Trademarks serve as a vital way for businesses to protect their brand’s identity. Whether it is McDonald’s prominent golden arches or the Nike Swoosh, a trademark is generally a word, logo, phrase, or design that allows...more
11/4/2025
/ Injunctive Relief ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Lanham Act ,
Likelihood of Confusion ,
Smuckers ,
Trade Dress ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Trademark Registration ,
Trademark Searches ,
Trademarks ,
Trader Joes
A district court in Pennsylvania confirmed a final arbitration award in favor of a franchisor, denying the franchisees’ motion to vacate the award.
An association of franchisees sued franchisor Choice Hotels International,...more
11/3/2025
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Arbitration Awards ,
Arbitrators ,
Cross Motions ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Motion to Vacate ,
Pennsylvania ,
Vacatur
A district court in Maryland granted a franchisor’s motion to dismiss against an employee in a discrimination and wrongful termination case. The court concluded the employee failed to show that she was an employee of the...more
10/31/2025
/ Disability Discrimination ,
Disparate Treatment ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Employment Litigation ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Hostile Environment ,
Joint Employers ,
Maryland ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Race Discrimination ,
Wrongful Termination
Contracts form the foundation of nearly every business transaction in California and across the United States. Parties use them to hire employees, license a service, or, as in musician Bad Bunny’s case, feature a private home...more
A federal court in Michigan largely denied a franchisor’s motion for preliminary injunction against its former franchisees, accused of breach of contract, trademark infringement, trade secret misappropriation, and civil...more
10/1/2025
/ Breach of Contract ,
Civil Conspiracy ,
Clear and Convincing Evidence ,
Confidential Business Information (CBI) ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Likelihood of Success ,
Misappropriation ,
Motion To Enjoin ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Proprietary Information ,
Trade Secrets ,
Trademark Infringement ,
Unclean Hands
A California federal court denied a franchisee’s motion to dismiss a franchisor’s counterclaims related to the loss of future royalties after terminating two separate franchise agreements in Ohio....more
An Arizona federal court dismissed a franchisee’s counterclaims for breach of contract, defamation, and injunctive relief against LeTip World Franchise, a professional networking franchisor....more
A California federal court stayed proceedings in favor of the franchisor and ordered the parties to undertake the dispute resolution procedures in the franchise agreement, holding that the parties clearly and unmistakably...more
A Texas federal court granted American Dairy Queen Corporation’s motion for partial summary judgment against a terminated franchisee, finding no dispute to the material facts establishing the franchisee’s material breach of...more
A California federal court denied a motion to dismiss a former franchisee’s complaint against a healthcare recruitment franchisor’s Chief Executive Officer....more
A federal court in Missouri granted franchisor’s motion for preliminary injunction against its former franchisee, enjoining the former franchisee from operating a competing business from the former franchised location....more
6/30/2025
/ Breach of Contract ,
Business Operations ,
Confidential Information ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchise Termination ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Irreparable Harm ,
Misappropriation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Proprietary Information ,
Trade Secrets ,
Trademarks
The Texas Supreme Court reversed a lower court’s decision against a franchisor based on a theory of negligence after a customer was assaulted by an employee of the franchisee. The court concluded that franchisor did not owe a...more
6/27/2025
/ Assault ,
Duty of Care ,
Employee Misconduct ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Independent Contractors ,
Negligence ,
Reversal ,
Right to Control ,
TX Supreme Court
A New York federal court denied a franchisor’s motion to dismiss a franchisee’s complaint for misrepresentations and improper financial performance representations which allegedly induced the franchisee to enter into multiple...more
An Ohio federal court granted a franchisor’s motion to dismiss a putative class of franchisees alleging antitrust violations and related claims, including interference to deflate franchisees’ reimbursement rates. Other class...more
5/29/2025
/ Antitrust Violations ,
Breach of Contract ,
Dismissals ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Interference Claims ,
Misrepresentation ,
Negligence ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Time-Barred Claims ,
Vendors
A Massachusetts federal court granted a franchisor’s request to enforce the franchise agreement’s post-termination non-compete provision against a terminated franchisee....more
A California federal court denied a franchisor’s motion to dismiss a franchisee’s complaint claiming the franchisee failed to first mediate the dispute before filing an action as required under the franchise agreement....more
A federal district court in Tennessee granted a motion for a default judgment in the franchisor’s favor against its former franchisee requiring the franchisee to pay damages and comply with the post-termination obligations...more
4/1/2025
/ Arbitration ,
Contract Termination ,
Damages ,
Default Judgment ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchise Termination ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Trademark Infringement
An employee of a Domino’s Pizza franchisee, returning from a pizza delivery, collided with a motorcyclist who suffered serious injuries. After a Pennsylvania jury found Domino’s (as franchisor) vicariously liable for the...more
A New Jersey Court of Appeals found that a retailer was not a franchisee under New Jersey’s Franchise Practices Act (NJFPA) and therefore NJFPA’s termination requirements did not apply to the retailer’s termination....more
A district court in Arizona granted a franchisor’s motion to transfer venue to Missouri pursuant to the terms of the franchise agreement.
S&G Elite LLC (“S&G”) and ST National Franchising, LLC (“Franchisor”) entered into a...more
A California federal court partially granted a motion to compel arbitration by car care franchisor Spiffy Franchising. However, the court invalidated provisions in the franchise agreement providing for dispute resolution in...more
1/31/2025
/ Addendums ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Choice-of-Law ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Forum Selection ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Motion to Compel ,
Notice of Intent
A Mississippi federal court granted summary judgment in favor of Leisure Systems, Inc. (“LSI”), a franchisor of Yogi Bear themed children’s parks and campgrounds, on negligence and premises liability claims. The case was...more
The California Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision finding that a Texas court had personal jurisdiction over a California franchisee.
GlobalCFO, LLC and GlobalCFO Franchise, LLC (collectively, “GlobalCFO”),...more
A New Jersey federal district court granted summary judgment in favor of 7-Eleven, Inc. in a dispute with a franchisee.
The franchisee signed a franchise agreement to operate a 7-Eleven store in Princeton, New Jersey,...more
A Minnesota district court issued a preliminary injunction against a former franchisee who engaged in a competing business during the franchise relationship.
Snap Fitness, Inc., a gym franchisor, entered into a franchise...more
11/27/2024
/ Breach of Contract ,
Cease and Desist Orders ,
Consumer Confusion ,
Contract Termination ,
Failure to Comply ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchisee ,
Irreparable Harm ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Rebranding