business is subject to extensive federal, state, local and foreign beer, liquor and food service regulations and we may incur additional costs or liabilities as a result of government regulation of our restaurants.”
Data and Privacy
We are subject to data privacy and protection laws, regulations, policies and contractual obligations that apply to the collection, transmission, storage, processing and use of personal information or personal data, which among other things, impose certain requirements relating to the privacy and security of personal information. The variety of laws and regulations governing data privacy and protection, and the use of the internet as a commercial medium are rapidly evolving, extensive and complex, and may include provisions and obligations that are inconsistent with one another or uncertain in their scope or application.
The data protection landscape is rapidly evolving in the United States. For example, California has passed a comprehensive data privacy law, the CCPA, and other states including Virginia and Colorado have also passed similar laws. Additionally, the California Privacy Rights Act (the “CPRA”) was recently passed, which will impose additional data protection obligations on covered businesses, including additional consumer rights procedures and obligations, limitations on data uses, new audit requirements for higher risk data, and constraints on certain uses of sensitive data. The majority of the CPRA provisions will go into effect on January 1, 2023, and additional compliance investment and potential business process changes may be required. Further, there are several legislative proposals in the United States, at both the federal and state level, that could impose new privacy and security obligations.
In addition, the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) and many state Attorneys General continue to enforce federal and state consumer protection laws against companies for online collection, use, dissemination and security practices that are unfair or deceptive. Because privacy and data security are critical competitive factors in our industry, we make numerous statements in our privacy policies and terms of service, and in our marketing materials, providing assurances about our privacy practices and the security of our systems. Any material misrepresentations, omissions or practice deemed likely to mislead consumers could trigger claims of misrepresentation or deceptiveness by the FTC, state Attorneys General, regulators and private litigants.
Environmental, Health & Safety Matters
We are subject to national, provincial, state and local environmental, health and safety laws and regulations in the U.S. and other countries in which we operate, including those concerning waste disposal, climate change, pollution, the presence, use, management, discharge, storage, handling, release, treatment and disposal of, and exposure to, hazardous substances and wastes and the clean-up of contaminated soil and groundwater, even in some cases where the owner or operator did not know of, or cause the contamination.
Intellectual Property
Our principal trademarks include Fogo, Fogo de Chão, Bar Fogo, Fogo Market, and our campfire design, which we have registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. We have also registered or applied for registration of the Fogo Express, Fogo Grill, Fogo de Chão Churrascaria Brazilian Steakhouse, Jorjão, Fogo to Go, The Gaucho Way of Preparing Meat marks, and various designs, as trademarks in the United States. In addition, we have registered or applied for Fogo de Chão, Fogo’s, Fogo Market, various Fogo and Fogo de Chão-formative terms, our campfire design, and other terms as trademarks in Brazil. Several of our principal and other marks and terms (including in foreign languages) are also registered or applied-for as trademarks in numerous foreign countries, including Mexico, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
We believe that our trademarks, service marks, trade names and other intellectual property rights have significant value and are important to the marketing and reputation of our brand. An important part of our intellectual property strategy is the monitoring and enforcement of our rights in markets in which our restaurants
-135-