Check whether your arrangement could be treated like a franchise

It helps to think about this as a targeted advice service rather than broad franchise support. We look at the arrangement you want checked, such as a licence, branded operator model, distribution setup or management arrangement, and assess whether its features may point toward franchise-style risk. That usually includes reviewing the documents you provide, discussing how the relationship works in practice, and giving written advice on the main issues identified. It is a one-off advice service, so ongoing representation or a full restructure project would be separate work if needed.

The short answer is that it suits businesses that have one arrangement they want tested, rather than those needing a wider audit across multiple documents or operators. It is often useful if you license a brand, provide operating systems, charge ongoing fees, or exercise a level of control over how another party runs their business. It can also help if you are expanding into multiple sites and want advice before repeating the same model. If your setup is already complex across several counterparties, a broader review may be more appropriate.

Not always in absolute terms, because the answer depends heavily on how the arrangement operates in practice as well as what the documents say. For example, a model that looks light-touch on paper can still create risk if the day-to-day reality involves strong brand control, mandatory systems, training requirements or ongoing payments. Our role is to assess the available information, explain the indicators that matter, and help you assess and reduce risk. That is different from giving a blanket assurance that no franchise issue could ever arise.

Broader work is often needed where the issue is not just one clause or one agreement, but the overall business model. For example, if you use several linked documents, provide detailed operating manuals, license trade marks, and collect recurring fees from multiple operators, a single advice session may identify issues that need follow-up drafting or structural changes. In that situation, we can help with revised agreements or wider franchise-related support under a separate scope. This page is intentionally narrower than a broader accidental franchising consult, so the fixed-fee stays tied to one-off legal advice.

After the consultation and review, you receive advice that explains the key risk points and the practical options available based on the arrangement described to us. In some matters, the next step may be small wording changes to reduce ambiguity. In others, the structure itself may need more substantial changes if the commercial model leans too heavily toward franchise characteristics. If you want us to help with amendments, a restructure, or replacement documents, that can be quoted as follow-on work. The original fixed-fee is for the advice piece itself, not the later implementation work.

Submit an enquiry on this page or click 'Get started'. One of our legal consultants will review it within 1 business day and get in touch to understand what you need.

Your consultant will then email you a fixed-fee quote setting out the cost, scope and timing. If you're happy with it, you can accept the quote and sign our engagement letter online.

Once you've accepted, one of our Australian-qualified lawyers will work with you to complete your project. They'll contact you by email or phone if they need anything.

Sprintlaw works on fixed-fee pricing wherever possible, so you can review the scope and cost before you decide whether to proceed. For the Accidental Franchising Legal Advice service, pricing starts from $900.00.

After you enquire, a legal consultant will confirm what is included, the expected timing and whether any extra work is needed before you engage us.

We work online, so we can help wherever you are in New Zealand. Our team works remotely, mainly from Australia.

Your work is done by our Australian-qualified lawyers, who hold Australian practising certificates and specialise in business law. None of them are New Zealand lawyers or hold a New Zealand practising certificate.

Sprintlaw NZ Limited is a legal consultancy, not a law firm, and is not regulated by the New Zealand Law Society. We don't act in court or tribunal matters, conveyancing (including leases and business sales) or other reserved areas of work. Communications with Sprintlaw are unlikely to be protected by legal professional privilege. We still keep everything confidential under our engagement letter.