“Franchises are an extremely important and vibrant component of the PEI business community,” said Honourable Mildred Dover, Attorney General. “These regulations will foster an environment of openness and fair dealing between business partners who are operating in the franchise system.”

The regulations describe the information that a franchising business must provide to anyone considering opening an outlet before a franchise agreement can be signed. Information must be given on the background of the business, including past business failures, startup costs and any ongoing fees required to operate the franchise. The prospective franchise operator must also be given a list of all similar franchise outlets the business operates in the Maritimes along with contact information for those outlets.

Franchise law is in place throughout the United States and has been recommended for adoption in all Canadian jurisdictions by the Uniform Law Conference of Canada. Alberta and Ontario have franchise laws very similar to the new PEI Franchises Act. The proposed PEI regulations are also similar to the regulations in force in Alberta and Ontario.

Once franchise regulations are approved, the new PEI Franchises Act can be brought into force.

A discussion paper and the draft regulations are available at www.gov.pe.ca/oag. Anyone wishing to receive this material in paper format should call (902) 368-4542.