Section to discuss liability of franchisor's outside counsel

The State Bar of Michigan’s  Antitrust, Franchising, & Trade Regulation Section will host a Virtual Lunch and Learn discussion with Charles S. Marion and Ari N. Stern, authors of the Franchise Law Journal article “‘But They Were Not My Client’: The Prospect of a Franchisor’s Outside Counsel Being Liable to an Aggrieved Franchisee.”  The online discussion will take place Thursday, July 28, from noon to 1 p.m. via Zoom.

The article explores (1) the duties and responsibilities, if any, that a franchisor’s outside counsel owes to a prospective franchisee; (2) the impact of any state franchise laws on the relationship between franchisor’s outside counsel and a prospective franchisee; (3) potential causes of actions a franchisee could assert against a franchisor’s outside counsel; (4) defenses to commonly asserted claims against franchisor’s outside counsel; (5) policy considerations attendant to the relationship between franchisor counsel and prospect; and (6) best practices that outside counsel should employ to eliminate or reduce the risk of such claims.

This Virtual Lunch and Learn will take an in depth look at the authors’ perspectives as they summarize the article and offer their viewpoints before opening the topic up for discussion to attendees.

To register for the Virtual Lunch and Learn, visit https://connect.michbar.org/antitrust/home. For additional information about the event, contact Mark Burzych at 517-381-3159, or mburzych@fsbrlaw.com.