Philip Zeidman, Retired DLA Piper Partner, Recognized with Distinguished Service Award   

Franchise Law Pioneer Recognized for Lifetime of Service by International Franchise Association

LAS VEGAS, March 1, 2023 – The International Franchise Association (IFA) today announced Philip Zeidman as the recipient of the IFA Chairman’s Award for Distinguished Service. This special recognition honors franchising leaders who upon retirement from active franchising have given much of their time and talent to promoting franchising and IFA during their careers. Zeidman, retired DLA Piper partner, served as IFA general counsel throughout his career and wrote extensively on the subject of international franchising, distribution, and licensing for business publications.

“Philip Zeidman is a franchise law pioneer,” said Matthew Haller, President and CEO of the International Franchise Association. “As general counsel to the Small Business Administration during the Ford Administration, and then outside general counsel to the IFA, he helped cement franchising as a viable path for entrepreneurship. In a very real way, franchising as we know it today would not exist without Zeidman’s work.”

Zeidman began his career as the youngest chief legal officer of any government agency when he was appointed general counsel for the U.S Small Business Association (SBA), where he helped develop programs that connected franchise owners with SBA loans, delivering access to capital for franchise entrepreneurs. After crossing paths with IFA during his time at the SBA, Zeidman opened his own law firm where IFA became his very first client. Later joining DLA Piper, Zeidman worked tirelessly in support of franchising, advising U.S. and foreign companies, trade associations and governments on franchise law. He was previously recognized with the International Bar Association Lifetime Achievement Award.

“I am greatly honored to receive this award. I’ve been fortunate to have been able to play a role in the development of the franchise practice at DLA Piper, and in the development and growth of IFA,” said Zeidman. “It’s important to point out that the converse is also true: the law firm and the Association have been tremendously important features of my life for many decades. It is heartening to know that these cherished relationships will continue.”

In honor of Zeidman’s contributions to franchising and IFA, DLA Piper has helped support an endowment in his name. The Philip Zeidman Franchising Internship Program and Fund will support students interested in pursuing franchising as they learn franchising best practices and support the IFA mission to protect, enhance, and promote franchising.

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Celebrating over 60 years of excellence, education, and advocacy, the International Franchise Association (IFA) is the world’s oldest and largest organization representing franchising worldwide. IFA works through its government relations and public policy, media relations, and educational programs to protect, enhance and promote franchising and the approximately 790,492 franchise establishments that support nearly 8.4 million direct jobs, $825.4 billion of economic output for the U.S. economy, and almost 3 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). IFA members include franchise companies in over 300 different business format categories, individual franchisees, and companies that support the industry in marketing, law, technology, and business development.