FRANCHISE LAW
Franchise Law Articles
Plain-English analysis of FDD reviews, franchise agreements, exit strategy, and ongoing counsel for franchisees and franchisors.
477 articles
How Much Do Franchise Owners Make?
There is no single salary for a franchise owner — real-world earnings run from modest five figures to several hundred thousand dollars a year, and the spread …
Gas Station Franchise vs. Independent: Buyer's Guide
If you are buying a gas station, the franchise-versus-independent decision really comes down to three legal documents and one federal statute. A branded …
Buying an ATM Route: Legal Due Diligence Guide
When you buy an ATM route, you are not really buying machines — you are buying contracts. An ATM route business is a portfolio of placement agreements with host …
How to Find a Franchise Lawyer (and What They Do)
A franchise lawyer is an attorney who reviews your Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) and franchise agreement, explains what you’re actually committing …
Car & Automotive Franchises: What to Know
Most automotive franchises — oil change, repair, car wash, and tire shops — are ordinary business-format franchises governed by the FTC Franchise Rule, while …
General Releases in Franchising: What You're Signing Away
A general release is a contract provision in which you give up the right to sue the other party for everything — every claim you have or might have against …
Franchise Broker Liability: Risks and Protections
A franchise broker’s biggest legal exposure is being treated as a “franchise seller” — which, under the FTC Franchise Rule, you are. That …
How to Read Your Franchise Disclosure Document
To read a Franchise Disclosure Document, start with the four items that expose the most risk — Items 3, 4, 19, and 20 — then work through the money items and …
Franchise Fees: The Complete Guide to Every Fee You'll Pay
Franchise fees fall into three buckets: a one-time initial franchise fee (commonly $20,000–$50,000), ongoing fees taken from your revenue — royalties typically …
Franchise Agreement vs. Master Franchise Explained
A standard franchise agreement licenses one operator to run a unit under your brand; a master franchise agreement licenses a partner to recruit and oversee …
Franchise Agreement Terms to Review Before You Sign
The terms that deserve the most attention in a franchise agreement are the ones that bind you for years and are hardest to change later: the fees, the length of …
Franchise Bankruptcy: A Franchisee's Options
Bankruptcy gives a financially distressed franchisee a structured, court-supervised way to pause creditors and decide whether to keep or shed the franchise — …
Why Have an Attorney Review Your FDD?
Have an attorney review your FDD because the document is built to disclose, not to explain — a franchise lawyer translates 200-plus pages of obligations into …
How to Read an FDD: A Franchise Buyer's Guide
Read your FDD by starting with the three Items that expose a franchise system’s health — litigation (Item 3), bankruptcy (Item 4), and outlet trends (Item …
California Franchise Termination and Transfer Rules
The California Franchise Relations Act (CFRA) gives franchisees some of the strongest termination, non-renewal, and transfer protections in the country. A …
When to Franchise Your Business
You’re ready to franchise your business when it is consistently profitable, runs on a documented system rather than on you, and there’s demand from …
How to Franchise Your Business
To franchise your business, you turn your proven operation into a documented system you license to others under your brand — formalized in a Franchise …
