11th Circuit: Franchisor’s Counsel Change Doesn’t Impact Franchisee’s Liability

Mealey's (September 18, 2019, 3:48 PM EDT) -- ATLANTA — A franchisor’s decision to select its own counsel after its franchisee’s insurer first provided counsel in a harassment lawsuit brought by a former employee did not impact the franchisee’s liability for indemnification pursuant to an unambiguous clause in the parties’ franchise agreement, an 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled in a Sept. 5 per curiam opinion vacating a trial court’s ruling and remanding for further proceedings (Aaron’s Inc. v. MKW Investments, Inc., et al., No. 18-13666, 11th Cir., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 26751)....