LJN Newsletters

This two-part series looks at the law governing a franchisor's ability to effectuate broadscale changes to its network. Part Two herein examines franchise network change triggered by an acquisition of the franchisor.

The common law has been displaced now in several jurisdictions where the courts are deviating from the common law rule in commercial leases and toward the imposition of an affirmative duty upon commercial landlords to undertake repairs to leased premises.

Both landlords and tenants need to be aware of applicable state law concerning a landlord's duty to mitigate when negotiating the default provisions of a commercial lease. A look at three separate jurisdictions.

Who's going where; who's doing what.

Subcontractors are the most vulnerable and exposed parties in the contractual chain, more likely to be blindsided by a bankruptcy filing.

A common belief among bankruptcy practitioners has been that disputed matters invariably sound in equity, thus posing very little danger that an attorney would ever encounter a jury. But juries can appear where one least expects them.

Investors deceived by a Ponzi scheme typically suffer two blows. First, they learn that they may recover only a fraction of their investment ... and second, they are also likely to be sued in so-called "claw-back" lawsuits.

While there sometimes is nothing that can be done about a dishonest plaintiff other than to attack his/her credibility in front of a jury, it is critical to ensure that all early dismissal strategies are explored before reaching the dispositive motion stage of case.