553.21 Registration requirement. No person may sell in this state any franchise unless the franchise has been registered under this chapter or is exempted under s. 553.23, 553.235 or 553.25.History: 1971 c. 241; 1981 c. 54 ss. 1, 32; 1987 a. 381; 1989 a. 56 s. 259; 1995 a. 364.A franchisor who illegally sold a franchise had no right to set off the value of 'benefits conferred' upon the franchisee against the franchisor’s liability for its illegal actions. Hiltpold v. T-Shirts Plus, Inc. 98 Wis. 2d 711, 298 N.W.2d 217 (Ct. App. 1980).Failure to register an offer of franchises under this section affords only an action for rescission and does not add any additional rights over what a plaintiff has under the law of equity. Lulling v. Barnaby’s Family Inns, Inc. 499 F. Supp. 1353 (1980).
Wisconsin Legal Code