We've been in your chair: Founder, CEO, Operator. We've built businesses from scratch. We've raised capital and negotiated complex deals. We've managed 250 people and a dozen facilities. We bring an operator's perspective to every client engagement.
We cut our teeth at leading national law firms. From quarterbacking seed rounds through $400M+ acquisitions, to negotiating complex supply chain deals and helping large tech companies convert to B Corps. You get deep legal experience with the personal touch and value of a boutique.
We leverage modern tech tools and AI to close deals faster and more efficiently. Big law firms are built on a pyramid of associate billable hours and eyewatering hourly rates. We're built to deliver value to clients.
Jeff McCourt
Founder & Managing Partner
Our Team
Jeff is a business attorney who trained with elite firms in Boston and Cleveland for nearly a decade. He's advised a full range of clients — from true startups, to VC & PE funds and publicly traded multi-nationals — on a wide array of matters including formation, funding rounds, equity issuances, project finance, board governance, employment agreements, acquisitions, securities compliance, and more.
He left private practice to found a highly successful, vertically integrated CPG company. Starting as Employee No. 1, he grew that business to a team of over 250, building and operating a dozen manufacturing and retail assets, and guiding the company to B Corp certification.
Jeff founded Southshore Partners in 2024 to fill the gap in legal services that he experienced on the operator/client side: Big firms, while deep in most areas of law, were too expensive and cumbersome to move with the pace and efficiency high-growth companies require. Solos often had thin backgrounds navigating the issues that many founders, investors, developers and mission-driven firms face. And nearly all legal shops were significantly behind the times in leveraging modern tech and AI to turn workflow at the pace and efficiency that clients expect.
Southshore Partners fills that void — we deliver sophisticated legal advice with boutique efficiency, while also serving as a key strategic partner to solve problems and manage high-value transactions.
What We Do
From startup to exit, and everything in between. Select a stage to explore how we can help.
Entity selection, incorporation, operating agreements, founder equity, IP assignments, and early governance — the decisions that define your company for years to come.
Board structure, shareholder agreements, equity incentive plans, and the ongoing governance work that keeps companies compliant and investor-ready.
Commercial agreements, NDAs, employment and contractor agreements, licensing, and term sheets — drafted to protect your interests without killing your momentum.
SAFEs, convertible notes, seed through Series D — negotiated by someone who has been on both sides of the term sheet. Debt facilities and loan documents too.
Buy-side, sell-side, asset purchases, commercial real estate, joint ventures, and strategic exits — end to end from LOI through close.
Strategic counsel for pre-revenue and early-traction companies on co-founder dynamics, first hires, IP, and getting investor-ready.
Embedded senior legal partnership — direct access, responsive, and aligned with your goals. Senior counsel without the cost of in-house.
Legal and strategic counsel for energy developers navigating project finance, regulatory approvals, and the political complexity of large-scale deployment.
Industry and regulatory counsel built on direct experience founding and scaling one of the sector's most recognized companies — licensing through exit.
501(c)(3) formation, social enterprise structuring, nonprofit subsidiaries, campaign finance, and ongoing GC for mission-driven organizations.
Comprehensive counsel for US companies navigating the EU CSRD, California SB 253 & SB 261, ISSB standards, and B Corp certification — from applicability assessment through board-level governance integration.
Full ESG Practice →Cooperative formation, employee ownership transitions, ESOP structures, and ownership model design for founder succession and impact.
Get In Touch
No commitment required. Tell us what you're working on and we'll figure out together if we're the right fit.
17415 Northwood Ave, Suite 201
Lakewood, OH 44107
