Biography: Franchise

Stephen Giles is acknowledged as Australia's leading franchising lawyer. He is a partner in Norton Rose Australia, which is Australia's premier national franchising group. Stephen practises in the Melbourne and Sydney offices, and heads the Norton Rose franchising team of over 50 lawyers in 30 offices across Europe, Australia, Asia and the Middle East.

Stephen is author of the authoritative Australian text Franchising Law & Practice, and a range of other publications including; Expanding Internationally – A Guide for Australian Franchise Systems, The Franchisor's Manual, Compiling a Franchise Operations Manual and, the Franchisee's Guide. Stephen is a director and former national chairman of the peak industry body, the Franchise Council of Australia; chair of the FCA's legal committee and ethics committee; and co-chairman of LAWASIA's franchising committee.

Stephen Giles has an extensive franchising practice; with particular focus on market entry and regulatory issues, contract negotiations and drafting, competition law and antitrust, mergers and acquisitions and corporate advice. He has advised over 200 franchisors, including 7-Eleven Australia, Burger King, Krispy Kreme, Luxottica, Mrs Fields, Pandora, Saab and Yum Brands.

Stephen has been at the forefront of developments in franchising. He has represented the Franchise Council of Australia in all negotiations with the Australian government on the regulatory framework for the sector, including drafting all industry submissions and appearing before all government inquiries.

Stephen has a strong understanding of franchising laws throughout the world, and is able to access on-the-ground input from the local Norton Rose offices as required.