California SaaS Lawyer
Software-as-a-Service, also known as SaaS, is a field that has been on the rise in the past decade and is estimated to be worth $462.94 billion globally by 2028. Businesses across the U.S. and California have been switching their business models and developing new technology to fill potential market gaps in the SaaS sector.
If you have just started or already run a SaaS business, you may wonder about the legal challenges you may face as a business owner. You may require an airtight SaaS user agreement or standard software license agreement that explicitly defines your rights and obligations with other parties, such as subscribers.
Fridman Law Firm’s California SaaS lawyers are highly experienced in SaaS matters and working with SaaS providers and cloud hosting services. It’s crucial for you to work with a reliable SaaS lawyer who understands your industry and software, be it:
- Customer relationship management (CRM)
- Enterprise messaging
- Social media management
- Website hosting
- Sales and marketing
- Project management
- Accounting
- Payroll systems
- Legal document platforms
- Email marketing software
- Streaming platforms
At Fridman Law Firm, our proficient lawyers understand how technology works in the SaaS space and how laws affect SaaS agreements and operations. Our California SaaS lawyers can draft or review your SaaS agreements and ensure terms and conditions protect your business, including security, licenses, payment, copyright, and access to data.
Starting a SaaS business has its tricky bits. Fridman Law Firm can help you with legal matters relating to your SaaS business. Call 212-262-9823 today to speak to an experienced attorney who can guide you through SaaS issues and help you avoid legal pitfalls.
What Is SaaS?
According to Amazon Web Services, software as a service is a “cloud-based software model that delivers applications to end-users through an internet browser.” International Business Machines Corporation (IBM), on the other hand, defines SaaS as “application software hosted on the cloud and used over an internet connection via a web browser, mobile app, or thin client.”
Software as a service employs cloud computing and economies of scale to offer users a better and more streamlined approach to using and paying for applications. SaaS owners host applications and services for their customers to access on demand. Examples of popular SaaS products include:
- Zoom
- Slack
- Spotify
- Netflix
- Google Workspace
- Mailchimp
- Dropbox
The benefits of SaaS are best understood when compared to conventional software-installed programs. These advantages include:
- Enables on-demand, cost-effective scalability.
- Provides faster adoption, sometimes even instant adoption.
- Provides access to new versions and updates as soon as they are available.
- Lowers upfront costs.
- Provides real-time data and analytics.
- Reduces ongoing costs.
- Offers access to data from anywhere.
At Fridman Law Firm, our California SaaS lawyers understand the dynamics of the SaaS space and are ready to help you every step of the way.
What Are the Key Clauses in SaaS Contracts?
Every individual SaaS agreement will have unique needs that may depend on the industry, product, service, or business model. However, all agreements share certain terms and conditions that include:
- Scope of license. This clause defines and limits subscriber rights and what type of license the subscriber will be receiving.
- Customer support. This should establish how your business will offer support to clients as well as the expected response time.
- Data ownership. This is an important component in any SaaS agreement that establishes who has the rights to cloud-based data.
- Data security. This covers aspects such as encryption responsibilities, data backup, where data is stored, and protections offered.
- Performance objectives. Covers what end users should expect from your software.
- Pricing. Typically, most SaaS companies use a subscription model of payment. This clause covers pricing plans and the pricing the customer has chosen.
- Term, termination, and renewal. These clauses cover ending or restarting accounts.
What Does a SaaS Lawyer Do?
As the SaaS industry grows, more companies that rely on cloud-based technologies need SaaS lawyers. But when you are looking for such an attorney, what should you expect? What should a California SaaS lawyer do for your business? Here are some of the roles of SaaS attorneys:
SaaS Agreements and Contracts
One of the most important roles — if not the most important — of a SaaS attorney is drafting and reviewing the SaaS agreement. This usually makes up the bulk of the work of a SaaS lawyer. Your company’s agreements and contracts not only represent what you promise to deliver to your customers but also act as a legal shield to protect you and your business from liability.
For example, if a SaaS company wants to work with a new client, an experienced SaaS lawyer can draft a new SaaS agreement that outlines the terms of the relationship. The entire lifecycle of your relationship with users of the product is critical when drafting SaaS agreements. Payment processing, auto-renewals, liability, data privacy, contract termination details, and the dispute resolution process are also critical in any SaaS agreement or contract. This establishes every party’s responsibilities, reduces risks, protects company software, and prevents disputes.
If your SaaS company wishes to license out a product, our California SaaS lawyers can also help draft a binding licensing agreement. An attorney can also help negotiate deals with third-party service providers regarding data infrastructure, support, uptime, and security.
Data Privacy
SaaS companies conduct their businesses using cloud-based technology and manage vast amounts of client data and personal information. Your SaaS attorney must understand the ever-changing data privacy laws and regulations and include up-to-date clauses in SaaS agreements. They must be abreast of laws pertaining to software modifications, data ownership and storage, and client notifications during data breaches. A watertight SaaS agreement should include clauses that limit your company’s liability while assuring customers that necessary precautions are in place to reduce data privacy and protection risks. This applies to all states and countries where the SaaS company offers services.
Intellectual Property
The value of a SaaS company lies in its software. Skilled SaaS lawyers must be well-versed in intellectual property (IP) law. Your brand and products are the lifeline of your business, and that’s why you should protect your trademarks, copyrights, and patents. In the event that someone or an entity tries to infringe on your IP, your attorney can help you take the necessary steps to protect your business and IP rights. This may include sending a cease-and-desist letter to the responsible party.
Additionally, many SaaS companies in California license out their IP, meaning you need a knowledgeable SaaS lawyer to draft a licensing agreement covering all your bases. In some matters, negotiations may also be prudent to help you get the best deal. Fridman Law Firm can help with that.
Tax Law
While your accountants are familiar with accounting operations, they may still have legal questions regarding taxing SaaS companies in California. At Fridman Law Firm, our business lawyers are aware of tax laws and regulations for the technology industry and can help you avoid any legal problems.
Why Do I Need a SaaS Lawyer?
Having worked with many tech companies, our California SaaS lawyers understand that trust and reliability are key to the success of your SaaS business. Our attorneys are well aware of how mistakes in SaaS agreements can create legal and financial tribulations for businesses. These mistakes often include:
- Ambiguous, inconsistent, or outdated terms
- Terms that don’t correspond with services offered
- Vague payment terms
- Liability due to payment, IP, and data security provisions
- Product launch with outdated agreements
The above mistakes that SaaS companies deal with show the need for a lawyer to help streamline company processes while reducing their liability. Here are some of the reasons you need a lawyer specializing in SaaS, data protection issues, and cloud computing:
- Structure, draft, and review licensing, subscription, end-user license agreements (EULAs), and terms of service agreements
- Offer guidance on cybersecurity and privacy law issues
- Ensure legal and operational compliance
- Perform due diligence on existing agreements
- Advise on third-party issues such as software builds and legal cloud computing issues
- Resolve disputes, including agreements, non-compete agreements, and breaches of confidentiality
- Handle IP-related matters
At Fridman Law Firm, we have helped many entrepreneurs and startups with SaaS issues because we understand the industry and the implications of business decisions at all stages of each company’s growth. From SaaS contracts and agreements that influence pricing models to drafting service level agreements (SLAs) and master service agreements (MSAs), our SaaS lawyers in California offer clients the framework they need to foster productive, long-term relationships with customers and third-party providers.
Fridman Law Firm’s extensive knowledge of working with emerging and established businesses in the SaaS and software industries confirms our unmatched understanding of legal and business matters that can impact your business. Our lawyers specialize in helping SaaS firms navigate and address issues proactively, practically, and efficiently to support their business needs and results.
Contact Fridman Law Firm Today To Speak to Our California SaaS Lawyers
Ensuring that all your SaaS agreements and contracts are done properly is critical. In the SaaS world, things could take a turn for the worse, and you could be potentially liable for issues you could have easily avoided by hiring an experienced attorney. An attorney can guide you through all stages of your company’s growth and help you avoid legal pitfalls that hurt your brand.
If you are an emerging company launching a product in California, you need to start on the right foot with an excellent legal foundation. Without experienced legal guidance, deals tend to get stuck, with barriers popping up everywhere. Our SaaS industry expertise can empower your success, allowing you to capitalize on other opportunities. Our California SaaS lawyers help clients correctly implement online agreements, add flexibility through SLAs and MLAs, and navigate business and legal risks related to agreement clauses to protect our SaaS clients.
Fridman Law Firm is a leading business law firm in California, representing SaaS companies and protecting their interests. Our attorneys provide strategic legal counsel to our clients and are committed to their success. Our clients’ testimonials say it all. Call us today at 212-262-9823 or fill out our contact form to find out how our SaaS lawyers in California can help.