There are so many things to consider when buying a restaurant that we decided to break that list down to just seven issues. If you only look at these issues, you should avoid most of the big hazards when you buy your next restaurant. Now, this assumes that you have some idea of the restaurant… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Liability
Subscribe to Liability RSS FeedTop Ten Tax Mistakes for Restaurant Owners
Posted in Corporate Entity, Employees & Waitstaff, Franchises, Liability, Litigation, Real Estate, Recent Law TrendsWe all know how important restaurant taxes are to restaurant owners. Last week, our own tax counsel, David Gair, outlined his Top Ten Tax Mistakes for Restaurant Owner on TexasTaxTalk.com, so TexasRestaurantLaw.com decided to share it as well. Here is the list in its entirety: Employee Classification – Misclassifying workers as independent contractors and not… Continue Reading
What Is Restaurant Intellectual Property?
Posted in Acquisitions, Competition, Contracts, Employees & Waitstaff, Intellectual Property, Liability, Litigation, Negotiation, VendorsAt TexasRestaurantLaw.com, we have covered “Who Owns Your Restaurant Name?” and “Is Your Restaurant Recipe Safe?” However, we have not previously discussed the many parts of restaurant intellectual property. This post shows some of the most critical pieces that encompass restaurant intellectual property. Your Name & Brand We all hear that branding is everything. Likewise,… Continue Reading
How To Deal With Restaurant Partner Disputes
Posted in Commentary, Contracts, Corporate Entity, Franchises, Franchising, Liability, Litigation, NegotiationThere are many motivations for restaurant creation and investment. However, these different desires can lead to conflict, so how are restaurant operators, owners, and investors supposed to resolve these conflicts? This post answers that question, and it gives a game plan to operators, owners, and investors to deal with these inevitable conflicts. Step One: Avoid… Continue Reading
Sugar And Horses: How To Deal With Restaurant Supply Issues?
Posted in Commentary, Liability, Litigation, Negotiation, News, Recent Law Trends, VendorsTwo recent news stories present the issue of how restaurants should deal with supply issues. The first story is the infamous horse meat scandal that has plagued Burger King in the United Kingdom since January. Click here for that story. The second story appeared in today’s Wall Street Journal. It deals with the fact that… Continue Reading
When To Terminate A Restaurant Transaction
Posted in Acquisitions, Commentary, Competition, Contracts, Franchises, Franchising, Liability, Litigation, NegotiationRestaurant transactions are similar to the old Kenny Rogers song, The Gambler – “You’ve got to know when to walk away, and know when to run!” Perspective is so important in general, and in restaurant transactions, you must know when to move forward on deals and when to kill them. But how do you determine… Continue Reading
What Makes Restaurant Litigation So Darn Expensive?
Posted in Liability, Litigation, NegotiationWe get this question quite a bit. There’s a dispute. Our restaurant client knows they are right. The restaurant wants a quick result and wants it done inexpensively. What in the world is takes so long or costs so much? Shown below are some answers to this question and some ways to reduce your litigation… Continue Reading
Biggest Legal Causes Of Restaurant Failures
Posted in Acquisitions, Commentary, Franchises, Franchising, Liability, Litigation, Negotiation, Real Estate, Recent Law TrendsJust this week, two of my favorite restaurants in Dallas closed operations. This led me to consider the biggest issues I have seen that factored into a troubled restaurant. A few of these may not be a surprise, but you may be shocked at others. Consider this list of top legal reasons why restaurants fail:… Continue Reading
The Absolutely Essential Issues In A Restaurant Lease
Posted in Acquisitions, Contracts, Corporate Entity, Franchises, Franchising, Liability, Litigation, Negotiation, Real EstateLeasing is a big issue for restaurants. Almost all restaurants at least start out leasing their space. Often, restaurants are required to lease their space to capture the prime locations of a given area. For these reasons and many more, it is vital for restaurant owners to pay close attention to leasing terms. The following… Continue Reading
Can An Email Bind Your Restaurant Like A Contract?
Posted in Acquisitions, Commentary, Contracts, Employees & Waitstaff, Liability, Litigation, Negotiation, Recent Law Trends, VendorsWe all think of email as a convenience. The same is true for text messages. These are just easy ways to communicate. They don’t really mean anything. Right? Wrong! Email and text messages are some of the most dangerous tools created. They are powerful. They are permanent. And in Texas, they are binding. Don’t believe… Continue Reading
How To Handle Alcohol Liability Claims
Posted in Alcohol, Liability, Litigation, Recent Law TrendsWith the tragic death of Dallas Cowboy’s player Jerry Brown, Jr. still fresh in our minds, it is more important than ever to be wary of potential liability from alcohol distribution. (For the latest on that story, see this link from an article written by Elissa Repko and Selwyn Crawford at the Dallas Morning News)…. Continue Reading
The Top Five Consumer Myths About Restaurant Law
Posted in Employees & Waitstaff, Legislation, Liability, Recent Law TrendsOne of the more entertaining aspects of restaurant law is dealing with consumer myths. We are consistently challenged by consumers over seemingly insignificant issues. However, for these restaurant customers, these issues are indeed significant, so we thought we would share their concerns. Whether you have dealt with these issues or not, this post should let… Continue Reading
The Single Biggest Mistake Made When Selling A Restaurant
Posted in Acquisitions, Contracts, Liability, Litigation, NegotiationNow that we’re all stuffed and overweight after Thanksgiving, I thought that I would mention another type of over-doing it: your representations to a potential buyer when you decide to sell a restaurant. These representations are critical to the success of a sale, both before negotiations begin and after you close on the sale. With… Continue Reading
Loan Documents: 3 Top Issues For Restaurant Borrowers
Posted in Contracts, Lending, Liability, NegotiationAs much as we wanted to tie in Thanksgiving to this post (think puns on words like “gobble”, “pilgrim” or “stuffing”), we thought that you might want to know more about loan issues this week. The economy is still not in full recovery mode, and as such, we are still dealing with some bank work-outs…. Continue Reading
Restaurant Non-Competes: Are They Worth It?
Posted in Contracts, Employees & Waitstaff, Employment, Liability, Litigation, Recent Law TrendsA funny thing happened recently. When Lauren Drewes Daniels at The Dallas Observer featured TexasRestaurantLaw.com last week at this link, a controversy ensued between folks that commented on the article. The dispute involved whether non-competes were valid and enforceable in Texas. Apparently, it is a common myth that non-compete agreements are not enforceable in Texas,… Continue Reading
Is Franchising The Only Key To Restaurant Success?
Posted in Contracts, Franchises, Franchising, Legislation, Liability, Litigation, NegotiationWe talk a lot here about franchising and for good reason. After all, many restaurant owners make great money by developing or buying into a great franchise concept. However, some restaurant owners take a different approach: they develop their own brand and remain the key figure in each additional restaurant. Stephen Pyles is one such… Continue Reading
The Top 5 Considerations Before Buying A Restaurant
Posted in Acquisitions, Commentary, Franchises, Franchising, Liability, NegotiationDespite the “Great Recession”, the restaurant industry continues to thrive. One of the latest great examples of this is the expansion of Asian cuisine. For instance, a new franchise concept called Mama Fu’s is set to open 14 new restaurants in the Dallas area alone over the next several years, according to this article from… Continue Reading
5 Top Strategies For Protecting Your Restaurant And Personal Assets
Posted in Contracts, Corporate Entity, Liability, LitigationHow safe are the assets in your restaurants? Are you personally liable for your restaurant’s liabilities? These are two of the most common questions we get from our restaurant owner clients, so we thought we would share five of the top strategies we use to shield our restaurant owners from liabilities at their restaurants, which… Continue Reading
Is Your Restaurant Recipe Safe?
Posted in Acquisitions, Contracts, Franchises, Franchising, Intellectual Property, Liability, LitigationDid you know that KFC uses two different companies to blend the herbs and spices that make up its secret recipe? One company blends part of the spices, the other blends the remaining spices, and a computerized processor mixes them together so that neither company knows the full recipe. Like the Colonel, you may have… Continue Reading
A Fight Broke Out At My Restaurant – Am I Liable?
Posted in Liability, Litigation, Real Estate, Recent Law TrendsWhether a restaurant or its owner is liable for restaurant fights depends. “Depends on what?” you ask. Let me tell you by asking and then answering the following questions: What Did The Police Say? No one can escape personal liability for their own, direct actions. No amount of insurance, legal maneuvering, or other actions will… Continue Reading
Restaurant Trade Fixtures And Equipment – What Belongs To You And What Belongs To The Landlord?
Posted in Acquisitions, Contracts, Liability, Litigation, Real EstateCo-Authored by Matt Sanderson & Lindsey Postula THE MYSTERIOUS TRADE FIXTURE What are trade fixtures? Trade fixtures are the equipment that a tenant uses to operate its business. Although they are not considered to be real property (which means they don’t fall into the definition of fixtures), they are generally attached to the leased premises… Continue Reading
What To Know About Texas Alcohol Permits: An Industry Perspective
Posted in Alcohol, Commentary, Competition, Legislation, Liability, Negotiation, News, VendorsObtaining and dealing with alcoholic beverage permits requires a lot of time and effort, and it can be full of legal pitfalls as well. Sometimes you need a lawyer, but often an outside alcohol permit company can be more cost effective. As one example, we recently interviewed Nancy Scott, with Joe LaBarba Permit Service in… Continue Reading
Help: The City Wants To Shut Down My Restaurant!
Posted in Alcohol, Liability, Litigation, NegotiationThe unthinkable has happened – your restaurant, your baby, is being threatened by the “man”, and it’s up to you to save the day. Don’t worry – help is on the way! How Did This Happen? Let’s first discuss why this may have happened. Most cases of restaurant closure fall into the following categories: (1)… Continue Reading
Which Restaurant Franchise Is Right: Fast Food, Fine Dining, or Somewhere In Between?
Posted in Acquisitions, Competition, Contracts, Franchises, Franchising, LiabilityWe’ve talked a lot about franchises in prior posts. Assuming you have decided that a franchise is in your future, how do you know which type is right for you? This question comes to us quite a bit, so here are some thoughts to consider in each of the common types of franchises: Fast Food… Continue Reading