Other manufacturers had dealership agreements dating back pretty far into history. This is a really good listen:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2013/02/19/172402376/why-buyi...

I suspect it would be better for everyone if special dealership regulations were broken down. But, given that Tesla is a new car company, without any historical dealership agreements, why should they be bound the inefficient legal infrastructure that essentially cropped up around private contractual agreements between other car companies and dealers.