Recent Court Decisions Extend Period to Rescind Franchise Agreements or "When is a Disclosure Document Not a Disclosure Document"
By: Jeffrey P. Hoffman

Recent decisions of both the Alberta and Ontario courts have clarified the circumstances as to when a disclosure document is not a "disclosure document" thus entitling a franchisee a period of two years from the date of signing to rescind the franchise agreement.

The recent decision of the Alberta Court of Appeal in Hi Hotel Limited Partnership v. Holiday Hospitality Franchising Inc., permitted a franchisee to rescind a franchise agreement within the first year of operation of its Holiday Inn franchise on the ground that the certificate to the disclosure document had not been dated or signed. The Court of Appeal held that the Alberta Franchises Act was remedial legislation intended to protect franchisee candidates to whom incomplete or inaccurate information had been provided.

For the full article, please go to:
http://www.gowlings.com/resources/enewsletters/FranchiseDistribution/HtmFiles/ V3N01_20090108a.en.html

Protecting your System in a Challenging Economy
By: Edward (Ned) Levitt

I wonder how many millions of times someone has said, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Well worn or not, that adage could not be more accurate than when managing a franchise system in this challenging economic environment.

As the financial reality for most franchisors changes when the economy softens, it is vitally important for franchisors to more frequently monitor their own financial circumstances. Some predictable changes will include diminished royalty revenues, falling revenues from corporate stores, reduced volume of franchise fees from franchise sales, increased demand for resources and support from franchisees, increased legal costs in dealing with franchise disputes and closures, growing accounting costs to monitor franchisees and a possible increase in extraordinary payments such as payments to landlords to terminate redundant leases.

For the full article, please go to:
http://www.gowlings.com/resources/enewsletters/FranchiseDistribution/HtmFiles/ V3N01_20090108b.en.html

Who, What, Where and When

• Len Polsky, Ned Levitt, Peter Snell, Jeff Hoffman and Debi Sutin have been named to the 2009 edition of Best Lawyers in Canada in the specialty of Franchise Law
• Len Polsky has been named in the 2009 edition of The International Who's Who of Business Lawyers and has been rated AV (highest rating) by Martindale Hubbell
• In October, Ned Levitt, Debi Sutin and Jeff Hoffman participated in the Ontario Bar Association's 8^th Annual Franchise Law Conference. Jeff Hoffman co-chaired the conference while Ned Levitt presented his paper "Surviving and Thriving in Tougher Economic Times - The Solicitor's Perspective" at a panel session moderated by Debi Sutin
• Ned Levitt and Peter Snell attended the International Franchise Association Expo/Symposium in Los Angeles this past November where Ned Levitt spoke on "Expanding Your Franchise System to Canada"
• Ned Levitt, Len Polsky and Peter Snell will be attending the International Franchise Association Annual Convention in February, 2009. Len will facilitate a Business Solutions Roundtable on Terminating International Agreements and Peter will host a Roundtable on Franchising in Canada
• Len Polsky has been appointed an Associate Editor of The International Journal of Franchising Law, and a member of the Advisory Board of the Franchise and Distribution Law College
• Ned Levitt's article "Why Franchise Your Business" was published in the October/November 2008 edition of Canadian Opportunities Magazine
• Len Polsky's article "Maintaining the Franchisor's Identity in a Combination or Fractional Franchise Arrangement - Case Comment Mars Canada Inc. v. M&M Meat Shops Ltd." was published in The Franchise and Distribution Journal and his article "Termination of Master Franchise Agreements and the Consequences", will be published in The International Journal of Franchising Law