Thomas R. Ayres, II
Top rated Franchise & Dealership attorney in Boston, Massachusetts
Warner, Federico & Ryan LLP
Practice areas: Franchise & Dealership, Business Litigation, General Litigation
Licensed in Massachusetts since: 2004
Education: Boston College Law School
Languages spoken: English, Spanish
Selected to Super Lawyers: 2026 Call today:
617-423-7250
Free Consultation Warner, Federico & Ryan LLP
30 Federal Street6th Floor
Boston, MA 02110 Visit website
Details 
I have a wide-ranging franchise and business litigation practice representing franchisees, franchisors, licensees, dealers, manufacturers, and distributors in various dispute resolution forums. I also advise clients on employment, transactional, advertising, real estate, operational, and regulatory issues. I have helped franchisees organize independent organizations to educate their members and advocate for their rights. In addition to co-editing the authoritative book Representing Franchisees, published in 2024 by the American Bar Association Forum on Franchising, I have authored several papers and articles on franchising:
- Opportunities & Challenges When Integrating & Managing a Multi-Brand Franchisor Portfolio (October 2024)
- Covenants Against Competition in Franchise Agreements (Massachusetts Chapter of Fourth Edition 2023)
- Bricks to Clicks: The Post-Pandemic E-commerce Reckoning (Summer 2021)
- Advertising & Marketing Funds: What Are You Doing With "My" Money? (October 2020)
- What Is Prohibited by State Franchisee Right of Association Statutes? (August 2020)
Practice areas
Franchise/Dealership, Business Litigation, General Litigation- 50% Franchise/Dealership
- 30% Business Litigation
- 20% General Litigation
First Admitted: 2004, Massachusetts
Professional Webpage: https://wfrllp.com/attorney/thomas-r-ayres/
Bar / Professional Activity
- Contributing Member of American Bar Association Forum on Franchising, 2018
Representative Clients
- Independent Hardees Franchisee Association, 2025
- National Franchisee Leadership Alliance (McDonald's), 2025
- National Coalition of 7-Eleven Franchisees, 2025
- BrightStar Owners Association, 2025
- Independent Association of Burn Boot Camp Franchisees, 2025
- International Planned Music Association (Mood Music), 2025
- International Dale Carnegie Franchise Association, 2025
- Popeyes International Franchisee Association, 2025
Educational Background
- Hamilton College, 1994-1998
Scholarly Lectures / Writings
- The COVID-19 pandemic was (we (hope) a once-in-a-century event, and our everyday lives have returned to “normal.” Yet that “normal” was already shifting from face-to-face interactions in physical spaces to clicks and taps in virtual marketplaces. Franchise systems will have to provide products and services to customers in ways that meet their post-pandemic expectations lest they become obsolete. If that were not hard enough, franchisors and franchisees must also chart a harmonious and mutually beneficial path in the rapidly growing e-commerce landscape. The course that they follow may very well determine the future of franchising., Author, Bricks to Clicks: The Post-Pandemic E-commerce Reckoning, Franchise Law Journal, Franchising, 2021
- Media reports of large franchisors taking aggressive actions against their franchisees highlight the continuing struggle in a commercial relationship frequently marked by an imbalance of financial and contractual power. To try to address this imbalance, franchisees often form independent franchisee associations. An independent franchisee association need not antagonize the franchisor at each turn; indeed, if given the opportunity, it can collaborate closely with the franchisor to develop and advance the brand and the system. The health and stability of the relationship between a franchisee association and a franchisor often depends on the type of system culture the franchisor seeks to create. Regardless of the franchisor’s attitude, all franchisors must act in accordance with state laws protecting franchisees’ right to associate., Author, What is Prohibited by State Franchisee Right of Association Statutes?, The Franchise Lawyer, Franchising, 2020
- The funds that are collected and spent on marketing are an important and often contentious subject in any franchise system. Entrepreneurs become franchisees in large part based on the guidance and support promised by the franchisor and the ability to pool resources with others to build a better and more recognizable brand. One of the most valuable ways that resources can be aggregated and applied is through marketing, usually in the form of a fund to which everyone contributes., Co-Author, Advertising & Marketing Funds: What Are You Doing With “My” Money?, American Bar Association Forum on Franchising, Franchising, 2020
- Representing Franchisees is a reference for lawyers that advise and represent franchisees either primarily or as part of a more diverse practice. This book provides a resource to those lawyers who recognize franchising as a unique practice area and desire to educate themselves to provide informed and competent counsel to their franchisee clients., Editor, Representing Franchisees, American Bar Association, Franchising, 2024
- Large companies are acquiring and operating suites of portfolio franchised brands at a dizzying pace. Portfolio companies employ varying strategies to choose and acquire categories of brands, but some uniform themes relating to the post-acquisition opportunities and challenges have emerged. This paper provides insights on various issues and best practices to take advantage of new circumstances, reduce risks, and navigate challenges that arise in acquiring and integrating new brands into a portfolio. This paper also considers the perspectives and concerns of various impacted parties, including the franchisees of both the newly acquired and the existing sibling brands, as well as employees, suppliers, and customers., Co-Author, Opportunities & Challenges When Integrating & Managing a Multi-Brand Franchisor Portfolio, ABA Forum on Franchising, Franchising, 2024
- This book gives franchise stakeholders a single source for the most current franchising statutory and decisional law in each of the 50 states., Author, Massachusetts Chapter of Covenants Against Competition in Franchise Agreements, American Bar Association, Franchising, 2023
Industry Groups
- Fitness
- Restaurant
- Services
Office location for Thomas R. Ayres, II
30 Federal Street
6th Floor
Boston, MA 02110
Phone: 617-423-7250
Selections
1 Year Super Lawyers
- Super Lawyers: 2026
