It could certainly be messy, and the distraction of threatened, pending, or active lawsuits are not anything you want to deal with while starting a company. Al

It could certainly be messy, and the distraction of threatened, pending, or active lawsuits are not anything you want to deal with while starting a company. Also, your reputation may be at stake as well, along with your relationship with the company managers/founders. Without knowing specifics (which you probably shouldn't share), this doesn't sound like a great idea. That said, it's not the end of the world, just a very big potential thorn in your side.