FDD Items 3 & 4 · 2023 filing
Homewood Suites by Hilton litigation history
What Homewood Suites by Hilton disclosed about lawsuits, arbitrations and bankruptcy in the 2023 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 (litigation) & 4 (bankruptcy) at a glance
What the filing discloses
- Cases disclosed
- 8
- Item 3, as counted in the filing
- Largest settlement, franchisor's own cases
- Not extracted
- Bankruptcy (Item 4)
- None
- Franchisor, parent, predecessor or officer
- Filing year
- 2023
- Disclosures cover the prior ten years
Extracted from the 2023 Franchise Disclosure Document
Item 3: litigation
2 pending: State of Nebraska (consumer protection re mandatory fees); Destin Platinum v. Hampton Inns Franchise LLC (breach of contract/termination). 6 concluded: Hilton v. Portland Hotel Ownership (settled 2022); San Pedro Inn v. Hilton (settled 2020); Kathleen Soule v. Hilton Worldwide class action (settled 2015, $178K); U.S. v. Hilton Worldwide ADA Consent Decree (expired 2015); Starwood v. Hilton (settled 2010, $75M payment); U.S. v. Hilton Hotels Corp Sherman Act (final judgment 1971)
Disclosure signals that moved the score
How this shows up in the verdict
- Multiple active litigation vectors (consumer protection, ADA compliance consent decrees, breach of contract suits) indicate systemic operational/legal vulnerabilities
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?