Panchero’s Franchise Corporation (PFC) has filed a lawsuit against Virji, LLC, Ravi V. Senjalia, Vrijesh N. Patel, Rashi Nigam, and Manav K. Shah in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois under case number 1:24-cv-04087 on May 17, 2024. The lawsuit alleges breach of contract, fraud, misappropriation of trade secrets, unfair competition, civil conspiracy, and tortious interference with contractual relations.
The complaint details that PFC developed a proprietary system for operating Pancheros restaurants and licensed it to franchisees under strict conditions. Defendants allegedly violated these terms by using PFC's proprietary methods to operate a competing restaurant named Tajiin Grill at the same location as their former Pancheros restaurant after the franchise agreement expired on April 15, 2024. PFC claims that Defendants made fraudulent misrepresentations about opening an "Indian Fusion" restaurant to avoid PFC exercising its rights under the franchise agreement.
Represented by attorneys Andrew P. Bleiman and Mark I. Fishbein from Marks & Klein, PFC seeks injunctive relief requiring Defendants to comply with post-termination obligations and cease using PFC’s trade secrets. Additionally, they request damages exceeding $75,000 for breaches causing irreparable harm.