Practice Areas » Franchising Law

Increased competition is one of the most significant challenges the franchising industry faces today. In recent years, it has become increasingly difficult for franchisors to sustain a competitive edge.

The attorneys of Keevican Weiss Bauerle & Hirsch LLC understand this business and can provide the edge to help position companies to compete effectively in today's markets.

How can Keevican Weiss Bauerle & Hirsch LLC serve the operator whose main concern is focused on what happens "within the four walls"? The answer is simple. Our knowledge of franchising has provided invaluable assistance to franchisors whose interests range from on-property concerns to franchise-building to litigation.

Corporate Finance

Whether the goals of a franchise are accessing conventional debt financing through traditional sources such as banks or equipment lenders; negotiating venture capital investments; structuring private placement offerings; preparing for an initial public offering; or negotiating a merger or acquisition, the lawyers of Keevican Weiss Bauerle & Hirsch LLC have the experience necessary to achieve the desired results creatively with the unique understanding of the challenges inherent in the franchising industry.

Real Estate

One of the most significant factors in the success of any franchise is location. Saturated markets are causing franchisors to be more creative in selecting territories. Operators must ensure that a suitable site with strong visibility and easy access is obtained at a reasonable cost. Keevican Weiss Bauerle & Hirsch LLC has worked with clients to develop site selection criteria with the attributes uniquely suited to an industry.

Some concepts require placement in areas with high volumes of pedestrian traffic. Other concepts are destination-oriented, relying less on "high cost, high visibility" locations and more on demographics and access. Whether the location ultimately selected is a shopping mall, urban shopping market, strip center or free-standing location, we have worked with companies to ensure all of their needs are met in construction, contracts and leases.

Franchising & Joint Development Agreements

Franchising and joint development agreements often prove to be the proper vehicles to enable quick expansion of their chains, establish market presence and gain wide acceptance of a concept with minimal outlays of cash.

Keevican Weiss Bauerle & Hirsch LLC regularly develops franchise and joint development plans for restaurateurs. We have also identified where these techniques would not be successful strategies and advised clients accordingly while developing feasible alternatives.

Employment

As most operators are aware, attracting and retaining key personnel is crucial to the success of any multiunit franchising concept. Entrepreneurs are often faced with the difficulty of finding management candidates to assist in generating growth. Keevican Weiss Bauerle & Hirsch LLC helps to develop adequate programs to motivate management personnel and ensure the loyalty of workers while protecting against violations of the developer's proprietary rights.

Trade Secret Protection

Filing for trade secret protection is a lengthy, detail-oriented process. Keevican Weiss Bauerle & Hirsch LLC helps determine whether to seek patent protection for technical expertise and, if so, where protection should be sought. If a franchisor's know-how deals with specialized equipment, unique processes, trade dress or key ingredients that preferably are kept secret, we can help. We make it easier to decide the steps needed to protect that knowledge and provide the legal documents required to implement those steps. Where a franchisor desires to use a new trademark or a service mark to distinguish products or services, we assess the chances of getting that mark registered.

Litigation

Disputes, commercial or otherwise, are facts of life. Depending on how disputes are dealt with, they either end up in litigation or reach settlement. The cost and consumption of time to reach either resolution, however, may have a significant impact on your business. In today's highly regulated workplace, disputes create constant jeopardy to franchise operators.

The goal is to avoid these disputes through preventative planning. The litigation attorneys of Keevican Weiss Bauerle & Hirsch LLC have significant experience in representing companies in all facets of dispute resolution whether through litigation, mediation, arbitration or informal settlement. Our experience includes representing clients in class-action securities law suits, franchiser/franchisee disputes, workers' compensation claims and product liability disputes, as well as other types of claims.

Whether you are faced with sexual harassment charges by your employees, dram shop claims, defiant franchisees, shareholder/partner disputes or securities fraud action, our litigation attorneys have the experience necessary to resolve these matters efficiently and effectively, with a concern for controlling costs and reducing disruption to your business.