5 Minutes with Senior Tech Lawyer Alison Berryman

Here at Biztech Lawyers, we are growing a network of specialist lawyers and tech partners across the world.  Our expanding team has a unique legal and operations skill set, and a genuine insight into the world of our client base of innovators.

Today we’d like to share a little about Alison Berryman. Alison is our first hire in the UK and has accepted the challenge of launching our European operations.

We asked Alison a few questions….

Tell us, why a career in law?

I fell into law slightly by accident!

Having loved Maths and sciences at school, I thought I’d be a scientist, so decided to take Maths, Physics and Chemistry for A level (age 16 - 18).  Unfortunately, during the 2 years I lost interest in those schiences (turns out that chemistry isn’t as interesting once you move past the “blowing stuff up” phase) so had to have a rethink.  It was the late 1990s so, as a girl with an interest in Maths, I was strongly advised to consider becoming a maths teacher (it was common knowledge back then that girls weren’t interested in computers.)

The thought of teaching horrified me, so I decided to go back to college and take another A level before deciding what to do.  I settled on Law, which piqued my interest, and I went on to study law at University - the combination of analytical thinking and practical problem solving really appealed to me, and I decided to pursue it as a career.

Happily, having missed having a career directly in the tech sector, I found my place in it through working as a lawyer.  I find tech endlessly fascinating and am always keen to hear about my clients’ products and services - whether they be “exciting” cutting edge consumer products or “unsexy” behind the scenes technology that just makes the world work that bit more efficiently for us all.

What is the startup scene like in London? 

London has had a thriving tech start-up and SME scene for as long as I can remember.  It’s a big community, with so many events and different start-up hubs it can be difficult to know where to start looking for advice.

My advice to new founders is that there are lots of networking groups (both online and in person), so it’s worth joining a few to see which one suits you best and then, once you’ve found your tribe, scaling back to avoid spending all day every day (and night!) networking.

I love helping founders negotiate their path to success.  My advice isn’t restricted to pure legal knowledge - I’m always happy to share any insight gained from working in the start-up and SME space for so long.  

Are there any pitfalls to look out for when negotiating a contract for startups and tech companies?  

There are many traps tha smaller tech businesses can fall into when negotiating contracts.  Often there’s a misconception that customers (especially if they are bigger organisations) must know best, and that it’s never worth negotiating - this can put businesses at great risk. 

Knowing when to argue and when to concede a point is like walking a tightrope.  Having someone with the legal knowledge to advise on what’s really important and what is actually quite low risk; coupled with the experience of what terms are simply never going to fly (and therefore not worth wasting time arguing over) can be the difference between making or losing your first big sale.

For start-ups selling on standard T&Cs, if these are well drafted and appropriate for your business, not only are you well protected from a legal perspective but you present a professional image to potential customers.  A clear and well drafted privacy notice is also key, especially where individuals’ personal information is collected and used within the business.  Failing to put these documents in place (or drafting your own) can make customers nervous about using your product or service.

What is it like working with the Australian and US teams, now that Biztech is truly global? 

The US and Australian teams are great!  It’s so exciting to be part of a business that is truly global.  Speaking to colleagues overseas provides a really interesting understanding of how the legal markets work differently in the different jurisdictions.

However, working globally is not without its challenges - in particular the time difference, which means that other colleagues aren’t around in my mornings, but I frequently have meetings long after regular working hours have ended.  I have to be quite strict with myself to make sure I am productive in the mornings, and also get enough down-time.

When you are not focused on work, how else do you like to spend your time?  

Most of my “free” time is spent with my family - with 2 pre-teens and a dog, there’s always loads to do.  We love to travel, so get away as often as school holidays and pandemics allow.  

Living in London, we also have really good access to lots of activities, such as museums, theatres and restaurants.  Having had a break during the pandemic, we’re now making up for lost time!

I sing in a choir, which I find really helpful for switching off from everything else - singing is great for mental health.

Read more about Alison here!