What is Del Taco's position on the ownership of the manuals and related materials?
Del_Taco Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
We claim copyright protection in our Manuals and related materials, although we have not registered those copyrights with the United State Copyright Office. We consider the Manuals and related materials confidential, proprietary and our property. You may use them only in the operation of your Restaurant as provided in the Franchise Agreement. You may not use our confidential and proprietary information in any unauthorized manner and must take reasonable steps to prevent its disclosure to others. Your right to use those materials continues as long as the Franchise Agreement remains in effect.
Source: Item 14 — PATENTS, COPYRIGHTS AND PROPRIETARY INFORMATION (FDD pages 41–42)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Del Taco's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, Del Taco retains ownership of its manuals and related materials. The FDD specifies that Del Taco claims copyright protection in its manuals and related materials, considering them confidential, proprietary, and the company's property. Franchisees are permitted to use these materials only for operating their Del Taco restaurant as outlined in the Franchise Agreement.
Franchisees must take reasonable steps to prevent the disclosure of the confidential and proprietary information contained within these manuals to others. The right to use these materials is contingent upon the Franchise Agreement remaining in effect. Franchisees are obligated to treat the manuals and the information within them as confidential, using their best efforts to keep the information secret and protect it from unauthorized viewing.
Furthermore, franchisees are prohibited from copying, duplicating, recording, or reproducing the manuals in any way, either in whole or in part, or making them available to any unauthorized person. The manuals must be kept in a secure place on the restaurant premises and maintained in a current and up-to-date state. In the event of any dispute regarding the contents of the manuals, the master copy maintained by Del Taco at its home office will be controlling. Del Taco retains the right to revise the contents of the manuals from time to time, and franchisees must comply with each new or changed standard immediately upon receipt of such revision.