Franchise Agreements

Every agreement assumes you'll be there for twenty years. One clause covers the case where you aren't, and it runs on a clock your family inherits.

The closing packet asks you to confirm that nobody promised you anything. What that acknowledgment can and cannot do, and how to get a load-bearing promise into writing first.

The formula that turns your remaining term into one number, and the transfer clause that usually avoids it.

The site clauses buyers skim — collateral assignment, the landlord rider, and the term dates that never line up.

The clauses that govern what you may say, not what you pay — and why they shape the franchisee interviews you rely on.

Arbitration, venue, and choice of law are set by the franchisor before you sign — and Item 17 of the FDD shows you exactly what you're agreeing to.

What an exclusive territory actually guarantees, what it usually doesn't cover, and why the map matters more than the word.

Why renewal usually isn't automatic, what counts as default, and what happens to your location if the agreement ends.

In-term vs. post-term restrictions, why the post-term version surprises people most, and why enforceability depends on your state.

Franchisor approval, right of first refusal, and transfer fees — why a franchise is generally less liquid to sell than an independent business.

Why the LLC doesn't shield you, what the guarantee's scope and survival language typically reaches, and why a spouse's signature often gets pulled in.

How incorporation by reference makes an unread, franchisor-revisable manual part of your contract — and what Item 11 discloses about it before you sign.