Eleanor Vaida Gerhards is a partner at the national law firm of Fox Rothschild LLP where she concentrates her practice on commercial transactions and regulatory compliance matters. As Co-Chair of the firm's Franchising and Distribution Practice Group, she routinely serves as outside general corporate and franchise counsel to startups, and emerging and established regional, national, and international franchise clients. Elle focuses on guiding the structuring of franchise programs, drafting of franchise documents, franchise acquisitions, administration and negotiation of supply chain agreements and relationships, foreign brand entry into the U.S. market, and master franchising and multi-unit licensing and area-development arrangements. She also works regularly with "accidental" franchisors on the conversion of licensing, subscription, or distribution models to franchise systems. Elle has been recognized by Chambers USA as a leading national franchise attorney, named a "Legal Eagle" by Franchise Times for the last nine years, a "Rising Star" by Superlawyers, a Pennsylvania "Lawyer on the Fast Track" by the Legal Intelligencer as well as recognized by Who's Who Legal Franchising and named among Philadelphia's Business Journal's 40 under 40. Elle is an active member of the ABA Forum on Franchising. She's written multiple articles for the ABA Franchise Law Journal and ABA Forum's Franchise Lawyer newsletter as well as authored chapters in the ABA book Exemptions and Exclusions under Federal and State Franchise Registration and Disclosure Laws and the ABA Franchise Deskbook Selected State Laws, Commentary and Annotations, Third Edition. She is a past member of the ABA Forum on Franchising Women's Caucus and ABA Forum on Franchising Program Committee. Elle previously presented at the ABA Forum on Franchising Annual Meetings in San Diego, California in 2022, Nashville, Tennessee in 2018 and Miami, Florida in 2016. The International Franchise Association has designated Eleanor as a Certified Franchise Executive and she serves as Co-Chair of the IFA Philadelphia Women's Franchise Network. She is a former member of the IFA Legal Symposium Task Force and multiple past presenter at the IFA Legal Symposium, including participating on the panel for the 2023 Judicial Update. In her free time, you will find Elle hiking, golfing, playing board games, puzzling, cheering on her Philadelphia sports teams, and clowning around with her husband, Jeff, two children Samuel (Age 11) and Abigail (Age 9), the family Bernedoodle Harper, and bunny Cannoli, in their suburban Philadelphia hometown of Blue Bell, Pennsylvania. Elle is also an avid reader, gardener, and competitive bocce player.
