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Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes—Franchising) Regulation 2014
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Department of the Treasury
This item is authorised by the following title:
Competition and Consumer Act 2010
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F2022C01111 (C09)
11 November 2022
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1 Name
3 Authority
4 Code of conduct
4A Functions of Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman relating to Franchising Code of Conduct
5 Transitional—clause 8
Collapse
Schedule 1—Franchising Code of Conduct
Part 1—Introduction
Division 1—Preliminary
1 Name of code
2 Purpose of code
3 Application
3A Code does not apply in relation to franchise agreement that forms part of arrangements relating to certain co operatives or mutual entities
Division 2—Definitions
4 Definitions
5 Meaning of franchise agreement
Division 2A—Amount of civil penalty for certain contraventions by bodies corporate
5A Amount of civil penalty for certain contraventions by bodies corporate
Division 3—Obligation to act in good faith
6 Obligation to act in good faith
Part 2—Disclosure requirements before entry into a franchise agreement
Division 1—Application
7 Application of Part—master franchisors
Division 2—Disclosure document
8 Franchisor must maintain a disclosure document
9 Franchisor to give documents to a franchisee or prospective franchisee
9A Key facts sheet
10 Franchisee or prospective franchisee to give advice to franchisor before entering into franchise agreement
Division 3—Information statement
11 Franchisor to give information statement to prospective franchisee
Part 3—Franchise agreements
Division 1—Application
12 Application of Part—master franchisors
Division 2—Franchisor’s obligations
Subdivision A—Disclosure obligations
13 Copy of lease etc.
14 Copy of other agreements
15 Financial statements for marketing funds and other cooperative funds administered by or for franchisor or master franchisor
16 Franchisee may request copy of disclosure document
17 Disclosure of materially relevant facts
Subdivision B—Notification obligations (other than for new vehicle dealership agreements)
17A Application of Subdivision
18 End of term arrangements
Subdivision C—Record keeping obligations
19 Keeping certain information and documents
Division 3—Terms of franchise agreement
19A Franchisor’s legal costs relating to franchise agreement
20 Prohibition on release from liability etc.
21 Jurisdiction for settling disputes
22 Costs of settling disputes
23 Effect of restraint of trade clause if franchise agreement not extended
Division 4—Transfer of franchise agreement
24 Request for franchisor’s consent to transfer
25 Franchisor’s consent to transfer
Division 5—Termination of franchise agreement
26 Termination—cooling off after entering into new franchise agreement
26A Termination—cooling off after transferring franchise agreement
26B Franchisee may propose termination at any time
27 Termination—breach by franchisee
28 Termination—no breach by franchisee
29 Notice of termination by franchisor on particular grounds
Division 6—Miscellaneous
30 Significant capital expenditure not to be required
30A Information and discussion about capital expenditure
31 Payments to and from marketing funds
31A Franchisor not to vary franchise agreement retrospectively and unilaterally
32 Disclosure of former franchisee details
33 Association of franchisees or prospective franchisees
Part 4—Resolving disputes
Division 1—General
34 Internal complaint handling procedure
35 Resolving disputes
36 When a party is taken to be trying to resolve a dispute
37 Right to bring proceedings unaffected
Division 3—Code complaint handling procedure
Subdivision A—Notification of dispute
40A Notification of dispute
40B Similar disputes between 2 or more franchisees and one franchisor
Subdivision B—ADR process
41A ADR process
41B Termination of ADR process
41C Costs of ADR process
Subdivision C—Arbitration
43A Arbitration by agreement for dispute resolution
43B Arbitration procedure
43C Termination of arbitration
43D Costs of arbitration
Subdivision D—Confidentiality
44A Confidentiality requirements
Part 5—New vehicle dealership agreements
Division 1—Preliminary
46 Application of Part
Division 1A—Terms of agreement
46A Franchise agreement must provide for compensation for early termination
46B Franchise agreement must provide reasonable opportunity for return on franchisee’s investment
Division 2—End of term obligations
47 Notification obligation—franchisor
48 Notification obligation—franchisee
49 Obligation to manage winding down of agreement
Division 4—Resolving disputes
52 Franchisees may request multi franchisee dispute resolution
Part 5A—Franchise Disclosure Register
Division 1—Establishment and content
53 Establishment of Register
53A Contents of Register
53B Secretary may correct clerical errors and remove, update and replace certain information and documents
Division 2—Obligation to provide information for inclusion in the Register
53C Initial obligation to provide information for inclusion in Register—franchisors that give a disclosure document on or before 31 October 2022
53D Initial obligation to provide information for inclusion in Register—other franchisors
53E Obligation to annually update or confirm information included in Register
Division 3—Redacting certain information from documents
53F Redacting certain information from documents
Division 4—Giving of information by agents
53G Agents may provide or give information
Division 5—Other matters
53H Delegations by Secretary
53J Review of this Part
Part 6—Application, saving and transitional provisions
Division 1—Amendments made by the Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes—Franchising) Amendment (New Vehicle Dealership Agreements) Regulations 2020
54 Definitions
55 End of term obligations
56 Capital expenditure
57 Resolving disputes
58 Review of amendments
Division 2—Amendments made by the Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes—Franchising) Amendment (Fairness in Franchising) Regulations 2021
59 Definitions
60 Application of amendments relating to dispute resolution
61 Application of provisions about leasing or other occupation of premises
62 Application of provisions about marketing funds and other cooperative funds
63 Application of provisions about franchisor’s legal costs
64 Application of amendment relating to restraint of trade
65 Application of provisions about termination
66 Application of provisions about capital expenditure
67 Application of provisions about retrospective variation of franchise agreements by franchisors
68 Application of amendments about new vehicle dealership agreements
69 Application of amendments of Annexure 1 of Schedule 1 (about disclosure documents)
Division 3—Amendments made by the Treasury Laws Amendment (Corporate Insolvency Reforms Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2021
70 Application of amendment to clause 17 (disclosure of materially relevant facts)
Division 4—Amendments made by the Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes—Franchising) Amendment (Penalties and Other Matters) Regulations 2022
71 Application of amendments relating to penalties
Division 5—Amendments made by the Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes—Franchising) Amendment (Additional Information) Regulations 2022
72 Application of amendments
Annexure 1—Disclosure document for franchisee or prospective franchisee
1 First page
2 Franchisor details
3 Business experience
4 Litigation
5 Payments to agents
6 Existing franchises
7 Master franchises
8 Intellectual property
9 Franchise site or territory
10 Supply of goods or services to a franchisee
11 Supply of goods or services by a franchisee
12 Supply of goods or services—online sales
13 Sites or territories
14 Other payments
15 Marketing fund or other cooperative funds
16 Financing
17 Unilateral variation of franchise agreement
17A Arbitration of disputes
17B Ways of ending the franchise agreement early
18 Term of agreement and arrangements to apply at the end of the franchise agreement
19 Amendment of franchise agreement on transfer of franchise
20 Earnings information
21 Financial details
22 Updates
23 Receipt
Endnotes
Endnote 1—About the endnotes
Endnote 2—Abbreviation key
Endnote 3—Legislation history
Endnote 4—Amendment history