Under the Jersey Mikes franchise agreement, what is the franchisee's obligation regarding confidentiality agreements for their employees who have access to confidential information?
Jersey_Mikes Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
Franchisee any right to any copyright or patent which Franchisor now owns or may own in the future.
- 8.2 Franchisee shall divulge Franchisor's confidential information only to such of its employees as must have access to it in order to operate the Franchised Restaurant. Any and all information, knowledge and know-how, including, without limitation, drawings, materials, equipment, techniques, restaurant systems,
product formulae, recipes and other data (including customer data), used in connection with the Franchised Restaurant shall be deemed confidential for purposes of this Agreement, except information which Franchisee can demonstrate came to its attention in a lawful manner prior to disclosure by Franchisor; or which, at the time of disclosure by Franchisor to Franchisee, had become part of the public domain, through publication or communication by others, so long as such disclosure was not caused by Franchisee. Franchisee acknowledges that Franchisor is the sole owner of all confidential information, as provided in this Agreement.
8.3 Due to the special and unique nature of the confidential information, and the Manual, Franchisee hereby agrees and acknowledges that Franchisor shall be entitled to immediate equitable remedies, including but not limited to, restraining orders, protective orders and permanent injunctive relief in order to safeguard such proprietary, confidential, unique, and special information of Franchisor and that money damages alone would be an insufficient remedy with which to compensate Franchisor for any breach of the terms of Sections 6, 7 and 8 of this Agreement. F urthermore, Franchisee agrees that all employees of Franchisee having access to the confidential and proprietary information, agreements or other proprietary information of Franchisor shall be required to execute confidentiality agreements containing confidential information provisions no less stringent than those contained herein, provided that Franchisee is s olely responsible for ensuring that such agreements comply with and are enforceable under applicable laws.
9.
Source: Item 22 — CONTRACTS (FDD page 77)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to the 2025 Jersey Mikes Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are obligated to divulge confidential information only to employees who require access to it for operating the franchised restaurant. The franchisee must ensure the confidentiality of proprietary information both during and after the franchise term. This includes maintaining the absolute confidentiality of information such as methods of preparing sandwiches, food product specifications, product formulas, standards, and restaurant operating procedures.
The Jersey Mikes franchise agreement specifies that the franchisee's knowledge of restaurant operations is derived from information disclosed by the franchisor, and certain information is proprietary, confidential, and considered a trade secret. Franchisees are prohibited from using this information in any other business or manner not explicitly authorized by Jersey Mikes.
This obligation extends to the Developer as well, who must maintain the absolute confidentiality of all proprietary information disclosed by Jersey Mikes during and after the term of the franchise. The Developer can only share confidential information with employees who need it to operate the Developer's Business. This includes information like drawings, materials, equipment, techniques, restaurant systems, product formulas, recipes, and other data designated as confidential by Jersey Mikes.