A hotel franchisee brought a class action lawsuit in Louisiana federal court on behalf of Louisiana franchisees. The franchisor moved to transfer the action to Georgia, based on the mandatory forum selection clause in the...more
In 2017, four former franchisees brought a class action in California, claiming 7-Eleven owed them unreimbursed expenses. The ex-franchisees claimed they were employees, not independent contractors of 7-Eleven. The court...more
The Ninth Circuit ruled that a California Matco Tool franchisee, John Fleming, could bring a class action wage and hour suit in California, even though a forum selection clause in the distribution agreement specified Ohio...more
2/3/2020
/ Anti-Waiver Provisions ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Forum Selection ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchise Laws ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
Independent Contractors ,
Misclassification ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Sales & Distribution Agreements ,
Severability Doctrine ,
State Labor Laws ,
Wage and Hour
Employees of a Merry Maids home cleaning franchise brought a class action against the franchisee, the franchisor, its owner and affiliated entities claiming they were joint employers. A California federal district court...more
3/2/2019
/ Agency Relationship ,
Class Action ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchisee ,
Franchises ,
Franchisors ,
Genuine Issue of Material Fact ,
Joint Employers ,
Labor Law Violations ,
Minimum Wage ,
Reasonable Belief Test ,
Right to Control ,
State Labor Laws ,
Summary Judgment ,
Unpaid Overtime ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour
Jimmy John’s will face antitrust claims, after an Illinois federal judge declined to dismiss allegations in a class action.
Plaintiffs claim the chain’s franchise agreement harmed competition by preventing franchisee...more
9/28/2018
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Class Action ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Franchisee ,
Franchises ,
Franchisors ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
No-Hire/No-Solicitation Agreements ,
No-Poaching ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Restaurant Industry ,
State Attorneys General
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld summary judgment in favor of Taco Bell on class claims that employees should be paid under California law for time spent on company premises eating employer-discounted meals during...more
8/24/2018
/ Appeals ,
Class Action ,
Employment Policies ,
Franchisee ,
Franchises ,
Reaffirmation ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
State Labor Laws ,
Summary Judgment ,
Taco Bell ,
Wage and Hour
In May, the U.S. Supreme Court held that mandatory arbitration agreements containing class action or collective action waivers must be enforced as written....more
6/29/2018
/ Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Collective Bargaining ,
Employment Contract ,
Epic Systems Corp v Lewis ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Franchise Agreements ,
Franchisee ,
Franchisors ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Preemption ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
Savings Clause ,
SCOTUS