Does the Canine Dimensions agreement change the at-will employment status of the employee?
Canine_Dimensions Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
A. ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION
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- Employee acknowledges and agrees that Employer is engaged in a highly competitive business and that Employer and Franchisor (as defined below) possess trade secrets, confidential and proprietary information (the "Confidential Information") which have been acquired, developed and maintained at considerable cost to Employer and Franchisor, which is not generally known outside the companies, and which, if disclosed to a competitor, would be harmful to Employer and/or Franchisor. For the purposes of this Agreement, "Franchisor" shall be defined to include Canine Dimensions Franchising, LLC, whose principal place of business is 23208 Sanabria Loop, Bonita Springs, Florida 34135. This Confidential Information includes, but is not limited to the following:
- a. price lists and marketing plans and strategies;
- b. proprietary computer software functions, capabilities, code, manuals, fixes, work arounds, revision plans, etc.;
- c. customer lists, customer identities, customer contacts and customer preferences (including identities and plans for approaching potential customers);
- d. any and all information contained in the Confidential Manual;
- e. all forms, instructions, processes, procedures, graphics, pictures, diagrams associated with operation of the Franchised Business;
- f. suppliers and vendors of Franchisor.
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- Employee understands and acknowledges that during the course of his employment by the Employer he has learned of, will learn of (and may develop), and has and will have access to Confidential Information of the Employer and Franchisor in order to properly and effectively discharge his duties.
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- Employee hereby agrees that at all times, both during Employee's employment and after the termination thereof (for whatever reason, and whether voluntary or not), Employee will maintain the secrecy and confidentiality of the Confidential Information and that he will not reveal, disclose, divulge or make known to any person or entity, or copy or use for his own account, any of the Confidential Information as defined above.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 36)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
Based on the 2025 Canine Dimensions Franchise Disclosure Document, there is no information provided that explicitly states whether the franchise agreement alters the at-will employment status of an employee. However, the document does include a section regarding an employee's acknowledgment of confidential information.
The agreement states that the employee acknowledges that the employer (the franchisee) and Canine Dimensions possess trade secrets and confidential information developed at considerable cost. The employee agrees to maintain the secrecy and confidentiality of this information during and after their employment, regardless of the reason for termination. This suggests that while the FDD doesn't directly address at-will employment, it emphasizes the importance of protecting confidential information, which is a common practice in franchising to safeguard the brand's competitive advantage.
Because the Canine Dimensions FDD does not specify whether the agreement changes the at-will employment status of the employee, it is important for a prospective franchisee to ask the franchisor about the at-will employment status.