Federal Court Rules Against Calzone Franchisor in Meaty Lawsuit Against Former Franchisee

In a meaty decision involving the intersection of restrictive covenant and franchise law, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio recently denied a request by D.P. Dough Franchising, LLC (“D.P. Dough”), a calzone restaurant franchisor known for late night delivery in college towns across the nation, to enjoin its former franchisee, Edward Southworth, from operating a series of Eddie’s Calzones shops in Athens, Georgia, and Columbia, South Carolina—where D.P. Dough did not even have locations at the time. D.P. Dough asserted six different causes of action against the defendant, including (1) breach of the franchise agreement, (2) misappropriation of trade secrets, (3) copyright infringement, (4) trademark infringement, trade dress infringement, Ohio Deceptive Trade Practices Act and unfair competition, (5) tortious interference with prospective of contractual business relationships, and (6) unjust enrichment. In holding that…

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