Title: Attorney and Partner
Company: Franchise Business Law Group LLC
Location: Sandy, Utah, United States
Kara K.T. Martin, attorney and partner at Franchise Business Law Group LLC, has been recognized by Marquis Who’s Who Top Lawyers for dedication, achievements, and leadership in franchise law.
Growing up in a large family with seven siblings, Ms. Martin was taught the value of equality and high expectations at a young age. Chores and other household responsibilities were evenly split and rotated among all her brothers and sisters, and her parents told them that they could be anything they wanted to be, regardless of their gender, as long as they worked hard. With that positive attitude, Ms. Martin joined the debate club in high school and discovered a strong mentor and supporter in her debate coach, Rhonda Nelson. Years later, as she was trying to decide whether or not to take the leap and pursue law school, Ms. Nelson gave Ms. Martin the final push she needed, encouraging her to believe in herself and face the challenges of that career path head-on.
Now a successful lawyer for nearly 20 years, Ms. Martin has served as an attorney and partner at Franchise Business Law Group since 2015. She aids business clients in navigating the legal realities of the distribution, licensing and franchising of their products and services. Additionally, Ms. Martin leads the Franchise Business Law Group’s trademark and copyright section, helping companies efficiently protect their intellectual property. Before joining her current firm, she gained experience as an attorney with Thompson Olster & Olsen, which was previously the Franchise Business Law Group’s parent company.
Ms. Martin’s earliest positions in the field of law include working as an intern for Sloan Sakai Yeung & Wong LLP (formerly Renne Sloan Holtzman Sakai) and contributing for over a year as a pro bono court-appointed juvenile defender. Before attending law school, she operated within government and public service as a substitute teacher for the Granite School District and a council aide to the Salt Lake County Council.
Ms. Martin’s performance in the field was born of her academic journey, beginning with coursework at Brigham Young University in 1994 and a Bachelor of Arts in political science from The University of Utah in 2000. She went on to obtain a Master of Arts in government and political management from Regent University in 2005. Subsequently, Ms. Martin earned a Juris Doctor from the Golden Gate University’s School of Law in 2009. She has been admitted to the bar in Utah and Kansas.
Throughout the course of her career, Ms. Martin has demonstrated her expertise through a number of notable publications. She has co-authored articles in Utah Business Magazine and Franchise Lawyer. Most recently, Ms. Martin wrote “Licensing Your IP: When Should You Consider It?” which was published in Lawyer Monthly Magazine in 2019. Her accomplishments have been further recognized through various accolades, including the CALI Award for Writing Research in 2007 and the CALI Award for Federal Income Taxation in 2008, both through The Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction. Ms. Martin was presented with the Excellence in Civil Litigation Award from Golden Gate University in 2009. She was further named Attorney of the Year by Corporate Vision in 2017.
Known for her contributions as a civic-minded citizen, Ms. Martin believes in the power of giving back to her community. In addition to her pro bono legal work, she has volunteered for numerous causes, including Hay House Publishing, Utah Mock Trial through Utah Law Related Education, the Jon Huntsman Jr. gubernatorial campaign’s policy committee, the Global Volunteer Network and her local church. Ms. Martin worked for some time as the director of advocacy for the American Heart Association. She is also on the board of directors for Odyssey Dance Theatre, a Utah-based dance theater.
Outside of her professional life, Ms. Martin finds family extremely important, devoting much of her time to her three children and nearly 30 nieces and nephews. In her free time, she enjoys reading, traveling, skiing, hiking in the mountains of Utah and generally spending time in nature. In planning for the future, Ms. Martin is especially focused on mastering the emerging technology of artificial intelligence (AI). She hopes to leverage AI to reduce costs for her clients, especially startups that are often already low on funding. Ms. Martin envisions creating a new platform to enable smaller companies to find the legal support they need as they begin to grow and franchise.
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