2026 Top Franchise Lawyers You Should Know: Joel R. Buckberg — Baker Donelson

Franchise Legal Player: Joel R. Buckberg
Firm: Baker Donelson

Joel R. Buckberg has built a franchise law practice rooted in helping founders and franchisor teams scale with clarity, discipline and documentation that supports real-world growth. As a shareholder at Baker Donelson, Buckberg brings a multidisciplinary lens to franchising — blending regulatory know-how with trademark, contracts, governance and dispute-resolution experience. His work centers on crafting franchise documentation that is tailored to each brand’s operating reality, while anticipating the strategies and risks that can emerge as systems expand.

1851 Franchise connected with Buckberg to discuss what franchisors often overlook, where compliance can break down as sales momentum builds and the lessons that continue to shape his advisory approach.

1851 Franchise: What originally drew you to franchise law, and what has kept you engaged in the space over time?

Joel R. Buckberg: I dabbled in franchise law by trying to avoid being a franchise in distribution agreements. Then I accepted an in-house position in 1985 that gave me an immediate deep immersion into the field. I realized that representing franchisors is an amalgamation of many legal disciplines — administrative law, commercial contracts, trademark, UCC, real estate, corporate finance, governance and dispute resolution. As an industry vertical, this collection of practice areas is fascinating intellectually. What kept me engaged is the opportunity to help entrepreneurs realize their visions for growing their business and maximize the potential of their business opportunities. The elevator speech is that we make entrepreneurs’ dreams a reality.

1851: As franchising continues to evolve, what legal issue do you see brands most often underestimating today?

Buckberg: I think brands haven’t yet accounted for the use and limitations of AI in the operation of their businesses. Many haven’t updated the standards manual to create a structure and rules of engagement, so AI output is gospel instead of another information source.

1851: In your experience, where do emerging franchisors tend to get tripped up from a compliance or documentation standpoint?

Buckberg: In the age of DocuSign delivery of the FDD, the Item 23 receipt is easy to collect at first delivery. If a sale doesn’t close quickly, and the franchisor’s representatives change, or there is an internal handoff, the franchisor is supposed to send another Item 23 receipt with the contact information of the current point of contact. They also get tripped up by being timid about asking for full documentation from the franchisee — organizational and governance documents, deeds, resolutions, financial statements, confidentiality agreements. These are critical to review before the franchisor signs the franchise agreement, so there are no errors or undisclosed investors that might be hard to fix or redo later.

1851: How should franchisors be thinking about risk management as they scale into new markets or add new unit growth strategies?

Buckberg: Risk management is market sensitive, and the new markets may present different risks than the home or prior growth markets for claims and litigation exposure. An aggressive unit growth strategy that cuts corners to open units fast may enhance premises liability risk. Since franchisee insurance requirements are generally uniform, the franchisor may need to enhance its own insurance to cover the additional exposure.

1851: What distinguishes your approach or philosophy when working with franchise clients?

Buckberg: We always dive into and learn as much as we can about the business and industry of the franchisor, so we can craft the FDD and agreements that serve the client’s particular needs, not just check the box of a cookie-cutter approach to the FDD and agreement drafting. We try to anticipate medium-term and long-term avenues for the growth and change of the business, and plan accordingly. We also try to create a document package that facilitates sales, not hinders them.

1851: Looking back, what lesson from your legal career has had the greatest impact on how you advise clients today?

Buckberg: Move swiftly but don’t be in a hurry. Take enough time to get all the relevant facts so the deal is right the first time. Thoroughness leads to confidence.

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