Maureen O'Brien assists companies in expanding their businesses domestically and internationally through franchising. She represents franchisors on international franchise deals, including structuring and negotiating master franchise, development, sub-franchise, and area representative arrangements, franchise terminations, ownership changes, and regulatory compliance. Maureen assists franchisors in creating and updating Franchise Disclosure Documents (FDDs), registering, seeking an exemption for, and renewing FDDs/franchise offerings, and otherwise complying with federal and state franchise laws. She counsels franchisors regarding the development, maintenance, and restructuring of franchise programs, the franchise sales process, and regulatory compliance and drafts franchise, license, development, and master franchise agreements. Maureen advises franchisors regarding the spectrum of franchise relationship issues, including enforcement of system standards, defaults, terminations, renewals, workouts, transfers, acquisition of franchised outlets, sale of company-operated outlets, and territorial encroachment. She assists franchisors in designing licensing programs that avoid franchise registration/disclosure and relationship laws.
