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Ridgeline Venture Law, with offices in Chattanooga and Cookeville, has become Tennessee’s first B Corp law firm and only the fifth such designee in the state.

A Certified B Corp is a legally structured Benefit company that is vetted for endorsement by the  global nonprofit B Lab®.  A benefit company is a new type of for-profit business with a governance model that considers all stakeholders in addition to profits, i.e. a triple bottom line approach to business with social, environmental, and financial accounting metrics.

Certified B Corporations meet higher standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.  B Corps are important because they inspire all businesses to compete not only to be the best in the world, but to be the best for the world.  It’s like Fair Trade certification but for the whole business, not just a bag of coffee (or USDA Organic certification, but not just for a carton of milk; or LEED certification, but not just for a building).

There are over 2,200 Certified B Corporations from more than 130 industries in 50+ countries with 1 unifying goal – to redefine success in business.  The performance standards B Corps meet are comprehensive, transparent and verified.  They measure a company’s impact on all  its stakeholders (e.g. workers, suppliers, community, customers and the environment).

Traditional corporate structure requires directors to use profit maximization as the primary — if not only —  lens in decision-making.  Many businesses (us included) see this as a hurdle in creating long-term value for all stakeholders.  In positioning Ridgeline Venture Law as a B Corp, we are free to provide exceptional legal services without sacrificing the opportunity to  be a responsible corporate citizen.  As we like to say, when partnering with RVL, you partner with your community.

Kevin Christopher

Author Kevin Christopher

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Historic James Building
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Chattanooga, TN 37402

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RVL® is a business, intellectual property, and technology firm, building today’s companies for tomorrow’s economy.