Back at the beginning of the pandemic, there was a flurry of articles that maybe, just maybe, insurance would cover losses at businesses closed by the pandemic. I was skeptical. Now, as more cases roll in, it looks as if that skepticism was warranted. In fact, a recent case from my lonely neck of the woods–Western Pennsylvania–continued that trend. In the case, a tavern and restaurant business sought coverage under a policy of property…

Franchise Law Update

Winter of Despair followed by . . . a Spring of Hope?

By Craig R. Tractenberg

January 20, 2021

little bird tit flies up to growing out of the snow bright yellow snowdrops in the spring Park

Charles Dicken’s A Tale of Two Cities famously opens with “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness … .” This opening could be applied to the results of the last political election, the public…

Franchise Law Update

A COVID Bonus for Trademark Owners: Presumptive Injunctive Relief and Sweeping Away Old Marks

By Natalma M. McKnew

January 10, 2021

Buried deep in the roughly 5,500 pages of the most recent COVID relief legislation are two unexpected gifts for trademark owners. One of those gifts, the Trademark Modernization Act: (a) Essentially overrules eBay v. MercExchange and creates a rebuttable presumption of irreparable harm on a finding of trademark infringement, including in instances of cybersquatting; and, (b) Allows petitions to expunge or reexamine registered marks that are not or have never been used in commerce…

Franchise Law Update

Unintended Consequences? The Employment Battle Threatens Franchising

By Natalma M. McKnew

January 5, 2021

The one-two punch of state and federal employment standards activity poses an existential threat to franchising; many commentators, including this one, have acknowledged that fact. But why? Did the California legislature or the Obama Department of Labor intend to deliver a knock-out punch to a very popular business structure that creates tens of thousands of independent franchisee business owners, who in turn employ hundreds of thousands of workers? I recently had an interesting conversation on…

Franchise Law Update

What Franchising Needs to Know about the New COVID-19 Relief Law

By John Gotaskie

December 28, 2020

Congress passed a wide-ranging COVID-19 relief package on December 22, 2020, that provides over $900 billion in aid to individuals and businesses. President Trump has now signed the relief bill, called the Bipartisan-Bicameral Omnibus COVID Relief Deal, into law. The law addresses four areas of importance to franchising: the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program and SBA Emergency Grants for shuttered live venue…

Franchise Law Update

Happy Holidays from the Franchise and Distribution Team at Fox Rothschild

By John Gotaskie

December 22, 2020

Warmest Wishes for Happy Holidays with your colleagues, friends and loved ones–remotely, of course! And, to all of those with an empty box on the Zoom or empty seat at the table this year, our deepest condolences. May 2021 be a year of recovery and rebirth in a thousand ways!…

Franchise Law Update

Area Developer Hit with Massive Arbitration Award in Favor of Franchisor

By Craig R. Tractenberg

December 14, 2020

Franchisor obtains $2,064,735.75 arbitration award against failed area developer. In an arbitration decision handed down by the American Arbitration Association, Rita’s Franchise Company, LLC obtained an award against a Washington state area developer for $2,064,735.75, consisting of damages of $738,892.27 to date of hearing, counsel fees of $1,012,565.92, and reimbursement of costs. The award also declared that Rita’s properly terminated the 2015 Area Development Agreement, the 2015 Franchise Agreement and the 2016 Express Agreement…

Franchise Law Update

New COVID Restrictions in Pennsylvania Hit Franchising . . . Hard

By John Gotaskie

December 10, 2020

Vector attention sign, please wear face mask, in flat style

At 4 p.m. today, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf (who himself has tested positive for COVID) and Secretary of Health Rachel Levine issued new, “limited-time”, targeted COVID mitigation orders. The orders hit the franchise industry hard. About the only silver-lining is that, unlike the indefinite restrictions imposed last spring, these new restrictions have a specific time period: from 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, December 12, 2020, until 8:00 a.m. on Monday, January 4, 2021. The following are…

Franchise Law Update

Franchising on the Precipice: Unknowns in Transition

By Natalma M. McKnew

December 8, 2020

Over the last 8 years or so, the ever-changing landscape of employment laws has arguably posed an existential threat to franchising. The franchise business model may not make sense if franchisors are legally defined as the employers of their franchisees or joint employers of their franchisees’ employees. But what is an “employee” and who is a “joint employer?” Question 1: Joint employment – Will a Biden DOL defend the Trump regulation, will it enforce the…

Franchise Law Update

Joint Employment in Chaos: DOL Joint Employment Rule Invalidated

By Natalma M. McKnew

October 5, 2020

https-franchiselawredesign-foxrothschildblogs-com-wp-content-uploads-sites-19-2020-03-staytunedneon-300x250-jpg

Hot on the heels of disappointing AB-5 news from California, a federal district court in Manhattan delivered a stinging rebuke to the Department of Labor (“DOL”), invalidating the control-based joint employment rule issued by the Department only 6 months ago. The DOL Rule adopted a control-based test of joint employment for purposes of federal employment law, in particular the Federal Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). The Rule was strongly cross-current to states legislative actions adopting versions…

Franchise Law Update

Commentary on Business and Legal Issues of Franchising

Blog Authors

Insurance Coverage for Pandemic Losses Hard to Come By

Winter of Despair followed by . . . a Spring of Hope?

A COVID Bonus for Trademark Owners: Presumptive Injunctive Relief and Sweeping Away Old Marks

Unintended Consequences? The Employment Battle Threatens Franchising

What Franchising Needs to Know about the New COVID-19 Relief Law

Happy Holidays from the Franchise and Distribution Team at Fox Rothschild

Area Developer Hit with Massive Arbitration Award in Favor of Franchisor

New COVID Restrictions in Pennsylvania Hit Franchising . . . Hard

Franchising on the Precipice: Unknowns in Transition

Joint Employment in Chaos: DOL Joint Employment Rule Invalidated

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