WHO OWNS A FRANCHISEE’S CUSTOMER LIST/ARBITRARY AND WRONGFUL TERMINATION
A RECENT DISTRIBUTOR CASE IN FEDERAL COURT IN MAINE, involved a manufacturer, DuPont, and its distributor, NES. The franchise agreement permitted DuPont to terminate the distribution agreement without cause with 60 days
notice. After DuPont and NES became embroiled in a dispute, DuPont terminated NES, even though NES had invested over the years hundreds of thousands of dollars into the business. One argument that the franchisee made was that the franchisor, DuPont, was required to act “reasonably” in terminating the distribution agreement. The court quickly and without hesitation rejected this argument stating: