Scott Blackmer, a partner at InfoLawGroup LLP, is an attorney whose practice emphasizes international transactions, investments, & intellectual property licensing while helping clients address emerging legal & management issues related to the development, marketing, & deployment of information technology through counseling & dispute resolutions or legal counsel. He assists companies with prospectuses, private placement memoranda, due diligence, compliance, transactions, litigation, & arbitration in more than 100 countries.

Mr. Blackmer earned his Juris Doctor degree with honors in 1981 from the University of California at Berkeley (Boalt Hall), where he was editor-in-chief of the California Law Review. He is a member of the American Bar Association of the District of Columbia Bar, the Maryland Bar, & the Utah Bar. He has been a registered foreign lawyer (while resident) in the French Order of the Brussels Bar & the UK Law Society.

Formerly a partner in the Washington, DC & Brussels offices of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale & Dorr, Mr. Blackmer now serves on the executive management team of the Brussels-based First Law International legal network. He also consults on transborder acquisitions, investments, & on compliance issues associated with global operations, acts as general counsel to the Trusted Computing Group & serves as a privacy consultant to the U.S. Social Security Administration, & has advised the U.S. Treasury & Commerce Departments, European Commission, Council of Europe, & governments of Japan, Belarus, & Georgia, & the International Monetary Fund on issues relating to communications & information technology industries, e-commerce, information security, privacy, & online financial services.

Mr. Blackmer has consulted for Fortune 1000 companies, industry associations, government agencies, & technology-oriented start-ups. He has served on the Executive Management Team of First Law International (Brussels), served on the Board of Directors of the Heracles Group, the International Security, Trust & Privacy Alliance (ISTPA) & participates in the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP), the I.D. Theft Special Interest Group of the Liberty Alliance, the Privacy & Computer Crime Committee of the American Bar Association, & the Identity Workshop sponsored by the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School.

Mr. Blackmer is a frequent speaker on cyberlaw, privacy, intellectual property topics & has lectured at universities & workshops in the U.S., Canada, Japan, England, France, Germany, Belgium, Greece, Argentina, Brazil, & Singapore. He has been listed in several peer-review directories of international legal advisors, including the Legal Media Group’s Guide to the World’s Leading Technology, Media & Telecommunications Lawyers.

Languages: Native English; fluent French; working knowledge of written Spanish, German, Italian, Portuguese, & Dutch

Keith J. Kanouse, ESQ, B.S. Business Management Magna Cum Laude, J.D. Magna Cum Laude, is a experienced franchise attorney. Mr. Kanouse's practice focuses on corporate, securities & real estate law with a primary focus on franchise, business opportunity & distribution law. He represents start-up franchisors & business opportunity sellers as well as franchisees. He received his Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Business Management from Bradley University, magna cum laude & his Juris Doctor Degree from the University of Notre Dame Law School, also magna cum laude. Mr. Kanouse is a partner in the firm of Kanouse & Walker, P.A. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the American Association of Franchisees & Dealers & also the founding Chair of the AAFD’s Fair Franchising Standards Committee. He was a founding member & a Past Chair of the Franchise Law Committee of The Florida Bar. He was a member of the Council of Franchise Supplier of the International Franchise Association. He’s the author of 3 books: Understanding a Franchise Offering Circular and Negotiating a Franchise Agreement; Negotiating a Business Lease; & Selecting the Best Entity to Own & Operate Your Business. He is also a co-author of 2 other books: Franchise Law & Practice; & Franchising 101.

For 6 seasons during the 1990s, he was Executive Producer & Co-Host of “Start Your Own Business” which was aired in 66 markets on public TV. His recent accomplishments include:

International Who’s Who of Franchise Attorneys, Rated ‘AV®” Preeminent™ (highest peer review rating for legal ability & ethical standards) by LexisNexis, Martindale–Hubbell & Lawyers.com for over 20 years, Recognized as a Top Attorneys in the Franchise Sector by Franchise Times April 2011, Recognized for Excellence as One of the Area’s Top Lawyers – Palm Beach Illustrated 2011, InterContinental Finance Magazine’s “Highly Recommended – Top Tier Firms" – 2011, DealMakers Country Award 2011, Franchise Law Firm of the Year, USA – Finance Monthly 2011.

Marlowe Ashton specializes in private placement memorandums (PPM) development, business plan preparations, early stage company consultations, & strategic alliance training & development for the clientele. His services can assist in raising financial capital for joint ventures, specialized corporate projects, capitalization & investment banking.

Marlowe has been involved in early stage companies for the last 25 years. After completing graduate studies at the University of California, Berkeley he started four companies in the San Francisco Bay Area (Concord). He then moved his family to Utah to join Novell to manage Corporate, Government & Investor Relations. During this time, he developed many relationships with major investment banks & has kept close contact with the analysts & investment bankers of Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse First Boston, Deutsche Banc Alex Brown, Prudential, T. Rowe Price & Softbank, just to name a few.

He was the Executive Assistant to the Chairman of Novell, Ray Noorda, for 6 years. During that time, he represented Novell on a number of community & national boards such as the Utah Information Technology Association (founder & trustee), Utah Technology Finance Corporation (vice chair), Utah Technology Equity Foundation (chair), Commission for the Economic Development of Orem City (chair), American Electronics Association (Intermountain chapter board), The Utah Coalition for Business & Educational Development, Utah Educational Technology Initiative (vice chair), Utah 2000 – Strategic Planning for Utah, United Way of Utah County, Orem City, Planning Commission (chair), Utah-Russia Institute (trustee), Governor’s State Conference for Business & Economic Development (planning committee) & State of Utah Digital Commerce Legislation (drafting committee).

Marlowe was the COO of the Wayne Brown Institute, the oldest non-profit venture accelerator in the world. During that time, he personally reviewed 500 early stage technology companies & helped 60 companies obtain initial funding. He is closely related to numerous venture capital funds in the United States & United Kingdom.
In 1996, Marlowe received the Greatest Contribution to Entrepreneurs Award by the Utah Valley Entrepreneurial Forum. He was the Governor of Utah’s special representative to negotiate the Utah-Russia Institute with the Deputy Prime Minister of Russia. In 1996, he traveled to Eastern Siberia as a guest of the U.S. Department of Commerce & the University of Alaska Russia Center to evaluate economic development opportunities.

Marlowe has a BA (English) & MBA (Marketing) from Brigham Young University & completed graduate studies in the Ph.D Linguistics program at the University of California. Marlowe lived 3 years in French Polynesia & is the author of an English/Tahitian grammar & dictionary. Born in Canada, Marlowe speaks French & Tahitian.

Steve Vandegrift, President & Co-Founder of FranSource International, Inc. has been intricately involved in franchising since 1985. He graduated from Miami University (Oxford, OH) in 1986 with a B.S. in Marketing. Having operated businesses early in his career as both a franchisor & franchisee, the advice & guidance he provides comes from practical real-world experience. For startup franchisors, Mr. Vandegrift’s comprehensive understanding of the franchise relationship ensures that every aspect of the franchise operation is properly established. Working in conjunction with our senior franchise attorneys & consultants, he is personally involved in the development of each client's franchise operation.

Mr. Vandegrift also advises existing franchisors, providing advice & guidance that help them achieve higher levels of success. In this capacity, he has been responsible for generating over $3 million in franchise fees & millions of dollars in royalties & product sales for the clients.

FranSource is a full-service franchise development & licensing firm. Their attorneys & consultants have advised companies across the U.S. in developing successful franchise operations for more than 25 years.

Mr. Vandegrift's comprehensive understanding of the franchise relationship ensures that every aspect of the franchise operation is properly established. In addition to providing comprehensive franchise development services, He also advises existing franchisors, providing advice & guidance to help them achieve higher levels of success & operational excellence. Mr. Vandegrift also advises clients with international expansion through master franchise & license arrangements.

"Mitch" is a licensed Certified Public Accountant, registered in the state of Kentucky & has 26 years of experience with public & private accounting, working in the manufacturing industry as a comptroller, & in public accounting, performing audits & other accounting services for construction companies, restaurants, the medical profession, wholesale businesses & retail sales businesses, governmental entities, non-profit organizations & other industries. Prepared tax returns for all types of entities, did financial & accounting services to obtain financing, bonding & other related purposes, consult & assist businesses in their accounting systems, do operations including preparation of monthly, quarterly, & annual reports, for tax returns.

He prepared Federal, State, & Local income tax returns, for corporations, partnerships, individuals, trusts, non-profit organizations, & pension plans. He prepared payrolls including their required payroll tax returns.

In 1985, he graduated from the University of Kentucky with a Bachelors of Applied Science in Accounting & a Minor in Economics.

"Mitch" was the assistant controller, with the given duties of managing & performing tasks for the payroll & accounts payable at PEBCO, Inc., a engineering & manufacturing company.

He was the controller at Pro Equipment Company, Inc., where he oversees & manages the accounts receivables, accounts payable, payroll, & job costing. He prepared the monthly financial statements. He was responsible for analyzing the financial data. Reported directly to the company’s president, to discuss any lists of jobs to complete, review the work processing, go over a list of new jobs to start, analyze the collections of receivables, & any other matters that needed to be planned & managed.

His experiences includes responsibilities for performing & managing audits, preparing & reviewing compilation reports, setup & implement accounting systems for new & existing businesses; prepare income tax returns for corporations, partnerships, individuals & other entities.

Johnny L. Johnson II is a graduate of the University of Louisville with a Bachelor of Applied Science degree. He has more than 8 years of public accounting experience. Johnny has extensive experience in the taxation of individuals, general partnerships and corporations. He has prepared gift and estate tax returns. He has experience preparing returns from most all states and local jurisdictions. He has assisted in various tax court cases and federal and state tax collection matters. Johnny is proficient in sales taxes and is Quickbooks certified.

He has been involved in the auditing of financial statements and employee benefit programs for large corporations in many different industries. Johnny has assisted in many individual audit representation cases. He has expertise in tax research and the set-up & implementation of accounting systems for new and existing businesses. Johnny has ran his own successful tax preparation and accounting business for three years.

John Ewing is the Founder and Senior Managing Partner of the firm. His expertise is Corporate Management, Investing and Money Management, International Taxation, Corporate & Public Accounting and Taxation and is the firm’s public speaker to many groups across the country. Historically he has prepared thousands of Financial Statements, Corporate Resolutions, Audited Statements, Government Representations, Corporate & Personal Tax Returns for over 21 years while serving in a public practice and was executive counsel for some of the most elite corporations in the country.

He has prepared thousands of Financial Statements, Corporate Resolutions, Audited Statements, Government Representations, Corporate & Personal Tax Returns for over 21 years while serving in a public practice & was executive counsel for some of the most elite corporations in the country. He has held positions as controller, comptroller & accountant for national companies in retail, industrial, commercial, oil & gas corporations. He has also acted as defense with Internal Revenue Agencies. Mr. Ewing is now the "voice", conducting weekly conference calls, personal interviews & holds public speaking engagements across the nation.

He is an associate member of the American Bar Association, a member of the Washington Association of Accounting & Tax Professionals, and an active member of American Center for Law & Justice.

John also co-authored “The Secrets of Asset Protection, Only the Wise Survive” & “The Financial Fortress of Asset Protection Strategies".

Mr. Craft is a Qualified Public Accountant is the firm’s Chief Supervisory Accountant & handles the preparation of financial statements, corporate & personal tax returns, audit defense & representation.

His expertise also extends into estate & gift tax planning, comprehensive & segmented personal financial planning. He has prepared thousands of tax returns & held positions with Deloitte Haskins & Sells CPAs, Price Waterhouse CPA's handling tax planning & tax reporting of closely held corporations to SEC companies & he was the senior partner in his own tax firm. He has also been a frequent speaker on tax related & financial planning topics to large groups across the country & currently holds a position as Chief Financial Officer for Financial Destination, Inc. J. H. also worked with a large regional CPA firm in their third party administration department for 2 years. He is very familiar with the ACP/ADP discrimination testing, top heavy testing, auditing these retirement plans & can do IRS 5500s, Summary Annual Reports for the Department of Labor, quarterly participant statements, etc. He also carries errors & omissions insurance to cover this type of work.

He is an expert in sales taxes & tax representation collection matters. His experience lends himself to handling sales tax compliance in ALL states & nearly all local jurisdictions. He currently manages the sales tax compliance for a large multi-state corporation which files in approximately 250 jurisdictions. He is skilled at identifying which jurisdictions a business is required to file in, registering them with those jurisdictions, implementing an accounting system that will capture the information necessary to fulfill their income reporting obligations, preparing the filings for the business, consulting & representation for those who may be undergoing an audit. He also assists companies who seek to undergo a voluntary compliance initiative which will allow a company to make up delinquent filings with no penalties.

He is a former Member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and had received certification as a Financial Planner & Personal Financial Specialist.

J.H. is also the author of “Annual Record Keeping Kit for Small & Home Based Businesses” & co-author “It’s How Much You Keep That Counts!” 4th edition.

Ron Mueller has bachelor’s degrees in Management and Psychology from the United States Naval Academy, a master’s degree in Mass Communication from the University of Oklahoma, a Master’s in Business Administration from The American University, and a Ph.D. in Business Economics from St. Regis University.

He has had successful careers as a senior Naval Officer, as a senior executive of three international advertising and marketing firms, and has been an undercover investigative reporter, a popular university professor and, most recently, a successful author, speaker and success coach. 

Dr. Mueller is the author of “Home Business Tax Savings, Made Easy,” now in its 7th edition, a best-seller with entrepreneurs and small and home-based business owners.

He has spoken to more than 100 small-business, direct sales, and network marketing organizations, and has become known as one of the top experts in home business tax law.

Ron Mueller lives in San Diego aboard a 60 foot yacht, appropriately named Home Office.

Thomas Nielsen is a California attorney who brings
over 40 years of litigation and trial experience and knowledge to a wide variety of liability, property and contract disputes including commercial/businesses and individual circumstances.  He is experienced in
the areas of insurance defense litigation, defense of business and individuals subject to civil or business litigation.

Mr. Nielsen is currently in private practice applying his expertise as a mediator and arbitrator with the emphasis on resolving litigation or disputes through alternative methods of dispute resolution. 

Mr. Nielsen obtained his Juris Doctor degree in 1972 from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law.  He is a member of the California Bar.  From 1966 until 1969 he served in the U.S. Army, achieving the rank of 1st Lieutenant, Armor Branch. 

Mr. Nielsen has carried Martindale-Hubbell’s highest AV rating for over 15 years.  He has achieved the rank of Advocate as a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates.  He was selected as a Northern California Super Lawyer in 2013.  He is admitted to the United District Courts, Northern and Eastern Districts of California. He participated in the California Lawyer 2012 Roundtable Series on Product Liability.  He has been a speaker on alternative dispute resolution and trial presentation and strategies. 

P. Thomas Adams Jr. had expertise in the areas of Asset Protection, Taxation of Offshore Corporations, Estate Planning, Trusts & Constitutional Law.

He obtained his law degree from the University of Idaho, Western Michigan University BA in Public Law – Magna Cum Laude & holds a Business Finance Degree. While in law school he served as Attorney General for the ASUI & was appointed to the State Board of Directors of the Idaho ACLU. Mr. Adams has extensive experience opposing the new civil forfeiture laws. He spent many years as a divorce attorney, assisting his clients in disputes over the division of community assets. As a plaintiffs' attorney Mr. Adams sued professionals, employers, businesses, police officers, sheriffs, prosecutors, municipalities & government officials. Mr. Adams sued anybody & everybody. As a result, he learned every trick known about financial investigations, discovery, money trails, collections & bankruptcy.

Mr. Adams is now pioneering "preventive law" in the areas of financial privacy, international tax law, estate planning, asset protection, offshore incorporation, trusts, non-profit corporations & private foundations & is presently practicing in the area of civil forfeiture cases, harassment suits & authoring various books & publications.

In 1994, he joined the Washington State Bar Association. Attorney Adams is also a proud member of the Asset Protection Committee of the American Bar Association.

Thomas is also the author of The Secrets of Asset Protection, "Only the Wise Survive".

As a Certified IRA Services Professional, Brian Davis has been serving the San Diego area since graduating from University of California, Santa Barbara in 2001. Brian has previously worked for many reputable companies, both large and small.

With nearly 10 years of experience in financial services, Brian brings a wealth of knowledge not just on self-directed retirement planning, but also on life insurance, annuities, real estate investing, property management and personal financing. Brian enjoys assisting clients and business partners alike by providing a variety of educational programs that range from an overview of the basics, to advanced investing in real estate through a self-directed retirement account. Brian is able to gather from his own self-directed IRA investing to truly help guide his clients in their endeavors.

Brian grew up in Northern California in a multi-generational family agricultural business. Working in the business allowed him to gain a deep understanding of the challenges faced by the small entrepreneurial business owner, providing him the ability to empathize well with his clients, many of whom are also entrepreneurs.

David Cuthbert is an insurance professional and registered representative. He is licensed to sell life, health, disability and long term care insurance, and a wide array of securities products, including mutual funds, 529 plans, annuities, IRAs (Traditional/Roth/Self-Directed), 401k plans and SEPs. David offers advanced planning services for both individuals and small businesses. For individuals, David provides guidance with ILITs, charitable trusts, stretch IRAs and tax-free retirement income plans. For business owners/principals, David consults on buy-sell agreements, keyman, split dollar and business continuity/succession planning, as well as tax-advantaged retirement plans, including high dollar defined benefit pension plans. David also conducts strategic reviews of insurance contracts within estate plans, to ensure that the current assumptions on in-force contracts continue to meet clients' goals.

In addition, David helps clients leverage underperforming or defective insurance contracts into new assets that generate tax-free investment gains. David brings a wealth of small business experience to the team, having founded and operated two companies prior to joining. This background provides David with first hand knowledge of the many challenges faced by business owners and entrepreneurs, including startup financing, hiring and retaining quality employees, profitably growing the business, and ultimately realizing a successful exit.

David has a BA from Northwestern University and an MS from MIT.

Michael Pierce holds a Bachelor of Science degree (Magna Cum Laude) in Government and U.S. History from Western Kentucky University. He is currently a tax accountant for individual and business tax return preparation. Michael assists in all areas of the Internal Revenue Service negotiation including both individual and business tax research. He has 7 years of experience in tax accounting. He has prepared individual and corporate tax returns in several states and jurisdictions and is experienced in the preparation of business sales tax returns. He is certified in Quickbooks.

He is proficient in assisting clients with IRS related problems including: developing payment plans, negotiating settlement agreements. "Offers in Compromise", reviewing and responding to IRS notices, obtaining account transcripts, and he is skilled in bank financial planning with emphasis on budget preparations. Michael has an overall knowledge of personal finance areas including retirement, insurance, taxation, education planning, and the reviews of prior year tax preparations. Michael can support clients with budgeting and general financial planning. He will review last 3 years of tax returns and provide tax projections for individuals.

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