PHONE CALL FROM HERB HOELTER
After several blind solicitations for assistance in finding a corporate attorney to help us with our project, we received an early morning phone call from “white-collar” criminal defense analyst, Herb Hoelter. Mr. Hoelter is something of a celebrity, having assisted in the sentencing negotiations for Willie Nelson, Peter Max, and Martha Stewart. Mr. Hoelter gave us three east-coast attorney referrals at large legal firms in and around San Francisco. We began telephone interviews with each of them.
WEB-SITE LAUNCHED
mydeathandtaxes.com goes live.
BOARD MEMBER SOLICITATION
Sent packages to “professionals in the arts” asking them to serve on our board of directors. The packages included a file folder with information about the project.
FIRST MEETING WITH RICHARD LEE
Through telephone conversations with several attorneys, we were eventually referred to Richard Lee, a private attorney specializing in business law. Mr. Lee’s resume included assistance in starting Film Arts Foundation.
BOARD MEMBER CONFIRMATIONS
By the end of November, we had confirmed 15 members for our Board of Directors. We began sending out invitations for a preliminary meeting of the board to discuss the specifics of the project.
INTRODUCTORY BOARD MEETING
We held the first meeting of the Board of Directors of Death & Taxes at our home/studio in Oakland, CA. Board members residing outside California attended via a web-conferencing system provided by conferencecall.com.
At this meeting, we outlined the project for the board, described their responsibilities, identified a target expense plan for 2006, projected our 2006 income, and elected officers: President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
RICHARD LEE RETAINED
After our board approved retaining Richard Lee, we sent him a $1,500 retainer. Mr. Lee registered the corporation with the state of California and applied for a federal Tax ID number.