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Name
Brian Larson
Company
Larson/Sobotka Business Advisors, LLC
E-mail
Contact Brian Larson (Larson/Sobotka Business Advisors, LLC)
Website
http://www.larsonsobotka.com
Office Phone
(612) 424-8661
Description
Consultant and lawyer serving real estate brokers, REALTOR associations, and MLSs throughout the U.S.

Areas of Practice Focus

My consulting firm advises brokers and MLSs regarding policy and strategy matters in the real estate vertical. I am also a lawyer focusing much of my work on e-commerce, databases, web branding issues, and rule-making for online communities (particularly multiple listing services).

I live and work in Minneapolis (though my clients are scattered all over the U.S. and Canada).

During 2007-2008, I am chairing the American Bar Association's Databases and e-Commerce committee. We have worked on a number of topics, including some relating to "click through" agreements on the Web and database copyright technicalities.

I've written a couple journal articles on these and related topics, and I'm a frequent contributor to Inman News and other online resources regarding the real estate industry.

Common Projects

As a consultant, I advise brokers and MLSs regarding strategic, operational, and marketing issues. See the firm web site for details. 

As an attorney, I do all sorts of legal work related to my practice focus, but the following are very common areas where I have assisted MLSs, associations, brokers and other businesses...

  • Database and software license agreements
  • Rule-making and terms of service for online communities (for MLSs and other B2B networks)
  • Clearing business names and trade and service marks for use on the Web
  • Domain name disputes, including UDRP actions
  • Other trademark disputes
  • Copyright registration for databases

Personal

I have taught part-time at the University of Minnesota Law School since 2004.

Travel (pic of me above is taken from Mont Juif in Barcelona), teaching, learning, eating, and cooking are my favorite activites outside of work.

I am a student of English (native speaker), Swedish (conversationally fluent), Portuguese (rudimentary command), and Spanish (critical phrases, etc.)