Drew Chalfant

Drew is an experienced transactional attorney who is passionate about advising his clients with a “business-first” mentality. Drew’s practice focuses on holistic business and legal advising for his client’s various needs, including: franchising, licensing and distribution; small business and independent contractor representation; contract drafting, negotiation and review, intellectual property registration, management and enforcement, real estate transactions; mergers and acquisitions; and pre-litigation dispute resolution and counseling. Drew has advised numerous businesses inside and outside of the franchising sector by providing support to all facets of the business lifecycle from inception to private equity exit.

Drew co-founded Roda & Chalfant, LLC in 2020 and serves as a partner, attorney, and counselor to his clients. After graduating summa cum laude from the Salmon P. Chase College of Law, Drew quickly rose to the rank of General Counsel for the first-in-class franchise development firm, St. Gregory Development Group. Drew also served as in-house counsel for a number of franchise brands within the St. Gregory portfolio, including Shred415 Franchising, CycleBar Franchising, Fueled Collective Franchising, and LB Franchising. As General Counsel, Drew was responsible for all day-to-day legal issues that faced this multi-faceted organization, including intellectual property matters, contracts and transactional issues, real estate matters and commercial lease reviews and negotiations, employment and labor issues, franchise disclosure document and franchise agreement drafting, and general franchise regulatory compliance matters. Prior to co-founding Roda | Chalfant, Drew served as Vice President and Corporate Counsel to Ultimate Toys, a distributor of custom luxury Mercedes Sprinter vans, and as Corporate Counsel to Green Investment Holdings and its affiliates, a commercial and residential real estate holding company.

Business Law

Business Contracts, Business Dissolution, Business Finance, Business Formation, Franchising, Mergers & Acquisitions

Trademarks

Trademark Registration

Real Estate Law

Commercial Real Estate, Condominiums, Easements, Eminent Domain, Homeowners Association, Land Use & Zoning, Mortgages, Neighbor Disputes, Residential Real Estate, Water Law

Intellectual Property

Employment Law

Employment Contracts

Landlord Tenant

Landlord Rights, Tenants' Rights

Communications & Internet Law

Internet Law, Media & Advertising, Telecommunications Law

Construction Law

Construction Contracts

Ohio

Supreme Court of Ohio Office of Attorney Services

Partner & Attorney at Law

Roda Chalfant Law

2020 - Current

Advising franchisors, franchisees, business owners, and real estate investors in all of their business legal needs.

General Counsel

St. Gregory Development Group

2015 - 2020

In-house counsel to a franchise development firm responsible for selling over 5,000 franchise units across the U.S. and internationally. Concurrent role as in-house counsel for CycleBar Franchising and Shred415 Franchising, both boutique fitness franchise concepts.

Salmon P. Chase College of Law, Northern Kentucky University

J.D. | Business, Intellectual Property and Contract Law

Honors: Summa Cum Laude

State Bar of Ohio  # 0097019

Member

Current

American Bar Association

Current

Cincinnati Bar Association

Current

ABA Forum on Franchising

Current

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Q. You Hi, I am working on my will. Not sure if I need to see an attorney to get this done.

13 January 2021

A: You will want to reach out to your sister and at the very least get a clear, written statement that she is giving you the piano before you put it in your will and try to pass it on to your children or anyone else. If you don't have clear ownership of the piano and you will it to someone else, you're just passing the dispute with your sister onto that person. If your sister does give it to you (gives, not sells) and it is worth more than $15,000 (a nice piano!) she may need to file a gift tax return for the amount in excess of $15,000. The fact that she is storing it in your home rent free is an issue for another day...

Q. I am 1099 employee with employment contract. If I get furloughed , does the company still owe $$ for previous sales?

12 January 2021

A: The terms of your contract between you and "employer" would govern what happens if services are suspended and you had made sales that qualify for payment prior to the suspension. Often times, employers will put people on 1099 arrangements when in fact they have a more traditional employer/employee relationship going on. If that's the case, just because your employer decided you were a 1099 employee, that doesn't mean you don't still have some protections as an employee. The facts around the working relationship determine your status and the decision between you and the employer to "become" a 1099 contractor is only one factor of many. A close look at the contract and an analysis of the employment situation would be needed to determine your rights to payment and the application of the non-compete.

Q. under the constitution of the united states since donald trump lost election in 2020 can he re run again in 2024

11 January 2021

A: Yes. The 22nd Amendment, ratified by the states in 1951, sets forth the two-term limit standard. It was a reaction to Franklin Roosevelt's FOUR election victories ('32, '36, '40, and '44). He served a portion of his fourth term until his death in office in 1945. Here's the operative text from the 22nd Amendment: Section 1. No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once.