Can any arbitration proceeding be consolidated with any other arbitration proceeding involving Company and/or any other person or Entity for Angry Chickz?
Angry_Chickz Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
17.1.4 Company and Franchisee agree that arbitration shall be conducted on an individual, not a class-wide, basis, that only Company (and its Affiliates and Company and its respective owners, officers, directors, managers,
agents and employees, as applicable) and Franchisee (and its Affiliates and Franchisee and its respective owners, officers, directors, managers, agents and employees, as applicable) may be the parties to any arbitration proceeding described in this Section, and that no such arbitration proceeding shall be consolidated with any other arbitration proceeding involving Company and/or any other person or Entity. Notwithstanding the foregoing or anything to the contrary in this Section, if any court or arbitrator determines that all or any part of the preceding sentence is unenforceable with respect to a dispute that otherwise would be subject to arbitration under this Section, then Company and Franchisee agree that this arbitration clause shall not apply to that dispute and that such dispute will be resolved in a judicial proceeding in accordance with this Section 17.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 54)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Angry Chickz Franchise Disclosure Document, arbitration proceedings will be conducted on an individual basis. This means that any arbitration between Angry Chickz (including its affiliates, owners, officers, directors, managers, agents, and employees) and a franchisee (including their affiliates, owners, officers, directors, managers, agents, and employees) cannot be combined or consolidated with any other arbitration proceeding involving Angry Chickz or any other entity.
This clause ensures that each dispute is handled separately, preventing a single arbitration from becoming overly complex or involving numerous unrelated parties. It also prevents class-wide arbitrations. However, there is an exception: if a court or arbitrator determines that the prohibition on consolidation is unenforceable for a specific dispute, then the arbitration clause will not apply to that particular dispute, and it will be resolved in a judicial proceeding.
In practical terms, this means that if a franchisee has a dispute with Angry Chickz, they must pursue arbitration independently. They cannot join forces with other franchisees who have similar grievances to pursue a consolidated claim unless a court deems the prohibition of consolidation unenforceable. This arrangement is designed to streamline dispute resolution while protecting the individual interests of both the franchisor and the franchisee. Franchisees should be aware of this limitation and its potential impact on their ability to address widespread issues collectively through arbitration.