IFA Legal Symposium, IBA/IFA International Franchising Conference Scheduled for May

This posting was written by John W. Arden.

The annual International Franchise Association Legal Symposium and the International Bar Association/International Franchise Association Joint Conference on international franchising are scheduled for mid-May in Washington, D.C.

Legal Symposium

The 44th annual IFA Legal Symposium—featuring three general sessions, 21 concurrent workshops, and a six-part Basics Track—will be held on May 15-17 at the J.W. Marriott Hotel in Washington, D.C.

Topics and speakers for the general sessions include: (1) embracing change before your franchise gets left behind, Jack Uldrich; (2) a panel discussion on adapting to change, Brian Schnell, Jack Earle, Steve Joyce, Victoria Blackwell, and Rochelle B. Spandorf; and (3) a judicial update, David Beyer and Nina Greene.

Twenty-one concurrent workshops will feature presentations on state regulation, pitfalls for start-up franchisors, mass franchise disputes, changing technology in franchising; key ethics issues; enforcing international agreements; data security and privacy laws; disclosure, exemption, and registration issues; mistakes in the pre-sale disclosure process; arbitration; pricing programs after Leegin; enforcing social media policies around the world; defaults in international agreements; and implementing system upgrades and enhancements.

Further information on the symposium can be found here on the IFA website. Information on online registration appears here.

IBA/IFA Joint Conference

The 27th annual IBA/IFA joint conference (entitled “New Approaches and Challenges in International Franchising”) will follow the IFA Legal Symposium on May 17-18 at the J.W. Marriott.

The conference will start with a reception and dinner on May 17 at the Occidental Grill in the Willard Hotel. The next day’s program will feature three plenary sessions, three workshops, and a luncheon panel discussion.

Introduced by John R.F. Baer, Chair of the IBA International Franchising Committee, the program will include the following plenary sessions: (1) selecting the appropriate vehicle for international expansion, Philip Zeidman, Daniella Canale, Ned Lyerly, John Pratt, and Will Woods; (2) news from around the world, Mr. Baer, Andrew Wiseman, Stephen J. Caldeira, Rafael Escalera, Peter Snell, Fabio Bortolotti, and Jorge Mondragon; and (3) vicarious and franchisor liability, Larry Weinberg, Penny Ward, Gregg Rubenstein, and Francesca R. Turitto.

A luncheon panel discussion—“International Franchise Development: How Do You Pick Your Franchisees?”—will feature Mr. Baer, Yoshino Nakajima, Melissa Rothring, and Luiz do Amaral.

The workshops will feature the following topics and speakers: (1) control of premises in international franchising, Marco Hero and Carl Zwisler; (2) advertising funds in international agreements, Pascal Hollander, Daniel Waddell, and Oliver Binder; and (3) franchising in regulated industries, Rocio Belda, Frank Zaid, and Mark Kirsch.

Details regarding the session and program registration are available here on the IFA website.