CASE STUDY: SNAPTRACK

SnapTrack was set up in 1995, producing wireless device location technology. President Steve Poizner approached Craig Johnson early on to represent him, and after telling Johnson his plans and meeting a couple of times, the pair decided to work together. Poizner says he paid Venture Law Group nothing in the first year but instead gave it stock options to "incentivise" it. Johnson became one of the first investors in the company and then introduced Poizner to other potential partners and venture capitalists. He attended board meetings and provided strategic and recruitment advice. SnapTrack had a large patent portfolio because it was in a new area of technology, and Johnson advised and insisted on protecting that. Last year, he advised Poizner on the $1bn (£686m) sale of his 60-person business to Qualcomm, and though Poizner no longer turns to him for legal advice, the pair work together helping other companies in the Valley.