Does Counselor Realty grant franchisees the right to use any items covered by a copyright?
Counselor_Realty Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Counselor does not grant you the right to use any item covered by a patent or copyright, but does permit you to use proprietary information in applicable components of the Franchise Policy Guidelines. Although Counselor has not applied for federal copyright registration of the Franchise Policy Guidelines or its individual components, the information in the entire Franchise Policy Guidelines is proprietary and Counselor owns the copyright in the entire Franchise Policy Guidelines, and in various advertising and sales promotion materials, and customer convenience and other materials, used in connection with your Office.
Source: Item 14 — PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION (FDD page 24)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Counselor Realty FDD, Counselor Realty does not grant franchisees the right to use any items covered by a patent or copyright. However, Counselor Realty does permit franchisees to use proprietary information found in applicable components of the Franchise Policy Guidelines.
Although Counselor Realty has not applied for federal copyright registration of the Franchise Policy Guidelines or its individual components, the information within the entire Franchise Policy Guidelines is considered proprietary. Counselor Realty owns the copyright to the entire Franchise Policy Guidelines, as well as various advertising and sales promotion materials, and customer convenience and other materials used in connection with the franchisee's office.
In practical terms, this means that while franchisees can utilize the proprietary information within the Franchise Policy Guidelines, they do not receive explicit rights to use copyrighted materials. Franchisees must adhere to Counselor Realty's brand standards and image when using advertising programs, materials, and media, and Counselor Realty retains the right to review and approve these materials. This ensures that the brand's intellectual property is protected and consistently represented across all franchise locations.