Dan Caldarone is the new general counsel at Second Cup Ltd.

The Second Cup Ltd. has a new general counsel effective today as Dan Caldarone leaves the in-house department at Cara Operations Ltd. to join the Canadian-owned specialty coffee company.

Caldarone will serve as general counsel, corporate secretary, and vice president of human resources for the company.

Second Cup is Canada’s largest specialty coffee café franchisor and retailer with 359 cafés operating under the trade name Second Cup in Canada. All but 10 of those stores are franchised in what is a highly competitive coffee market.

Caldarone joined Cara Operations in 2008. Cara is the owner and franchisor of restaurant brands including Swiss Chalet, Harvey’s, Kelsey’s, Montana’s, and Milestones.

Prior to going in-house at Cara, Caldarone was a partner at Aird & Berlis LLP. His primarily focus at the law firm was business and franchise law.

He says he was drawn to the position at Second Cup not only because it was a step up into the general counsel role but also because it puts him at the executive management table.

“At Second Cup, there is a senior management team of seven and the general counsel is one of the people that make up the senior management team, so for me it’s not only a step up into a general counsel role but also a step into the executive management team,” he says.

Given his background in franchise law, Caldarone says he’s looking forward to dealing with all of the franchisor partners the company has across the country. He also welcomes the challenge of working in the highly competitive coffee market.

“It will be a challenge to get up to speed and get familiar with all the franchise partners,” he says.

Caldarone is a member of the Ontario Bar Association’s franchise law section executive committee and the Canadian Franchise Association’s legal and legislative committee.