Why I Started Upgrade Legal
I started Upgrade Legal because I kept seeing the same pattern over and over again.
Startups and growing SMEs would come to me with serious legal problems that could have been avoided if they’d just had proper documentation from the start. They’d used some template they found online. They’d copied terms from a competitor’s website. They’d asked ChatGPT to draft an NDA. And now they were dealing with the consequences.
The thing is, when you’re in the early stages of building a business, legal documentation feels like a distraction. You’re focused on product-market fit, customer acquisition, fundraising. Legal stuff can wait, right?
Except it can’t. Because what happens is your business grows and evolves, but your legal infrastructure stays stuck at version 1.0. You’re operating at scale with documentation designed for a different company at a different stage with different risks.
That’s the gap I’m trying to fill. My mission is to help companies strengthen and upgrade their legal foundation so they can keep growing safely. Not just compliant—though that matters—but actually safe. Protected from risks they don’t even know they’re taking.
My Background
I spent years as a senior legal counsel at one of the world’s largest online content indexing platforms. Dozens of websites. Millions of daily visitors from all over the world. Every day was a challenge.
I built the entire legal department from scratch. I drafted all the contracts. I handled everything from DMCA takedowns to GDPR compliance to international data transfer agreements to employment contracts to vendor negotiations.
That experience gave me deep insight into the legal foundation every business needs but doesn’t always have. More importantly, it showed me the difference between legal documentation that looks good on paper and legal documentation that actually works in practice.
Here’s some of what I handled:
Website terms and policies (privacy policies, terms of use, DMCA policies, cookie notices). Full GDPR/AVG compliance infrastructure (records of processing activities, privacy policies, internal data management guidelines, security measures, data processing agreements, document retention policies). Employment contracts, personnel policies, and all the related arrangements and guidelines. Cease and desist letters, final warnings to debtors, sanctions legislation checks. Company emergency response planning, permits and licenses. Regular legal consultations tailored to each department (marketing, development, sales). Participating in SCRUM demos and sprint reviews with the development, sales, and marketing teams.
Because companies today often operate internationally, I always make sure I’m up to date on relevant international legislation—European directives, US law. This allows me to advise expertly on European and American intellectual property law and platform liability rules.
I don’t just know the law. I know how it applies in practice when you’re actually trying to run a business and get things done.
What I Do for Clients
Over the past ten years I’ve helped countless companies with their legal issues and contracts. Online platforms, apps, Web3 projects, SaaS companies, blockchain startups.
My services go beyond just legal advice. I’m also available to fill temporary positions within legal teams to help clear backlogs or handle transitions.
A clear example: when 24Sessions was acquired by MessageBird (both SaaS platforms), I made sure the entire legal side of 24Sessions was seamlessly integrated into the new parent company.
My tasks included negotiating and closing existing deals, including face-to-face negotiations. Renegotiating ongoing contracts. Assisting in drafting new internal policies to meet MessageBird’s legal requirements. Supporting tender procedures and RFPs.
I get a lot of satisfaction from helping diverse companies and solving different legal challenges with practical legal advice. Not theoretical. Not cautious. Practical.
Why You Need an Interim Legal Counsel
Here’s what usually happens: business activities grow faster than the legal infrastructure can keep up. Sales is closing deals, product is shipping features, marketing is launching campaigns, and legal is… well, legal is three months behind trying to review contracts that have already been signed.
This is where an interim legal counsel becomes valuable.
Legal advice tailored to your business. Every company is unique and deserves legal advice tailored to its specific needs and challenges. I make sure legal documents and strategies are fully aligned with your business, not just copied from some generic template.
Risk management. Managing legal risks is crucial to avoid costly legal disputes. I help your company identify and manage potential risks so you can act proactively instead of reactively. The goal isn’t to eliminate all risk—that’s impossible and would paralyze your business. The goal is to take smart risks while understanding what you’re accepting.
Cost control. Preventing legal problems is often more cost-effective than solving them. By proactively managing legal risks, an interim legal counsel can contribute to cost control and improve the overall financial health of the organization. A €5,000 contract review now can save you a €50,000 dispute later.
Long-term sustainability. Sustainability isn’t limited to environmental issues. It also includes legal sustainability, which means the organization is able to thrive in the long term without legal obstacles. An interim legal counsel contributes to the organization’s sustainability by proactively addressing legal challenges before they become existential threats.
What I Specialize In
My experience extends to diverse companies, from IT/ICT businesses to companies active in intellectual property, privacy, blockchain, Web3, NFTs, and cryptocurrency. Here are some of the legal areas I specialize in:
IT/ICT. Outsourcing, right of withdrawal, online platform liability, SCRUM and Agile methodologies. IT/ICT offers many opportunities, but there are also many legal risks lurking, sometimes from unexpected angles.
Intellectual Property. Advertising, domain name registration, trademark applications. Every online business deals with intellectual property, and I can make sure you take the right steps safely.
Privacy. Cookie notices, processor agreements, privacy by design. I help you with the right documents so you can meet GDPR/AVG requirements without drowning in bureaucracy.
Blockchain. The rise of blockchain is inevitable. Startups, listed companies, and even governments are working with it. But what risks does that bring? How can you protect your business? I have extensive experience advising blockchain projects since 2018.
Web3/NFTs. Web3 is about decentralization and ownership on the blockchain. I have extensive experience with thousands of NFTs and understand exactly what needs to be on paper to protect your interests.
Cryptocurrency. No one can ignore cryptocurrency anymore. Its use is still largely speculative, but digital euros and dollars are coming. How can you as a company respond to this and comply with regulations?
For startups, I also offer a Startup Legal Checklist to lay a solid foundation for your business from day one.
Why Work With Me
Often business runs ahead of legal housekeeping and there isn’t always the capacity to hire an in-house legal counsel. With my years of experience as in-house legal counsel for a large online media platform and legal advisor for SaaS platforms, Web3 projects, and various IT companies, I can assess well what legal risks a company faces, but especially where the opportunities lie to grow safely.
I’m very entrepreneurial myself and in my work I like to think along with the business and keep an eye on the future. I’m not the lawyer who just says “no, too risky.” I’m the lawyer who says “here’s the risk, here’s how we can manage it, and here’s how we can get this deal done.”
I help you move forward by upgrading your legal documents and reducing your legal risks, so that as an entrepreneur you have time again to do what you’re good at: running your business.
Upgrade Legal