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Franchise Fees

Fox Rothschild LLP

Not All Payments Qualify as “Fees” under State and Federal Definitions of a Franchise

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A recent court case (Cognex Corporation v. Air Hydro Power LLC) between a distributor and manufacturer is a reminder to franchise attorneys that not all amounts paid by a licensee to a licensor qualify as a “franchise fee”...more

Lewitt Hackman

Franchisee 101: Insurance Franchisor Cannot Mitigate Franchise Claims

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A Wisconsin federal district court allowed an insurance company’s field representative’s allegations that his representation agreement was an unregistered franchise to proceed beyond the pleading stage....more

Lewitt Hackman

Franchisee 101: The Price is Right - What Payments Establish a Franchise Relationship?

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A Massachusetts district court granted a product supplier’s motion to dismiss a distributor’s counterclaims that the supplier violated state franchise sales and consumer protection laws. The court found the distributor did...more

Kilpatrick

Georgia Court of Appeals joins growing wave of courts rejecting local government franchise fee claims against streaming companies

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The Georgia Court of Appeals recently joined a host of trial and appellate courts across the country that have rejected local governments’ demands for video service franchise fees from streaming service companies. See...more

Lewitt Hackman

Franchisee 101: Transaction Totaled

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Franchisee Cipercen, LLC operated several Meineke Car Care Centers. By 2017, Cipercen owed $550,000 in unpaid franchise fees to Meineke and decided to sell the franchises. Cipercen believed Meineke offered to waive the unpaid...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

Unintended Consequences of Franchise Rescission Rights

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The right to rescind (or void) a contract is an extraordinary remedy. However, as franchise lawyers know, certain states provide franchisees a right to rescind a franchise agreement in certain situations, particularly where a...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

 Recent Illinois Case A Reminder of Broad Scope of “Franchise Fee” Element

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The recent case of Rhine Enters v. Refresco Beverage out of the federal district court of the Southern District of Illinois should be a reminder to licensors and manufacturers that avoiding the “fee prong” element of a...more

Best Best & Krieger LLP

California Supreme Court Rules on Franchise Fees for Solid Waste Contract

Court Determined City Did Not Show Solid Waste Franchise Fees Were Not Taxes - This week, the California Supreme Court held the City of Oakland failed to demonstrate that solid waste franchise fees included in the City’s...more

Best Best & Krieger LLP

FCC Cable Franchising: In-kind and Mixed Use Rules

PublicCEO Article Addresses Current Rules and What Happens Next - Over the last few years, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has been reinterpreting several key Cable Act provisions that govern cable franchise...more

Troutman Pepper

Streaming and Franchise Fees: Implications for Communications Infrastructure

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The advent of video streaming services has diminished revenues local governments collect from cable video franchise fees. In response, many local governments scrutinized the laws and regulations authorizing the collection of...more

Best Best & Krieger LLP

Sixth Circuit Cable Order Challenged by City Coalitions

Franchise Requirements Should Not be Treated as Franchise Fees and Cable Operators Can be Charged Fees on Non-Cable Services, Cities Argue - Three coalitions of cities filed briefs with the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of...more

Davis Wright Tremaine LLP

6th Circuit Largely Affirms FCC Ruling That Most In-Kind Franchise Requirements Are Franchise Fees

On May 26, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit affirmed most aspects of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) 2019 ruling that nearly all non-cash (or "in-kind") assessments required by cable...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Sixth Circuit Affirms FCC Rule That Most In-Kind Contributions Are Franchise Fees

On May 26, 2021, a Sixth Circuit panel rejected challenges by numerous municipalities to a 2019 order by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that most “in kind” (non-cash) contributions required by cable franchisees...more

McAfee & Taft

Franchising cannabis businesses

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Since the adoption of state legal medical marijuana in Oklahoma in 2018, commercial licenses in the industry have proliferated. Many prospective licensees lack the relevant cannabis experience to fully develop their business...more

Lewitt Hackman

New Revenue Rule Affects Franchisors

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An updated rule issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) will again change when most franchisors can recognize revenue in their financial statements from the sale of their franchises and their collection of...more

Kilpatrick

ASC 606 and Its Impact on the Franchise Industry

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Revenue is a key component of all businesses, including franchisors, and it is important that counsel to franchisors have an understanding of the potential effects that accounting changes relating to revenue recognition can...more

Pillsbury - SeeSalt Blog

Indiana Municipalities’ Franchise Fee Lawsuit Against Online Video Providers Remanded to State Court

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A federal district court held that under comity principles, Indiana state court is a more appropriate venue for a putative class action brought by three Indiana municipalities seeking to impose franchise fees on a group of...more

King & Spalding

FASB Proposes New "Practical Expedient" to Recognition of Initial Franchise Fees (ASC 606)

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On September 21, 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) announced a proposed Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”), that if enacted, would provide a “practical expedient”, simplifying the analysis supporting...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

The Ballad Of The Hare And The Tortoise: FASB Delays ASC 606

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Surprise! On April 8th, FASB delayed for one year the implementation of the new ASC 606 revenue recognition standards for private companies, citing the coronavirus pandemic. In addition to delaying implementation, FASB...more

Best Best & Krieger LLP

When is a Franchise Fee a Tax?

Franchise Fees Charged to Waste Hauler are Not a Tax if Reasonably Related to the Value of the Franchise - Franchise fees that exceed the reasonable value of the franchise conveyed may be considered taxes, according to a...more

Best Best & Krieger LLP

FCC Denies Cable Franchise Order Stay Request But Provides Implementation Guidance

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When the FCC’s Cable Franchise Order became effective on Sept. 26, it upended 35 years of common understanding on what a local government could obtain in cable franchise negotiations, which could cost local governments...more

Lewitt Hackman

Franchisee 101: If it Walks Like a Franchise, Talks Like a Franchise, it Might Be a Franchise

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Twin City Lodging LLC bought a Best Western Hotel in Mankato, Minnesota, then entered into a “Membership Agreement” with Best Western International. Best Western granted Twin City a license to operate the hotel under Best...more

Best Best & Krieger LLP

FCC Releases Cable Order that Will Cost Communities Hundreds of Millions of Dollars

The FCC released its third Section 621 Report and Order late Friday, which has the potential to cost local governments hundreds of millions of dollars in cable franchise fees. Also, unlike FCC cable orders in the past 10...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Virgil Quick Come See: FCC Drives Down Local Government Regulation of Cable Operators

On Thursday, August 1, 2019, the FCC took several actions to address persistent, decades-long efforts by local governments to convert their control over local rights-of-way into ever-increasing revenue streams from cable...more

Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP

Client Alert: Business Owners–Did you really earn that revenue? The Authorities say “Not so FASB.”

Thanks to a new revenue recognition standard implemented by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB), formally titled “ASC 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers” (“ASC 606”), the ability of business owners to...more

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