What actions are All Team franchisees obligated to take to demonstrate All Team's ownership or help All Team obtain intellectual property rights in an item?
All_Team Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
The Franchise Agreement also provides that all ideas, concepts, techniques, or materials concerning an Agency, whether or not protectable intellectual property and whether created by or for you or your owners or employees, must be promptly disclosed to us and will be deemed to be our sole and exclusive property, part of the System, and works made-for-hire for our entity. To the extent any item does not qualify as a "work made-for-hire" for our entity, you assign ownership of that item and all related rights to that item, to our entity and must take whatever action (including signing assignment or other documents) we request to show our ownership or help us obtain intellectual property rights in the item.
Source: Item 14 — PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION (FDD page 27)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to All Team's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees have specific obligations regarding intellectual property developed in connection with their All Team agency. All ideas, concepts, techniques, or materials related to the agency, whether or not they are protectable intellectual property, must be promptly disclosed to All Team. These creations are deemed the sole and exclusive property of All Team, considered part of the All Team system, and classified as works made-for-hire for All Team. This means All Team owns the rights to anything created related to the business.
If any item created by a franchisee or their employees does not legally qualify as a "work made-for-hire," the franchisee must assign ownership of that item and all related rights to All Team. To formalize this transfer of ownership and assist All Team in securing intellectual property rights, franchisees are required to take specific actions. These actions include signing assignment documents or any other documents that All Team requests to demonstrate their ownership or to help All Team obtain intellectual property rights in the item.
In practical terms, this means that if a franchisee develops a new training method, marketing material, or any other innovation related to the All Team business, they must hand it over to All Team. The franchisee must also cooperate fully with All Team's requests to document the transfer of ownership, which may involve legal paperwork. This ensures that All Team maintains control over its brand and system standards, while the franchisee essentially gives up any claim to intellectual property they develop for the business.