Malt Beverages

Wyo. Stat. Ann. tit. 12, ch. 9
in effect

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-101 Legislative findings and intent.

(a) Regulation of business relations between malt beverage distributors and manufacturers serves a significant and legitimate public purpose. (b) This act is intended to control and stabilize the distribution of malt beverages in the state and comprises an integral part of a comprehensive legislative regulation. (c) This act is enacted pursuant to authority of the state under the provisions of the twenty-first amendment to the United States constitution to promote the public's interest in fair, efficient and competitive distribution of malt beverage products by regulation and encouragement of manufacturers and distributors to conduct their business relations toward these ends by: (i) Assuring that the malt beverage distributor is free to manage its business enterprise, including the distributor's right to independently establish its selling prices; (ii) Assuring the manufacturer and the public of service from a distributor who will devote reasonable efforts and resources to sales, distribution of the manufacturer's products which distributor has been granted the right to sell and distribute and to maintain a satisfactory sales level; and (iii) Establishing and maintaining an orderly system of distribution of malt beverages to the public.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-102 Definitions.

(a) As used in this act: (i) "Brand" means any word, name, group of letters, symbol, trademark or combination thereof but not including the name of the supplier adopted and used by a supplier on a label to identify a specific beer or malt beverage and to distinguish that product from the label of another beer or malt beverage produced or marketed by that or another manufacturer; (ii) "Brand extension" means any brand which incorporates all or a substantial part of the unique features of the label of a preexisting brand of the same manufacturer. A brand extension is not considered a new or different brand. Except for good cause a manufacturer shall assign a brand extension to the wholesaler which was granted the exclusive sales territory to the brand from which the brand extension resulted; (iii) "Designated member" means the spouse, child, grandchild, parent, brother or sister of a deceased individual who owned an interest in a distributor's business, who is entitled to inherit the deceased individual's ownership interest in the distributor under the terms of the deceased individual's will, or who has otherwise been designated in a valid testamentary instrument by the deceased individual to succeed the deceased individual in the distributor's business, or who is entitled to inherit such ownership interest under the laws of intestate succession of this state. With respect to an incapacitated individual owning an ownership interest in a distributor, "designated member" means the person appointed by a court as the conservator of the individual's property. The term also includes the appointed and qualified personal representative and the testamentary trustee of a deceased individual owning an ownership interest in a distributor's business; (iv) "Distributor" or "wholesaler" means any person licensed in the state to sell and distribute malt beverages at wholesale to persons who are licensed to sell malt beverages at retail in Wyoming; (v) "Franchise" means a contract or agreement either expressed or implied, whether oral or written, for a definite or indefinite period of time in which a manufacturer grants to a malt beverage distributor the right to purchase, resell and distribute any brand or brands offered by the manufacturer; (vi) "Franchisee" means a malt beverage distributor to whom a franchise is offered or granted; (vii) "Franchisor" means a malt beverage manufacturer who grants a franchise to a malt beverage distributor; (viii) "Fraud" means: (A) A misrepresentation in any manner, whether intentionally false or arising from gross negligence, of a material fact; (B) An intentional failure to disclose a material fact; (C) Any artifice employed to deceive another. (ix) "Good cause" means: (A) Insolvency of the distributor, the filing of any petition by or against the distributor under any bankruptcy or receivership law, or the dissolution or liquidation of the wholesaler which materially affects the distributor's ability to remain in business; (B) Revocation or suspension of the distributor's license whereby the distributor cannot distribute malt beverages for more than sixty (60) days; (C) The distributor or an individual who owns more than ten percent (10%) of the stock of a corporate distributor has been convicted of a felony. As used in this paragraph, "felony" means a felony under the United States Code or laws of this state; (D) The distributor intentionally sells the supplier's products to a retailer or retailers outside that distributor's assigned territory; (E) There is a failure by the distributor to comply with a provision of the agreement with a manufacturer which is both reasonable and of material significance to the business relationship between the distributor and the manufacturer and which failure has not been cured by the distributor pursuant to the provisions of this act. (x) "Good faith" means honesty in fact in the conduct of the transaction involved and the observance of reasonable commercial standards of fair dealing in the trade; (xi) "Manufacturer" means any person licensed to manufacture or import malt beverages for distribution to distributors licensed in Wyoming; (xii) "Person" means a natural person, corporation, association, partnership, trust or other business entity and, in case of a business entity, shall include any other entity in which it has a majority interest or it effectively controls, as well as the individual officers, directors, and other persons in active control of the activities of each entity. "Person" also includes heirs, assignees, personal representatives and guardians; (xiii) "Reasonable qualifications" means the average standard of the criteria used by the respective manufacturer for similarly situated distributors that entered into or renewed an agreement with the manufacturer during a period of twenty-four (24) months prior to the proposed transfer of the distributor's business; (xiv) "Retaliatory action" includes, but is not limited to, the refusal to continue an agreement, or a material reduction in the quality of service or quantity of products available to a distributor under an agreement, which is not made in good faith as defined in this act; (xv) "Sale" includes the issuance, transfer, agreement for transfer, exchange, pledge, hypothecation or mortgage in any manner or form, whether by transfer in trust or otherwise, of malt beverages or of any franchise related thereto for consideration and any option, subscription or other contract for consideration; (xvi) "Similarly situated distributors" means distributors of a manufacturer that are of a generally comparable size, and operate in markets with similar demographic characteristics, including population, size, density, distribution and economic conditions; (xvii) "Transfer of a distributor's business" means the voluntary sale, assignment or other transfer, including the sale or other transfer of stock or assets by merger, consolidation or dissolution of: (A) The business; (B) Control of the business of the distributor; or (C) An ownership interest of ten percent (10%) or more of the business of the distributor. (xviii) "This act" means W.S. 12-9-101 through 12-9-119.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-103 Application of act.

Any person who engages directly or indirectly in purposeful agreements or contracts in connection with the purchase of malt beverages from manufacturers or the sale of malt beverages to malt beverage distributors within this state shall be subject to the provisions of this act and shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of this state for violations of this act in accordance with the provisions of the laws of this state.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-104 Unfair and prohibited acts.

(a) It shall be a violation of this act for a manufacturer or manufacturer's officer, agent or other representative thereof: (i) To coerce or compel, or attempt to coerce or compel, any malt beverage distributor to order or accept delivery of any malt beverage or any other commodity which the distributor has not voluntarily ordered; (ii) To refuse to deliver in reasonable quantities and within a reasonable time after receipt of the distributor's order to any distributor having a franchise for the distribution and sale of malt beverages by such manufacturer, malt beverages covered by the franchise or contract. However, the refusal to deliver malt beverages shall not be considered a violation of this section if the refusal is due to failure of the distributor to pay the manufacturer pursuant to the contract, the distributor's insolvency, an act of God, work stoppage or delay due to a strike or labor difficulty, a bona fide shortage of materials, freight embargo or other cause over which the manufacturer, or any agent thereof, shall have no control; (iii) To coerce or compel, or attempt to coerce or compel, a malt beverage distributor to enter into any agreement, whether written or oral, supplementary to an existing franchise with the manufacturer or officer, agent or other representative thereof, by threatening to cancel any franchise or any contractual agreement existing between the manufacturer and distributor. However, notice in good faith by a manufacturer to a malt beverage distributor of the distributor's violation or breach of any terms or provisions of a franchise or contractual agreement shall not constitute a violation of this act if the notice is in writing, is mailed by registered or certified mail to the distributor at his current business address, and contains the specific facts of the distributor's alleged violation or breach of the franchise or contractual agreement; (iv) Except as provided in W.S. 12-9-120, to terminate, cancel, fail to renew or refuse to continue the franchise of any distributor without good cause, as defined in this act. The nonrenewal of a franchise or selling agreement without good cause shall constitute an unfair termination or cancellation, regardless of the specified time period of the franchise or selling agreement; (v) To discriminate, either directly or indirectly, in price, programs or terms of sale offered to franchisees, where the effect of the discrimination may be to substantially lessen competition among distributors or to give to one (1) holder of a franchise any competitive advantage over other holders of the same or similar franchise; (vi) To prevent or attempt to prevent, by contract or otherwise, any malt beverage distributor from changing the capital structure of his distributorship or the means by or through which he finances the operation of his distributorship; (vii) To require a malt beverage distributor to assent to a release, assignment, novation, waiver or estoppel which would relieve any person from liability imposed by this act. However, nothing in this section shall be construed to limit or prohibit good faith dispute settlements entered into by the parties; (viii) To restrict or inhibit, directly or indirectly, the right of free association among manufacturers or distributors of malt beverage for any lawful purpose; (ix) To fix or maintain the price at which a distributor may resell malt beverages; (x) To coerce, or attempt to coerce, any distributor to accept delivery of any malt beverage or other commodity ordered by a distributor if the order was properly canceled by the distributor in accordance with the reasonable procedures of the manufacturer; (xi) To change a distributor's quota of a brand or brands, if the change is not made in good faith; (xii) To require a distributor, by any means, to participate in or contribute to any local or national advertising fund controlled directly or indirectly by a manufacturer; (xiii) To take any retaliatory action against a distributor that files a complaint regarding an alleged violation by the manufacturer of state or federal law or an administrative rule; (xiv) To require or prohibit without good cause any change in the manager or successor manager of any distributor who has been approved by the manufacturer as of the effective date of this act. Should a distributor change an approved manager or successor manager, a manufacturer shall not require or prohibit the change unless the person fails to meet the reasonable standards for similarly situated distributors of the manufacturer; (xv) To sell or supply any brand or brand extension of malt beverages in this state to a licensed wholesaler other than the licensed wholesaler designated as the exclusive wholesaler for a specific territory for such brand or brand extension by the supplier in a written agreement, except that nothing in this paragraph shall prohibit a supplier from providing malt beverages to consumers in an area on such supplier's premises designated as a hospitality area, or from participating in consumer sampling or taste testing programs of brands of malt beverages not sold to licensed wholesalers in this state, or from otherwise operating as permitted by law; (xvi) To require for any reason that a wholesaler purchase one (1) or more brands of malt beverages in order for the wholesaler to purchase another brand or brands of malt beverages. (b) It shall be a violation of this act for a distributor, partner, shareholder or officer or agent thereof to have the right to sell, transfer or assign the management or control ownership of greater than ten percent (10%) of a distributorship without the written consent of the manufacturer, except that the consent shall not be unreasonably withheld. No manufacturer shall unreasonably withhold or delay its approval of any assignment, sale or transfer of the stock of a distributor or of all or any portion of a distributor's assets, distributor's voting stock, the voting stock of any parent corporation or the beneficial ownership or control of any other entity owning or controlling a distributor, including the distributor's rights and obligations under the terms of an agreement, whenever the person to be substituted meets reasonable qualifications. For purposes of this subsection, "unreasonably withhold or delay" means a period in excess of ninety (90) days after receipt by the manufacturer of all information reasonably required from the wholesaler and purchaser. Upon the death or disability of one (1) of the officers, partners or stockholder of greater than ten percent (10%) ownership of a corporate distributorship operating the business of a distributor, no manufacturer shall deny the surviving officers, partners of the partnership or stockholders of the distributorship, the right to become a successor-in-interest to the agreement between the manufacturer and the distributorship, provided that the survivor has been active in the management of the distributor's business and is otherwise capable of carrying on the business of the distributorship. However, upon the death of a distributor, no manufacturer shall deny approval for any transfer of ownership to a designated member of the family of an owner of a distributorship, provided, that the subsequent transfer of ownership by the designated member shall thereafter be subject to the provisions of this subsection.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-105 Distributor's resignation; cancellation; termination; failure to renew; refusal to continue.

(a) Notwithstanding any agreement and except as provided in W.S. 12-9-120 or as otherwise provided in this act, a manufacturer shall not cause a distributor to resign from an agreement, or cancel, terminate, fail to renew or refuse to continue under an agreement unless the manufacturer has: (i) Satisfied the applicable notice requirements of W.S. 12-9-108; (ii) Acted in good faith; and (iii) Good cause for the cancellation, termination, nonrenewal, discontinuance or forced resignation.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-106 Good cause for terminating agreement; rights to cure.

(a) Notwithstanding any agreement, good cause shall exist for the purposes of a termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance under W.S. 12-9-105(a)(iii) when all of the following occur: (i) There is a failure by the distributor to comply with a provision of the agreement which is both reasonable and of material significance to the business relationship between the distributor and the manufacturer; (ii) The manufacturer first acquired knowledge of the failure described in paragraph (i) of this subsection not more than two (2) years before the date notification was given pursuant to W.S. 12-9-105(a)(i); (iii) The distributor was given written notice by the manufacturer of failure to comply with the agreement; (iv) The distributor was afforded a reasonable opportunity to assert good faith efforts to comply with the agreement within the time limits provided for in paragraph (v) of this subsection; and (v) The distributor has been afforded thirty (30) days in which to submit a plan of corrective action to comply with the agreement and an additional ninety (90) days to cure the noncompliance in accordance with the plan and has not cured the noncompliance within that time in accordance with the plan. (b) Good cause shall exist for the purposes of termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance under W.S. 12-9-105(a)(iii) when there occurs a violation of W.S. 12-9-109(a).

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-107 Burden of proof.

For each termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance, the manufacturer shall have the burden of showing that it has acted in good faith, that the notice requirements and rights to cure under this act have been complied with and that there was good cause for the termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-108 Notice for terminating an agreement.

(a) Notwithstanding any agreement and except as otherwise provided in this act, the manufacturer shall furnish written notice of the termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance of an agreement to the distributor not less than thirty (30) days before the effective date of the termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance. In no event shall the contractual term of any agreement expire, without the written consent of the malt beverage distributor involved, prior to the expiration of at least thirty (30) days following the written notice. The notice shall be by certified mail and shall contain the following: (i) A statement of intention to terminate, cancel, not renew or discontinue the agreement; (ii) A statement of the reason for the termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance; and (iii) The date on which the termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance takes effect.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-109 Conditions and notice required.

(a) Notwithstanding W.S. 12-9-105 and 12-9-106, a manufacturer may immediately terminate, cancel, fail to renew, or discontinue an agreement if any of the following occur: (i) Insolvency of the distributor, the filing of any petition by or against the distributor under any bankruptcy or receivership law, or the dissolution or liquidation of the wholesaler which materially affects the distributor's ability to remain in business; (ii) Revocation of the distributor's license whereby the distributor cannot distribute malt beverages for more than sixty (60) days; (iii) The distributor or an individual who owns more than ten percent (10%) of the stock of a corporate distributor has been convicted of a felony. As used in this paragraph, "felony" means a felony under the United States Code or laws of this state. However, an existing stockholder shall have the right to purchase the stock of the offending stockholder, and, if the sale is completed within the thirty (30) day period, the provisions of this paragraph shall not apply. Any such purchase shall be subject to W.S. 12-9-104(a)(viii); (iv) The distributor intentionally sells the supplier's products to a retailer or retailers outside that distributor's assigned territory; (v) The distributor commits fraud as defined by W.S. 12-9-102(a)(viii) in his dealings with the manufacturer.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-110 Discontinuance of production or distribution.

Notwithstanding W.S. 12-9-105, 12-9-108 and 12-9-109, a manufacturer may terminate, cancel, not renew or discontinue an agreement upon not less than thirty (30) days prior written notice if the supplier discontinues production or discontinues distribution throughout this state of all the brands sold by the manufacturer to the distributor. Nothing in this act shall prohibit a manufacturer, upon not less than thirty (30) days notice, to completely discontinue the distribution throughout this state of any particular brand or package of malt beverage. This section does not prohibit a manufacturer from conducting test marketing of a new brand of malt beverage or from conducting the test marketing of a brand of malt beverage which is not currently being sold in this state, provided that the manufacturer has notified the division in writing of its plans to test market. The notice shall describe the market area in which the test shall be conducted, the name or names of the distributors who will be selling the malt beverage, the name or names of the brand of malt beverage being tested, and the period of time during which the testing will take place. A market testing period shall not exceed eighteen (18) months.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-111 Effort required by distributor.

The distributor shall devote such efforts and resources to sales and distribution of all the manufacturer's products which the distributor has been granted the right to sell and distribute as reasonably required by the agreement between the manufacturer and distributor.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-112 Waiver prohibited.

A distributor shall not waive any of the rights granted in any provision of this act. Nothing in this act shall be construed to limit or prohibit good faith dispute settlements voluntarily entered into by the parties.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-113 Agreement subject to act.

The provisions of this act shall apply to all agreements between a manufacturer and distributor entered into on or after the effective date of this act.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-114 Agreements binding on successor.

A successor to a manufacturer that continues in business as a manufacturer shall be bound by all terms and conditions of each agreement of the manufacturer in effect on the date of succession.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-115 Reasonable compensation.

(a) In the event that a distributor is terminated by a manufacturer in bad faith or for other than good cause, the distributor shall be entitled to additional compensation from the manufacturer for: (i) The fair market value of any and all assets, including ancillary business assets of the distributor used in distributing the manufacturer's products; (ii) The good will of the business. (b) The total compensation to be paid by the manufacturer to the distributor shall be reduced by any sum received by the distributor from sale of assets of the business used in distribution of the manufacturer's products as well as by whatever value such assets may have to the distributor that are unrelated to the manufacturer's products. (c) As used in this section, "fair market value" means the highest dollar amount at which a seller would be willing to sell and a buyer willing to buy when each possesses all information relevant to the transaction. (d) In the event the manufacturer and the malt beverage distributor are unable to mutually agree on the reasonable compensation to be paid for the value of the distributor's business, as defined herein, the matter may by agreement of the parties be submitted to arbitration. If so submitted, the following shall apply: (i) Arbitration shall proceed only if all parties agree in advance and submit the dispute to arbitration, and the decision of the arbitrators shall be final and binding if so agreed upon by the parties in advance of the arbitrator's proceedings; (ii) The dispute shall be submitted to a panel of three (3) arbitrators, one (1) of which shall be selected by the supplier within thirty (30) days after the parties have agreed to arbitrate, one (1) of which shall be selected by the wholesaler within thirty (30) days after the parties have agreed to arbitrate, and one (1) of which shall be selected from a list of five (5) candidates supplied by the American Arbitration Association at the request of the parties within ten (10) days after the parties have agreed to submit the dispute to arbitration; (iii) Within ten (10) days after receipt of the list supplied pursuant to paragraph (ii) of this subsection, the wholesaler and the supplier each may disqualify up to two (2) candidates from the list. The American Arbitration Association shall select the third arbitrator from the candidates not disqualified by the parties; (iv) The arbitration shall proceed in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration Association within thirty (30) days after the selection of the arbitration panel has been completed; (v) The cost of the arbitration shall be borne equally by the parties. The award of a majority of the arbitrators shall be final and binding on the parties if so agreed upon in advance by the parties. The arbitrators shall not be permitted to award punitive damages and are bound to apply the terms and provisions of the agreement not in conflict with this act.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-116 Remedies.

(a) During the thirty (30) day period provided in W.S. 12-9-108, either party, in appropriate circumstances, may bring an action in the appropriate court of this state pending a final determination of the proceedings on the merits. (b) In any action brought under this act, the court shall have authority to grant temporary, preliminary and final injunctive relief. (c) In addition to temporary, preliminary or final injunctive relief, any manufacturer or distributor who shall be aggrieved or injured in his business or property by reason of anything forbidden in this act may bring an action in the appropriate court of this state and may recover the damages sustained and the costs of the action, including a reasonable attorney's fee. (d) In addition to any other remedy or relief to which a person is entitled, a distributor or manufacturer aggrieved by a violation of this act may bring an action to obtain a declaratory judgment that an act, action or practice violates this act and to enjoin a manufacturer or distributor who has violated, is violating or is otherwise likely to violate this act. (e) In an action for money damages, if a judge or jury finds that the defendant acted maliciously, the judge or jury may award punitive damages as permitted by Wyoming law. (f) The remedies provided in this section shall be in addition to any other remedies provided by law or in equity.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-117 Contracts and the validity thereof.

No manufacturer shall effect any sale to a distributor in Wyoming except pursuant to a written contract between the manufacturer and the distributor.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-118 Repurchase of inventory upon termination.

(a) Except as otherwise provided in W.S. 12-9-120, whenever any malt beverage distributor enters into a franchise agreement with a manufacturer in which the distributor agrees to maintain an inventory of malt beverages and the franchise is subsequently terminated, the manufacturer shall repurchase the inventory as provided in this section. If the distributor has any outstanding debts to the manufacturer, then the repurchase amount may be credited to the distributor's account. (b) The manufacturer shall repurchase that inventory previously purchased from him and held by the distributor on the date of termination of the contract. The manufacturer shall pay one hundred percent (100%) of the distributor's laid-in cost, payable when the product is returned to the manufacturer free and clear of all liens, claims and charges created or permitted by the distributor. (c) Upon payment of the repurchase amount to the distributor, the title and right of possession to the repurchased inventory shall be transferred to the manufacturer. (d) A distributor shall not keep any inventory except with the consent of the manufacturer and the distributor's agreement that such product will be maintained and sold in accordance with the manufacturer's product handling standards. (e) If any manufacturer shall fail or refuse to repurchase any inventory covered under the provisions of this section within sixty (60) days after termination of a distributor's contract, he shall be civilly liable for one hundred percent (100%) of the current wholesale price of the inventory plus any freight charges paid by the distributor, the distributor's reasonable attorney's fees, court costs and interest on the current wholesale price computed at the legal interest rate.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-119 Indemnification.

A manufacturer shall fully indemnify and hold harmless its distributor against any losses, including, but not limited to, court costs and reasonable attorney's fees or damages arising out of complaints, claims or lawsuits, including, but not limited to, strict liability, negligence, misrepresentation or express or implied warranty if the complaint, claim or lawsuit relates to a product liability claim pertaining to the manufacturing of a malt beverage product.

Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 12-9-120 Terminating a franchise agreement without cause; compensation; arbitration; applicability.

(a) This section shall only apply to a franchise in which the franchisor annually produces twenty-five thousand (25,000) barrels of malt beverages in aggregate or less, including the production of malt beverages by any affiliate. For purposes of this section, malt beverages produced for a franchisor under a brand owned or controlled by the franchisor shall be attributed to the franchisor and not to the brewer producing the malt beverages for the franchisor. (b) Notwithstanding any agreement or other provision of law, a franchise governed by this section may be terminated, not renewed, canceled or discontinued by the franchisor for any reason or no reason upon not less than forty-five (45) days written notice of the effective date of the termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance of the franchise. Upon the effective date of any termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance by a franchisor under this section, the franchisee shall be entitled to the following compensation: (i) The fair market value, as defined in W.S. 12-9-115(c), of the terminated, cancelled, not renewed or discontinued franchise; and (ii) The repurchase of all the franchisor's merchantable product at an amount equal to the laid-in cost of the franchisee's inventory of the franchisor's products that are in the franchisee's warehouse or in transit to the franchisee. Unmerchantable products shall be disposed of in accordance with the preexisting agreement of the parties or, if no agreement exists, shall be disposed of with the franchisor and franchisee sharing equally in the costs of disposal. (c) If the franchisor and franchisee have not agreed to the reasonable compensation as provided under subsection (b) of this section upon the effective date of the termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance of the franchise, then on or before the termination date the franchisor shall pay the franchisee a good faith estimate of compensation due under this section, including a good faith estimate of fair market value. The franchisee shall make merchantable inventory available for pickup by the franchisor or its designee. (d) If the franchisee believes that the payment made by the franchisor under subsection (c) of this section was less than the compensation due under subsection (b) or (e) of this section or if no payment is made, the franchisee may, within forty-five (45) days of the effective date of the termination, cancellation, nonrenewal or discontinuance of the franchise, submit the question of compensation due to final and binding arbitration in accordance with the following: (i) The manner of arbitration under this section shall be the manner agreed upon by the parties or, in the absence of an agreement, the arbitration shall proceed before a panel of three (3) arbitrators selected in accordance with the commercial rules of the American Arbitration Association; (ii) If the arbitration concludes that the payment made by the franchisor to the franchisee upon termination was less than the compensation due under subsection (b) of this section, the franchisor shall pay the franchisee any additional amount of determined compensation, plus interest. If the arbitration concludes that the payment made by the franchisor to the franchisee upon termination was more than the compensation due by reason of the termination, the franchisee shall repay any determined overpayment to the franchisor, plus interest; (iii) All arbitration fees and expenses shall be equally divided among the parties to the arbitration unless the arbitration determines that the franchisor's payment under subsection (c) of this section was not a good faith estimate of the compensation due in which event the arbitration may award up to one hundred percent (100%) of the arbitration costs to the franchisee; (iv) The arbitration shall be final and binding and shall fully resolve the issue of compensation due to the franchisee from the franchisor under this section. (e) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, by written mutual agreement, regardless of whether the agreement existed before or after the termination, cancelation, nonrenewal or discontinuance of a franchise under this section, the franchisor and the franchisee may establish a method or formula for compensating a franchisee under this section. (f) This section shall be effective on July 1, 2024. This section shall apply to: (i) All franchise agreements entered on or after July 1, 2024; (ii) Any franchise in existence on July 1, 2024 upon the amendment or renewal of the franchise. For purposes of this paragraph, if a franchise has an indefinite duration or has a duration of one (1) year or more after July 1, 2024 the franchise shall be deemed to be renewed on July 1, 2025.
Source: WY Statutes (Official Site)URL: https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title12.pdfFetched: 10/4/2026