On January 25, 2006, the Mexican Law of Industrial Property
(LIP) was amended. Although the changes included some provisions on
the filing of documents along with a complaint before the Mexican
Trade Mark Office (IMPI), the main goal of the amendment was
improving the regulation of the franchise system in Mexico.
The amendment will mainly protect franchisees who report abuses
from franchisers, either at the execution of the agreement or when
terminating it, which was affecting the growth of the franchise
sector. The Mexican Association of Franchises (AMF) lobbied for the
change, demanding more legal security for the franchise sector in
Mexico.
According to AMF, 830 franchises operated in Mexico in 2005,
pushing Mexico to 8th rank in the world regarding
franchises operation. AMF found that in the same year the franchise
sector reported sales of $8,000 million and generated 80,000 jobs,
reporting a total of more than 500,000 jobs since franchises began
operating in
