James R. Conohan, special counsel at Foley & Lardner LLP, represents clients on a variety of regulatory, trade practice, dealership, distribution, and contractual matters, including questions on federal and state franchise laws. He is a frequent speaker at programs on franchise regulation. He is a member of the firm’s Commercial Transactions & Business Counseling and Distribution & Franchise Practices.
Prior to joining Foley & Lardner in 1983, Mr. Conohan was the chief attorney for the Wisconsin Commissioner of Securities' Franchise Division and was responsible for administering and enforcing the Wisconsin Franchise Investment Law. While on the Commissioner's staff, he served as one of the principal draftsmen of disclosure requirements for the Uniform Franchise Offering Circular used by the various franchise regulatory states and the Federal Trade Commission.
Mr. Conohan served a three-year term on the Governing Committee of the American Bar Association’s Forum on Franchising. He was a member of the American Bar Association’s Task Force on NCCUSL's Uniform Franchise and Business Opportunity Act from 1988 through 1991. He is a former member and served two terms as chairman of the Industry Advisory Committee to the North American Securities Administrators Association's Franchise and Business Opportunity Regulation Committee and is a former member of that association's Franchise Committee, serving as its chairman in 1983.
In recognition of his experience, Mr. Conohan has been Peer Review Rated as AV® Preeminent™, the highest performance rating in Martindale-Hubbell's peer review rating system.
Mr. Conohan earned his J.D. from the University of Wisconsin School of Law in 1972. He graduated with a B.B.A., cum laude, from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in 1969. Mr. Conohan is admitted to practice in Wisconsin and before the U.S. District Court, Western District of Wisconsin.