AUSTRALIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Warren Scott, Stewart Levitt, Erik Purcell and Lachlan Speirs, ARCHER SCOTT Lawyers
ARCHER SCOTT Lawyers Level 27, 101 Collins Street Melbourne
VIC 3000 Australia Tel: +61 396 536 463
Email: info@archerscott.com.au Web: www.archerscott.com.au
1. An Introduction to Franchising 1.1 Franchise Market Overview The franchising business segment in Australia rep - resents AUD174 billion in economic activity. This includes over 1,200 franchise networks, with more than 94,000 individual franchised outlets, employing over 565,500 Australians across the country. Key brands in the Australian market include McDon - ald’s, Harvey Norman, Boost Juice, 7-Eleven, Priceline Pharmacy, Laser Clinics Australia and Jim’s Group, covering food and beverage, furniture retail, health, beauty and a range of services. 1.2 Franchise Regulation Australia is home to arguably the highest level of fran - chising regulation in the world. Over the past decade, franchising protection for fran - chisees has become highly politicised, with the Labor party and the Liberal and National parties competing to position themselves as offering the strongest pro - tections for franchisees. The Regulator The regulator of franchising in Australia is the Austral - ian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). Franchising Code The key regulatory document is the Franchising Code of Conduct, which is a regulation under the federal Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (the Act). A new version of the Franchising Code came into effect on 1 April 2025, under which new rules apply to
franchise agreements that are entered into, extended, renewed or transferred from 1 April 2025. For these agreements, new rules apply from 1 April 2025 and from 1 November 2025. Previous versions of the Code remain applicable to franchising agreements entered into before these dates, depending on their terms. Australian Consumer Law The Act also contains the Australian Consumer Law, which sets out consumer protections. While not spe - cific to franchise businesses, many provisions have application in a franchising context. Other Relevant Laws Franchisors and franchisees may have obligations under other legislation, such as: • the Fair Work Act 2009; • the Australian Securities and Investments Act 2001; • Australia’s tax laws; and • state and territory licensing schemes. Federal, State and Territory Laws Australia has both State and Territory laws, as well as federal laws, so when doing business across more than one State or Territory in Australia, it should not be assumed that there is consistency of laws. When the Franchising Code Does Not Apply All or some parts of the Franchising Code may not apply to a franchising agreement or the specific cir - cumstances, with the following examples.
11 CHAMBERS.COM
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