This part may be cited as the California Fair Dealership Law.
Part 2.9CALIFORNIA FAIR DEALERSHIP LAW
Section § 80
This section simply states the official name of this part of California law, which is the 'California Fair Dealership Law'.
California Fair Dealership dealership law trade regulation business relationships dealership agreements franchisees franchisors commercial law business operations retail agreements
Section § 81
This section defines the terms used in this part of the law. It explains what is meant by 'person,' which includes individuals and various types of business entities. It defines a 'dealership' as a contract or agreement where someone gets the right to sell or distribute products or use certain trademarks. A 'grantor' is the person or entity that transfers a dealership, while a 'dealer' is the one receiving it. The 'community of interest' refers to a shared financial interest in the dealership's business operations or marketing. Lastly, 'grant' covers any sale, lease, or transfer related to a dealership.
As used in this part:
(a)CA Civil Law Code § 81(a) “Person” means a natural person, partnership, joint venture, corporation, limited liability company, or other entity.
(b)CA Civil Law Code § 81(b) “Dealership” means a contract or agreement, either express or implied, whether oral or written, between two or more persons, by which a person is granted the right to sell or distribute goods or services, or to use a trade name, trademark, service mark, logotype, or advertising or other
commercial symbol, in which there is a community of interest in the business of offering, selling, or distributing goods or services at wholesale, or at retail, by lease, agreement, or otherwise.
(c)CA Civil Law Code § 81(c) “Grantor” means a person who sells, leases, or otherwise transfers a dealership.
(d)CA Civil Law Code § 81(d) “Community of interest” means a continuing financial interest between the grantor and grantee in either the operation of the dealership or the marketing of goods or services.
(e)CA Civil Law Code § 81(e) “Dealer” means a person who is a grantee of a dealership situated in this state.
(f)CA Civil Law Code § 81(f) “Grant” means a sale, lease, or transfer of any kind.
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Section § 82
This law says that the rules in this part should be understood and used in a broad way to support their main goals. First, it aims to stop discrimination in any dealership-related decisions, like granting or ending a dealership, based on certain personal characteristics. Second, the law states that you can't change these rules with a contract, and any contract trying to do so is invalid and can't be enforced.
This part shall be liberally construed and applied to promote its underlying purposes and policies, which are as follows:
(a)CA Civil Law Code § 82(a) The prohibition of discrimination based upon any characteristic listed or defined in subdivision (b) or (e) of Section 51 in the granting, sale, transfer, bequest, termination, and nonrenewal of dealerships.
(b)CA Civil Law Code § 82(b) The requirements of this part shall not be varied by contract or agreement and any portion of a
contract or agreement purporting to do so is void and unenforceable.
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Section § 83
If you’re offering dealerships starting from January 1, 1981, you can't refuse someone just because of certain personal characteristics like race, gender, religion, or similar traits listed in another part of the law.
On or after January 1, 1981, no grantor, directly or indirectly, shall refuse to grant a dealership to any person because of any characteristic listed or defined in subdivision (b) or (e) of Section 51.
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Section § 84
Starting January 1, 1981, a company (called a grantor) cannot end or decide not to renew a dealership agreement with a dealer based on certain personal characteristics mentioned in another section of the law.
On or after January 1, 1981, no grantor, directly or indirectly, may terminate, cancel, or refuse to renew a dealership agreement with a dealer because of any characteristic listed or defined in subdivision (b) or (e) of Section 51.
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Section § 85
This law protects people involved in car dealerships from being discriminated against based on certain characteristics when it comes to selling, transferring, or inheriting dealership interests. It applies to any actions taken after January 1, 1981. However, it doesn't grant any new rights to dealers to sell or transfer a dealership unless those rights were already in place before that date.
On or after January 1, 1981, no grantor or dealer, directly or indirectly, shall refuse to make or to consent to an assignment, sale, transfer, or bequest of a dealership to any person, or to the intestate succession to the dealership by any person, because of any characteristic listed or defined in subdivision (b) or (e) of Section 51. This section shall not be construed to create any right in a dealer to assign, sell, transfer, or bequeath a dealership where the right did not exist prior to January 1, 1981.
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Section § 86
If you win a lawsuit based on breaking the rules in this section, you can get back money for your lawyer's fees and court expenses.
The prevailing party in any action based on a violation of the provisions of this part shall be entitled to recover reasonable attorney’s fees and taxable court costs.
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