Kruze clients are twice as likely to get acquired as the average startup.  Find out why here
Kruze Consulting Navbar Logo
  • (415) 322-1610
  • Contact Us
  • Accounting & Bookkeeping
    Name
    Startup Accounting

    Maximize Your Startup’s Potential

    Name
    Startup Bookkeeping

    Services for High-Growth Startups

    Name
    Strategic Financial Accounting

    Strategic Accounting Boosts Your VC-Funded Startup’s Financial Future

    Tax Services
    Name
    Startup Tax Services

    Tax Services for VC-Backed Startups

    Name
    Startup Tax Returns

    Filing Tax Returns for VC-Backed Startups

    Name
    Delaware Franchise Tax

    Calculate Your Delaware Franchise Tax

    R&D Tax Credits
    Name
    R&D Tax Credits

    Unlock Your Startup’s R&D Tax Credit Potential

    Name
    R&D Tax Calculator

    How much can your startup save in payroll taxes?

    Advisory services
    Fractional CFO & Advisory

    VC Due Diligence

    Startup M&A Accounting

    Financial Modeling Services

    409A Valuations Services

    Part-Time CFOs Services

  • Pricing
  • Name
    About Us

    Learn more about Kruze Consulting

    Name
    Partners

    Our partners are the best in the business

    Name
    Reviews

    See what our clients say about us

    Name
    Careers

    Join our team of startup accounting experts

  • Early-Stage Tax Tips

    Guide to Seed Stage Tax Returns

    Do unprofitable companies need to file tax returns? Yes! Read our tips now.

    Guide to Seed Stage Tax Returns

    Knowledge base

    Name
    Startup Q&A

    Answers to hundreds of startup accounting, finance, HR and tax Q's

    Name
    Blog

    Expert startup accounting advice (and more)

    Name
    Case Studies

    See how we helped our clients save money and grow their businesses

    Top Financial Tips and Resources for Startups

    Name
    Startup Financial Health Tools

    Tips for setting up scaleable financial systems

    Name
    Free Financial Models

    Free to download financial models

    Name
    C-Corp Tax Deadlines

    iCals with federal, state and local compliance deadlines

    Name
    Best VC Pitch Decks

    See more of the best pitch decks ever used

    Name
    CEO Salary Report

    Data on what CEOs are paid

    Name
    Best Startup Credit Cards

    After working with hundreds of startups, we picked the best credit cards

  • (415) 322-1610
  • Contact Us
  1. Home
  2. Blog
  3. Top 5 and Top Boutique Startup Law Firms

Top 5 and Top Boutique Startup Law Firms

by

Vanessa Kruze, a seasoned CPA, has an impressive track record prior to establishing Kruze Consulting. Her experience includes pivotal roles at Deloitte Tax and as a controller for a substantial startup with over 120 employees and $20 million in revenue. Under her leadership, Kruze Consulting has emerged as a distinguished CPA firm, recognized on the Inc 5000 list for five consecutive years, illustrating rapid growth and success in the competitive accounting landscape. Vanessa’s unique approach, combining deep industry knowledge with advanced automation and software solutions, has positioned her firm as a leader in providing comprehensive accounting services to startups across the United States.

Visit author page
Last updated: August 1, 2024
Published: June 26, 2019

Top 5 and Top Boutique Startup Law Firms

The right attorney can make the world of difference for a venture funded startup - and startups are willing to pay up for legal advice. We’ve analyzed over $40 million worth of startup legal spending to create two reports, and identified the Top Startup Law Firms and the Top Boutique Startup Law Firms.

Top Startup Law Firms

Ranked by Dollars Spent by Startups

Rank Law Firm
#1 Fenwick & West
#2 Wilson Sonsini
#3 Gunderson Dettmer
#4 Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
#5 Perkins Coie

Our top startup law firms are all large, national (or international) firms with partners who have expertise in all range of legal challenges faced by funded startups. These firms all have over 100 attorneys, and most have over 1,000.

Read the full report here
Top Boutique Startup Law Firms

Ranked by Number of Clients

Rank Law Firm
#1 Silicon Legal Strategy
#1 Atrium
Tier 2 SPZ Legal
Tier 2 VLP Law Group
Tier 2 Hopkins & Carley
Honorable Mention Fathom Law
Honorable Mention Paradigm Counsel
Honorable Mention Silicon Counsel
Honorable Mention TangoLaw
Honorable Mention Capes Sokol

Small firms with a considerable focus on serving startups - ranked by number of clients.

Read the full report here

Top Boutique Startup Law Firms anchor

After we published our Top Startup Law Firm piece, a few legal reporters (and quite a number of boutique law firms) asked us which of the smaller, more technology-focused firms were near the top. We looked into the data, and have identified the Top Boutique Startup Law Firms. These firms all have under 100 attorneys, typically less than 50, and are either completely focused on serving technology/startup clients or have a strong tech practice. This study analyzed data from over 180 funded startups, and our team dug through over $30 million worth of professional services spend, to find the top Boutique Startup Law Firms. This analysis was conducted by analyzing how many clients each boutique player had, and removing the larger firms from the dataset.

Here are the Top Boutique Startup Law Firms, as ranked by the number of startup clients:

Rank Firm Description
#1 Silicon Legal Strategy Silicon Legal Strategy is a premier technology, boutique law firm providing targeted, bottom-line-oriented advice to technology startups, innovative entrepreneurs and seasoned investors.
#1 Atrium Atrium is a client-centric platform providing legal services for fast-growing companies, helping hundreds of companies from drafting and reviewing commercial contracts to raising over $500M in new capital.
Tier 2 SPZ Legal SPZ Legal provides outside general counsel services to startups and small businesses on incorporation, compliance with securities and employment law, IP protection, plus drafting and review of business contracts.
Tier 2 VLP Law Group VLP offers a broad variety of business and transactional services to companies, financial institutions and investors throughout the nation. Their clients include businesses of all sizes, from early-stage startups to the Fortune 100.
Tier 2 Hopkins & Carley With offices in the heart of Silicon Valley, Hopkins & Carley has been providing their assistance with complex transactions, must-win litigation, and trusted counseling technology companies since 1968.
Honorable Mention Fathom Law Fathom Law is a business and technology law firm advising entrepreneurs, growth companies and investors in a wide range of industries, delivering sophisticated legal and business advice.
Honorable Mention Paradigm Counsel Paradigm Counsel represents companies from formation to exit and handle all manner of commercial and intellectual property transactions for public and private companies.
Honorable Mention Silicon Counsel This award-winning firm provides strategic, growth-focused counsel from some of the best business lawyers in San Francisco and Silicon Valley. 
Honorable Mention TangoLaw TangoLaw is a boutique legal practice serving angel and VC-backed emerging growth companies and investors on a diverse range of legal matters including general corporate,IP strategy, M&A, and more.
Honorable Mention Capes Sokol Capes Sokol is a Saint Louis based firm with several technology-focused practice areas such as blockchain, IP, M&A and business and finance. 

We removed firms that are litigation, IP, immigration and real estate focused from this analysis. 

We noticed pretty quickly that smaller firms typically seem to make less money per startup than the larger players we analyzed in our last study. On average, the boutiques we highlight earn about $33,000 per year from each startup - vs. just over $57,000 per year that the larger top players we mention in our other study take in per startup client. This could be because some of the smaller players charge less, or this could also be because they do not offer as broad an array of services as the national and international firms.

Below is our analysis of the top 5 law firms serving early-stage technology companies:

Top 5 Startup Law Firms anchor

Legal expenses are a meaningful part of most startups’ spending. We analyzed over $18 million dollars worth of legal spend by over 140 Seed, Series A, and Series B US startups to identify the top 5 startup law firms in the United States. The startups in this study have raised over $850 million in combined funding, and are backed by leading venture capital and seed investors. Download the Report

Rank Firm Revenue Market Share About the Law firms
1 Fenwick & West 7.2 % Consistently recognized as one of the top technology law firms, Fenwick & West has offices in Silicon Valley, San Francisco, Seattle, New York and Shanghai.
2 Wilson Sonsini Goodrich and Rosati 7.0 % Wilson Sonsini is a nationally recognized law firm that provides services to technology and life sciences companies, and the venture and private equity firms that fund them.
3 Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian 5.2 % Headquartered in Silicon Valley, Gunderson represents over 2,500 technology and life science companies, and over 450 venture capital firms.
4 Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe 4.7 % With 25+ offices in Asia, Europe and North America, Orrick provides technology companies with their legal advice for fundraising, M&A, IP litigation, employment, and more.
5 Perkins Coie 4.5 % Located in Seattle and with a total of 19 offices across the United States and Asia, Perkins Coie represents clients across a wide range of industries and stages of growth— from startups to FORTUNE 50 corporations.

This analysis was based on the total dollars spent on legal fees by the 140+ startups in our analysis. Over 7% of every dollar spent on legal services by these companies went to Fenwick. Fenwick, Wilson Sonsini, Gunderson, Orrick, and Perkins Coie likely make any “top” startup law firm list, but these five are at the top based on the revenue they collected. Together, these top 5 law firms captured approximately 45% of every dollar that their clients spent on legal fees.

When contacted by Kruze Consulting, Fenwick partner Kristine Di Bacco said, “We are proud of the work we do with early-stage startups, from financing to IP to acquisition advice. Startup founders turn to us because they know we can support them from their first financing round to their IPO and beyond.”

Top 5 Startup Law Firms by Clients

It’s not just about the money spent on legal services - just as importantly, which law firms are startups most likely to turn to for advice? Even though the top startup law firms have expertise in multiple legal specialties, the startups in our sample often worked with more than one provider, choosing firms with deep expertise in areas like immigration, employment law, IP, or another discipline as needed.

Interestingly, almost a quarter of the startups in our sample worked with more than one top tier law firm.

Rank Firm Client market share
1 Fenwick & West 15 %
2 Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian 15 %
3 Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe 13 %
4 Wilson Sonsini Goodrich and Rosati 11 %
5 Goodwin Procter 11 %

“Goodwin attorney’s love helping start-up clients navigate the legal aspects of their endeavor so that they can focus on innovation. We are thrilled to be on Kruze’s Top 5 Start-Up Law Firm list! Partnering with clients and seeing their evolution from start-up through their entire company lifecycle is one of the best parts of our job.” - Bill Growney, Goodwin Procter Partner

How Much do Startups Spend on Legal Costs?

These startups spent tens of thousands on legal fees per year. Across the board, there is a wide-ranging amount of money spent by startups on legal costs. This typically varies by industry, IP needs, funding round, and other Company-specific HR issues. The average startup in our study spends about $77 thousand dollars per year, and the median spend is about $39 thousand dollars per company. Note that we attempted to exclude companies involved in active litigation from our analysis.

$77,150 average legal spend per startup
$38,990 median legal spend per startup

What is Typical Legal Cost for Seed and Series A Rounds?

When companies raise additional funding, it is typical to see a large outlay of money to legal firms to compensate for due diligence and corporate advisory during the fundraising process. For a Seed round, the legal costs in our analysis are typically between $5,000 to $10,000. For Series A rounds, legal costs are typically between $50,000 to $65,000 - although there are several instances of startups’ paying north of $100,000 in legal fees for a fundraise.  Often times at the Seed round, law firms will defer payment until the total funding exceeds a pre-determined, significant threshold.

$5,000 to $10,000 Seed Round Legal Costs
$50,000 to $65,000 Series A Legal Costs

Startup Legal Spend by Industry

 

Not surprisingly, startups in different industries spent very different amounts on outside legal costs. The Healthcare industry appears to have the highest legal bills, although there is high variance in spend in our sample. This is likely because Healthcare startups spend can ramp up or down depending on FDA or HIPPA compliance/regulatory needs.

Companies in the Hardware space are also known to spend a significant amount on legal costs, namely to research and file patents. Spending in the other main industries tends to be a little more consistent but does vary based on each business’ unique circumstances and needs.  

Typical Range of Legal Spend by Funded Startups

What is a “normal” spend on legal costs for a funded startup? Some startups, when not fundraising, manage to spend almost nothing on legal costs in a given year. Others spend much more than $100,000. Over half of the companies in our sample spent less than $40,000 a year, so a founder trying to estimate the spend a year when they are not actively fundraising, engaging in litigation, doing complex employment law work and not filing lots of IP could safely estimate that amount.

What will 2019 Bring for Startup Legal Spending?

While Kruze Consulting’s does not currently have enough data to calculate any legal spending trends for 2019, we expect to see a continued healthy spend. This will be driven by a strong venture capital fundraising market and continued need for funded startups to get the legal advice they need to grow their businesses.

When asked for an opinion on what 2019 will bring, Augie Rakow, Chairman of Atrium, a tech-enabled legal platform and law firm, whose clients’ have raised over $500 million in new capital, said, “In 2019, we expect to see startups demanding better support from law firms, including more transparent pricing, more professionalized account management, and greater access to tools and products that make legal procurement easy, fast and frictionless.”

Proportion of Startups by Annual Legal Spend

 

Note: when possible, our analysis excludes litigation costs. Companies in our sample set involved in active litigation easily spent over a million dollars a year on legal fees, and often with specialized law firms. We excluded these specialized law firms from our analysis to show what a typical “startup” would spend and which top firms they would choose to work within the normal course of operations.

Download Report

ABOUT KRUZE CONSULTING

Kruze Consulting was founded in 2012 by Vanessa Kruze, a big four alum, startup controller and CPA. Kruze provides Startup CFO Consulting to over 500+ startups in Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, New York, and other major startup hubs. Kruze’s clients have raised over $500 million in venture capital in the past 12 months, and are market leading SaaS, software, eCommerce, eHealth and FinTech startups. The firm handles all things Accounting, Tax, Finance, & HR: interim CFO Consulting, financial modeling, annual taxes, venture debt consulting, 409A reporting, bookkeeping, AR/AP, and Seed/Series A/B Fundraising Preparation. Visit kruzeconsulting.com to learn more.

Read other Kruze Consulting research studies:

  • Startup CEO Salary Report
  • Uber vs. Lyft Market Share Report

The 2018 Startup CEO Salary Report was created by VP of FP&A Healy Jones and Onboarding Manager Alex Janeck. Design by Lucila Romero.


Contact Us for a Free Consultation

Get the information you need


Previous Post
Essential HR Tools for the scaling startup
Next Post
How recruiting costs change as a startup grows

Startup CEO Salary Calculator

US Based Companies that have raised under $125M

  Redirecting to results  

Top Articles

  • Pre-Seed Funding + Top 20 Funds
  • eCommerce Accounting
  • Accounts Receivable Loans
  • What is the 2% and 20% VC fee structure?
  • How much does a 409A valuation cost?
  • What are Your VC’s Return Expectations Depending on the Stage of Investment?
  • Fractional CFOS
Kruze on X
Email Us
RSS

How much can your startup save in payroll taxes?

Estimate your R&D tax credit using our free calculator.

r&d tax calculator

Signup for our newsletter

   

Popular pages

  • SaaS accounting 101
  • Best accounting software
  • Top banks for startups
  • How to account for convertible note
  • Average CEO Pay
  • Startup Tax Returns
  • Best VC Pitch Decks
Related content:
Brex vs Ramp - Which card is best for startups?
Mon, 11 November 2024
How should a startup account for its first revenue?
Thu, 1 August 2024
The Corporate Transparency Act: Startups and Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting
Thu, 1 August 2024
A Guide to Tax Returns for Seed-Stage Startups
Wed, 18 September 2024
Also read:
How to Handle a Co-Founder Departure

How to Handle a Co-Founder Departure

Kruze Consulting's COO, Scott Orn, gives advice on how to handle a co-founder leaving the company and finding the positives alongside the negatives.
Wed, 18 September 2024
How to Rebalance Ownership Between Founders

How to Rebalance Ownership Between Founders

Before we get into the how, let’s start with why you may want to rebalance ownership between founders.
Wed, 18 September 2024
How to Protect Intellectual Property With a Global Team

How to Protect Intellectual Property With a Global Team

Everything you need to know about protecting your startup's intellectual property with a Global Team, by leading CPA firm Kruze Consulting.
Thu, 1 August 2024
Paying PTO if your startup is shutting down

Paying PTO if your startup is shutting down

A crucial task when shutting down a startup company is notifying and paying employees for their paid time off (PTO).
Thu, 1 August 2024

Kruze is a leader in accounting services for startups

With over $10 billion in funding raised by our clients, Kruze is a leader in helping funded startups with accounting, tax, finance and HR strategies.

Thank you!

✅ Your request has been submitted.
We will contact you shortly.

Enter your name
Enter Company name
Enter Phone number
Enter Email
Enter Message
 
By clicking Contact Us, you consent to receive automated messages from Kruze Consulting. Reply STOP to opt out. Terms of Service | Privacy Policy.
  • VC Tips

  • VC Pitch Deck Templates
  • Startup Pitch Deck Course
  • Pre Seed Funds
  • Startup Financing 101
  • Kruze Reviews
  • How VCs Think

  • VC Return Expectations
  • Where VCs Get Their Money
  • How much VC to Raise
  • What is a VC Capital Call?
  • VC Due Diligence Checklist
  • Early-Stage Securities

  • Typical VC Securities
  • Convertible Notes
  • Convert Accounting
  • SAFE Note Accounting
  • Option Pool 101
  • Interacting with VCs

  • Startup Investor Update
  • VC Information Rights
  • Due Diligence Checklist
  • Right of First Refusal
  • Startup Runway Calculator

Kruze Consulting Logo Kruze Consulting

Kruze Consulting is a licensed CPA firm; California Board of Accountancy license number 7637

  • Team
  • Pricing
  • Careers
  • Kruze News
  • Reviews
  • Contact Us
  • Security
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service

Copyright © Kruze Consulting 2025

We may monetize some of our links through affiliate advertising. At any moment, executives or team members may own public or private stock in any of the third party companies we mention.

Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

Resources

  • Startup Resources
  • Startup Q&A
  • Case Studies
  • Kruze Blog
  • C-Corp Tax Deadlines
  • Startup Accounting Dictionary

Free Tax Calculators

  • Startup R&D Tax Credit Calculator
  • How Much Does a Startup Tax Return Cost?
  • Delaware Franchise Tax Calculator
  • Burn Rate and Cash Runway Calculator

Startup Tips

  • Startup Expense Management 101
  • 10 Best Banks For Startups in 2025
  • Startup Payroll
  • Best Accounting Software for Startups
  • Startup Tax Compliance
  • How to Pay International Employees & Contractors
  • Startup Bill Pay Service

Locations

  • Austin
  • New York City
  • San Francisco
  • San Jose
  • Santa Monica

Social Media

  • Kruze Consulting on Youtube
  • Kruze Consulting on LinkedIn
  • Kruze Consulting on Twitter
  • Kruze Consulting on Yelp

Industry Expertise

  • SaaS Accounting
  • Biotech Accounting
  • AI Startup Accounting
  • eCommerce Accounting
  • Hardware Accountants
  • CPG Accountants
  • Crypto Accounting
  • Healthcare Accounting
  • Startup Accounting
  Talk to a leading startup CPA
  • Is the content on this page useful?

Thank you!

Your feedback is very important.

READY TO CONNECT FOR A FREE CONSULTATION?

We are the experts at helping seed/VC-backed Delaware C-Corps with their accounting and finances!

Talk to an experienced accountant, not a generic sales person

Alex Janeck Kruze Consulting
Alex Janeck
Edith Silva Kruze Consulting
Edith Silva
Will Martin Kruze Consulting
Will Martin
Viz AI

$250M+ VC Funding Raised


"I had a great experience working with Kruze Consulting when we raised Series A. They know what VCs need to see, and how to present a startup’s books and finances. If you are going to raise venture capital, you need experts like Kruze."
Chris Mansi

Chris Mansi

CEO

Startup Venture Capital Assistance

With former venture capitalists on staff, our team is here to help you navigate the fundraising process and manage your board of directors

Vanessa Kruze Kruze Consulting
Vanessa Kruze
Founder & CEO, CPA
Alex Janeck Kruze Consulting
Alex Janeck
VP of Revenue
Pequity

Scale Remote Operations & Team


"Kruze has supported us above and beyond basic accounting needs by ensuring we have everything we need to expand and support our team wherever they may be located"
Zack Fisch

Zack Fisch

Head of Operations & Legal

Clients who have worked with Kruze have collectively raised over $15 billion in VC funding.

We set startups up for fundrising success, and know how to work with the top VCs.

Vanessa Kruze, CPA Kruze Consulting
Vanessa Kruze, CPA
Founder & CEO
Kruze Logo

Experienced team helping you

Our account management team is staffed by CPAs and accountants who have, on average, 11 years of experience.

Bill Hollowsky, CPA Kruze Consulting
Bill Hollowsky, CPA
VP of Accounting Services
Claudine Vantomme, CPA Kruze Consulting
Claudine Vantomme, CPA
Controller
Morgan Avery Kruze Consulting
Morgan Avery
SUT/R&D Sr. Tax Accountant
Beth Bassler Kruze Consulting
Beth Bassler
Controller, CPA
Protara Therapeutics

Grew from a 2-person startup to a NASDAQ listed public company.


"The Kruze team helped us grow from a 2-person startup to a NASDAQ listed public company in 2 years. We wouldn’t have gotten public without Kruze’s support. Anyone thinking of launching a startup should make Vanessa their first call!"
Jesse Shefferman

Jesse Shefferman

CEO

Kruze Logo

Get in Touch

Please help us connect with you

How can we reach you?

Our first response is typically via email, so please check your inbox.

By clicking Next, you consent to receive automated messages from Kruze Consulting. Reply STOP to opt out. Terms of Service | Privacy Policy.

Help us have a productive first consultation by providing some additional information.

What year was your startup incorporated?

What is your stage of funding?

(pick up from the list)

Approximately how much funding have you raised?

(please enter a dollar value such as 5000000)

Help us understand what you are looking for:

(Optional, click the ones you need)

Anything additional that you’d like to share?

Optional - if you’d like to share anything else to help us prepare for our consultation, please let us know. We are also happy to sign an NDA, just let us know.

Loading search...

Initializing search...

Search