3 Key Takeaways | Is Franchising Doomed? The 2024 Version
5 Key Takeaways | Franchising in the USA: Challenges for Latin American Brands
Class Action | Eleventh Circuit Reinstates No Hire Antitrust Claims Against Burger King
Is Franchising Doomed?
Strategies for Negotiating with a Franchisee and Franchisor
Before committing to a franchise business, consider...
Last month, Judge Jose E. Martinez of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida denied the Burger King Defendants’ (“Burger King”) motion to dismiss a putative class action alleging that its “No-Hire”...more
Arrington v. Burger King Worldwide, Inc., No. 1:18-cv-24128 (S.D. Fla. Oct. 5, 2018) – In October 2018, Jarvis Arrington, a former employee at a Burger King franchisee in Illinois, filed a class action complaint against...more
On January 16, 2025, in the waning hours of the Biden-Harris administration, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) jointly released their “Antitrust Guidelines for Business Activities Affecting...more
In Deslandes v. McDonald’s USA LLC, issued August 25, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit overturned the dismissal of antitrust claims that challenged no-poach clauses in franchise agreements....more
Arrington v. Burger King Worldwide, Inc., No. 20-13561 (11th Cir. Aug. 31, 2022) – In October 2018, a former line cook of a Burger King franchise restaurant in Illinois, filed a class action complaint in the District Court...more
A federal judge in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois has held that an antitrust challenge to a “hiring restriction [that] prevented” plaintiff employees “from taking a better-paying position with a...more
In a recent post, I expressed the view that no-poach clauses in franchise agreements are unlikely to violate the antitrust laws. Recent activity, however, has given me a “maybe yes, maybe no” on my prediction....more
No poaching agreements among employers continue to make antitrust news, and employers and their HR professionals need to take note. Whether or not a particular agreement has a valid purpose (such as protecting an employer’s...more
Renewed Efforts to End No Poaching Provisions- Franchisors need to review their franchise agreements and take immediate action in response to the recent onslaught of legal action over “naked no poaching” provisions in...more
Franchisors need to review their franchise agreements and take immediate action in response to the recent onslaught of legal action over “no poaching” provisions in franchise agreements. In a typical franchise agreement, a...more
In the midst of a federal effort to ramp up antitrust prosecutions of companies agreeing not to recruit or hire each other’s employees special scrutiny – and criticism – has been directed toward the use of no-poach agreements...more
The Attorneys General of ten states are investigating fast food franchisors for their alleged use of “no poach” provisions in their franchise agreements, according to a press release by the New Jersey Attorney General’s...more
Franchise agreements often contain provisions prohibiting the franchisee from soliciting or hiring workers employed by the franchisor or other franchisees. Such “anti-poaching” agreements have recently come under increased...more
Agreements among companies to not hire each other’s workers are more risky than ever. The DOJ’s Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division, Makan Delrahim, stated on January 19 that the division has criminal cases...more