As Chick-fil-A has expanded from the Southeast to around the nation, the company’s legal department has faced challenges that prompted one of its law firms to nominate the company for the In-House Law Department of the Year recognition.

Michael Wall at Troutman Sanders makes a compelling case: ”Because of the pace at which Chick-fil-A continues to grow and the shifting legal landscape of restaurant franchising, each in-house lawyer gets pulled in a number of directions and wears many hats at any given time,” he wrote to the Daily Report. “Despite their busy schedules, they always welcome our visits to their corporate campus for lunch at their employee cafeteria to catch up on work and on a personal level. In many ways, the legal department operates with the same mindset as Chick-fil-A’s staff at one of their restaurants. They work tirelessly to make certain that their stores can operate at the most productive level without sacrificing quality or customer service. They emphasize the collective good over individual promotion. And, while they always want to achieve the best result for the company in a given situation, they always consider what is fair.”