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FranchiseVerdict

FDD Items 3 & 4 · 2022 filing

Curves litigation history

What Curves disclosed about lawsuits, arbitrations and bankruptcy in the 2022 Franchise Disclosure Document. Item 3 lists the material legal actions a franchisor must report; Item 4 covers bankruptcy. This is the franchisor's own disclosure, not a court record, and not legal advice.

Items 3 & 4 at a glance

What the filing discloses

Cases disclosed
7
Item 3, as counted in the filing
Largest disclosed settlement
$15K
As stated in Item 3
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None
Franchisor, parent, predecessor or officer
Filing year
2022
Disclosures cover the prior ten years

Extracted from the 2022 Franchise Disclosure Document

Item 3: litigation

7 cases: 1 consumer class action (email spam, settled $15k); 1 franchisee class action (fraud/misrepresentation, settled ~$11,765/plaintiff); 1 former franchisee action (dismissed on appeal pending); 1 former franchisee breach of support claim (pending); 3 plaintiff suits by Curves NA against former franchisees for non-payment (default judgments obtained).

Disclosure signals that moved the score

How this shows up in the verdict

  • Multiple litigation patterns: class action for customer privacy violations, breach of contract suits from franchisees, and default judgments suggest systemic franchisor-franchisee relationship problems
  • Going Concern status is FALSE, signaling potential financial instability at corporate level that could impact franchisee support

The verdict grade is FranchiseVerdict's editorial assessment across SBA loan performance, unit growth, revenue and disclosure signals. It is not investment advice.

Before you weigh a lawsuit

How to read Item 3

A franchisor must disclose pending actions and any material civil action involving the franchise relationship, plus convictions or civil judgments for fraud, unfair or deceptive practices, or franchise-law violations, going back ten years. A case the franchisor brought against a franchisee counts too. Item 3 does not include every dispute: settled claims below the materiality line and matters resolved in private arbitration can be absent.

Questions worth asking current and former franchisees, using the contact list in Item 20:

  • Were you, or anyone you know in the system, party to a dispute with the franchisor?
  • Was it resolved by settlement, arbitration or a court, and on what terms?
  • Has the number of disputes gone up or down since you signed?