FDD Items 3 & 4 · 2025 filing
L & L Hawaiian Barbecue litigation history
What L & L Hawaiian Barbecue disclosed about lawsuits, arbitrations and bankruptcy in the 2025 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
- 3
- Item 3, as counted in the filing
- Largest settlement, franchisor's own cases
- None stated
- Bankruptcy (Item 4)
- None
- Franchisor, parent, predecessor or officer
- Filing year
- 2025
- Disclosures cover the prior ten years
Extracted from the 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document
Item 3: litigation
Three prior arbitration actions, all filed by L & L Franchise Inc. as plaintiff against franchisees for underpayment of fees, false sales reporting, and breach of franchise agreements; awards issued in favor of franchisor in all three cases.
Item 3 (litigation) · 3 matters disclosed
Litigation cases
The franchisor
Concluded (3)
Matter with no printed caption
judgmentBrought against a franchisee · filed 2023-11-13 · Arbitration · 01-23-0005-1465
“Forum: Arbitration Filing Date: November 13, 2023 Case No.: 01-23-0005-1465 Parties: Zhu Cai He, aka Paul He, and Pleasanton Hawaiian Inc. and L & L Franchise, Inc. Relationship: Franchisor vs. the owner, operator, and guarantor of several Restaurants”Page 15 of the 2025 FDD, Item 3
Outcome: “The Arbitration Award was confirmed by the First Circuit Court of the State of Hawaii and a Final Judgment was issued on Jan. 8, 2025.” (page 16)
L & L Franchise, Inc. vs. Xiao Biao Xie
judgmentBrought against a franchisee · filed 2022-09-03 · American Arbitration Association · 01-22-0003-5253
“Forum: American Arbitration Association Filing Date: September 3, 2022 Case No.: 01-22-0003-5253 Name of Action: L & L Franchise, Inc. vs. Xiao Biao Xie Parties: L & L Franchise, Inc., Xiao Biao Xie Relationship: Franchisor vs. the owner, operator, and”Page 15 of the 2025 FDD, Item 3
Outcome: “An arbitration award in favor of L & L Franchise, Inc. was issued in May 2023 which found that the franchisees made false under reporting of sales reports and made false payment of fees and that the franchisees materially breached their obligations under the franchise agreements.”
L & L Franchise, Inc. vs. Xiao Biao Xie, Rainbow HB, LLC and Jones HB, LLC
judgmentBrought against a franchisee · filed 2022-09-01 · Dispute Prevention & Resolution · 22–0496–A
“Name of Action: L & L Franchise, Inc. vs. Xiao Biao Xie, Rainbow HB, LLC and Jones HB, LLC Parties: L & L Franchise, Inc., Xiao Biao Xie, Rainbow HB, LLC, and Jones HB, LLC”Page 14 of the 2025 FDD, Item 3
Outcome: “An arbitration award in favor of L & L Franchise, Inc. was issued in February 2023, which found that the franchisees filed fraudulent and intentionally false sales reports and that the franchisees breached their obligations to provide sales reports, tax returns and insurance certificates.” (page 15)
Item 3 lists the litigation the franchisor must disclose; a matter against a parent, an affiliate or a named officer is not a matter against the franchisor, and pending claims are allegations, not findings.
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?