Steven M. Goldman

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Steven M. Goldman

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Steve Goldman is an accomplished commercial lawyer with decades of in-house experience at some of the world’s most recognizable hospitality brands. Prior to joining Friedlander Misler in 2017, he spent 15 years at Marriott International, where he advanced to Associate General Counsel and Executive Vice President, and he served as Secretary for the Marriott franchisee association for over a dozen years. Steve’s career also includes senior positions at ITT Sheraton as General Counsel of the Franchise Division and Holiday Inn Worldwide as Senior Counsel.

Steve leverages this extensive experience in hospitality operations and development, as well as his vast industry connections, for the benefit of his clients, the majority of whom own or operate lodging properties. These clients seek out Steve’s in-depth legal and business knowledge of franchise and management agreements, dual branding (e.g., “soft brands”), and operating and licensing mixed-use projects, residential sales and rental programs, and casino resorts. He has successfully negotiated and drafted agreements for a wide range of domestic and international properties, owned or operated by clients of all levels of sophistication, from industry newcomers to established high-net-worth private companies and publicly traded REITs.

In addition to successfully negotiating, structuring, and terminating franchise and management agreements, Steve has aided owners of hotels and private ownership clubs in launching their own brands by providing guidance on brand systems and drafting core agreements. He also leverages his extensive knowledge of the hospitality industry to offer strategic business counsel, guiding owners through brand selection, evaluating deal terms, and identifying realistic business and negotiation options.

With deep experience representing both owners and brands, he is a trusted choice as an arbitrator and expert witness in hospitality disputes. His proven ability to address the industry’s unique complexities gives parties confidence in his impartiality and judgment.

Steve speaks and publishes regularly on hospitality and franchise topics. He was chairman of the American Bar Association Forum on Franchising; a member of the state Securities Administrators’ advisory and training committee for state franchise regulators; and the co-editor of the first editions of the Franchise Law Compliance Manual and Fundamentals of International Franchising. He also has been an adjunct professor and lecturer at American University School of Law, Georgetown University Law Center, and the University of Virginia Law School. He co-developed and has taught the Asset Management course for the MBA program at Ferrandi Paris.

Steve’s representative matters* include:

  • Represented public REIT in relicensing and repositioning negotiations with several major brands—including new franchise agreements, guarantees, lender “comfort letters,” and, in some cases, termination agreements—in acquisition of a multi-unit, full-service portfolio.
  • Represented developer of adaptive reuse project to create a branded boutique hotel. Work included providing counsel on brand management agreement, lender SNDA, city grant of funds for new hotels, and overall corporate structure to meet conflicting counter-party requirements.
  • Acted as sole arbitrator in a breach of management agreement dispute and as a member of a three-person panel for a multi-unit brand management dispute in South America. Both arbitrations were successfully settled.
  • Represented numerous hotel owners in negotiations to enter into or terminate an existing franchise or brand management agreement and reposition the hotel into a different brand system.
  • Represented owner/operator of a significant casino, lodging, and entertainment resort on the Las Vegas Strip in successful renegotiation of multi-brand franchise and technology requirements to meet owner’s operational and marketing needs for a casino resort.
  • Represented the owner of a dual-branded hotel being developed as part of an upscale mixed-use development in negotiations with a major brand franchisor.
  • Represented the owner/operator of a new luxury Caribbean resort in negotiations for a soft brand franchise that included residential units and rental program.
  • Represented owner of a new hospitality brand in creating the core management agreement, ancillary agreements, and overall “system” for a new hospitality brand.

 

* Past performance and results are not indicative of future performance or results.