Franchise Law And Litigation
GJB has one of the largest franchise law practices in Florida and is ranked among the country’s top franchise practices nationally. Our clients including the franchisors for some of the world’s leading brands including Burger King®, Subway®, Popeyes®, Tim Hortons®, Gap, Inc., Chruch’s Chicken® and many more. We are also leaders in the major franchise industry trade groups, including the International Franchise Association (GJB hosts and directs South Florida regional meetings), and the American Bar Association’s Forum on Franchising.
Our lawyers have extensive experience in litigating issues such as franchise termination, franchisee insolvency, and protection of intellectual property rights, as well as contract, employment, real estate, and regulatory issues unique to the franchise concept. We have represented franchisor clients across the United States, Europe, and Latin America, successfully defending hundreds of millions of dollars of claims.
Our deep expertise in this field is reflected by the wide variety of cases we have handled, including:
- Enforcement actions involving unauthorized use of trademarks, trademark dilution, and common law unfair competition
- International arbitrations involving development rights
- Encroachment claims arising from proximity of sites within a single system
- Bankruptcy workouts and debt restructuring of major franchisees, and bankruptcy litigation to terminate franchisee’s unauthorized use of marks
- Employment law, including claims of sexual harassment, racial discrimination, and violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
- Wrongful termination claims brought by franchisees
- Franchisor representation in bankruptcies of key suppliers to their franchise
- Enforcement actions to compel compliance with franchisor operations
- Real Estate issues including lease disputes, quiet title actions and enforcement of restricted trade area
- Premises liability claims
- Litigation of supplier issues
- Defense of class actions, including claims asserting accessibility, wage-hour, adulterated food products violations
We also assist clients in preparation of franchise disclosure documents, license agreements, development agreements and transactions with franchisees and employees. Our franchise law attorneys practice “preventive law” to spare our clients the expense and uncertainty of litigation through careful and collaborative planning, problem solving, transaction structuring, and drafting.
If you would like to speak with a member of our franchise law practice to discuss legal representation, or have any other question, please contact us at our Miami, Fort Lauderdale or Tampa offices. We will respond promptly and arrange for you to speak with a member of the firm with the appropriate experience.
Notable Franchising Litigation Engagements
- National franchise counsel to Restaurant Brands International, Inc. for its Burger King®, Tim Hortons® and Popeyes® brands, handling all aspects of franchise litigation throughout the United States.
- National, international and Florida litigation matters for franchisors of various other brands including Gap, Inc., Subway®, Burger Fi ®, Smoothie King, Pearle Vision, Inc., Jamba Juice, Benihana National Corp., TGI Friday’s®, among many others.
- Represented various franchisors successfully in international development disputes involving Europe and Latin America defending against $100 million+ damage claims
- Represented large scale multi-unit developers in various aspects of the franchise relationship, including acquisitions and relationship issues.
- Represented franchisors with respect to numerous issues in franchisee bankruptcies, including reorganization of multi-unit franchisees, franchisor’s right to terminate franchise agreements in bankruptcy, and complex system supply issues.
- Represented franchisors in suits validating their right to set maximum prices for system products.
- Represented franchisor against claims arising from refusal to approve transfer of franchisee’s businesses, including a summary judgment on a $24 million claim involving 29 restaurants.
- Represented various franchisor clients on disclosure issue claims, claims under numerous state franchise acts and those relating to federal UFOC issues.
- Represented franchisor in California ADA class action litigation involving 90 plus restaurants.
- Prevailed in arbitration of disaffected franchisees’ claims relating to merger of two food industry franchisors, including claims alleging abandonment of trademarks, violation of state acts, and earnings claim violations.
- Successfully defended against numerous claims seeking to hold franchisor vicariously liable for wrongful acts of franchisees.
- Successfully defended numerous franchisee “encroachment” claims concerning alleged violations of their territorial rights.
- Enforced trademark rights enjoining unauthorized use of trademarks and enforcing system menu and facility requirements.
- Successfully defended class actions brought against franchisors claiming overtime pay and other wage-hour violation.
- Successful defense of nationally publicized discrimination lawsuit.
- Preparation of UFOCs, FDDs and license agreements and other transactional documents on behalf of franchisors.