With entrepreneurship flourishing on Tech’s campus, legal questions are bound to arise for student inventors. CREATE-X has launched a new program, Legal Buzz, to help students navigate their legal questions.

Students will have the opportunity to have their questions answered by lawyers from Troutman Sanders who provide their counsel pro bono, meaning “for the public good.” The service is available at no cost to students.

"We see Legal Buzz addressing an important need our students have to discuss issues pertaining to issues such as intellectual property, corporate legal structures, and government regulations as they pursue entrepreneurship and innovation opportunities," said Raghupathy Sivakumar, professor and Wayne J. Holman Chair in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering and director of CREATE-X.

Legal Buzz will hold office hours every two weeks during the spring and fall semesters on Wednesdays from 4 to 6 p.m. in the CREATE-X Startup Studio, located in room 112 of the Technology Square Research Building (TSRB). Students can talk with lawyers about projects, potential startups, or current business ventures. RSVP for the next Legal Buzz event on Wednesday, Feb. 3, at www.create-x.gatech.edu/legalbuzz.

An important note about Legal Buzz is that, because the advice is provided for free, there is no attorney-client privilege formed during the interaction. Students concerned with legal protection regarding specific details of their questions should seek paid legal advice and not rely on this pro bono service.

CREATE-X is a Georgia Tech initiative that instills entrepreneurial confidence among students. It offers multiple programs on campus including, Startup Lab (learn about evidence-based entrepreneurship and customer discovery), Idea-to-Prototype (receive a grant and build a prototype), and Startup Summer (launch a startup with a $20,000 investment). All programs are open to all Georgia Tech students.

To learn more about CREATE-X, visit www.create-x.gatech.edu.