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Wilkinson Law LLC

Trustworthy – Reliable – Available – Caring – Knowledgeable

Our law firm gives business owners the advice and documents they desperately need to fund, grow, protect, and sell their businesses.

Schedule your initial consultation now to discuss how to stay on track to fund, grow, or sell your business.

Our Story

Who are we? Why do we do what we do?

Behind every business, there is at least one person who is driven to advance that business towards success. We care about that unique person's dreams and challenges.

Some know their business has a problem, but – for whatever reason – they choose to do nothing about it. Perhaps there are other priorities. Maybe they believe the chance of something bad happening is so low that it’s not worth it to address the problem. We help owners to understand their business risks.

Other owners know about a business problem, they want to solve it, but they don’t know how. “Where do I start? Can I do it on my own? Who can I turn to for help?” These questions cause paralysis, and the problem becomes worse. We offer practical strategies to solve business problems.

Finally, there are owners who know they have a business problem, want to solve it, AND they know how to solve it. But they are not ready to take action right now. They may need more money. Or perhaps they need a large block of “free time”. It could be that other stakeholders need to be persuaded. These attitudes lead to delay as the problem becomes more difficult. We are experts at breaking overwhelming projects into small steps that can easily be achieved one at a time.

Our five core values make us different: Trustworthy. Reliable. Available. Caring. Knowledgeable (TRACK). To be “trustworthy” means we look not to our own interests, but to the interests of our clients. To be “reliable” means our “yes” means “yes.” We keep our commitments – even when it hurts. To be “available” means we are accessible to our clients on the same basis as our good friends. To “care” means we express compassion for our clients’ adverse situations, and we are willing to act to alleviate their anxiety and their pain. To be “knowledgeable” means we demonstrate learning and skill in the areas applicable to each client’s situation. Trustworthy. Reliable. Available. Caring. Knowledgeable. These five principles make us who we are at Wilkinson Law.

Jay's Story:

Just Not Enough

Jay’s laptop flew from the front seat, smashed into the dashboard, and fell like a rock to the floor of his black Lexus ES. He could smell burnt rubber from the tires as the car screeched to a sudden stop. There couldn’t be more than a couple of inches between his sedan and the stationary SUV directly ahead of him in this terrible traffic jam on the New Jersey Turnpike. His heart was pounding, and he could feel beads of sweat dripping from his brow. That was far too close! His mind had been racing in circles about how he could sell his ownership stake in his software animation company. The company just didn’t have enough working capital, and that was triggering one crisis after another. There were three important projects due by the end of the month, and as the CEO, Jay knew the company only had enough money to complete one of them. He had a meeting tomorrow with Amar, the CFO, and he knew there’d be a host of questions he’d be expected to answer.

When he finally parked his car in the lot at his office, Jay exhaled a deep breath. He was forty-five minutes behind schedule, and his first call was only about a half hour away. He rushed to take the elevator, and then headed straight for his office. Just as he was about to pass his assistant’s desk, Kevin, the company’s COO, stepped right in front of him with both hands out. “Woah, woah, slow down a bit,” Kevin said. Jay quickly replied, “I’m sorry Kevin, it’s just that I’ve had a rough morning, and I need to get ready for a call in a few minutes.” Kevin rolled his eyes and said, “That’s good because it means you understand when things need to be completed in a time crunch. Let me get right to the point.” He raised his voice so that everyone could hear. “The projects for Jetsets, Carpenter, and NightVision are all due by the end of this month, and I don’t have enough money to pay the programmers to finish all of them. I’m not taking the fall this time for another overdue or cancelled project. Either you tell me tomorrow that you found money somewhere in the budget to finish these projects, or I’m resigning and finding someone to buy my shares.” He quickly turned and stormed down the hallway, muttering obscenities under his breath. Jay slowly looked up and saw everyone staring at him. He put his head back down and quickly entered his office, closing the door behind him.

Jay always had too much work to do. He worked late almost every night of the week, and weekends were no different. He constantly felt like he hadn’t done enough. For once he was actually glad to have the workload he did, because it helped him suppress any thoughts about his nightmare morning. He was also glad he was able to leave work early so he could stop by the rehabilitation center downtown to visit his mother, Lola Patel. When he arrived, he asked the receptionist to call his mom, who said she’d meet him in the dining room. She entered slowly, taking one careful step at a time as she held tightly to her walker. This was good though, because after the stroke, the doctors thought she’d never walk again.

Jay and Lola had a great conversation over dinner. His mom was his next best friend – after his wife, Shayna. Of course, he didn’t mention anything about what had happened earlier in the day, because his mom had enough to deal with. They didn’t talk about what might happen when the days allotted for her rehabilitation ended. Where would she live? She had lived alone in her own home for many years after Jay’s dad died, but those days were over according to her doctors. She couldn’t live in his house because all the bedrooms were on the second floor. There was an outstanding assisted-living community just outside the city, but his mom couldn’t afford it. All Jay’s so-called “wealth” was tied up in the stock of the company. There were just a couple of months remaining before they would have to make some really tough decisions.

Jay tossed and turned all night, as the events of the day finally caught up with him. Kevin had been the engine behind the company since it started. Kevin’s dedication, intelligence, and enthusiasm were recognized by everyone at the company and by most of their customers. His stomach dropped as he thought about losing Kevin, and his heart sank even more when he considered how bad he’d feel if everyone thought Kevin left because of his failed leadership. It was time to leave the company. Maybe someone else really could do a better job than he had.

Kevin did weigh on his mind, but that was not his heaviest concern. It was his mom. Family had always been most important to him – even if it often did not seem that way given all of the hours that he worked.  But he did it to build a future for Shayna and their two children, Rayja and Neel, who would both be graduating from college in just a few short years. He did not want to disappoint his mom. She needed him now more than ever, and he had to figure out a way to help her. He needed to sell his stock. He needed the cash for the assisted living home. There had to be a path to selling the company, or at least selling some or all of his shares. He would bring this up as the first topic at his meeting with Amar tomorrow morning. Amar was his last hope for finding a solution.

The meeting with Amar started at 9 a.m. sharp, and Jay jumped right into describing the crisis with Kevin. As he spoke, he realized he should have asked about Amar and his family. It was the stress. He just wasn’t being himself. Amar just sat quietly and listened – as always, a rock of calm and reason. When Jay finished, Amar sat quietly for a few minutes before he began, “Jay, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that I’ve found someone who is interested in buying 25% of the company.” That brought a smile to Jay’s face, and then Jay asked for the bad news. Amar continued, “I dug deeper into our stockholder agreements over the years. They are a real mess, and they should not have been ignored. As it turns out, although Rick left five years ago, he still owns about 5% of the company. We will need his consent to do anything major, including selling shares of the company.” Jay’s mouth gaped open. He didn’t understand how this was possible. They had not even spoken to Rick in over four years! Jay stuttered as he asked, “How much do you think it will cost to buy out Rick?” Amar sighed, “Probably more than any of us or the company can pay right now.”

Jay could hear the loud tapping as he bounced his pencil up and down on the table. His face showed deep lines creased in his brow. He slowly stood up, left the room, and walked down the hallway. He stopped at a large picture window and just gazed into the distance.

When he finally parked his car in the lot at his office, Jay exhaled a deep breath. He was forty-five minutes behind schedule, and his first call was only about a half hour away. He rushed to take the elevator, and then headed straight for his office. Just as he about to pass his assistant’s desk, Kevin, the company’s COO, stepped right in front of him with both hands out. “Woah, woah, slow down a bit,” Kevin said. Jay quickly replied, “I’m sorry Kevin, it’s just that I’ve had a rough morning, and I need to get ready for a call in a few minutes.” Kevin rolled his eyes and said, “That’s good because it means you understand when things need to be completed in a time crunch. “Let me get right to the point.” He raised his voice so that everyone could hear. “The projects for Jetsets, Carpenter, and NightVision are all due by the end of this month, and I don’t have enough money to pay the programmers to finish all of them. I’m not taking the fall this time for another overdue or cancelled project. Either you tell me tomorrow that you found money somewhere in the budget to finish these projects, or I’m resigning and finding someone to buy my shares.” He quickly turned and stormed down the hallway, muttering obscenities under his breath. Jay slowly looked up and saw everyone staring at him. He put his head back down and quickly entered his office, closing the door behind him.

 

Jay always had too much work to do. He worked late almost every night of the week, and weekends were no different. He constantly felt like he hadn’t done enough. For once he was actually glad to have the workload he did, because it helped him suppress any thoughts about his nightmare morning. He was also glad he was able to leave work early so he could stop by the rehabilitation center downtown. When he arrived, he asked the receptionist to call Lola Patel (his mother), and she said she’d meet him in the dining room. She entered slowly, taking one careful step at a time as she held tightly to her walker. This was good though, because after the stroke, the doctors thought she’d never walk again.

 

Jay and Lola had a great conversation over dinner. His mom was his next best friend – after his wife, Shayna. Of course, he didn’t mention anything about what had happened earlier in the day, because his mom had enough to deal with. They didn’t talk about what might happen when the days allotted for her rehabilitation ended. Where would she live? She had been alone at her own home for many years after Jay’s dad died, but those days were over according to her doctors. She couldn’t live in his house because all the bedrooms were on the second floor. There was an amazing assisted-living community just outside the city, but his mom couldn’t afford it. All Jay’s so-called “wealth” was tied up in the stock of the company. All in all, there were just a couple months remaining before they would have to make some really tough decisions.

 

Jay tossed and turned all night, as the events of the day finally caught up with him. Kevin had been the engine behind the company since it started. Kevin’s dedication, intelligence, and enthusiasm were recognized by everyone at the company, and by most of their customers. His stomach dropped as he thought about losing Kevin, and his heart sank even more when he considered how bad he’d feel if everyone thought Kevin left because of his failed leadership. It was time to leave the company. Maybe someone else really could do a better job than he had.

 

Kevin did weigh on his mind, but that was not his heaviest concern. It was his mom. Family had always been most important to him – even if it often did not seem that way given all of the hours that he worked.  But he did it to build a future for Shayna and their two children, Rayja and Neel, who would both be graduating from college in just a few short years. He did not want to disappoint his mom. She needed him now more than ever, and he had to figure out a way to help her. He needed to sell his stock. He needed the cash for the assisted living home. There had to be a path to selling the company, or at least selling some or all of his shares. He would bring this up as the first topic at his meeting with Amar tomorrow morning. Amar was his last hope for finding a solution.

 

The meeting with Amar started at 9am sharp, and Jay jumped right into describing the crisis with Kevin. As he spoke, he realized he should have asked about Amar and his family. It was the stress. He just wasn’t being himself. Amar just sat quietly and listened – as always, a rock of calm and reason. When Jay finished, Amar sat there quietly for a few minutes before he began, “Jay, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that I’ve found someone who is interested in buying 25% of the company.” That brought a smile to Jay’s face, and then he asked for the bad news. Amar continued, “I dug deeper into our stockholder agreements over the years. They are a real mess, and they should not have been ignored. As it turns out, although Rick left five years ago, he still owns about 5% of the company. We will need his consent to do anything major, including selling shares of the company.” Jay’s mouth gaped open – he was simply stunned. He didn’t understand how this was possible. They had not even spoken to Rick in over four years! Jay stuttered as he asked, “How much do you think it will cost to buy out Rick?” Amar sighed, “Probably more than any of us or the company can pay.”

 

Jay could hear the loud tapping as he bounced his pencil up and down on the table. His face showed deep lines creased in his brow. He slowly stood up, left the room, and walked down the hallway. He stopped at a large picture window and just gazed into the distance.

 

Crippling Cash Crises

Complacent Employees​

Careless Intellectual Property Protection

Confusing Relationships Among Owners, Investors, Affiliates & Strategic Partners

It's too late ...

Regrets, oh the regrets!  You wish you could turn back the clock.  If only you had listened.  If only you had been more proactive instead of reacting to every customer, vendor, or employee crisis. The buyer is going to walk or cut their offer.  Your partners can’t agree on the terms of a deal.  Your investors won’t give their consent.  You’re not sure who owns your intellectual property, and it’s ripe for theft and infringement.  Your strategic partners don’t want to be involved. You need cash, and this deal was supposed to be the way to get it. Your employees just don’t seem to care about your customers or your company.  You simply waited too long without taking action to solve these systematic problems with your business.  If success is when preparation meets opportunity, then failure is when opportunity meets procrastination.

How Can We Help You Transform Your Business?

How can we help you realize your goals?

  • Equity issuances
  • Convertible notes
  • SAFEs
  • Private loans
  • Commercial loans
  • Buy-Sell Agreements
  • Stockholders Agreements
  • LLC Agreements
  • Settle a dispute among owners
  • Joint Venture Agreements with strategic partners
  • Bonus plans
  • Variable pay
  • Equity incentive plans
  • Phantom equity incentive plans
  • Recurring Payments
  • Advance Payments
  • Customer Incentives and Guarantees
  • Customized agreements for goods or services
  • Form customer agreements
  • Mandatory annual stockholder meetings
  • Convertible notes and SAFEs with inconsistent terms
  • Poorly documented equity issuances
  • Poorly documented intellectual property rights
  • Defective corporate acts (insufficient authority)
  • Register trademarks
  • Register copyrights
  • Protect trade secrets
  • License intellectual property
  • Asset sale
  • Sale of equity interest
  • Mergers

What's The Bottom Line For An Initial Consultation?

How do I start?

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How long does it take?

We will meet with you for up to one hour.
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How much does it cost?

Before the initial consultation, we require a payment of $429. If you engage our firm at the initial consultation, we will give you a credit of $429 toward the services.
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What if I procrastinate?

We offer a limited number of initial consultations each week on our calendar. Please sign up for the earliest available date and time that is convenient for you. If all of the slots are taken, we will email you as soon as a new set of meeting dates become available.
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Schedule your initial consultation to discuss what you must do now to transform your business and realize your goals.

DanGER!!! avoid unscrupulous attorneys!

Unexpected Expensive Invoices. Unreturned Calls. Unmet Promises.

Unexpected Expensive Invoices

We all know how foolish it feels to receive an invoice for more than we ever expected to pay.

Unreturned Calls

We all know the frustration of trying to communicate with attorneys and other professionals who don’t respond promptly to phone calls and emails. Do they even care?

Unmet Promises

We all know the disappointment of making plans that are dependent upon a professional doing what they said they would do, when they said they would do it. When they don't keep their promises, we wind up wasting resources, sacrificing time, and losing money.

What Kind Of Attorney Do You Want?

Does your attorney keep their promises?​

Does your attorney have decades of experience?

Ask Anthony Wilkinson, and every answer will be YES!!!

Is your attorney recognized as an authority on business law issues?

Did your attorney graduate from the top law school?

Does your attorney have a policy of returning calls and emails within one business day?

Anthony’s Story

Who am I? Why do I do what I do?

It’s possible a part of your business might currently be broken.  You know how it is supposed to work, but you just have not been able to see it happen in reality.  You’re afraid of what might happen if you do nothing… but what can you do? 

Some business owners know about the problem, but – for whatever reason – they choose to do nothing about it. Perhaps there are other priorities, and it’s just not that big of a deal at that point in time.  Maybe they believe that the chance of an unfavorable outcome actually happening is so low that it’s not worth fixing the problem.

Other business owners know about the problem, they want to solve it, but they just don’t know how.  “Where do I start?  Can I do it on my own? Who can I turn to for help?”  These common questions cause paralysis, and the problem lingers and festers.

Finally, there’s another group of business owners who know about the problem, want to solve it, AND they also know how to solve it.  Their problem is that they are just not ready to take action at the current time.  They may need more money.  Or perhaps they need a large block of “free time” to initiate the project that will finally solve the issue. It could also be that there are other stakeholders that need to be convinced first in order to garner the support required for the project to succeed.  This leads to more procrastination and delays as the problem only becomes worse.

I became a business attorney to help business owners like you. I attended Yale Law School, and during my studies, my focus was always corporate and commercial law. I even took a couple financial management courses while I was at Yale.  But why business law instead of family law, immigration law, real estate law, or some other area of practice? Well, it’s because I have been an entrepreneur since I was about seven years old, when I made snowflakes out of paper and sold them door-to-door in my neighborhood. Not long after that, I ran the quintessential lemonade stand.  Then there were the mail order greeting cards that I also sold door-to-door.  And all of that was just in elementary school!  In middle school, I was making potholders to sell to friends and family, and learning how to invest in stocks.  After graduating college, I started small businesses in a number of areas, but none have been as successful – or as fulfilling – as running my own law firm. Since I have always had an entrepreneurial mindset, I chose an area of law where I could assist fellow entrepreneurs in achieving their dreams!

I am a teacher – albeit only occasionally as an adjunct professor at a local college, and as a volunteer at my church.  But nevertheless, I am a teacher at heart.  I teach entrepreneurs, founders, and executives how to get their businesses from point A to point B.  I want my clients to understand why they are in their current situation, why the destination is better than their current position, and the path to get to the destination.  Most importantly, I want them to know how to keep the situation from ever happening to them again.

I am also a tenacious problem solver.  That comes from my training as an electrical and computer engineer at the University of Michigan. I graduated summa cum laude at the top of my class, and then worked as a software engineer for a short stint before going to law school.  I truly enjoy untangling the complex business issues my clients present, and giving them clarity about the path to a better situation.

But that’s all about me on the outside.  What about me on the inside? Focusing on the inside is one of the elements that set me apart from other attorneys.  I spend time considering how my clients (and their counterparties) think and feel.  This significantly improves the rate of successful outcomes for deals and agreements.  The key here is to understand expectations and to craft an agreement that satisfies said expectations.  I love to read books, watch videos, and attend events centered around personal development, how people make decisions, and how people change.  I’ve been studying these areas for decades, and this has made me a much better business attorney.

I am a man of deep spiritual faith.  I have adopted a firm motto that describes the core values that I uphold not only personally with my friends and family, but also professionally with my clients: Trustworthy business advisors keeping your business on TRACK!  Trustworthy. Reliable. Available. Caring. Knowledgeable.  I exhibit these traits to please my God, and the inevitable result is that they also please my clients.  To be “trustworthy” means that I look not to my own interests, but to the interests of my clients. To be “reliable” means that my “yes” means “yes.”  I keep my word.  I keep my commitments – even when it hurts.  To be “available” means I make myself accessible to my clients on the same basis I make myself accessible to my closest friends.  To “care” means to feel and to express compassion for another’s adverse situation, and to be willing to take action to alleviate it.  To be “knowledgeable” means having the learning, understanding, and skill in the principles that are applicable to a given situation.  Trustworthy. Reliable. Available. Caring. Knowledgeable.  These are the five core precepts instilled in every team member at our firm.  These are the important values we demonstrate to our clients.  These are the key principals that make us who we are at Wilkinson Law.

Do You Want An Attorney You Can Trust?

Read these testimonials about Anthony’s trustworthy and reliable service.

FAQ

Anthony graduated summa cum laude at the top of his class from the University of Michigan with a Bachelor’s Degree in electrical engineering. He graduated from Yale Law School with a Juris Doctor degree. He also took courses in financial management at the Yale School of Management.

Almost all of our meetings occur by video conferencing due to its convenience and popularity. We also have access to over fifty office locations throughout the metropolitan New York/New Jersey area. We are available at these locations by appointment only. If you call or email us with your address, we will tell you which of these locations is closest to you.

Anthony is licensed to practice law in New York and New Jersey.

Anthony Wilkinson demonstrates his knowledge, experience, skills, and competency by regularly sharing what he has learned with others.

 

  • Article: “Convertible Note and SAFE Financing for High-Growth Startups” by Anthony Wilkinson, New Jersey Lawyer Magazine, No. 331, August 2021

 

  • Panel Presentation: “Representing the Startup and Emerging Growth Technology Company: Convertible Note and SAFE Seed Stage Financing for High Growth Startups,” New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education and the Venture Capital, Emerging Growth Technology Companies and Angel Investors Committee of the New Jersey State Bar Association’s Business Law Section, September 2020

 

  • Panel Presentation: “Crucial Technology Issues in Modern Law Practice – Handling and Protecting Documents, Communications and Client Data,” New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, July 2017

 

  • Panel Presentation: “The Paperless Office,” 2017 Solo and Small Firm North Jersey Conference for the New Jersey State Bar Association and New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education, March 2017

 

  • Article: “Licensing a Trademark While Minimizing Exposure to Liability Arising from the Business Relationship with the Licensee” by Anthony Wilkinson and Lisa Gora, New Jersey State Bar Association Business Law Section Newsletter, Vol. 37, No. 3, January 2014

 

  • Panel Presentation: “Being a Better Steward with Ten Steps on Spending Less on Legal Professionals,” Star 99.1 Business Networking Seminar, November 2013

 

  • Panel Presentation: “The Doctors are in the House,” Program for Acceleration in Careers of Engineering, September 15, 2012

 

  • Article: “Exiting an LLC in New Jersey” by Anthony Wilkinson, WGS Newsletter, September 2012

 

  • Panel Presentation, “What are You going to do with Your Science or Engineering Degree?”, Program for Acceleration in Careers of Engineering, March 24, 2012

 

  • Article: “Don’t Let The Sun Set on Your Opportunity to Obtain a Grant for a Solar Installation” by Hesser McBride, Jr. and Anthony Wilkinson, WGS Real Property Newsletter, September 2011

 

  • Article: “Healthcare Reform – Impact on Employers” by Maureen Binetti and Anthony Wilkinson, Edison Chamber of Commerce, October 15, 2010

 

  • Panel Presentation: “Venture Capital Term Sheets” by Jeffrey Neu, Kevin Kuzas, Anthony Wilkinson, NJ Institute for Continuing Legal Education Seminar at Business Law Symposium, April 8, 2011

 

  • Article: “Protected Health Information and HITECH: How to Annihilate So as Not to Violate” by Anthony Wilkinson, New Jersey State Bar Association Health and Hospital Law Section Newsletter, March 2010

 

  • Article: “Piercing the Registrant’s Veil: Trademark Infringement on the Internet, Identifying and Pursuing Infringers, and the Pros and Cons of Proxy Domain Name Registration” by Brett Harris, Amanda Shechter and Anthony Wilkinson, New Jersey Lawyer Magazine, June 2009

 

  • Article: “Sale of a Distressed Healthcare Organization” by David Stein and Anthony Wilkinson, Volume 1 of materials for American Health Lawyers Association Annual Meeting, July 30 – July 2, 2008, San Francisco, California

You may speak live with an actual person by clicking the chat element in the bottom right corner of our website. You may also call the firm at (732) 410-7595 or email the firm at info@wilkinsonlawllc.com.

Schedule your initial consultation to discuss what you must do now to fund, grow, or sell your business.

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