Constructive Franchise Termination Claim Upheld by Florida Court: HRCC, LTD. v. HARD ROCK CAFE INTERNATIONAL (USA), INC, 2015 WL 3498610 (June 2015): The Florida federal court ruled that a de facto or constructive franchise termination “‘applies where one party unilaterally modifies the terms' of a contractual relationship in a manner that ‘substantially interferes with the other party's ability to obtain the benefits of the contract.’“ Bert Smith Oldsmobile, Inc. v. Gen. Motors Corp., No. 8:04CV2666T–27EAJ, 2005 WL 1210993, at *2 (M.D.Fla. May 20, 2005) (quoting Banc One Fin. Servs., Inc. v. Advanta Mortgage Corp. USA, No. 00 C 8027, 2002 WL 88154, at *10 (N.D.Ill. Jan.23, 2002)). In so holding, the Court rejected the franchisor’s argument that: Defendants claim that a cause of action for constructive termination requires an express or implied mandate via legislation which governs the relevant franchise relationship. See Cooper Distrib. Co., Inc. v. Amana Refrigeration, Inc., 180 F.3d 542, 553 (3d Cir.1999); Petereit v. S.B. Thomas, Inc., 63 F.3d 1169, 1182 (2d Cir.1995) (requiring the controlling state law to endorse a constructive termination cause of action), cert. denied 517 U.S. 1119 (1996). For a more complete discussion of franchise termination in general see: /wrongful-franchise-terminations/
Aug 2, 2015 - Blog by Jeffrey M. Goldstein |
