Under what circumstances is a All Team franchisee allowed to disclose confidential information?
All_Team Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
FRANCHISEE shall not, during the term of this Agreement, or after termination, expiration of the Agreement or Transfer, communicate or divulge to anyone, any information or knowledge concerning the products, services, standards, procedures, techniques, sales information, profit margins, marketing procedures, expansion plans, clients, rates, fees and terms and other information or material which ATFC may designate as confidential, including the Confidential Operations Manual, nor shall FRANCHISEE disclose or divulge in whole or in part any trade secrets or operating procedures of ATFC or its affiliates, customer lists, sales and promotional information, employee lists, financial information furnished or disclosed to FRANCHISEE by ATFC and any other information with respect of ATFC, unless such information is generally known and in the public domain, and except to the extent necessary to operate the Agency ("Confidential Information"). All employees of FRANCHISEE will exercise the highest degree of diligence and make every effort to maintain the absolute confidentiality of all trade secrets and proprietary rights during and after the term of this Agreement, and shall require all supervisory personnel to execute a Confidentiality and Non-Compete Agreement in a form acceptable to ATFC.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD pages 33–34)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to All Team's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are generally prohibited from disclosing confidential information during and after the term of the franchise agreement. However, there are specific exceptions to this rule. A franchisee may disclose confidential information if it is generally known and in the public domain. Additionally, disclosure is permitted to the extent necessary to operate the All Team agency. This exception likely covers situations where sharing certain information is essential for day-to-day business activities.
All Team requires that all employees of the franchisee maintain the confidentiality of trade secrets and proprietary rights, both during and after their employment. Supervisory personnel must also sign a Confidentiality and Non-Compete Agreement. This highlights the importance All Team places on protecting its confidential information and trade secrets, extending the obligation beyond just the franchisee to their employees.
The definition of "Confidential Information" is broad, encompassing products, services, standards, procedures, techniques, sales information, profit margins, marketing procedures, expansion plans, clients, rates, fees, terms, the Confidential Operations Manual, trade secrets, operating procedures, customer lists, sales and promotional information, employee lists, and financial information. This extensive list means franchisees must be extremely careful about what information they share with anyone outside of their direct employees and approved vendors, to the extent necessary to operate the agency.