Franchise Agreements: What You Need to Know Before Your Client Signs, Part 1- 2019

Originally presented on March 12, 2019

Though franchises often seem to clients like vehicles to assured success, they are nonetheless risky ventures.  The task for lawyers advising clients about franchises is to counsel them about setting reasonable expectations and help them understand the practical implications of the franchise agreement. This is no easy task because these agreements a complex arrangement of restrictions, fees, operational requirements, intellectual property protections and reporting periods.  But understanding how these agreements work – and the range of what’s negotiable and what’s not – is essential to client success.  This program will provide you with a real world guide to the framework of franchise law, practical due diligence of franchise opportunities, and reviewing and negotiating the most important provisions of franchise agreements.

• Setting and counseling clients about realistic franchise expectations 
• Practical guide to reading/understanding a Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) 
• Phases of franchise review – due diligence, negotiation of agreement, and lease work
• Spotting red flags early in the process
• Framework of franchise law and relationship of federal/FTC regulations to state regulation

Speaker: David Gusewelle, Drumm Law, LLC

NOTE: This program was originally produced as a telephone seminar and is available on demand in streaming audio. This material qualifies for self-study credit only. Pursuant to Regulation 15.04.5, a lawyer may receive up to six hours of self-study credit in a reporting year. Self-study programs do not qualify for ethics or elimination of bias credit.