FREDRIC A. COHEN

Partner

Did You Know?

Ric attributes his personality flaws to being knocked out cold by a tank cannon.

Ric is a Cooking Channel addict.

Ric left his appendix in South Carolina.

Ric thinks that the only thing better than a Sox win is a Cubs loss.

Ric took a “which breed” test and scored a Siberian Husky.

In the third grade, Ric won the rotten gumball prize for being the worst kid in class.

Ric ran the hottest Boston Marathon ever in 2004.

Ric dreads participle fusion like the plague.

Ric loves the Great American Songbook.

Ric is a seasoned business and commercial litigator and trial lawyer.  He represents clients in state and federal trial and appellate courts across the country as well as in alternative dispute resolution forums such as arbitration and mediation.  Ric has extensive experience in the areas of distribution, antitrust, trademarks, valuation and finance, among others.

Ric spends most of his time keeping the world safe for franchising.  For over thirty years, Ric has represented many of the nation’s most prominent franchise, licensing and distribution companies in a wide variety of lawsuits from complex multi-forum class action litigation to standard enforcement actions and everything in between.

Ric has helped franchisors develop programs to protect and enforce their franchised systems and intellectual property rights like trademarks and trade secrets, and he regularly defends franchisors against fraud, breach of contract, good faith and fair dealing, tortious interference, registration and disclosure violations and similar claims.  Ric also works with franchisors to develop effective responses to state and federal regulatory inquiries and investigations, as well as strategies to defend state and federal enforcement actions.  Chambers USA commented that Ric “is hailed by peers as an excellent litigation lawyer” and “one of the great litigation experts in the [franchising] field.”

  • Education

    • Juris Doctor, with honors, DePaul University College of Law
    • Bachelor of Social Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
  • Associations

    • International Franchise Association
    • American Bar Association Forum on Franchising
    • American Bar Association Litigation Section
  • Bar Admissions

    • United States Supreme Court
    • Illinois Supreme Court
    • United States Courts of Appeals for the First, Sixth, Seventh, Ninth and Tenth Circuits
    • United States District Court for the Northern, Central and Southern Districts of Illinois, Western and Eastern Districts of Michigan, Western and Eastern Districts of Wisconsin, District of Colorado, and District of North Dakota
  • Awards & Recognitions

    • International Who’s Who – Business Lawyers
    • International Who’s Who – Franchise Lawyers
    • Super Lawyer®
    • Best Lawyers in America® – Franchise Law
    • Ranked by Chambers USA – Franchising
    • Franchise Times “Legal Eagle” Hall of Fame
    • Illinois Leading Lawyer®
  • Speaking & Publications

    • Speaker and Co-Author, “Enforcement of System Standards During Covid-19”, IFA Legal Symposium (May 2022)
    • Speaker and Author, “Enforcing the Bargain or Buying Your Way Out? The Right to Specific Performance in Franchise Agreements versus the Concept of Efficient Breach”, ABA Annual Forum on Franchising (Oct. 2017)
    • Speaker, Editor and Author, “Annual Developments”, ABA Annual Forum on Franchising (Oct. 2016)
    • Co-Author, “Anti-Waiver Arguments and Enforcement of Forum-Selection Clauses”, Franchising Business & Law Alert (Aug. 2014)
    • Speaker and Author, “Negotiating a Settlement Agreement”, IFA Legal Symposium (May 2013)
    • Speaker, “10 Decisions Every Franchisor Needs to Make”, IFA Emerging Franchisor Conference (Nov. 2012)
    • Speaker and Author, “When Is Franchisor Control Out of Control?”, ABA Annual Forum on Franchising (Oct. 2011)
    • Speaker and Author, “The Mass Franchise Dispute: Revolution or the Cost of Doing Business?”, IFA Legal Symposium (May 2011)
    • Speaker and Author, “The Anatomy of a Franchise Class Action”, ABA Annual Forum on Franchising (Oct. 2009)