Your Disclosure Documents need to be updated by:

Forget to update your disclosure documents at your peril.

Franchisors must update their disclosure documents within 4 months of the end of their financial year. That means that most franchisors who operate on a standard financial year ending on 30 June must finalise their update by 31 October.

The annual update is an important part of running a franchise system and is mandatory under the Franchising Code of Conduct. It should never be overlooked lightly. ...

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"Take it or leave it" is the traditional response given to a prospective franchisee asking to negotiate a franchise agreement. Whilst franchisors may sometimes agree to special conditions such as reduced fees or other concessions while the franchisee establishes their customer base, franchisors generally don't negotiate the key provisions of a franchise agreement. ...

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When buying a business from an existing franchisee, there are some things you can do to minimise the risk of a dispute arising with the seller: ...

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Franchising is a system of doing business. As a franchisor, you have achieved a proven system for success through your brand and product consistency, and you have opted to duplicate that system by franchising.

An inherent element of franchising is that customers expect to receive identical goods and service-levels across all franchises within a franchise system. For example, an expectation that the same burger at any store in a chain will taste the same. ...

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The Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Vulnerable Workers) Act 2017 (the Act) took effect on 15 September 2017. The Act was triggered in response to the highly publicised 7-Eleven employee underpayment scandal which has engulfed the franchise sector since late 2015, along with several recent systemic underpayment scandals by Domino’s Pizza and Caltex franchisees. ...

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This article was previously published on the Inside Franchise Business website.

The Franchising Code of Conduct is a mandatory industry code. It contains a process to determine what constitutes a franchise agreement, and regulates the conduct of franchisors and franchisees towards each other. ...

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By Luke McKavanagh, Peter Rouse and Jashan Singh.
A franchise agreement is a legally binding commitment for the term of the franchise with restrictions on exiting early. Franchisors and franchisees must follow different steps if they believe they have grounds to unilaterally terminate the agreement. This will always depend on the circumstances. ...

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Changes to legislation usually tighten existing regulations. Recent changes to the provisions of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Act) covering third line forcing are a pleasant departure from this norm. ...

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A lawyer can seem like an unnecessary expense when buying a franchise with so many other costs to consider. Remember that buying a business is one of the biggest decisions you’ll make in your life. Legal advice should be considered as an investment. Like any investment, there are a number of key ways to secure a good return. ...

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