Franchise Legal Players: Christina Fugate of Ice Miller LLP

Name: Christina Fugate

Firm: Ice Miller LLP

LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/christina-laun-fugate-54a40110/

About Your Firm:  Built on a 100+ year foundation of legal service, Ice Miller LLP is committed to helping our clients stay ahead of a changing world.  Our diverse client base ranges from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies and from governmental entities to educational organizations and pension funds.  Our clients span the business economy from service to industrial to tech.  In the non-profit sector our experience includes work with charitable, fiduciary, educational and governmental entities. Our attorneys strive to develop a deep understanding of each client's needs in order to help them build, grow and protect their most valued assets. Ice Miller's clients are often economic and community drivers. Many are leaders in their fields and sectors. We work collaboratively with them to achieve their goals. To do that, we offer our greatest strength: our people. Ice Miller is a talent mosaic with the ability to bring the exact legal skills needed for specific projects from the routine to the complex. Every professional at Ice Miller is fully and deeply committed to providing our clients with innovative, responsive, relevant and cost-effective solutions. Our attorneys help clients protect their interests and build an advantage through a variety of practice groups.

Website:  https://www.icemiller.com/

What makes your firm stand out as a resource for the franchise industry?

We are a full-service law firm that can handle all aspects of the franchise relationship from creating a new franchise brand through dispute resolution.  We pride ourselves on creative thinking to help achieve our clients’ unique business needs.  We help our clients build and protect – build speed, build a competitive advantage, and build communities.

What is the No. 1 thing a franchisor/franchisee should look for when identifying the right franchise attorney?

Experience is the most critical factor when selecting a franchise attorney.

When it comes to your work, what makes you happiest?

Whether it’s growing a business by creating a new franchise system, helping a client buy into an already-existing brand, or helping a client through a difficult dispute, I find happiness in solving problems for my clients and helping my clients build, grow and protect their assets.

What are your top concerns for the franchise industry in the next year?

Joint employer liability will continue to create concern for the franchise industry.  With the NLRB’s January 2018 decision to withdraw its decision overturning the 2015 Browning-Ferris decision, joint employer is still a potential threat for franchisor liability.  The strong economy may be a concern for franchisors who want to recruit new franchise owners.  As the economy improves (as it is expected to do in 2018), fewer executives will decide to leave their employment to start their own businesses and franchisors may find it difficult to recruit new, high-quality franchisees.

What are you most optimistic about in the franchise industry in the next year?

As the industry saw in 2017, I believe 2018 will be another year of growth for the franchise industry.