California Senate Bill 919 (S.B. 919), signed into law in 2024, marks a significant expansion to the California Franchise Investment Law (CFIL) and establishes new regulatory requirements for third-party franchise sellers.[1] This law mandates third-party sellers, including franchise brokers, broker networks, and franchise sales organizations, register annually with the state and comply with presale disclosure […]
Aroma Arbitration: Brewing Bias? The Ontario Court of Appeal’s recent decision in Aroma Franchise Company, Inc. v Aroma Espresso Bar Canada Inc. (the “Aroma Decision”)[1] explored the grounds of arbitrator impartiality and disclosure obligations under the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Arbitration (the “Model Law”), adopted in the International Commercial Arbitration Act, 2017, S.O. […]
Iveco Poland is an importer responsible for importing Iveco trucks to Poland, together with the distributors of the brand. The President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK) stated that Iveco Poland and 10 of the brand’s truck distributors participated in a cartel restricting competition on the truck market for nearly 10 years, […]
The Supreme Court of India, in a judgement dated the 7 November 2024, made a ruling on the determining criteria for the seat of arbitration in an international commercial arbitration where the arbitration agreement does not specifically provide for such seat. The petition was filed by a distributor incorporated in Afghanistan against the Micromax group […]
The Competition Commission of Pakistan has authority to review mergers, hold contracts with prohibited terms infructuous, penalize deceptive and anticompetitive marketing if it harms the interests of the competitors and/or the consumers. A case was initiated by M/s Reckitt Benckiser Pakistan Limited, the parent company of Dettol, which manufactures antiseptic soap/hand-wash products, against Lifebuoy a […]
In a recent decision, the Court of Rome retrained an influencer, who promoted the sales of a company’s products on the internet under certain conditions, as a commercial agent (Court of Rome, No. 2615 of March 4, 2024). The case originated from an inspection of the Italian Commercial Agents’ Social Security Foundation (“Ente Nazionale […]
The impact of risk and compliance to a franchisor looking to expand and sell their brand/franchise overseas is seen in two ways: 1. A franchisor looking to expand into a foreign territory must conduct significant and thorough risk and compliance assessments. A franchisor cannot import the system they have into another country without looking at […]
Extra protection for Belgian supermarket franchisees The Belgian legislator has issued the Royal Decree of June 20, 2024 for franchise contracts in the food sector (supermarkets), where the franchisors are typically in a much stronger position than their franchisees. This new legislation complements the existing law of 2020 that prohibits “unfair contract terms” in a […]
Lacoste obtains favourable judgement in trademark infringement suit The Delhi High Court, in a judgement dated the 14th of August 2024, ruled in the favour of Lacoste to end a 23-year long suit regarding the infringement of Lacoste’s crocodile logo. The initial suit was filed by Lacoste against Singapore’s Crocodile International Pte Limited and its […]
On 11 September 2024, the Moniteur Belge (Belgian Official Gazette) published a Royal Decree introducing yet another amendment to the pre-contractual information requirements for commercial cooperation agreements[1] under Belgium’s Disclosure Act, which is incorporated in the Belgian Code of Economic Law (“BCEL”). The Royal Decree, adopted on 19 August 2024, adds four new elements of […]
Nearly seven years after it began, the “Paramount Trilogy” has now concluded. The trial[1] and appeal[2] decisions have significantly advanced the law with respect to statutory rescission under Section 6(2) of the Wishart Act.[3] This article attempts to identify the most important aspects of these decisions and to identify, where applicable, new developments in the […]
It was recently discussed, in a judicial case in Uruguay (FORTYLEX S.A. v SOCIEDAD COMERCIAL E IMPORTADORA ENKO LTDA.), involving a supplier and a distributor of an international brand of lighters (RONSON), an issue about the circumstances that can legally lead to a termination for a reasonable cause. Under Uruguayan legislation, there is no definition […]
Ref: Paris Court of Appeal, Section 5, Ch. 4, 26 June 2024, RG no. 22/01389 A motorcycle importer had had a contractual relationship with its exclusive distributor since 1994. On 9 October 2017, the importer terminated the contract with its distributor, giving notice ending on 30 September 2018 and informing the distributor that a new […]
One of the most recent cases regarding commercial agency agreements in Colombia involves the Supreme Court’s distinction between an employment contract and a commercial agency agreement. This article will discusses decision No. SL1642-2024 by the Supreme Court of Justice issued on April 29, 2024.[1] Background of the case Hernán Vargas Lozano filed a lawsuit […]
Key takeaways New government consultation launched proposing to abolish the Commercial Agents Regulations. The Commercial Agents Regulations have been in force since 1 January 1994, pursuant to an EU-wide directive. They provide important statutory protection to agents, including a right to a goodwill termination payment. If the government proceeds with its plans, it will have […]
Introduction The EU Commission has always taken a very strict approach on the issue of resale price maintenance, leaving practically no space for exceptions in cases where a certain control over resale prices by members of the distribution network would be necessary for avoiding aggressive price competition, which has been made easier by the […]
The Italian Supreme Court has finally confirmed an important principle, previously expressed by some lower Courts, which remedies a probable mistake made when approving Law 129 of 2004 (Italian Franchising Law). Article 3.3 of Law 129/2004 provides that the franchise contract must have a minimum duration of three years in order to allow the franchisee […]
Balancing transparency with protection is an essential element in most distributor-principal relationship. Generally, the principal brings product knowledge and the distributor provide market knowledge. But the roles are often more complex. Adapting product to local markets or introducing new solutions requires that both parties participate in technical as well as market considerations. And often cooperation […]
