France

Taft’s French practice includes a multi-disciplinary group of attorneys with broad experience providing comprehensive U.S. legal services to French clients. We represent French companies conducting business in the U.S. as well as U.S. companies with operations and activities within France.

We understand the different cultures of the business and legal worlds of the two countries, and we have the requisite experience to help our clients bridge the cultural gap. Taft attorneys are not licensed to practice French law, but we are able to work with trusted counsel in France so that our clients can be better served. Additionally, Thibault Vieilledent, an attorney in the firm’s Chicago office, is a native of France and regularly advises French clients in their U.S. operations. Thibault has become a great resource for our French clients who wish to operate in the U.S., guiding them through every step of the way and using his cultural background to bridge the gap between the French and American business cultures. Additionally, our broad attorneys’ experiences give them an understanding of the cultural and legal issues that companies face as they access the global market.

Representative services include:

• Advising French companies on doing business in the U.S., including advice on appropriate entity structure, vendor and customer relationships, joint ventures with U.S. partners, U.S. taxes and tax treaties and all other legal representation essential to establishing business relationships and successful business ventures in the U.S.
• Representing French companies engaged in strategic transactions in the U.S.
• Due diligence on prospective business partners.
• Privacy and data security.
• Real estate.
• Import/Export.
• T&C and contracting.
• U.S. pricing, distribution, and retail.
• Intellectual property matters, including managing global trademark portfolios.
• Immigration.
• International tax.
• Governmental relations and approvals.
• Executive compensation.
• Cultural insights.

In addition, our attorneys provide advice regarding taxation, transfer pricing, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the United Nations Convention for the International Sale of Goods, and other laws affecting international commerce.