Are Cicis franchisees allowed to acquire any interest in the Confidential Information beyond using it to operate the Restaurant?
Cicis Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
You and your owners will not acquire any interest in the Confidential Information other than the right to use it in operating the Restaurant. You must maintain the absolute confidentiality of the Confidential Information during and after the expiration or termination of the Franchise Agreement. You and your Owners, your employees and independent contractors must adopt and implement reasonable procedures to prevent unauthorized use or disclosure of the Confidential Information. You and your owners can divulge this Confidential Information only to individuals or entities specifically authorized by us in advance, or to your employees or contractors who must have access to it to operate the Restaurant, however, such individuals or entities must be under a duty of confidentiality no less restrictive than your obligations to us under the Franchise Agreement. We may require you to have your employees and contractors execute individual undertakings and shall have the right to regulate the form of and be a party to or third-party beneficiary under any such agreements. Neither you nor your owners are permitted to make unauthorized copies, record or otherwise reproduce the materials or information or make them available to any unauthorized person.
Source: Item 14 — PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS, AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION (FDD pages 42–43)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Cicis's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees and their owners do not acquire any interest in the Confidential Information beyond the right to use it for operating their Cicis restaurant. Franchisees must maintain the absolute confidentiality of the Confidential Information both during and after the term of the Franchise Agreement.
Cicis requires franchisees, their owners, employees, and independent contractors to implement reasonable procedures to prevent unauthorized use or disclosure of the Confidential Information. Franchisees can only share this information with individuals or entities specifically authorized by Cicis in advance, or with employees or contractors who need access to it to operate the restaurant, provided these individuals are under a duty of confidentiality no less restrictive than the franchisee's obligations under the Franchise Agreement. Cicis may also require franchisees to have their employees and contractors execute individual confidentiality agreements.
Furthermore, franchisees and their owners are not allowed to make unauthorized copies, record, reproduce, or make the Confidential Information available to any unauthorized person. This ensures that Cicis retains control over its proprietary information and that franchisees only use it for the specific purpose of operating their franchised restaurant.