Legal counsel for Tacoma businesses, by flat fee or monthly subscription.
From the contract on your desk to the question you’ve been putting off. Commercial contracts, employment, compliance, and fractional general counsel.
Most of our work is commercial contracts: reviewing, drafting, and negotiating customer agreements, vendor and supplier contracts, MSAs, SOWs, NDAs, and IP assignments. We also advise employers on hiring, contractor classification, handbooks, and separations; review and negotiate commercial leases; and help businesses with regulatory compliance, governance, and operational risk.
Three ways to start
Rapid Contract Review, $750. Send your contract ahead, then walk through it together in a 60-minute live session. You get a redline afterward, usually within a week.
Office Hours, $450. One hour on any business legal question. Come with your question, leave with an answer and a path forward.
Subscription legal services, from $1,500/month. Fractional general counsel for businesses that need ongoing support: a standing monthly advisory call, contract reviews, and a lawyer who already knows your business. Month-to-month, with discounts on project work.
Why it works
Understory Advising PLLC is led by Morgan Bobadilla, Esq., who spent more than 10 years as in-house counsel at global companies. That experience shapes every engagement: advice that fits real business decisions, real budgets, and real deadlines.
Every engagement has a known cost and a defined scope in writing before the work begins. You won’t watch a clock, wonder what a phone call cost, or open an invoice three weeks later.
Not sure where you fit?
Start with a free 15-minute prospective client call.
Approved provider for Washington State’s Self-Employment Assistance Program (SEAP). Learn more
How we work:
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Ongoing legal counsel on a flat monthly fee. Four tiers from Seedling through Scale, each with a monthly advisory call and a menu of services selected at signup. Retainer clients also receive a discount on flat fee project work.
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Defined scope, known cost, no retainer required. Flat fee projects cover the full range of the firm's practice areas, including contracts and commercial work, employment and HR, regulatory and compliance, governance and structure, and operations and risk. Pricing is set after a brief scoping conversation. Retainer clients receive a discount on all flat fee project work.
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Simple contract reviews delivered by email. Complex reviews with redlines and a negotiation memo. Contract drafting for NDAs, independent contractor agreements, MSAs, and vendor agreements. Contract counseling sessions for clients who want to talk a contract through in real time rather than read a written review.
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Employee handbooks, offer letter and employment agreement packages, independent contractor agreements, severance agreements, and standalone policy drafting. Hiring process audits and job description compliance reviews for businesses growing their teams.
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A 60-minute session on any business legal topic. Available as a single session, a three-session pack, or a recurring monthly hour. No retainer required. Often the first step before a longer engagement.
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Half-day workshops for founders and leadership teams. Field Notes covers operational legal risk. Groundwork covers business law fundamentals. Custom team training and public speaking available on request.
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Understory Advising is an approved provider for Washington State's Self-Employment Assistance Program (SEAP), which allows eligible unemployment claimants to collect benefits while enrolled in an approved entrepreneurship program. If you received a letter from ESD about SEAP, or want to learn more about the program, visit the SEAP program page.
