"There are many ways in which a business’s prospects can be harmed in the early stages of a company’s development, and the last thing a start-up wants is to be on the cusp of receiving financing only to learn that a potential investor has uncovered a legal “gotcha” in the course of its due diligence. At best, fixing such a problem will be time consuming and expensive; and if the problem is severe enough it can even derail the whole financing. Fortunately, many of the common legal pitfalls start-ups encounter are easily avoided by keeping your lawyer informed about your plan so he or she can identify issues before they arise. Here is a list of five of the more common pitfalls to watch out for:"