What happens if a provision of the agreement is declared invalid regarding the Chatime franchise?
Chatime Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
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- Severability. If any provision of this Agreement or any part thereof is declared invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, such act shall not affect the validity of this Agreement and the remainder of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect according to the terms of the remaining provisions or part of provisions hereof.
Source: Item 23 — Receipts (FDD pages 58–262)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Chatime's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, if a provision within the franchise agreement is deemed invalid by a court, the remainder of the agreement will remain in effect. Specifically, the portion of the agreement that is still valid will continue to be enforced. This is known as a severability clause, and it is a fairly standard provision in franchise agreements.
For a prospective Chatime franchisee, this means that if a specific clause is found to be unenforceable, it won't necessarily void the entire agreement. The rest of the contract remains binding. This provides a level of security and predictability for both the franchisee and Chatime, as it prevents the entire agreement from being thrown out due to a single issue.
However, franchisees should be aware of amendments to the franchise agreement that may supersede the severability clause based on specific state laws. For example, the Illinois Amendment states that certain provisions that conflict with the Illinois Franchise Disclosure Act are void. Similarly, the New York Amendment ensures that franchisees retain rights under New York's General Business Law, regardless of the agreement's general choice of law. Therefore, it is important to understand how state-specific amendments might impact the enforceability of the franchise agreement in your particular location.