Hi, I'm Nate.

If you're reading this, you apparently want to know a bit about me. Thanks! Here are 10 things you might want to know:

1. I'm a lawyer with transactional, IP, corporate, and litigation experience. I've worked with nonprofits, SaaS vendors, health care institutions, professional service providers, food and beverage companies, and industrial equipment manufacturers. In the past few years, I've touched around 4,000 contracts, including plenty of MSAs, DPAs, SaaS, NDAs, BAAs, and sponsorships. I've also managed companies trademark portfolios and worked on many multi-million-dollar deals.

2. I write regularly on LinkedIn about law, contracts, and AI, so if those topics interest you, let's connect! Many of my writings are featured below.

3. I wrote my first book this year. It's called LLC Launchpad and is available on Amazon. It's about how to get an LLC up and running. I'd love it if you checked it out. Please shoot me a note if you do!

4. Currently, I'm a legal engineer at LegalSifter, the "OG of legal AI" specializing in AI contract review.

5. My superpower is that I don't take myself too seriously.

6. I'm always excited to meet new people who are doing cool things. If that is you (and you're not trying to sell me something), please reach out and let's talk.

7. I created a LinkedIn series called #SeinfeldButWithContracts, where I regularly post contracts-related Seinfeld memes. If you work with contracts and love Seinfeld, check them out under the hashtag. If you don't love Seinfeld (not that there's anything wrong with that), you should check them out anyway :)

8. I believe the most valuable but underrated skill for commercial lawyers and legal professionals is learning how to draft contracts to avoid redlines. I post about this regularly too, so follow along if you’re interested! See more below.

9. Several years ago, I hosted craft chocolate tastings. It's like a wine tasting, but with so-called fancy chocolate (ie, not Hersheys). It was a ton of fun, but then Covid got in the way. If you want recommendations for good chocolate that you've probably never had before, let me know!

10. I live in Pittsburgh with my wife and 2 young daughters. I’m a huge hockey fan and am always up to talk pucks.

(The boring disclaimer: my posts and comments are my opinion only and are not legal advice.)
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Writings

​Legal AI

• Avoiding Redlines in the Age of AI Contract Review
• Redlining in the Wrong Direction
• Rejecting the Robots: Persuasive Redlining and AI Generated Comments
• Redlining with Our Eyes Closed
• Clever Drafting in the Age of AI Contract Review
• 3 Ways AI is Changing How I Think about Drafting Contracts
• The Bitter Lesson for Legal AI

Avoiding Redlines

• How to Use AI to Avoid Redlines (without actually using AI)
• Responsible Playbooking: How to Avoid Redlines with AI Contract Review
• How to Avoid Redlines with Comic Sans
• How to Avoid Redlines with Garamond Font
• Drafting Capital: What It Is and How to Use it to Avoid Redlines
• How to Avoid Redlines by Eliminating Clauses that are Ripe for Redlines
• Can We Avoid Redlines to a Limitation of Liability Clause by Turning it Upside Down? 
• Counterparty-Friendly Clauses
• Why I Changed my Mind about a Particular Clause and How I Use it Now to Avoid Redlines
• How and Why You Should Use Standardized Contracts
• Redline Mode: What It Is and How to Avoid It
• Don't Let Your Counterparties go Shopping at Target When They Review Your Contract
• End the Clause Quicker to Avoid Redlines
• How to Avoid Redlines by Making the Counter You Look Good
• Drafting Capital 101
• 3 Quick Ways to Avoid Confusion and Redlines with Defined Terms
• The Magic of Mutuality 101
• A Simple Drafting Technique to Avoid Redlines
• 3 Words and Phrases to Cut from Your Contracts to Avoid Redlines
• How to Use Precise Numbers to Avoid Redlines
• How Separating Your Clauses Can Help Avoid Redlines
• Redline Rage and How to Prevent It
• 4 Simple Words to Make Your Contract More Customer-Friendly
• What I Learned from Negotiating Against Myself
• Plain Language Contracts and Unfair Terms
• How to Use Section Headings to Avoid Redlines
• What Taylor Swift Can Teach Us About Avoiding Redlines
• What Meatloaf Can Teach Us About Avoiding Redlines
• Quick Ways to Improve Your Templates to Avoid Redlines

Featured

• 3 Key Clauses to Negotiate in Hotel Event Agreements (featured on Contract Nerds)
• Zero Based Drafting (featured on Colin Levy's blog)
• It's a Mistake to Try to Make Every Contract Perfect (interview on Laura Frederick's How to Contract)

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Publications

• LLC Launchpad: A Business Lawyer’s Step-by-Step Blueprint for How to Launch Your LLC, Minimize your Taxes, and Protect Your Money and Personal Assets

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Experience & Education

​With over 15 years of legal experience, I handle commercial contracting matters, IP, insurance, facilities, and legal operations for an international nonprofit. I'm an experienced transactional lawyer and litigator. I've worked with nonprofits, SaaS vendors, health care institutions, professional service providers, food and beverage companies, and industrial equipment manufacturers.

Representative matters

• litigated multiple 7- and 8-figure cases, primarily business disputes and cases involving intellectual property infringement
• represented buyers and sellers in multi-million dollar corporate transactions
• advised entrepreneurs on choosing the proper business entity (eg, LLC) and helping them form their entity
• negotiated over 3,000 commercial contracts, including MSAs, NDAs, DPAs, and SaaS agreements
• managed the trademark portfolios of multiple companies, including clearance, prosecution, and enforcement
• managed legal operations, including contract lifecycle management (CLM)

​Education

• University of Pittsburgh School of Law - JD
• The Ohio State University - MA
• John Carroll University - BA