Stephen Giles of Norton Rose Australia traces the development of franchising culture in the Asia-Pacific region and the differing regulatory approaches adopted to cover trademarks, contracts, technology transfers, competition and investment restrictions.

Mark Abell of Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP evaluates those EU countries that are most heavily regulated in the franchise field under the Franchise Regulation Evaluation Data (FRED) methodology and draws comparisons between the ratings of EU and non-EU states.

The International Who’s Who of Franchise Lawyers has brought together three of the leading practitioners in the world to discuss key issues facing lawyers today. They discuss the legislative developments in their jurisdictions, the evolution of the franchise bar, difficulties in market activity and the potential conflict of interest created by cross-representation.

Lee Plave of Plave Koch PLC discusses franchise theory.

The International Who’s Who of Franchise Lawyers has brought together five of the leading practitioners in the world to discuss key issues facing lawyers today.

This report is the result of six months of independent research into the international franchise law marketplace, and builds on our previous analyses of the marketplace, encompassing hundreds of hours of interviews with leading professionals in jurisdictions around the world. We explore the the factors affecting franchise activity, particularly relating to expansion of North American markets into China and India, and the correlative trends in the global legal marketplace.

This year the findings of our research identify the firms and practitioners who stand out worldwide for their franchising expertise in a range of industries. DLA Piper LLP (US) emerges as the firm with the most inclusions, followed by Gray Plant Mooty with 10 lawyers mentioned. The research is dominated by North Amercian firms but most highly regarded individuals, such as Mark Abell from Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP, based in London stand out for their international work and knowledge of the area.

In this section we analyse the findings of our research in greater depth to identify the firms and practitioners who stand out worldwide.

Who's Who Legal highlights the leaders in this practice area in 61 jurisdictions. One firm stands out in this edition: DLA Piper has 17 individuals listed from its offices in the USA, China and Hong Kong and is regarded as “the go-to firm for franchise”.

The feeling among interviewees based in the US and Europe is that, as a result of the recession, the domestic franchise market has contracted. At the same time, clients are demanding more from their lawyers.

Our research identifies a small but highly talented contingent of franchise lawyers.

Our research identifies 235 lawyers in 52 countries that offer clients the highest standards of franchise expertise in their home jurisdictions, and often beyomnd national borders.

Conventional wisdom holds that the franchise industry is quite robust in a recession, with some even going so far as to classify it as counter-cyclical.

Our research identifies 19 California based franchise practitioners. They represent franchisors, franchisees and companies of all sizes, across a wide variety of industries. This substantial group is made up of partners from 14 firms.

A select group of six lawyers from just three firms make up the franchise chapter.