Profile: John R F Baer

Franchise

Biography: Franchise

John R F Baer is a partner in the Chicago office of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal LLP. He concentrates in the areas of franchising, distribution, international, sales and commercial law. He regularly represents companies on franchising matters. This practice includes the providing of advice on a variety of legal issues affecting companies that use this method of distribution, including regulatory, legislative and dispute resolution matters. He is also experienced with the variety of state laws that regulate the sales representative area and prepares contracts for companies that use this method of distribution.

He also counsels companies engaged in the distribution of goods and services, primarily from the manufacturer's or seller's side, including preparation of distribution, dealer and sales representative agreements, and advice regarding disputes with distributors, dealers and sales representatives. He also counsels foreign clients doing business in the US and US clients who want to expand internationally.

He is chair of the Illinois Attorney General's Franchise Advisory Board, a member of the Legal/Legislative Committee of the International Franchise Association, and from August 2003 to August 2006, a member of the Governing Committee of the ABA Forum on Franchising. Mr Baer is Secretary of the International Franchising Committee of the International Bar Association, and a member of the Industry Advisory Committee to the North American Securities Administrators Association Franchise Project Group. He is the editor of the CCH Sales Representative Law Guide, on the board of editors of LJN'S Franchising Business & Law Alert, and a member of the editorial advisory board of the International Journal of Franchising Law. He has served as editor-in-chief of The Franchise Lawyer and as an associate editor of the ABA Franchise Law Journal, and was vice president of the franchising committee of the Union Internationale des Avocats.