investment management with special emphasis on contractual and compliance work.
• You will gain an understanding of the landscape governing cyber crimes across the world with special emphasis on their enforcement mechanisms and efficacy.
• You will be able to draft complaints, register grievances & advise your clients who have been victims of cyber crimes such as hacking, virus attacks, illegal access across different jurisdictions.
• You will learn to determine the applicable law in cyber crimes and advise appropriate remedies to your clients.
• You will learn about emerging technologies such as AI, Robotics, Drones, SpaceTech, Augmented Reality and Autonomous vehicles
• You will also learn how to develop your outreach by creating profiles on different freelancing platforms and develop the ability to write effective proposals.

Who will be your potential employers or clients?

• Lawyers who want to work in top law firms or in the corporate or technology practice of boutique law firms,
• Litigators whose practice is severely hurt by the pandemic and who want to perform corporate work on the side to survive and grow financially, and still have sufficient time to focus on litigation,
• Lawyers who want to build a niche independent/ freelancing technology practice or start their own law firm which caters to the offshore needs of foreign clients
• Young lawyers and law students who intend to pursue an LLM and settle abroad in the long term 
• Law students who want to secure the best corporate law firm jobs after graduation and create financial safety for themselves  
• Chartered Accountants and Company Secretaries who want to provide unique and high-value services to their clients, especially related to technology law

What is unique about this course?

• This course aims to impart a wide range of corporate law and compliance skills to students as well as to law graduates and working Technology which would enable them to take up remote freelance work on US Technology law directly or through various freelancing websites on the internet and will instill in them the required confidence to generate global clientele over the internet. 
• We will also guide you in developing your online presence as a Corporate Law Paralegal through various freelancing platforms such as Upwork, Fiverr, People Per Hour, etc. and through social media networks such as Linked In, Facebook, etc. 
• By the end of this course, you can expect to have secured enough skills to be able to take up paralegal work assignments from small and medium-sized companies in the US as well as law firms in the US looking to outsource work.
• You will also be equipped to help small entrepreneurs outside the US establish a presence in the US by incorporating entities.
• The course is tough and intensive, you will not be awarded the certificate unless you complete the required number of assignments. You will have to invest 4-5 hours per week in developing your skills, in addition to the classes on this course.
• You will have interactive classes with high-quality discussions which will be taken by the experts of this course. You can get all the doubts resolved in the classes or even outside the classes through course groups and email.
• You will get personal attention and coaching from our trainers who will be assigned to you, and have access to a dedicated course anchor who will help you with submissions or any guidance or issues you may have as you progress through the course.
• You will receive in-line feedback for the assignments you submit, which will improve your performance to a significant extent. 
• You will have access to other doubt clearing mechanisms also, in addition to the online classes such as a discussion forum where queries are responded to within a period of 48 hours, a WhatsApp group that will include your peers and batchmates as well as the course anchor, evaluator and support team from LawSikho. 
• You will be trained in writing for six writing assignments during the term of the course and if these are of publishable quality, these shall be published on the iPleaders blog which sees a footfall of more than a million visitors a month.

Specific learning objectives

• Learn about the types of services that you can provide to global businesses around technology contracts, licensing and transfers, data protection and privacy, fintech, cryptocurrency, e-commerce  and cybercrime related work.
• Learn to do advisory and compliance related work for Indian and multinational tech businesses across jurisdictions.
• Learn how to draft key types of technology contracts relevant for businesses: software licenses and development agreements, e-commerce agreements, service agreements, cloud computing agreements, master services agreements (MSA), statements of work (SOW), Domain Name Transfer and Assignment Agreement, End User License Agreement (EULA)
• Learn how to draft technology contracts and licenses such as Outsourcing Agreement, Technology Transfer Agreements, Music License Agreement, E-book Publishing Agreement, Affiliate Agreements, Video game development agreement, etc. Non-Disclosure Agreements, etc.
• Learn how to assist businesses for technology licensing and transfers across different jurisdictions.
• Learn how to assist businesses with drafting outsourcing agreements.
• Advise businesses on how to create milestone-based deliverables in development contracts
• Learn to advise Indian and multinational companies regarding compliances under various data protection and privacy laws across jurisdictions with special emphasis on the United States.
• Learn to advise a client involved in e-commerce for compliance and drafting work.
• Learn to do work related to business models, agreements and other work in the foodtec
• Advise clients based in the US on data privacy and protection related issues.
• Perform software-related due diligence in cross-jurisdictional M&A transactions to discover IP ownership of the target for appropriate business valuation
• Learn about cyber forensics and the law of evidence.across different jurisdictions.
• Learn about international cyber-crimes and determination of jurisdiction and appropriate enforcement and redressal mechanisms.
• Perform legal work pertaining to bitcoin and cryptocurrency advice across different jurisdictions with special emphasis on the United States.
• Learn regulations applicable to payment gateways and payment gateway agreements in different jurisdictions across the world with special emphasis on the United States.
• You will be able to draft complaints, register grievances & advise your clients who have been victims of cyber crimes such as hacking, virus attacks, illegal access for clients based in the United States.
• You will learn to determine the applicable law in cyber crimes and advise appropriate remedies to your clients.
• You will learn about emerging technologies such as AI, Robotics, Drones, SpaceTech, Augmented Reality and Autonomous vehicles and applicable regulations across the world.
• Learn to perform compliance and advisory work for your clients foraying into blockchain or internet of things through cryptocurrencies, smart contracts or mobile applications.
• Learn how to develop your outreach by creating profiles on different freelancing platforms and develop the ability to write effective proposals.

List of skills you will learn through weekly exercises

• How to brief a client about the legal systems in the US and the regulatory landscape for technology companies
• Learn how to negotiate important terms of contracts such as indemnification and limitation of liability in technology related agreements
• Learn how to draft software development agreements 
• Learn how to draft service level agreements and master service agreements 
• Learn how to draft software as a service agreements
• Learn how to advise a client on negotiating the right type of license for licensing their technology
• Learn how to draft licensing agreements
• Learn how to draft technology transfer agreements
• Learn how to assist US law firms with software patent searches
• Learn how to draft specifications and claims for software related inventions
• Learn how to file a software patent application on the USPTO portal
• Learn how to manage the USPTO office action process for software patents
• Learn how to manage the contracts for a client in accordance with the law relating to electronic signatures
• Learn how to ensure compliance for consent requirements and breach notifications under the US data protection laws
• Learn how to advise a client on setting up a cryptocurrency business and the applicable taxes
• Learn how to advise a client on applicable licensing and compliance requirements for cryptocurrencies
• Learn how to negotiate and draft a token sale agreement
• Learn how to structure a bounty program
• Learn how to negotiate and draft a Bounty Agreement
• Learn how to advise a client on identifying cybercrimes and the available preventive measures
• Learn how to advise a client in the Artificial Intelligence business on laws applicable to them
• Learn how to advise a client on the compliance requirements under the US cyber security laws
• Learn how to advise a client in the cloud computing business about the applicability of laws to their business and contracts which they may enter into
• Learn how to advise a client who is a data centre service provider on the laws applicable to them
• Learn how to draft colocation service agreements
• Learn about the various fintech business models used in the US and the regulations applicable to FinTech entities
• Learn how to draft KYC / AML policies for a US entity
• Learn how to assist a client in the LegalTech business in areas like product development and content marketing
• Learn how to advise a client on the legal requirements for starting a video game company
• Learn how to draft video game licensing agreements, 
• Learn how to draft game porting agreements
• Learn how to draft work for hire agreements and option agreements
• How to draft marketplace agreements
• How to draft order fulfillment agreements
• How to draft reseller and distribution agreements
• Learn how to advise a client on different models in the foodtech business and the legal requirements applicable to each
• Learn how to draft agreements of restaurant aggregators with restaurants and delivery service providers
• Learn how to draft agreements of restaurants with point of sale service providers
• Learn about regulatory requirements applicable to different components of the food industry
• Learn how to advise a client on consumer related litigation
• Learn how to advise a client on dispute resolution in the event of contractual breaches with vendors, service providers, customers etc.
• Learn how to respond to a notice from a regulator for a food industry business
• Learn about different business models in the HealthTech sector and how to advise a client on the legal requirements applicable to these
• Learn how to draft agreements with healthcare professionals, delivery service providers, insurance companies, third party administrators etc.
• Learn how to draft agreements with medicine and medical equipment suppliers
• Learn how to advise a client in the case of a consumer related matter on medical negligence
• Learn about the AI / robotics sector, where these technologies are used and what is the likely legal work that can arise in this area
• Learn about other emerging technologies such as Drones, SpaceTech, Augmented reality and autonomous vehicles, upcoming legislation in these areas and the possible legal work that can be created

What kind of exercises will you get?

Here is just a glimpse of the kind of exercises you will get:

• Check Please! Solutions, an Indian startup which has developed invoicing related solutions automatically sending reminders to service providers, developing custom emails for changes in deduction of tax and requesting specific confirmations is looking to expand to the US and develop products which can help startups manage their billing and invoicing, tax deductions and reminders. You are a lawyer advising Bill Laao. It wants to secure an idea from you about the regulatory landscape in the US as well as laws applicable and compliance requirements for a company providing invoicing related support. Create a presentation advising the client on the applicable laws and regulatory landscape in the US.
• Caught up! an Indian company providing software which enables effective team meetings and especially town halls for companies provides services on it’s platform for different large companies having remote teams. The platform facilitates team meetings with profile introductions, team introductions and descriptions on what the team member should be contacted for. The company is providing services to clients over many countries. It needs advice from you on what it should include in its standard service contract in the indemnification, limitation of liability, governing law and dispute resolution clauses.
• A software has been invented by a software company which allows medical professionals to share anonymized patient records with other professionals so that they can fill any gaps which may be preventing the best possible treatment of the patients and which uses artificial intelligence to analyze all available patient data to provide a probable diagnosis. A healthcare solution company wants to use the said technology in their system hardware and thus have approached the software company for the same. The software company wishes to know about the possible modes of transfer of the software, the ways in which the commercial understanding between the parties could be worked out, the rights that could be retained by the company, etc. On the basis of the terms negotiated between the parties, draft a technology transfer agreement between the companies.
• Pantheon Palace, an ecommerce portal providing marketplace solutions to retail furniture makers and antique sellers is looking to enter into a marketplace agreement with Nostalgia, an antique furniture seller, where the furniture is sought to be made available only to certain areas of Las Vegas and San Francisco to retain its exclusivity. Draft a marketplace agreement between Nostalgia and Pantheon Palace for this purpose.
• Technocures LLC is a California based healthcare services provider. The company is now looking to start another business of providing telemedicine, since it believes that it can use its existing network of doctors - general practitioners and specialists to increase this business. The management is, however, unsure of the applicability of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, 1996 (HIPAA) to telemedicine business and the compliance required under it. Create a report on the requirements that Technocures would need to take care of, under the HIPAA.
• Big Tummy Burgers is a popular quick service restaurant having various outlets in Chicago, Florida, New Jersey and California. Until recently, it has been working with mostly students working as part time employees. However, following a couple of unfavourable incidents at one of it’s joints in New Jersey, it is now looking to automate the food preparation and servicing process, where the customers can order using the iPads, the food will be prepared with ‘Robo’ chefs and delivered by Robots. They want to do a trial at one of the joints and then move the technology to different places. They are looking for your advice on what kind of legal issues they can face with this automation. Guide them on the regulatory requirements in the US.
• Gearstop, a company facilitating luggage storage at verified hotels and hostels in California is now in the process of setting up its website. It has requested you to draft terms and conditions of use of the website as well as a privacy policy in accordance with the laws applicable in California. Accordingly, draft the terms and conditions and privacy policy.
• Redstone Research, a silicon valley based software developer has built a software which can guide mobile phone battery manufacturers about improving processes to ensure that the battery lasts for a longer time. Torpedo, a New York company manufacturing mobile phones which aid gaming, is looking to use the software provided by Redstone Research to improve its processes. After a preliminary meeting, Redstone has agreed to license the software to Torpedo, on a non-exclusive basis. You are the lawyer for Torpedo. Draft a licensing agreement between the two companies for this purpose.
• Diagnosis Alley is a telemedicine service provider which makes consultations from leading doctors in different spheres available to customers. Their services are mostly availed of by large multinational companies, who make such consultations available to their senior employees free of cost. Diagnosis Alley has reached out to specialist doctors in various spheres and is now in the process of executing an agreement with them for making their services available to the clients of Diagnosis Alley. They have reached out to you to draft a model agreement for them, which they can use to enter into with the specialist doctors. Create an appropriate model agreement for them.
• Mintkeeper, a crypto startup comprising a group of four expert coders has developed a new token called SolidMint, with features of anonymity and possibility of international payments. The founders of Mintkeeper now want to incorporate the business and need your help with the setting up of a legal entity and understanding the compliance requirements that may be applicable to them. Advise them about the licenses and permissions required for setting up the legal entity in the crypto sector in California.

Training Methodology

24/7 online access to all materials - study at your convenience

Access to basic study material through online learning management system, Android and iOS app. Recordings of all classroom sessions will be available.

Hard Copy Study Material

Hard copy study material modules to be couriered to your address in India.

Practical Exercises

2 practical exercises every week, followed by written feedback

Live Online Classes to Teach Paralegal Assignments Specific Work

There will be a live video-based online class to teach you specific US intellectual property work performed by paralegals. You can ask questions, share your screen, get personal feedback in this class. Every week there will be approx. 1-1.5 hours of class to teach you the work and give you feedback. There will be recordings available in case you miss a class.

Convenient Class timings

Classes are held after regular work hours. Typically classes are kept on Sundays or 8-9 pm on other days.

Live Doubt Clearing

You can ask questions in class, or on the learning management system when you read a chapter. You can also schedule a one-on-one session with evaluators to perform exercises or write articles.

Certification

This course is recognized by the National Skill Development Corporation, a PPP under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship of the Government of India. You will receive a certificate cobranded by NSDC and Skill India on successful completion.

This is how the certificate from NSDC and Skill India will look as per the current applicable format (may change as per the approval authorities):

Money- back guarantee

If you take this course, follow it diligently for a month, do all the exercises but still do not find value in it, or not able to understand or follow it or not find it good for any reason, we will refund the entire course fee to you. It is a 100% money-back guarantee with only one condition, you must pursue it properly for a month. If you don’t find it valuable after that, get your entire money back.

View Refund Policy

Client Opportunities & Recruitment Support

Many employers, law firms and companies are happy to recruit our high performing students. If you do well in your exercises and classes, we can help you to get jobs, internships and assessment internships in good law firms, with renowned lawyers as well as in various companies.

Our team helps our students in building their profile on LinkedIn and freelancing platforms to increase their reach to the potential recruiters or clients.

Our experts guide the students on how to crack any interview.

On-demand, we provide mock interviews for our students looking for jobs.

We share multiple internship/recruitment opportunities every week on our Whatsapp group.

We help our students to get internships not only at law firms and chambers, but also with rising startups in diverse sectors.

Our mentorship helps students to avoid running in the rat race behind the regular job openings; rather we help them design their own path based on their personal interests.

We share multiple and diverse client opportunities with our pool of practicing advocates on a daily basis. Our references have helped several advocates really scale up their practice. The opportunities range from contract drafting to complex international taxation matters.