Practice Areas

External General Counsel

For small businesses and start-ups, it does not always make the most business-sense to pay the salary of a full-time, in-house general counsel. After representing companies as an in-house general counsel, the founding member of Mueller Law, LLC realized the best way to help many of our clients is by offering flat-fee retainer agreements in exchange for dedicated amount of time and involvement in a company’s affairs on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annual basis. In this manner, Mueller Law, LLC can cover as many or as few of our practice areas that the client needs on an ongoing basis. For our ‘external general counsel’ clients, we typically are asked to handle all of the regular legal matters that businesses face, such as: drafting/reviewing contract agreements, labor & employment issues, legal updates and regulatory compliance, business transactions, various intellectual property and/or trade secret protection needs, as well as overseeing the representation of the client by outside tax and litigation attorneys. By staying abreast of a company’s current status and future plans on an ongoing basis, we have been able to seamlessly step-in and respond when a dispute or other unforeseen circumstance arises.

Labor & Employment

Mueller Law, LLC has experience advising companies on the federal, state, and local laws governing an employer’s relationship with employees and independent contractors, including employment agreements and employee manuals/ handbooks, protocols, and other forms. We are skilled at walking a new company through the daunting process of hiring its first employee. When a company becomes an employer, the company is automatically subject to numerous federal, state, and/or local laws governing an employer’s obligations and an employee’s rights. For example, many new companies need help understanding their obligations under worker’s compensation laws, paid leave and paid family leave laws, short term disability, unemployment insurance, and more… including which payroll taxes the company is responsible for paying and which payroll taxes it is simply responsible for withholding from the employee’s paycheck. There are numerous notices that employers must give their employees upon hiring, on a monthly basis, upon termination, or upon an injury or other special circumstance occurring. The failure to provide these notices properly and timely can be disastrous for employers. As such, Mueller Law, LLC helps clients get off on the right foot, and we make every attempt to check-in with our clients to keep them informed when laws are passed that will affect a company’s legal obligations.

Labor & Employment

Compliance - BSA/AML, OFAC & Related

Mueller Law, LLC is experienced at advising clients on an array of compliance issues involving anti-money laundering, combating terrorism financing, blocked or sanctioned individuals and entities, as well as executive orders and other regulations promulgated by the federal government, including OFAC, FinCEN, and the Department of State.

We keep our clients abreast of the legal requirements in the U.S., as well as the guidance published by FATF and other international bodies, to ensure that our clients are protected from both legal liability and the reputational damage that inevitably occurs when a company is associated with individuals or entities who engage in illicit activities. In doing so, we draft customer due diligence (“Know Your Client”) procedures for companies, conduct annual or semi-annual audits of a client’s customers, draft investigation reports, and otherwise help clients find the resources they need to meet their federal compliance obligations. And, in preparation for FinCEN’s enactment of its final rule implementing the beneficial owner reporting provisions of the Corporate Transparency Act (part of the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020), we are preparing to offer a flat-fee arrangement to our clients that will cover their initial and ongoing reporting requirements with the professionalism and privacy that only attorneys can offer in this area of compliance.

Patents, Trademarks, & Copyrights

Mueller Law, LLC has a broad range of intellectual property services covering the application phase to the prosecution phase for patents, trademarks, and copyrights. We provide clients with comprehensive federal and state search reports, followed up by an opinion regarding patentability, trademark availability, and/or copyright availability for the client. If the client decides to apply for a patent, trademark, and/or copyright, we are experienced in preparing, filing, and prosecuting the applications with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the U.S. Copyright Office, and in defending our clients’ rights against any opposition.

The attorneys at Mueller Law, LLC have personal and business connections in various parts of Europe and the U.K. As such, we are keenly aware of the limitations on our international clients who seek patents, trademarks, and/or copyrights in the United States. We are ready to advise international clients on the extra steps that should be taken to protect the client’s intellectual property interests.

Additionally, our I.P. attorney can provide a comprehensive, live/in-person lecture to groups of 1 to 50 which outlines the sometimes daunting and complicated U.S. patent application process. During the lecture, our I.P. attorney advises clients on how to make the process more manageable for them, including various options that can be taken to best protect the client’s invention.

Patents, Trademarks, & Copyrights

LLCs, PLLCs, & DAO-LLCs

Mueller Law, LLC can help you form a limited liability company (LLC) or professional services limited liability company (PLLC) in any state where we are licensed. In most instances, formation can be done for a low flat-fee plus filing charges from the state government. In addition to the initial application and filing of the articles of organization, we can help you reserve a name in advance, select a registered agent, register your LLC to do business in other states, and ensure any initial and annual publication, notice, and reporting requirements are met. While creating an LLC is relatively simple and quick in most states, most clients will find it advantageous in the immediate and the long run to obtain the advice of an attorney on whether to setup a member-managed LLC or a manager-managed LLC (or in Wyoming, an algorithmically-managed DAO-LLC). Similarly, it can save clients time, stress, and money in the long run to consult with an attorney on whether to draft customized operating agreements. As an LLC grows and changes, it is important to have these guiding documents in place before ownership and/or management changes occur.

Wyoming is the only state in the United States that currently allows individuals to form an LLC as a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO). The DAO-LLC may be member-managed, or it may be algorithmically-managed by a smart contract that directly manages, facilitates, or operates the company and automates nearly all of the fiduciary responsibilities typically shouldered by an LLC’s members. Existing LLCs may be converted to a DAO-LLC by amending the articles of organization to comply with the requirements of the Wyoming Decentralized Autonomous Organization Supplement, Chapter 31 of Title 17 of the Wyoming Statutes Annotated.

Regardless of the type of LLC you want to operate, Mueller Law, LLC will help you make the decisions for your business, your partners, and your clients.