Does the Bonchon confidentiality agreement extend beyond the term of my association with the franchisee or franchisor?
Bonchon Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
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[Signature page follows.]
| Principal’s Name and Address | Position Held in Entity | Ownership % | |---|---|---| | | | |
EXHIBIT E TO BONCHON FRANCHISE AGREEMENT CONFIDENTIALITY/NON-COMPETITION AGREEMENT
CONFIDENTIALITY/NON-COMPETITION AGREEMENT
| | are characterized by, | |---|---| | among other things, the preparation of a variety of products under one or more brands in a common | | | venue and the sale and delivery of such products principally or exclusively for consumption off | | | premises through pick up and/or approved third party delivery service providers | | I agree that during the term of my employment by, ownership participation in, association with or service to Franchisee, or at any time thereafter, I will not communicate, divulge or use for the benefit of any other person, persons, partnership, proprietorship, association, corporation or entity any confidential information, knowledge or know-how concerning the systems of operation, services, products, clients or practices of Franchisee and/or Franchisor which may be communicated to me ("Confidential Information"), and I will not divert any business to competitors of Franchisee and/or Franchisor.
Any and all information, knowledge, know-how, techniques and information which the entities mentioned above or their officers designate as confidential will be Confidential Information for the purposes of this Agreement, except information which I can demonstrate came to my attention before disclosure or which had become or becomes a part of the public domain through publication or communication by others (unless the publication or communication is in violation of a similar confidentiality agreement), but in no event through any act of mine.
I specifically understand that, without limitation, the following constitute Confidential Information of Franchisor: all products, services, equipment, technologies and procedures relating to ; all systems of operation, services, programs, products, procedures, policies, standards, techniques, specifications and criteria which now comprise or in the future may comprise a part of the System; Franchisor's Confidential Operating Manual (as same may be amended from time to time); Supplements and/or amendments to the Manual; records pertaining to customers or billings; methods of advertising and promotion; customers; instructional materials; staff composition and organization systems; quality assurance programs; supervision systems; recommended services; recordkeeping systems and materials; bookkeeping systems and materials; business forms; product and service order forms; general operations materials; revenue reports; standards of interior and exterior design and decor; activity schedules; job descriptions; advertising, promotional and public relations materials/campaigns/guidelines/philosophy; specifications, systems, standards, techniques, philosophies and materials, guidelines, policies and procedures concerning the System; additions to, deletions from, and modifications and variations of the components constituting the System or the systems and methods of operations which are now, or may in the future, be employed by Franchisor, including all standards and specifications relating thereto and the means and manner of offering and selling same; and, all other components, specifications, standards, requirements and duties imposed by Franchisor or its Affiliates.
I will at no time copy, duplicate, record or otherwise reproduce any of the Confidential Information or material containing it, in whole or in part, store them in a computer retrieval or data base, nor otherwise make them available to any unauthorized person.
Source: Item 23 — RECEIPTS (FDD pages 92–536)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Bonchon's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, the confidentiality agreement extends beyond the term of association with the franchisee or franchisor. The agreement states that during the term of employment, ownership participation, association, or service to the franchisee, or at any time thereafter, the individual will not communicate, divulge, or use confidential information for the benefit of any other entity. This includes information concerning the systems of operation, services, products, clients, or practices of the franchisee and/or Bonchon.
This means that even after the franchise agreement expires or terminates, the franchisee is still obligated to maintain the confidentiality of Bonchon's proprietary information. This obligation is designed to protect Bonchon's competitive advantage and trade secrets. The agreement also specifies that upon termination of employment, association, service, or ownership participation, all confidential information or material containing it must be returned to Bonchon or the franchisee.
Bonchon emphasizes the importance of this confidentiality by stating that violation of these restrictions would result in immediate and irreparable injury to Bonchon and the franchisee. As a result, Bonchon or the franchisee can seek an injunction to prevent any conduct that violates the terms of the confidentiality agreement. The franchisee also agrees to cover all costs and expenses, including attorney's fees, incurred by Bonchon in enforcing these restrictions. This highlights the serious consequences of breaching the confidentiality agreement and the measures Bonchon is willing to take to protect its confidential information.
In Washington state, the FDD notes that non-parties to the Franchise Agreement are only bound to the confidentiality provisions if they execute such Confidentiality Agreement themselves.