Facts
Grow With Us ran a lawn-treatment business under a franchise agreement with Green Thumb. To extend the franchise it had to meet several conditions, including accepting higher minimum performance targets or signing an agreement on Green Thumb’s current standard terms, subject to a limit on more onerous terms. A separate dispute arose when Grow With Us declined to supply customer information that Green Thumb had requested under the agreement.
Issue
Could Grow With Us insist on renewal on the basis that Green Thumb had to propose reasonable minimum performance targets? It also argued that supplying the customer information would breach the Data Protection Act 1998.
Law Teacher writing support
Writing a law essay?
We choose a writer who is an expert in your area of law and qualified to at least the academic level you select. Most of our writers hold a master’s degree or PhD, have teaching experience, or both.
Send us your question and, if you wish, any marking criteria. We’ll write an essay to your instructions.
Decision
The Court of Appeal dismissed the franchisee’s appeal. The renewal clause was enforceable on its terms. It allowed Green Thumb to propose higher targets and Grow With Us to decide whether to accept them. An implied obligation to propose reasonable targets was unnecessary to make the agreement work. The franchisee could therefore decline the terms, but could not compel a renewal on different terms.
The contractual point was enough to dispose of the appeal. Buxton LJ also rejected the franchisee’s approach to the data issue. The franchisee had the contractual duty to supply the data and had to show a legal justification for failing to do so.
Source: Full judgment
