Franchise Industry Relations Expert Witnesses: 2

Alan Someck’s 42 years of experience in the Hospitality Industry as an owner, operator, consultant, and teacher has given him the in depth practical knowledge to provide highly professional and thorough expert witness reports, depositions and testimony.  For the past 14 years, he has been a full time Management Instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City as well as serving as an Adjunct Professor of Hospitality Management at the New York Institute of Technology.

Mr. Someck has had 25 years of experience as a full time operator in fine dining and fast casual restaurants. Through his active consulting firm, Keystone Hospitality Solutions, he has helped develop a wide variety of restaurant concepts ranging from cafes to full service restaurants, and worked as a food service operations analyst for organizations such as the U.S. State Department, U.S. Patent Office, and the F.A.A. 

Mr. Someck has been awarded 7 grants from the Environmental Protection Agency and New York State to work on sustainability issues within the hospitality industry.  He also has ownership interest in Jimbo’s Naturally, a highly successful chain of San Diego based Natural Food Markets.  

Mr. Someck has organized and presented at workshops, conferences, and training programs for the New York State Restaurant Association, and has been a national keynote speaker and author of hospitality related business articles on hospitality management strategies, food service operations, and franchising.  He has been featured in a variety of industry media publications such as Forbes.com and Full Service Restaurant Magazine. Mr. Someck is also a Nationally Certified Trainer in ServSafe Food Safety and ServSafe Alcohol.

Litigation Support - Alan Someck has been a legal expert witness in a wide variety of cases related to the hospitality field including:

View Keystone Hospitality Solutions' Consulting Profile.

Brian H. Cole is a Certified Specialist in Franchise and Distribution Law (California State Bar of Legal Specialization), with over 30 years of experience, including as in-house attorney for one of the world's largest franchisors (Pizza Hut).

Mr. Cole's experience spans a wide variety of transactional and regulatory matters, including drafting and registering franchise agreements and related documents, buying and selling both individual franchised locations and franchise chains, leasing sites for businesses, corporate organization, and other contractual matters.  Mr. Cole also has experience advising clients with a variety of operational issues, especially with respect to restaurant businesses, including employment matters, health code, and liquor licenses.

Mr. Cole has spoken and written on a variety of franchise-related topics, including speaking at two of the premiere franchise events each year--the ABA Forum on Franchising and the International Franchise Association’s Annual Legal Symposium and Annual Convention. Mr. Cole has also spoken at the State Bar Conventions in California and Hawaii on franchise-related topics.

Litigation Support - Mr. Cole is experienced testifying both in court and in arbitration. His services include:

• Consult on applicability of state and federal franchise laws to the facts of a client’s situation
• Advise on franchise law issues, including applicability of franchise laws, compliance with franchise laws, existence of legal malpractice relating to franchise laws, propriety of terminations or non-renewals of franchises, and similar issues.
• Testify as an expert witness on franchise-related matters (available for matters throughout the United States)   

Areas of Expertise:

View Brian H. Cole's Consulting Profile.