Franchise Business Act Amendment Guaranteeing Franchise Owners' Negotiation Rights Passes National Assembly Plenary Session

Speaker Woo: "Deeply Moved to Have Been Part of the Beginning"

On December 11, the National Assembly held a plenary session and passed an amendment to the Franchise Business Act that guarantees franchise owners the right to negotiate with franchisors.

On the 11th, during the first plenary session of the December extraordinary National Assembly held at the National Assembly, the partial amendment bill to the Act on Fair Transactions in Franchise Business was passed. Yonhap News

During the plenary session held that afternoon, both the ruling and opposition parties approved the partial amendment to the Act on Fair Transactions in Franchise Business, with 238 votes in favor and 3 abstentions.

Upon the bill’s passage, National Assembly Speaker Woo Wonshik stated, "This is the minimum condition and a starting point for franchise owners to protect themselves from the widespread abuse of power and unfair business practices in our society," adding, "It has been nearly ten years since the amendment was first proposed in 2015."

Speaker Woo also remarked, "There have even been heartbreaking cases where franchise owners took their own lives due to various unfair practices in our society. After the efforts of many lawmakers, this bill has finally passed. As someone who was involved from the beginning, I am deeply moved."

According to the amendment, provisions prohibiting unfair practices by franchisors, which previously applied only to franchise headquarters, will now also apply to regional franchise headquarters.

In addition, a registration system will be introduced to strengthen the bargaining power of franchise business associations, and if a franchisor does not respond to negotiation requests from a registered franchise business association, sanctions will be imposed.

This amendment was originally submitted to the plenary session on December 9 but did not pass as the ruling and opposition parties failed to reach an agreement on key issues, leading the People Power Party to launch a filibuster (an unlimited debate to delay proceedings).

According to the National Assembly Act, if the session ends during a filibuster, the filibuster is considered concluded. Therefore, a vote was held immediately during the plenary session on December 11, and the bill passed with the support of the majority of lawmakers.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.