I'm actually not entirely sure about the $10-20k. This was brought up during discussions with a couple of law firms. All of these firms want to jump straight into VC introductions, so I would imagine most of this money would go towards the legal work associated with raising a Series A.
Regarding incorporation, do you have any suggestions as where to start?
> All of these firms want to jump straight into VC introductions, so I would imagine most of this money would go towards the legal work associated with raising a Series A.
Sounds like a red flag to me. It seems like they're looking out more for themselves than for you and your business, unless for some reason they are super excited about your idea and think it needs a lot of VC cash ASAP to move forward.
To clarify, we got very positive feedback from major law firms. Many basically take the stance of trying to get us together with VCs/angels while they draw up the incorporation paperwork, etc.
Frankly, I'd prefer to incorporate on my own and don't want to get too far ahead (i.e VC meetings) while assuming the law firm will cover my ass.
If you are talking about incorporation, that costs next to nothing and takes little time. Just do it yourself.
Other than that, it depends how you value your equity. That is, read http://www.paulgraham.com/equity.html