DLA Piper grows Franchise practice with the addition of two of counsel

DLA Piper is pleased to welcome Bethany Appleby and Kristin Corcoran to the firm’s Franchise practice. Appleby will be based in the firm’s Boston office, while Corcoran will be based in Washington, DC.

Appleby has for more than 20 years represented franchisors in many industries, including restaurant and food service, hotels and hospitality, and real estate brokerage, handling business disputes, arbitration and litigation and mediation. As former Chief Legal Officer for Subway, she led a global legal team overseeing all areas of the law, including negotiation, litigation and arbitration, contract drafting and enforcement, and franchise law compliance. She has held numerous leadership roles in the American Bar Association Forum on Franchising.

Corcoran has more than 25 years of experience providing legal counsel on a broad range of domestic and international franchise matters. She previously served as Senior Associate General Counsel for Subway, where she led internal legal teams specializing in global corporate affairs and intellectual property and brand protection, in addition to managing international legal teams across regional and country offices.

The two most recently co-founded boutique law firm Appleby & Corcoran, LLC, focusing on franchise litigation and domestic and international regulatory and transactional work, including establishing legal infrastructure to support business growth and providing advice to both inbound and outbound franchisors seeking to grow their franchised businesses.

DLA Piper’s Franchise practice is a national and international leader in franchise law, with clients that include many of the world’s largest and most innovative restaurant chains, hotels, retailers, and service providers.