You can buy post IPO shares through an online broker. Basically, it's no different from any other shares. As for family members - tough call. I know that we you register a brokerage account you're required to specify any family members that are board members of publicly traded companies. As far as buying shares - you should be in the clear, provided you're not acted on insider information. If you're buying/selling a lot of shares (millions...) you're required to file a special form to notify the exchange, and then you'll have to do that over a period of time to prevent market flactuations. However, since I doubt that's the case - you should be good.