About Us
At Access GC, we assist clients with a comprehensive range of legal services — from entity formation and team-building through venture capital financing, commercial contracting, risk mitigation, IP and other operational matters, to growth and liquidity transactions, including mergers & acquisitions and IPOs.
Industry Experience
Emerging Companies
Digital Health and
Privacy
Genetics, Biotech and Life Sciences
Consumer Branded Products
Venture Capital and Private Equity
Multinational Structures
AI, Tech and
Security
Nonprofits
Value Proposition
The services we provide at Access GC are the same sophisticated legal services traditionally offered by Big Law firms—only without the extraordinary cost to clients. We’ve worked within BigLaw ourselves, delivering those same sophisticated legal services — and seeing firsthand the inefficiencies that often accompany them.
Clients of every size have grown frustrated with the high fees and the oversized teams assigned to even straightforward matters. Start-ups and growing companies feel this most acutely. Unlike larger corporations, they often lack in-house legal support to manage outside counsel effectively. Many are drawn into BigLaw by introductory discounts, only to face steep fees later—often at a stage when switching firms is difficult or disruptive.
The result is predictable: clients feel trapped, hesitant to seek advice, or tempted to handle legal matters on their own—sometimes with costly consequences. Even established companies are rethinking long-standing relationships as legal costs continue to rise. Today, cost matters to everyone, and the traditional Big Law model is no longer the best fit for many businesses seeking high-quality, practical counsel.
Our approach is different. While we have BigLaw experience, we do not have the overhead of BigLaw firms or the need to fill a revenue pipeline with over-staffed and over-charged legal projects in order to generate millions of dollars of profits for the partners. We stay low-overhead, small, focused. We provide partner-level experience and judgment for a fraction of a BigLaw first-year associate’s hourly rate. We do not overstaff–we provide personal attention and responsiveness. As we grow, we may bring on additional resources, including subject-matter expertise. But our model will never change.
We know how BigLaw thinks. And we know how to respond, to the benefit of our clients.
We look forward to providing the high-level legal services that you and your company require and deserve. Please feel free to contact us with any questions or to discuss your needs, objectives and ideas.
Our Services
1
CORPORATE FORMATION
AND
GOVERNANCE
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Entity selection and formation
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Equity splits among founders and team
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Board Composition
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Advisory Boards
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Shareholder Agreements
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Share Transfer Agreements
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Corporate Governance
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Voting Agreements
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Business Plans and presentations
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Multi-national structures
2
TEAM BUILDING
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Employment agreements
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NDAs
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IP assignments and agreements
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Non-competes
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Independent Contractors
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Equity Incentive Plans
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Options, restricted stock, vesting
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409A valuations
3
CAPITAL FUNDING
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Right-Sizing Capital Needs/Timelines
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Founders
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Friends & Family
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Angels
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Bridge Loans
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SAFEs
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Series A Preferred
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Follow-on Preferred Rounds
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Preferred stock terms
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Valuation
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Protective provisions
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Board seats
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Convertible Debt
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Data rooms
4
COMMERCIAL CONTRACTS AND RELATIONSHIPS
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Sales agreements
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Master Services Agreements
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Distribution Agreements
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IP and SW licenses
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Joint Ventures/Co-Development
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Term sheets/MOUs
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Service performance standards
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Cross-border issues
5
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND DATA PRIVACY
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AI Governance
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Database ownership and use/infringement
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Liability
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Data Protection
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Data Privacy-Health/medical/financial/personal
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Cross-border transfers and usage
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Employee/contractor access, confidentiality, misuse
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Insurance
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State/federal/cross-border regulation
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External policies
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Internal policies and practices
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Customer terms and conditions
6
LIQUIDITY TRANSACTIONS
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IPOs
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M&A
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Deal structures
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Due Diligence
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Confidentiality
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Shareholder matters
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Cap table
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IP ownership and rights
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Change of control provisions
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Board fiduciary duties
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SEC reporting
LEGAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
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Selection and management of outside law firms and resources
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Use of AI to achieve efficiencies in legal services
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Fractional GC Services
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Board Advisory Services
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Special Projects
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Second Opinions
7
8
NONPROFITS
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Formation of non-profit entities
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Preserving non-profit tax status
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Fundraising
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Non-profit corporate governance
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Addressing and resolving conflicts
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Staff (and Board) relationships
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Contracts and other operational matters
The Team
Yale University, BA
Harvard Law School, JD
As a corporate lawyer and senior partner at Ropes& Gray in Boston, David served for many years as a trusted advisor to U.S. and international clients on high-stakes corporate, investment and transactional matters, and also coordinated the cross-department legal work of the firm for many clients.
While at Ropes & Gray, David was Co-Chair of the Technology Company Group, the Securities and Public Companies Group, the Retail and Consumer Branded Products Group and the International Group, and was also a member of the Intellectual Property and the Energy and CleanTech Groups.
Prior to starting AccessGC, David served as Vice President and General Counsel at Veritas Genetics, Inc., a leading whole-genome sequencing company co-founded by George Church of Harvard Medical School and MIT. At Veritas, David was responsible for the ongoing legal affairs of the company, including VC financing, equity incentive plans, service contracts, data privacy and policies, compliance, employment matters, insurance and other operational matters. He also negotiated and closed the successful sale of Veritas to LetsGetChecked, a global diagnostics company (now Fuze Health), and continued to oversee Veritas's legal affairs, integration and new product launches post-acquisition.
In addition to his practice, David also served for many years as a guest lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management, teaching classes on M&A, start-up company structuring, financing and liquidity, multinational joint ventures, transactions and compliance, financial products and business decision-making.
In his role as an advisor and independent senior legal counsel, David focuses on corporate governance, venture capital, financings, M&A, securities, joint ventures and strategic contracts—bringing practical, business-minded solutions across industries, including genomics, technology, manufacturing, branded products, sourcing and services. David combines deep representational and transactional experience with clear, strategic counsel to help companies navigate growth and achieve their goals.
CLIENTS AND TRANSACTIONS INCLUDE:
General Representation:
Veritas Genetics, Ruya AI, EMC Corporation, EMD Millipore, Reebok International Ltd., Brookstone Company, Nypro, FTP Software, SAPPI/SD Warren, Eastern Enterprises, Premium Power, Lotus Research, My ParcelPal, Boston Genetics, Opus Genome, Autism Genomics, Charger (Dubai)
IPOs and Securities Offerings:
EMC Corporation, Akamai, VMware, Reebok International Ltd., EMD Millipore, Brookstone, Gillette, Entegris, Parexel, Chipcom, FTP Software, Wesley Jenssen, Brooks Automation, Bain Capital portfolio companies, 3i Group plc
M&A Transactions:
EMC Corporation, Reebok International Ltd., Veritas Genetics, EMD/Millipore, Entegris, Pfizer/Wyeth, Brookstone, Becton Dickinson, Johnson Matthey PLC (now Veranova), FTP Software, Nypro, Eastern Enterprises, National Grid, SAPPI/SD Warren, SupplierMarket, Boston Genetics
Investment, Exits and Underwriting Transactions:
General Catalyst, Bain Capital, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Citibank, CSFB, BA/Merrill Lynch, Battery Ventures, Summit Partners, Sigma Ventures, Globespan, 3i Group plc
Pro Bono Representation:
David served for many years as Board Chair and legal counsel to Artists for Humanity, a leading Boston-based nonprofit dedicated to bridging economic, racial and social divisions by providing youth with keys to self-sufficiency through paid employment in the arts. AFH currently employs roughly 400 Boston youth and is well supported by the Boston business and philanthropic communities.
*Admitted in New York
University of Virginia, BA
Vanderbilt Law School, JD
An attorney licensed to practice law in the State of New York, Elizabeth Gibson has extensive experience in business and finance law, including aircraft finance and leasing, project financing and leasing, corporate and securities law and general commercial transactions. Her career spans both the private and nonprofit sectors, reflecting a unique combination of legal expertise, creative entrepreneurship and a commitment to public service.
While in New York with such BigLaw firms as Hunton & Williams (now Hunton Andrews Kurth), Mayer Brown, Fulbright & Jaworski (now Norton Rose Fulbright) and Holland & Knight, Elizabeth focused her pro bono work on nonprofit and arts law, and she was also an early volunteer providing assistance to the families of First Responders in the wake of 9/11. Since then, Elizabeth has served as a nonprofit fundraising and development consultant for a range of educational, healthcare and cultural institutions, helping organizations grow and fulfill their missions.
In addition to her legal and nonprofit work, Elizabeth is the founder of a creative design studio specializing in floral and home accessory design. She has also worked in marketing and promotions for music production and distribution and has supported marketing and brand initiatives for arts and education organizations in addition to her own.
Elizabeth's interests extend to the digital realm, where she is currently involved in developing digital platforms that monetize social engagement, integrating her skills in marketing, finance, UX design, content creation and curation.
Throughout her multifaceted career, Elizabeth has remained driven by a passion for making a positive impact through innovative problem-solving, nonprofit development and creative collaboration—always with a focus on achieving meaningful results for her clients and communities.
CLIENTS INCLUDED:
CIBC, Inc., State Street Bank and Trust Company, NationsBank, MetLife Capital Financial Corporation, Leipziger Verbehrsbetriche GMbH, Philip Morris Capital Corporation, BOI Leasing Corporation, Bank of America, First Chicago, Mellon, Credit Suisse Leasing 92A L.P., CSFB
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Disclaimer: Contacting Access GC through this website or by email does not create an attorney–client relationship. Please do not share confidential or other sensitive information through this form. Information submitted before an engagement is formally established may not be treated as privileged or confidential. An attorney–client relationship is created only after a written engagement letter is signed by both you and Access GC.
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