The following is not meant to be legal advice.
Rule 144 relates to the resale of restricted stock. Restricted stock is usually issued while a company is still private. For instance, an engineer joining a startup may get some options that vest and turn into restricted stock before the company goes IPO. Restricted may also be acquired through acquisitions or issued by a public company in a private placement. Private placement to some people means PIPE.
Usually when requesting a legal opinion to lift the restricted stock legend, the seller needs to represent he is not an affiliate. Affiliate means a director, officer, or 5% stockholder.
Rule 144 has a holding period requirement. There are volume limitations.
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