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Overview

Strategic counsel for a digital marketplace

The e-commerce economy is growing at breakneck speed, reshaping how consumers shop, how businesses operate, and how brands engage with their markets. But rapid innovation brings equally complex legal and regulatory challenges, from platform liability and online consumer protection to ever-evolving digital privacy laws, cybersecurity threats, and cross-border trade issues.

Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig’s e-commerce attorneys advise online retailers, subscription services, mobile apps, digital-first startups, and brick-and-mortar brands expanding into online sales. We work closely with founders, general counsel, investors, and operators to build the legal infrastructure needed for growth while also helping clients manage risk, avoid costly enforcement actions, and adapt to a fast-moving digital marketplace.

We also support clients in protecting their most valuable assets, including brand identity, proprietary software, and product designs. Our strategic intellectual property attorneys help e-commerce businesses secure and enforce the intellectual property rights that power their growth.

From contract formation and platform compliance to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigations, consumer class actions, and intellectual property matters, our team delivers practical, business-minded advice grounded in decades of experience supporting tech-enabled businesses. If you’re just launching or looking to sell a multimillion-dollar online business, Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig is the legal partner that can grow with you.

Our experience in the e-commerce sector

Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig has deep experience advising clients across the evolving e-commerce ecosystem. Our e-commerce lawyers understand the challenges facing online sellers, digital platforms, and technology providers, from formation and operations to marketing compliance, data security, and complex commercial litigation.

We serve a broad range of clients, including the following:

  • Direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands, subscription box providers, and drop-shippers
  • Marketplace operators, aggregator platforms, and SaaS e-commerce solutions
  • Influencer-driven and affiliate network businesses
  • Brick-and-mortar retailers scaling online sales
  • Venture-backed startups and private equity-backed online companies

Our team has counseled clients at every stage of the e-commerce lifecycle, from entity formation and go-to-market strategy to multimillion-dollar exit transactions. We’ve advised clients on terms of service and privacy policy development, reviewed influencer marketing campaigns for FTC compliance, negotiated key vendor and fulfillment contracts, and resolved disputes involving chargebacks, data breaches, and customer claims.

Our attorneys have also served as outside general counsel to emerging e-commerce companies, offering day-to-day legal support on employment law, vendor agreements, tax structuring, brand enforcement, cybersecurity, and contract review. We understand how the rules of traditional commerce translate (and often don’t) to digital platforms, and we help our clients move quickly and confidently while staying legally protected.

Visit our intellectual property page for e-commerce and digital marketplace sellers to learn more about our work in trademark registration, copyright enforcement, and online brand protection.

What We Do

Our team has counseled clients at every stage of the e-commerce lifecycle, from entity formation and go-to-market strategy to multimillion-dollar exit transactions. We’ve advised clients on terms of service and privacy policy development, reviewed influencer marketing campaigns for FTC compliance, negotiated key vendor and fulfillment contracts, and resolved disputes involving chargebacks, data breaches, and customer claims.

Business formation and operational structuring

  • Advise on entity selection, jurisdiction, and corporate structure
  • Draft founder agreements, investment term sheets, and early-stage financing documents
  • Counsel on tax strategy, multistate compliance, and corporate governance
  • Assist with expansion into new markets and vendor relationships

 

Website terms, consumer policies, and online contracting

  • Draft enforceable terms of service, privacy policies, return policies, cookie disclosures, and reseller and affiliate agreements
  • Ensure compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), General Data Protection Act (GDPR), Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), and state-specific privacy regimes
  • Structure and review click-wrap, web-wrap, mobile-app user agreements, and influencer/affiliate disclosure contracts
  • Manage customs regulations, import/export compliance, international tax obligations, and cross-border contract disputes
  • Review advertising practices for compliance with FTC guidelines
  • Handle consumer complaints and navigate deceptive practice regulations

 

Digital risk management, including cybersecurity, data privacy, and secure payment processing

  • Develop robust cybersecurity and privacy governance frameworks tailored for e-commerce
  • Perform privacy impact assessments and readiness reviews for GDPR and CCPA
  • Develop vendor agreements with embedded data protection clauses
  • Design and test incident response and breach notification plans and advise on cyber insurance coverage for online businesses
  • Protect against fraud, distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks, insecure data storage, and authentication flaws
  • Advise on Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) compliance, secure payment architectures, anti-money laundering laws, and banking compliance for online payment systems
  • Counsel on breach notification obligations and cross-jurisdictional data flows
  • Represent clients in FTC and state attorney general inquiries

 

Intellectual property and marketplace enforcement

  • Initiate and defend against portal takedowns for infringing goods (Amazon, eBay, Alibaba, Etsy, Facebook, TikTok, etc.)
  • Represent storefronts accused of IP infringement and respond to Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DCMA) claims
  • Develop comprehensive IP protection programs to streamline the detection and removal of counterfeit products that undermine the sale of legitimate goods
  • Documenting the sale of infringing goods on e-commerce platforms to support cease-and-desist letters, civil litigation, and criminal referrals
  • Audit client marketplace sites and advise on IP enforcement protocols
  • Handle patent, trademark, and copyright disputes in e-commerce settings

 

E-commerce transactions, contracts, and platform agreements

  • Draft supplier, vendor, and fulfillment center agreements for online retail logistics
  • Review and negotiate terms with major platforms, including Amazon, Walmart Marketplace, eBay, and Shopify
  • Advise on licensing agreements for bundled products, original equipment manufacturer (OEM) relationships, and content distribution
  • Counsel on AI tools, algorithmic transparency, lost-stolen goods, and last-mile liability

 

Digital marketing and consumer protection

  • Ensure compliance with the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act, telemarketing regulations, influencer marketing disclosure requirements, and online advertising standards
  • Defend class actions involving deceptive advertising, refund policies, and pricing practices
  • Represent clients in claims under the Lanham Act, automatic renewal laws, and false advertising statutes
  • Respond to cease-and-desist letters, domain name disputes, and online reputation issues

 

Buying, selling, and restructuring e-commerce businesses

  • Represent buyers and sellers in the purchase or sale of e-commerce assets, including domain portfolios
  • Conduct due diligence on traffic, IP, affiliate practices, and compliance history
  • Draft nondisclosure agreements, letters of intent, asset purchase agreements, and earnout structures
  • Support post-transaction integration, rebranding, and customer data transfers

 

Litigation and dispute resolution

  • Defend Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) website accessibility cases, digital discrimination claims, and platform takedowns
  • Represent clients in Lanham Act enforcement, false advertising, automatic-renewal lawsuits, and FTC and state attorney general actions
  • Handle domain name disputes, chargeback litigation, cyber risk insurance issues, and arbitration

 

Our Team

Partner

Craig Besnoy

Partner

Thomas Dunlap

Partner

Robert Greenspoon

Partner

Carlos Linares

Partner

David Ludwig

Partner

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Intern Program

As part of our effort to recruit, develop and retail the best and brightest attorneys, Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig offers a summer intern program for promising law school students who are looking to work as part of an innovative and incredibly successful team. With a global team of lawyers, selected candidates are able to work on high level projects in a collaborative space.

Paralegals and Legal Support Staff

At Dunlap Bennett & Ludwig, our team of paralegals and staff work together collaboratively along side our attorneys toward a common goal. We have created a positive work environment where our paralegals and legal assistants work to successfully reach firm-wide goals and support each other to combine individual strengths to enhance team performance. They regularly assist our attorneys with organizing and maintaining files, conducting legal research, and preparing documents.