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The Franchise Memorandum

Posts from March 2021 - Issue 263.

A Texas federal court has granted an injunction to a Bundt cake franchisor seeking to prevent a competitor from using its trademarked frosting pattern on her cake products. Denbra IP Holdings, LLC v. Thornton, 2021 WL 674238 (E.D. Tex. Feb. 22, 2021). Plaintiff Denbra IP Holdings, LLC d/b/a Nothing Bundt Cakes has over 300 franchises around the United States and Canada selling Bundt cakes topped with its trademarked frosting pattern. The frosting pattern consists of long strips of tubular ring-shaped frosting that expands outward from the center of the cake. Twenty-one of its ...

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Posted in Antitrust

A federal court in Illinois granted Jimmy John’s motion to exclude expert testimony of a putative class seeking certification, while denying the class’s motion to exclude Jimmy John’s expert testimony. Conrad v. Jimmy John's Franchise, LLC, 2021 WL 718320 (S.D. Ill. Feb. 24, 2021). The case against Jimmy John’s is the most procedurally advanced of the class actions filed against various franchisors alleging that employee anti-poaching provisions formerly contained in many franchise agreements constitute an unlawful conspiracy in restraint of trade in violation of ...

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Posted in Insurance

A federal court in Illinois has recently concluded that an insurer may have a duty to cover a franchisor’s costs of defending a COVID-19-related injunction. In McDonald’s Corp. v. Austin Mutual Insurance Co., (N.D. Ill. Feb. 22, 2021), McDonald’s claimed that Austin Mutual had a duty to defend McDonald’s in an ancillary case brought by employees of a McDonald’s franchisee alleging McDonald’s was liable for public nuisance and negligence as the result of its decision to allow its franchisee to remain open during the COVID-19 pandemic without enhanced health and safety ...

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The Court of Appeals of Kentucky affirmed the dismissal of a Jani-King franchisee owner’s wage and hour, breach of contract, and fraud claims on the basis that the franchisee’s individual owner lacked standing to sue. Mouanda v. Jani-King, 2021 WL 406317 (Ky. Ct. App. Feb. 5, 2021). The plaintiff, Constance Mouanda, was the sole owner of an entity, The Matsoumou’s, LLC. That entity entered into a franchise agreement with Cardinal Franchising, Inc., a master franchisee for the Jani-King janitorial franchise system. In the instant suit, Mouanda alleged a variety of claims ...

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A federal court in Michigan granted 7-Eleven’s motion for summary judgment and enforced the franchisor’s right to terminate a franchisee following repeated defaults. 7-Eleven, Inc. v. CJ-Grand, LLC, 2021 WL 429332 (E.D. Mich. Feb. 8, 2021). The franchise agreement at issue permitted immediate termination if 7-Eleven issued four notices of default to its franchisee within a two-year period, regardless of whether any of the defaults were cured. 7-Eleven sought a declaratory judgment from the court vindicating 7-Eleven’s right to terminate its franchise agreement with ...

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Posted in Class Actions

A federal court in Nevada remanded a class action back to state court after Red Robbin was unable to show that the putative damages exceeded the amount in controversy requirement under the Class Action Fairness Act (CAFA).

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Posted in Choice of Law

A federal court in Connecticut enforced the choice of law provision in a master franchise agreement entered into with the franchisor’s predecessor.

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About this Publication

The Franchise Memorandum is a collection of postings on summaries of recent legal developments of interest to franchisors brought to you by Lathrop GPM LLP. 

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