SCJ Decision by Justice Belobaba held that a franchisee who consented to the delivery of an otherwise compliant (agreed by the parties) Disclosure Document by e-mail rather than by registered mail or personal delivery could not rescind the franchise agreement pursuant to Subsection 6(2) of the Wishart Act.  

Justice Belobaba viewed the delivery of the Disclosure Document by e-mail as a minor breach of the Wishart Act following the decision of the OCA in Imvescor.  Howard Manis, David Gray, and Mauro Carabetta of Macdonald Sager Manis LLP acted for the franchisor.

Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only and should not be considered as legal advice.  It is strongly recommended that any prospective entrepreneur consult a lawyer in order to make informed decisions that could involve legal matters.

The franchise business model has become entrenched as a way of doing business across Canada in recent years and is being applied to new businesses and industries with great success, including hotels, fitness centers, gas stations, cleaning services, coffee shops and a wide variety of retail stores.  One of the strengths of the franchise model is that it can be applied to such a wide variety of businesses, so long as their operations can be replicated.

Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only and should not be considered as legal advice.  It is strongly recommended that any prospective entrepreneur consult a lawyer in order to make informed decisions that could involve legal matters.

The following are some preliminary issues that must be considered by entities not resident in Ontario and Canada ("Non-Residents") when contemplating "doing business in Ontario."

Non-Residents will often facilitate their investment in Ontario by using their existing non-resident business to establish a "branch" of the foreign-owned parent organization in Ontario. Conversely, the Non-Resident may decide to create a new business corpo

Disclaimer:
This article is for information purposes only and should not be considered as legal advice.  It is strongly recommended that any prospective entrepreneur consult a lawyer in order to make informed decisions that could involve legal matters.

There are two main components to a franchised business: the franchise relationship and the underlying business.  The interplay of these components becomes apparent when a person is faced with choosing to purchase a new franchise directly from the franchisor or to purchase an existing franchise from a franchisee. This article will briefly examine the differences of each option by highlighting the basic steps of a typical transaction.

Disclaimer:
This article is for information purposes only and should not be considered as legal advice.  It is strongly recommended that any prospective entrepreneur consult a lawyer in order to make informed decisions that could involve legal matters.

The franchise concept has grown at such a remarkable rate within a wide industry spectrum that in the present business environment almost everyone is familiar with the term “franchise” or at least has come into contact with products and services that are offered by a franchise. Currently, over 50% of all retail sales in Canada are done through a franchise, which sales represent more than $60 billion annually. Franchising has become a convenient means of individual entry into the business worl

Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only and should not be considered as legal advice.  It is strongly recommended that any prospective entrepreneur consult a lawyer in order to make informed decisions that could involve legal matters.

When starting a business, the owner of the business can obtain funds from a variety of different sources.  In general, financing can be in the form of debt financing or equity financing or a combination of both.  The different characteristics of each type of financing will be considered to achieve the right mix of debt and equity for each individual business.

Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only and should not be considered as legal advice.  It is strongly recommended that any prospective entrepreneur consult a lawyer in order to make informed decisions that could involve legal matters.

As a prospective franchisee, evaluating a franchisor may seem a daunting proposition.  It is recommended that prior to expending resources (both time and money) negotiating with a franchisor, a prospective franchisee should learn about the reputation and background of the franchisor and the results of the franchise system to date.

Discussing bankruptcy in relation to franchising almost seems counterintuitive. After all, franchising is an excellent way for a prospective entrepreneur to prevent those unfortunate circumstances because its business starts with an established brand, trademark and product from day one. Franchisors are also at an advantage because their expenses and responsibilities are distributed amongst a network of franchisees.

However, bankruptcy is a possibility in any business endeavour. As a prospective franchisee, you need to be aware of this potential obstacle, no matter how unlikely it is. This article will provide an overview of franchisors’ and franchisees’ rights and obligations in a bankruptcy scenario.