What happens if a court finds a provision of the All Team General Release invalid?
All_Team Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
If any provision of this General Release is found or declared invalid or unenforceable by any arbitrator, court or other competent authority having jurisdiction, such finding or declaration shall not invalidate any other provision hereof and this General Release shall thereafter continue in full force and effect except that such invalid or unenforceable provision, and (if necessary) other provisions hereof, shall be reformed by such arbitrator, court or other competent authority so as to effect insofar as is practicable, the intention of the parties set forth in this General Release, provided that if such arbitrator, court or other competent authority is unable or unwilling to effect such reformation, the invalid or unenforceable provision shall be deemed deleted to the same extent as if it had never existed.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD pages 33–34)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to All Team's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, if a court or arbitrator finds any provision of the General Release to be invalid or unenforceable, the finding will not invalidate the remaining provisions. Instead, the General Release will remain in effect, with the invalid or unenforceable provision reformed to align with the parties' original intentions as much as possible. This reformation will be carried out by the arbitrator, court, or competent authority.
However, if the arbitrator, court, or other authority is unable or unwilling to reform the provision, it will be considered deleted from the General Release, as if it never existed. This ensures that the rest of the agreement remains valid and enforceable, even if one part is deemed invalid.
This clause is fairly standard in franchise agreements. It is intended to preserve the overall agreement as much as possible, rather than having the entire agreement thrown out due to a single problematic clause. Prospective All Team franchisees should understand that this clause aims to maintain the integrity of the General Release, even if certain provisions are challenged and found to be invalid.