Franchising Lawyers in Newcastle, Sydney, Central Coast

Franchising is a specialised and unique area of law, with a number of complex regulations, which often makes taking that first step seem like a daunting task. However, with our experienced legal team working alongside you as a strategic partner, these regulations can be navigated with ease and your business can begin to grow organically.

Our Team

Gavin Hanrahan

Managing Partner

Rani Gandha

Partner

Caitlin Bowman

Senior Lawyer

Mitchell Bailey

Lawyer

Chris-Deanne Isaacs

Paralegal

Josie Simpson

Paralegal

Franchising Lawyers NSW

If you’re a business owner in NSW who is looking to expand your business by starting a franchise (franchisor) or you are a prospective buyer of a franchise outlet (franchisee), we can assist you by doing the necessary background research (due diligence), drafting all required legal documents (franchise agreements, contracts, operations manuals, etc.) and offering you expert legal advice so you can make informed business decisions.

We understand the rigorous workload that comes with running your own small-to-medium business. So much time is spent managing employee issues, complying with legal requirements and maintaining effective accounting practices that there is little time left to focus on growing your business and taking that first step often seems like an impossible prospect. This is where our franchising team can help.

We’ll take the worry and stress out of expanding your business, allowing you to focus on running it.

Contact our Business Team today to discuss your franchising matter.

The Franchising Industry in Australia

Franchising, as a business sector, has been rapidly growing in Australia over the last twenty years.

There are now over 80,000 franchised outlets across our nation who employ close to half a million Australians.

On a per capita basis, Australia is now the most widely franchised nation in the world, with three times as many franchises as the United States. 91% of all franchises are home grown and 28% have managed to expand internationally as a result of their success. It’s big business and, with our help, you can be a part of it.

How can we help you with your franchise?

Here are some of the services we offer franchisors and franchisees:

We draft all relevant documentation that is needed to franchise your business. This includes franchise agreements, disclosure documents, franchising code of conduct compliance documents, franchisee heads of agreement, operations manuals, employment contracts, commercial lease agreements and any other ancillary documentation.
We review and improve existing franchise documentation.
We advise you on the initial setup of franchise systems, including how the franchise should be structured.
We handle all issues related to commercial leasing (lease agreements, negotiation, etc).
We provide general legal support in the areas of mediation and negotiation. For example, negotiating franchise agreements with potential franchisees.
We handle all related franchise disputes and litigation claims. Common franchising disputes that we have experience in handling include misrepresentations by franchisors (earnings and profit/loss) breaches of franchise agreements, failure by franchisors to comply with disclosure agreements under the Trade Practices regulations, terminations under franchise agreements, unauthorised products being sold by franchisees and the unauthorised sale of franchises to third parties.
We ensure your intellectual property is protected and secured.
We handle sales, purchases and restructuring of franchise systems.

Why should you have a lawyer draft your franchise documents?

While there is no denying the franchising sector is exploding across Australia, it’s also important to consider the number of franchises that fail because the parties involved did not seek proper legal advice initially and did not have constant legal support along the way.

Sadly, almost a quarter of all franchise owners across Australia (22%) have had costly disputes with their parent company and most of these resulted in legal action. In addition, 1 in 10 franchisees walked away from their business due to a lack of structure and support.

It has also been estimated that almost half of all franchisees enter into franchising agreements without doing their homework; instead they make life-changing business decisions based solely on their “gut feeling”. We don’t want you to make the wrong decision and regret it down the track, which is why we urge all potential franchisors and franchisees to seek legal advice before hastily entering into an agreement.

What is the first step? What are the costs involved?

The First Step

With us, the first step is easy. We offer all potential franchisors and franchisees across NSW a free “no obligations” initial consultation to discuss the franchise in more depth and find out what steps are involved in the process, including the costs.

This initial consultation goes for 20 minutes and takes place conveniently over the phone or Skype. In this consultation our goal is to provide you with a sense of clarity about the entire franchising process, allowing you to make an informed decision about whether this is something you want to pursue further.

What happens next?

Following the initial consultation, if you decide that you want to pursue this further, we can arrange a face-to-face meeting with one of our experienced Franchise Lawyers at your place of business or any one of our four offices across NSW (Sydney, Newcastle and Central Coast). Alternatively, we can always work remotely, using a combination of email, phone and Skype.

Is there a standard franchise agreement template I can use?

Yes. Do we recommend using one? No.

Standard franchise agreement “templates” can be found online via a quick search on Google. However, these basic templates are written with generic terms and conditions that are unclear, generalised and ambiguous. If you use one of these templates, you run the risk of the agreement being unenforceable.