FDD Items 3 & 4 · 2025 filing

Planet Fitness litigation history

What Planet Fitness 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: 6; Item 3, as counted in the filing

Largest settlement, franchisor's own cases: None stated

Bankruptcy (Item 4): Disclosed · an officer; Franchisor, parent, predecessor or officer

Filing year: 2025; Disclosures cover the prior ten years

Extracted from the 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document

Item 3: litigation

Case 1: Hayes v. Planet Fitness (class action alleging unlawful membership agreement terms; granted summary judgment for Planet Fitness, plaintiff appealing). Case 2: LuxUrban counterclaim against Planet Fitness chief development officer alleging misrepresentation in hotel franchise context (currently in discovery).

Item 3 (litigation) · 6 matters disclosed · 2 pending listed

Litigation cases

The franchisor and its predecessor

Pending (1)

Jonathan Hayes and Katherine Hayes, et al. v. Planet Fitness Center Salem Trust; Planet Fitness Asset Co, LLC; Planet Fitness Franchising, LLC; Planet Fitness Holdings, LLC; and Planet Fitness, Inc.
pending
filed 2020-02-25 · Superior Court, Essex County, Massachusetts · Civil Action No. 2077-CV-00235B
“Civil Action No. 2077-CV-00235B, Superior Court, Essex County, Massachusetts. On February 25, 2020, Planet Fitness member Katherine Hayes and her husband Jonathan Hayes filed a putative class action alleging the membership agreement Hayes signed contains unlawful terms in the form of a release of claims.”Page 16 of the 2025 FDD, Item 3
Outcome: “On October 7, 2024, the Court issued a decision granting the Planet Fitness parties’ motion for summary judgment and denying the plaintiff’s motion for class certification. Plaintiff has filed an appeal of the decision.” (page 17)

Concluded (2)

Scenic Investments Colorado Fitness, LLC v. Pla-Fit Franchise, LLC
settled
Brought by a franchisee · Pla-Fit Franchise, LLC · filed 2017-05-04 · American Arbitration Association · 01-17-0002-6156
“… American Arbitration Association, Case No. 01-17-0002-6156. On May 4, 2017, Scenic Investments Colorado Fitness, LLC (“Scenic”) filed a Demand for Arbitration of claims arising out of the termination of their Area Development Agreement with Pla-Fit Franchise.”Page 18 of the 2025 FDD, Item 3
Outcome: “This matter was settled on August 10, 2018. Under the settlement terms, we repurchased four franchises operated by Scenic, and Scenic granted a release of all claims.”
In re: Planet Fitness Holdings, LLC, Pla-Fit Franchise, LLC, and Planet Fitness NAF, LLC
settled
Government or regulatory action · Pla-Fit Franchise, LLC, with Planet Fitness Holdings, LLC and Planet Fitness NAF, LLC · New York Office of the Attorney General · Assurance No. 15-182
“… Assurance No. 15-182. In the spring of 2013, the New York Office of the Attorney General (OAG) alleged that certain references to “free” or “unlimited” in Planet Fitness advertising constituted a deceptive practice under New York law”Page 18 of the 2025 FDD, Item 3
Outcome: “In a November 17, 2015 settlement agreement between the OAG and Pla-Fit Franchise and the named affiliates, it was agreed that Pla-Fit Franchise would no longer approve marketing materials for locations in New York State that referred to tanning services as “free” or “unlimited,””

Parent, affiliates, master franchisor and subfranchisor

Concluded (2)

Planet Fitness International Franchise v. JEG-United, LLC and Ray Miolla
settled
Brought against a franchisee · Planet Fitness International Franchise, LLC ('International Franchise') · filed 2020-06-10 · United States District Court, District of New Hampshire · Civil Action No. 1:20-cv-00693
“Civil Action No. 1:20-cv-00693, United States District Court, District of New Hampshire. On June 10, 2020, our affiliate International Franchise commenced an action against JEG-United, LLC (“JEG”) to require JEG to satisfy its obligations to sell its Planet Fitness locations in Mexico to International Franchise pursuant to a letter agreement entered into by the parties in March 2019”Page 17 of the 2025 FDD, Item 3
Outcome: “This matter was settled before trial. Under the settlement terms, our affiliate agreed to repurchase the Planet Fitness franchises operated by JEG in Mexico, and JEG granted a release of all claims.” (page 18)
Conway v. Planet Fitness Holdings, LLC et al.
judgment
Planet Fitness Holdings, LLC and Pla-Fit Franchise, LLC (collectively 'Planet Fitness'), plus certain former owners and officers · filed 2013-05-10 · Superior Court, Essex County, Massachusetts · Civil Action No. 2013-756
“… Civil Action No. 2013-756, Superior Court, Essex County, Massachusetts. On May 10, 2013, the former CFO of Pla-Fit Franchise, Jayne Conway (“Conway”), filed a civil complaint for an unspecified sum against Pla- Fit Franchise and Holdings (collectively, “Planet Fitness”)”Page 18 of the 2025 FDD, Item 3
Outcome: “In her Complaint, Conway alleged that Defendants withheld information, and/or made misrepresentations to her, about the status and value of her ownership interests in Planet Fitness in the course of negotiating and finalizing her separation and settlement agreement with Planet Fitness.”

Officers and directors (individuals, not the company)

Pending (1)

Wyndham Hotel Group, LLC, TMH Worldwide, LLC, Travelodge Hotels, Inc., Baymont Franchise Systems, Inc. v. Luxurban Hotels Inc., Luxurban Re Holdings LLC, Corphousing RSL LLC, Brian Ferdinand.
pending
Chip Ohlsson (currently the franchisor's Chief Development Officer; sued as Wyndham's chief development officer) · filed 2024 · Superior Court, Morris County, New Jersey · MRS-L-000977-24
“… MRS-L-000977-24, Superior Court, Morris County, New Jersey.”Page 17 of the 2025 FDD, Item 3

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.

Disclosed in the 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document

Item 4: bankruptcy

Darrell Chichester, Vice President Senior Associate General Counsel of Pla-Fit Franchise, filed Chapter 7 personal bankruptcy on March 2, 2018; discharge entered July 3, 2018.

Disclosure signals that moved the score

How this shows up in the verdict

Active litigation regarding membership agreements and advertising practices suggests potential regulatory/compliance vulnerabilities that could affect franchisees

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?

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