The process is called "due diligence" and requires several areas of
investigation. The approach depends on whether you are buying the
exclusive rights to sell/license other franchises within the US,
whether you would be the first franchisee in the US, or whether there
are other franchisees in the US (including your state and other
states).
The US Patent and Trademark Office records need to be searched for all
the trademarks used in connection with the franschise. Some state
records should also be checked for those states where franschises may
have previously been granted (state trademarks, assumed names, and
corporate names). An attorney specializing in trademark or franchise
law could search the USPTO and state databases in one comprehensive
search. The attorney will also research any ownership,
continuity-of-use, intent-to-use, and conflicting use issues that
appear regarding the trademarks.
If you contact law firms to find attorneys specializing in franchise
law, take note that some attorneys/firms specialize in representing
just franchisors or franchisees.
If it appears the franchisor has appropriate trademark ownership
rights to support the franchise, the next areas of inquiry are whether
the franchisor has: (1) filed appropriate registrations within the US
to act legally as a domestic or foreign corporation, (2) domestic
representatives and contacts for purposes of serving process, (3)
suitable know-how and infrastructure to support the duties of a
franchisor in this particular business area (supplying products,
training, advertising, etc.)
If the franchisor appears to be a bona fide operation, the franchise
documentation must be reviewed in detail. Preparing franschise
documentation is complex and expensive, and it must be reviewd with
great attention to detail by someone who specializes in this area.
There are many pitfalls, and te documentation can seem very one-sided.
Good luck. |
