The University of Hawaii Office of Technology Transfer and Economic Development has saved thousands of dollars and in some cases as much as 33% in legal expenses with creative cost-cutting strategies, says Lee M. Taylor, JD, LLM, technology licensing associate at UHOTTED. While the office has employed a number of different strategies involving reducing its of legal expenses, he adds, the OTT has also realized savings by using the business school as a “shadow CEO.”
Taylor says the OTT uses the UH law school as its “corporate counsel” for start-ups. “A legal clinic at our school teaches how to do the paperwork for forming LLCs and C and S corporations – anything except non-profits,” he explains. “In the past we faced about a $2,500 to $5,000 expense to get those documents done” for each start-up. “Here was this competency that existed at the law school, but we just hadn’t tied it in with high-growth tech companies,” Taylor continues.
Other universities, such as Syracuse, have similar programs, he points out. “You need a law school at your university, and hopefully legal clinics,” he notes. “Tech transfer offices need to take a close look at university offerings that may be of use to entrepreneurs. I do not have the sense that TTOs talk very often with law schools, and that’s a shame.” A detailed article on a variety of cost-cutting strategies employed at U Hawaii appears in the March issue of Technology Transfer Tactics. To subscribe and access the full article, along with an archive of hundreds of case studies and success strategies, CLICK HERE.
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