Contributed by Kevin M. Granahan and Christopher J. Pippett The Corporate Transparency Act’s (CTA) reporting requirements are officially back in force, requiring non-exempt entities to disclose beneficial ownership information (BOI). This week, a Texas federal court lifted the last remaining nationwide injunction that had blocked enforcement of these rules. As a result, most reporting companies must file their BOI reports by March 21, 2025. What Changed?The U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) had repeatedly extended some of the law’s filing deadlines due to…More

Contributed by Ari N. Stern, Esq. January officially starts the “Franchise Disclosure Document (“FDD”) Update Season”.  And for franchise lawyers that focus on representing franchisors in the development of FDDs and related tasks, it is arguably the most wonderful (and busiest) time of the year.   Under the Federal Trade Commission – Franchise Rule (the “Franchise Rule”), namely the directive found at 16 C.F.R. § 436.7(a), a franchisor must update its FDD within one-hundred and twenty (120) days of the conclusion of…More

Key Takeaway: A Texas federal judge issued a nationwide injunction, but it was stayed by an appeals court. Now that stay has been lifted — so the injunction is in force again. As the year-end filing deadline approached for the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), we’ve seen a dizzying series of court rulings that put a freeze on any enforcement of the law with a preliminary injunction, then stayed that injunction and, most recently, vacated the stay order, putting the injunction…More

Key Takeaway: In response to the stay order, the government extended the January 1st filing deadline to January 13, 2025. An appellate panel has stayed the nationwide injunction issued by a federal judge in Texas that halted enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA).  Hours later, the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) posted an alert on its website that said it would extend some of the law’s filing deadlines because the government “recognizes that reporting companies may need additional time to comply given the period when…More

If you own or operate a franchised restaurant, or are a franchisor of franchised restaurants, simply keeping your business operating smoothly is a lot of work. Food ordering, managing schedules and greeting guests, just name a few daily tasks, take time and effort. It’s easy for recordkeeping and tax planning to get placed on the metaphorical back burner. But if you’re not careful, your restaurant or other cash-intensive franchise business could easily end up on the IRS’s hot seat. They’re often…More

The Supreme Court issued a decision today in a case named Smith, et al. v. Spizzirri, et al., that has significant import for the franchise community. Many, if not the vast majority of, franchise agreements contain clauses requiring the arbitration of disputes. Franchise companies choose arbitration because they consider it to be more convenient, to yield consistent results, and to be cost effective. Despite these advantages to arbitration, there remained some significant questions regarding what happens when a party tried to…More

By now you’ve probably heard that the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) adopted a new rule severely restricting the use of non-compete agreements in the United States. You also might have heard that a number of organizations, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce have already challenged this rule in court. Below is a Client Alert written by several of my colleagues (Robert C. Nagle, Brian A. Berkley, or Josephine H. Wenson) respecting the details of the new rule and a recent…More

If you attended this year’s IFA Annual Convention in Phoenix, you heard Senator Joe Manchin strongly support and defend the franchise business model in a speech. Late on Wednesday, Senator Manchin used his vote to back up the talk. Specifically, Senator Manchin was the sole Democrat to cross the aisle and vote for a Congressional Review Act (“CRA”) measure of disapproval of the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) new joint employer rule. As we’ve noted, the new rule could hold franchisors…More

In a move welcomed by employers nationwide, a federal court judge in Texas has vacated the National Labor Relations Board’s proposed joint employer rule. Copyright: mipan / 123RF Stock Photo The decision, handed down late on March 8, 2024, by Judge J. Campbell Barker of the Eastern District of Texas, means that the more employer-friendly standard the Board implemented in the waning days of the Trump administration, which requires a showing of “immediate and direct control,” will continue to apply for the…More

On May 16, 2023, the Minnesota legislature adopted a revision to the Minnesota Statutes (§181.99) which prohibits restrictive franchise agreements commonly called “no-poach” or “non-solicitation” agreements. Specifically, this new statute bars franchisors from restricting or prohibiting a franchisee from soliciting an employee of its franchisor or a franchisee of the same franchisor. The definition of “employee” within this new section of the law is very broad and specifically includes independent contractors. The law also states that any provision contained within an…More