Annual Franchise and Distribution Law Developments 2024

Eleanor Vaida Gerhards is a partner at the national law firm of Fox Rothschild LLP where she concentrates her practice on commercial transactions and regulatory compliance matters. As Co-Chair of the firm's Franchising and Distribution Practice Group, she routinely serves as outside general corporate and franchise counsel to startups, and emerging and established regional, national, and international franchise clients. Elle focuses on guiding the structuring of franchise programs, drafting of franchise documents, franchise acquisitions, administration and negotiation of supply chain agreements and relationships, foreign brand entry into the U.S. market, and master franchising and multi-unit licensing and area-development arrangements. She also works regularly with "accidental" franchisors on the conversion of licensing, subscription, or distribution models to franchise systems.

Elle has been recognized by Chambers USA as a leading national franchise attorney, named a "Legal Eagle" by Franchise Times for the last nine years, a "Rising Star" by Superlawyers, a Pennsylvania "Lawyer on the Fast Track" by the Legal Intelligencer as well as recognized by Who's Who Legal Franchising and named among Philadelphia's Business Journal's 40 under 40. Elle is an active member of the ABA Forum on Franchising. She's written multiple articles for the ABA Franchise Law Journal and ABA Forum's Franchise Lawyer newsletter as well as authored chapters in the ABA book Exemptions and Exclusions under Federal and State Franchise Registration and Disclosure Laws and the ABA Franchise Deskbook Selected State Laws, Commentary and Annotations, Third Edition. She is a past member of the ABA Forum on Franchising Women's Caucus and ABA Forum on Franchising Program Committee. Elle previously presented at the ABA Forum on Franchising Annual Meetings in San Diego, California in 2022, Nashville, Tennessee in 2018 and Miami, Florida in 2016. The International Franchise Association has designated Eleanor as a Certified Franchise Executive and she serves as Co-Chair of the IFA Philadelphia Women's Franchise Network. She is a former member of the IFA Legal Symposium Task Force and multiple past presenter at the IFA Legal Symposium, including participating on the panel for the 2023 Judicial Update.

In her free time, you will find Elle hiking, golfing, playing board games, puzzling, cheering on her Philadelphia sports teams, and clowning around with her husband, Jeff, two children Samuel (Age 11) and Abigail (Age 9), the family Bernedoodle Harper, and bunny Cannoli, in their suburban Philadelphia hometown of Blue Bell, Pennsylvania. Elle is also an avid reader, gardener, and competitive bocce player.

Joseph S. Goode is the Managing Partner of Laffey, Leitner & Goode LLC, a litigation boutique based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He is a trial lawyer who focuses his practice on complex business disputes with heightened emphasis in franchise and dealership law, intellectual property, probate, and real estate litigation, shareholder and fiduciary disputes, and non-competition and trade secret litigation. He has significant jury, bench trial, and arbitration experience in various jurisdictions around the United States. Joe is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison (B.A., History, 1989) and Syracuse University College of Law (J.D., cum laude, 1994). He also has a master's degree in public administration from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University (M.P.A., 1994).

Each year since 2007, Joe has been named a Wisconsin Super Lawyer, starting first in 2006 as a "Rising Star." In 2017, 2022, and 2024, the organization named Joe a "Top 50" lawyer in the State of Wisconsin. In 2017 and 2022, Super Lawyers further designated Joe one of the "Top 25" lawyers in Milwaukee. Since 2011, he has been included annually in The Best Lawyers in America for his work in Commercial Litigation, Franchise Law, Appellate Practice, First Amendment Litigation, Real Estate Litigation, and Intellectual Property Litigation. In 2015, 2017, 2018, and 2021, Best Lawyers named Joe "Franchise Lawyer of the Year" for the City of Milwaukee. Franchise Times has listed Joe as one of its "Legal Eagles" every year since 2017.

Joe is a member of the Milwaukee Bar Association, the State Bar of Wisconsin, the Seventh Circuit Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. He is actively involved in the ABA Forum on Franchising where he has co-authored articles for the Franchise Law Journal and the Franchise Lawyer. Joe also co-authored the Litigation Chapter of the 2023 Forum publication Representing Franchisees. Joe is a regular presenter at Forum workshops and currently serves on the Publications Committee. In 2025, Joe will join the Forum's Governing Committee. At various times since 2011, Joe has also presented at the International Franchise Association's Legal Symposium in Washington D.C. He is an American Bar Association Fellow as of 2023.

Joe has a strong sense of purpose and giving back. He is the President of the Board of Directors of Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward Association, the Past President of the Dane County Humane Society Board of Directors where he served for 15 years, and a member of the Board of Directors of Washington D.C.'s Animal Wellness Action. Three times (2017, 2019, and 2022), San Francisco's Animal Legal Defense Fund has awarded Joe and his firm with its prestigious "Advancement in Animal Law Pro Bono Achievement" Award for their tireless work pursuing animal welfare in the courts of the United States. In 2021, the Wisconsin State Bar placed Joe in its Pro Bono Honor Society for his work during the 2020 presidential election cycle.

When Joe is not working on client matters, he is struggling with his golf game, traveling, and hanging out with his far better half, his wife Dina. Joe and Dina share their historic home in Milwaukee with their dog Harlow and cats Audrey and Valentino.