A. Asad Imam is an associate in the firm’s Franchise & Distribution practice group. He supports clients in franchise-related deal structuring, due diligence, international expansion, the preparation of franchise disclosure documents, development agreements and other commercial contracts. His practice encompasses private equity-backed M&A deals related to franchise systems, as well as advising start-up, emerging and mature franchise systems, international transactions and franchise regulatory compliance.
Asad brings nearly a decade of experience in franchising to his legal practice, offering practical and tailored business and legal guidance to advance client’s objectives. He finds great fulfillment in serving clients from diverse industries and companies of all sizes. Prior to law school, he held progressive roles in operations and consulting, including serving as a franchise business consultant for a global supplemental education franchisor, where he oversaw the company’s highest-performing region and supported growth through development and unit-profitability. Asad is one of the few people who went to law school to be a franchise attorney. During law school, he worked in the legal department of the largest global hospitality company, focusing on domestic franchise and management agreements.
Asad earned his J.D. from American University Washington College of Law in 2025, where he also completed a Certificate in Hospitality and Tourism Law. He became a Certified Franchise Executive (CFE) in 2023, while in law school, and received his undergraduate degree magna cum laude from the University of Southern California in 2016. He was a summer associate at Lathrop GPM in 2023 (Kansas City) and 2024 (Minneapolis and Washington, D.C.).