For those who may not know you yet, what is Across Legal and what is your area of expertise?
Across Legal is a law firm specialized in Venture Capital, M&A, and digital law. The firm has offices in Barcelona, Madrid, and—since last September—Valencia, with over 20 years of experience in the sector.
What motivated you to join Startup Valencia as a supporter?
First and foremost, Across Legal wanted to establish a presence in Valencia, the third-largest entrepreneurial ecosystem in Spain. Being part of the Startup Valencia community as a supporter allows us to connect with local startups and investors, making it a very strategic move for us.
The tech sector in Valencia is constantly growing. How do you view its evolution in recent years?
What was once just a promising outlook is now a reality: we can proudly say that Valencia has become an internationally recognized tech hub. At La Marina, we see progress almost daily from local startups and scale-ups. The future looks very bright for consolidating this ambitious project.
In your experience, what legal challenges do startups typically face in their early stages?
Startups generally face two main types of legal needs in their early stages. First, it’s crucial to define the “rules of the game” among founders to avoid future conflicts—this is why having a shareholder agreement from day one is so important. Then, it’s about protecting the key assets of the business that can be legally safeguarded, such as patents, software, or trademarks.
Which legal services do you consider essential for a startup to scale with confidence?
Rather than focusing on one specific legal service, I’d recommend having access to reliable, high-quality legal advice when needed—whether it’s for reviewing a term sheet or protecting your brand. Keeping everything legally up to date provides great peace of mind in your day-to-day operations.
How do you support startups during funding and investment rounds?
We advise both startups and scale-ups, as well as investors, during funding rounds. Our experience on both sides of the table gives us a broader perspective and deeper expertise. We understand the priorities and concerns of investors at every stage, which also helps us offer better guidance to startups. In general, we provide comprehensive support, with a particular focus on negotiating and drafting shareholder agreements and investment contracts. We recommend getting involved as early as possible—ideally when the term sheet or LOI is first on the table.
Regulations and legal frameworks can sometimes be a barrier to growth. How do you work to ensure they don’t become a roadblock for entrepreneurs?
There are no shortcuts here—we all need to comply with our legal obligations. That’s why, as I mentioned earlier, having access to recurring legal support is so important. It’s true that excessive regulation and bureaucracy are driving many scale-ups to move to the U.S. market via the so-called “Delaware Flip,” a process we’re very familiar with as we advise on many cross-border deals.
International tech events like VDS, which will celebrate its 8th edition on October 22–23 at the City of Arts and Sciences, help put Valencia on the innovation map. How do you see the importance of such events?
From an economic perspective, anything that puts Valencia on the innovation map is highly positive. VDS has established itself as a major international tech event, offering global exposure for all players in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.
From your perspective, what legal trends will shape the future of the startup sector in Spain?
That’s a tough question, given the intense regulatory activity we’re seeing. Still, I’d say that having preventive legal advice and staying ahead of potential issues is essential.
Lastly, what do you hope to contribute to the Startup Valencia community, and what would you like to gain from it?
We want to offer our full support and share our 20+ years of experience advising on Venture Capital and M&A transactions to help drive the growth of this fantastic entrepreneurial ecosystem in Valencia.
