Jason Foscolo Founder and Managing Partner
Jason is the founder and managing partner at the firm. Prior to starting the Food Law Firm, Jason was a Judge Advocate in the United States Marine Corps. After separating with an honorable discharge after five years of active duty, Jason combined his love of food with his professional expertise and earned an LLM in Agriculture and Food Law at the University of Arkansas.
Jason has pioneered what it means to be a “Food Law Firm”. In 2011, Jason began the firm with a narrow focus on FDA and USDA regulatory compliance. As he gained experience, his skill set began to encompass other legal talents needed by his clients that did not necessarily have anything to do with food, such as trademark law and employment law. After a few years of further developing his competency in these ancillary areas, Jason has his lightbulb moment – it is not always optimal to provide à la carte legal services on an hourly basis to a food business. In a food business, legal guidance needs to be spread across multiple departments in real time. Traditional billing was a barrier to the depth of engagement that clients found most valuable. Instead, fractional general counsel relationships with clients enabled Jason to inject his expertise into the clients’ daily decision making cycle. The firm now has a simple ethos – integrate into the client’s business at all levels, give advice that anticipates problems rather than react to them, give timely feedback, and do it for a fixed monthly cost that manufacturers can understand.
Though he runs a nation-wide law practice, he lives in the Jacksonville, Florida area with his wife and three kids. He spends his free time traveling, foraging for mushrooms (chanterelles are his favorite), cooking, hiking, gardening, and searching for ramen joints in his home range.
John B. Diefenbach Partner
John B. Diefenbach serves as a partner at our firm, overseeing its litigation arm. A seasoned trial lawyer, John’s experience dovetails perfectly with the Firm’s business model.
Before joining forces with Jason Foscolo and becoming a partner, he successfully managed his boutique law firm specializing in commercial litigation. Additionally, he served as the Director of Litigation for Gruma Corporation, operating as Mission Foods, worked as an equity partner and lead litigator at a national law firm, and held the position of a military lawyer with the rank of Major in the United States Marine Corps.
Since 2012, John has been dedicated to resolving complex litigation issues for clients in the food industry. His extensive expertise has led to the management of a vast national portfolio of legal matters, including numerous lawsuits, class actions, and investigations. John’s trial perspective uniquely positions him to provide valuable insights into commercial agreements, employee relations, and regulatory matters. This perspective makes him an astute advisor to top-level management in day-to-day operations, aiding in the mitigation of a company’s litigation risk. John is much, much more than a top-tier litigator – his experience, insight, and industry knowledge makes John a perfect fit for the firm’s general counsel ethos.
John received his juris doctorate from Gonzaga University School of Law in 2004, and his B.A. in Political Science from the University of Utah in 2001. He is admitted to practice in Virginia and Texas.
Moshe D. Lapin Of Counsel
Moshe Lapin brings years of high caliber corporate law experience to The Food Law Firm in an ‘of counsel’ capacity. Moshe focuses his legal practice on assisting businesses and entrepreneurs in the areas of intellectual property, business law and litigation. He has handled well over a thousand trademark and copyright matters, and has successfully litigated and negotiated settlements with some of the largest North American brands – including Time Inc., The Coca-Cola Company, Ford Motors, Apple Inc. and Blackberry. Mr. Lapin assists companies in many areas of corporate practice, including entity formation and related contracts, partnership/shareholders’ agreements, service agreements and employment contracts. Mr. Lapin litigates cases at the federal trial level and also handles federal appeals at the United States Courts of Appeal. Mr. Lapin received his BA in Talmudic Law from Yeshiva College of the Nation’s Capital and his Juris Doctor from The George Washington University Law School. He is admitted to the State Bars of California, Maryland and the United States Virgin Islands.