An unmissable opportunity to hear from matter experts as they roll up the latest developments in franchising law over the past year, including the Treasury’s 2023 review of the Code of Conduct. Whether you represent the franchisors or the franchisees, this seminar will uncover the best practice for navigating risks, dealing with unfair contract terms, and overcoming legal and regulatory issues affecting the business operations in the franchising system.

Presenters

Sean O'Donnell, Partner, HWL Ebsworth
Sean is one of Australia's leading franchise and dispute lawyers. He is recognised by his international and local peers as a 'Thought Leader' in franchising, an accolade initially only applying to 4 other lawyers in Australia. He heads up the firms national retail and franchising practice. He has 20 years of experience assisting clients involved in the retail and franchise sectors, particularly assisting with strategic change of a network and resolving complex disputes in a broad range of industries. His practice in franchising covers both non contentious advice work to litigated disputes. This unique combination was validated in the publication of Who's Who Legal 2017 where his clients commended him on his "incredible market understanding", "commercial and practical advice" and "his superb litigation abilities". Sean is also listed in Best Lawyers for his franchise expertise. Sean was the President of the NSW/ACT Chapter of the FCA and a director of the FCA National board from 2012 to October 2017. He remains active within the FCA and has been part of the FCA legal committee since 2006. He had a significant role in the drafting and implementation of the new Franchising Code in 2015, including submissions to government about redrafting of the Code. He also made submissions and assisted a number of clients with submissions to the current Government Inquiry. Sean regularly assists franchisor and retail clients with regulatory investigations by the ACCC and ASIC. He is also involved in a number of high profile disputes and litigated claims throughout Australia. He is a trained mediator and has participated in numerous OFMA mediations and commercial mediations. He also provides expert opinion on franchise related matters.


Simone Pentis, Managing Director, Advantage Partners Lawyers
Managing Partner of Advantage Partners Lawyers, Simone brings a background of extensive experience as a corporate and commercial lawyer having worked in private legal practice, universities and in-house positions at Australian and international companies. Simone has acted for various national and international franchisors within Australia, assisted franchise groups move into various international markets, and acquire other international and Australian systems. Simone has also assisted master franchisees and franchisees as they acquire and deal with their franchises. Simone managed and operated the legal departments for national and international franchise networks, including The Coffee Club Group and Bartercard, and is Deputy Chair of the QLD Law Society’s Franchising Committee, as well as a long standing committee member of both the Franchise Council of Australia (Qld Chapter) and Franchise Council of Australia Legal Committee.


Elizabeth Gore-Jones, Principal, The Franchise and Business Lawyers
Elizabeth Gore-Jones was admitted in 1994 and commenced specialising in franchising law in 2000. She started the law firm "The Franchise & Business Lawyers" in 2012 specialising in providing commercial, business and franchising advice to franchisors and franchisees alike. She is a member of the Queensland Law Society Franchising Committee and is a past member of the Franchise Council of Australia, the Queensland chapter of the Franchise Council committee and the Women in Franchising committee. Elizabeth lectures at the Bond University PLT course in franchise legal practice. Elizabeth has a particular interest in setting up new franchise systems and assisting franchisees in dispute to reach an agreement without resorting to the court system. Elizabeth advises Franchisors ranging from large Australia wide franchisors through to the smaller franchise systems. As franchising law becomes more complex, Elizabeth is called upon to assist legal practices in representing their clients.


Mathew Webster, Special Counsel, Norton Rose Fulbright
Mathew Webster is a corporate and commercial lawyer based in Sydney. Mathew has a broad range of corporate and commercial experience having worked in the areas of franchising, trade practices and commercial law.


Dr. Katherine Johnson, Mediator and Barrister
Katherine is an internationally and nationally accredited mediator, serving on various mediation panels including the International Mediation Institute (IMI), Papua New Guinea Supreme Court (PNG), the Supreme Court of NSW, the Personal Injury Commission of NSW and the Family Law Settlement Service Panel (FLSS) of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia as a Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner (FDRP). For over twenty-five years, Katherine has been and still is, a practising registered research psychologist and barrister and a nationally accredited mediator. She has combined her skills to form Unilegal Consulting Pty. Ltd through which she still practises as a mediator and as a Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) for the Department of Communities and Justice in NSW. Katherine also teaches mediation courses and trains mediators internationally and nationally. Katherine’s extensive practice in Psychology, Law and Education has led her to find common ground between the fields culminating in her PhD in Law from Macquarie University in 2015 which was published in 2018. She has combined the insights from the field of Loss and grief in Psychology to the practical resolution of disputes in Law. In her thesis, she has developed an interdisciplinary approach, which transforms Dispute Resolution into an agent for social change. Her use of mediation as a process of social constructionism in action empowers parties to constructively respond to their own crises/losses as agents for their own social change. Katherine has been called a ‘pracademic’ because of her attempts not only to constructively implement in her practice what theory teaches us academically, but also to learn from practice what can be generalised as a grounded researcher to become academic knowledge.


Emily Lucas, Senior Associate, HWL Ebsworth Lawyers
Specialising in Franchise law, Emily is a key member within HWLE's National Franchise Team. She possesses a wealth of experience assisting clients in navigating the complex Australian market. Her proficiency encompasses a broad range of franchising matters, including drafting and negotiating franchise agreements, ensuring compliance with the Franchising Code of Conduct, resolving disputes, providing strategic guidance for franchise expansion and growth and advising in relation to the sale and acquisition of franchise networks. With a keen eye for detail and a comprehensive understanding of the legal landscape, Emily ensures that her clients are equipped with the knowledge and tools necessary to make informed decisions and achieve their franchising goals. Emily is a member of the FCA's NSW Women in Franchising Committee and has been recognised within the Best Lawyers 'Ones to Watch" Commercial Law category for the last two years. Emily is also a lecturer and tutor at Western Sydney University where she has developed and oversees the unit "Law, Economic, Ethics and Change."