What must a Fly Fitness franchisee do if they discover that confidential information has been divulged?
Fly_Fitness Franchise · 2024 FDDAnswer from 2024 FDD Document
- 14.8.
Claims.
Franchisee shall notify Franchisor immediately via both email and telephone, of any apparent infringement of or challenge to Franchisee's use of any Intellectual Property and of any claim by any person of any rights in any Intellectual Property.
Franchisee shall not communicate with any person other than Franchisor or any designated affiliate thereof, their counsel and Franchisee's counsel in connection with any such infringement, challenge, or claim.
Franchisor shall have complete discretion to take such action as it deems appropriate in connection with the foregoing, and the right to control exclusively, or to delegate control to any of its affiliates of, any settlement, litigation or other proceeding arising out of any such alleged infringement, challenge or claim or otherwise relating to any Intellectual Property.
Franchisee agrees to execute any and all instruments and documents, render such assistance, and do such acts or things as may, in the opinion of Franchisor, reasonably be necessary or advisable to protect and maintain the interests of Franchisor or any other person or entity in any litigation or other proceeding or to otherwise protect and maintain the inte
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD pages 44–45)
What This Means (2024 FDD)
According to Fly Fitness's 2024 Franchise Disclosure Document, if a franchisee discovers any apparent infringement or challenge to the use of any intellectual property, they must immediately notify Fly Fitness via both email and telephone. The franchisee is also prohibited from communicating with anyone other than Fly Fitness, their designated affiliates, their counsel, and the franchisee's counsel regarding the infringement, challenge, or claim.
Fly Fitness retains complete discretion to take action it deems appropriate regarding the infringement, challenge, or claim, including the right to control any settlement, litigation, or other proceeding. This means the franchisee gives up control over legal actions related to intellectual property.
The franchisee must execute any documents, provide assistance, and perform any actions that Fly Fitness deems reasonably necessary to protect and maintain the interests of Fly Fitness or any other person or entity in any litigation or other proceeding. This clause ensures that the franchisee will cooperate fully with Fly Fitness in protecting its intellectual property rights.
This requirement is fairly standard in franchising, as the franchisor typically owns the intellectual property and needs to control its protection. A prospective Fly Fitness franchisee should understand that they must act quickly to inform Fly Fitness of any potential issues and must cooperate fully in any resulting legal actions.