Helen Leah Conroy

Summary

Since starting my own law practice in 2001, I've negotiated hundreds of agreements, some complex, others very simple, for a variety of clients. This experience helps my clients' business teams, too, as I often can provide insights into what what commercial terms are reasonable and which are not (and why), etc., as well as workarounds It helps that I've worked both sides of the table, representing vendors and customers in a wide array of transactions. I understand the concerns of both parties, and have solutions for finding middle ground where appropriate. I like jumping right in to push my clients deals forward, and quickly, if necessary. My clients appreciate my practical, business-oriented perspective. I limit my practice to drafting and negotiating contracts for technology / internet service companies based in Silicon Valley and San Francisco. Almost without exception, I'm the sole lawyer on the deals I handle. Having negotiated thousands of contracts, in a wide variety of areas, I've developed a nice collection of templates and fall-back clauses. Unlike most transaction lawyers, I spent many years litigating commercial agreements. This experience provided invaluable insights into risk, liability, and damages, and especially, into how not to draft contracts. (No well-drafted agreement ever sees the inside of a courtroom.) In 2007, I formed a partnership with Toby Cozart, who specializes in alternative energy tax partnerships and equipment leasing. Toby "wrote the book" (the BNA tax portfolio) on the tax aspects of equipment leasing. Specialties: Global outsourced service agreements supporting finance, operations and engineering teams, and SaaS agreements representing providers of cloud-based services -- all involving personal data and related security issues. Sports media online service contracts. I enjoy supporting in-house counsel as an "extra pair of hands". Fun fact: I was a Little League Umpire.