BEFORE YOU SIGN

Every few months, someone comes into my office holding a contract they already signed, asking me what their options are. Usually, there aren't many. That's the hard truth about contract review — it's most useful before you sign, not after.

Why business owners skip it

I get why it happens. You're busy running the business, the other side seems reasonable, and getting a contract reviewed feels like it'll slow down a deal you want to close. So people skim it, trust their gut, and sign.

Most of the time, nothing goes wrong. But when it does, it tends to go wrong in a way that's expensive, and by then the contract terms are already locked in.

What I look for when I review a contract

When a client brings me a contract — a lease, a vendor agreement, a partnership deal, a service contract — I'm not just checking that the numbers match what was discussed. I'm looking for the parts most people skim past:

• Termination terms. Can you get out of this if it's not working, and what does that cost you?
• Liability and indemnification clauses. If something goes wrong, who's actually on the hook?
• Payment terms and penalties. What happens if a payment is late, on either side?
• Renewal language. Does this contract auto-renew, and how much notice do you need to give if you don't want it to?
• Dispute resolution. If there's a disagreement down the line, where does it get settled, and under what rules?

These are the clauses that sit quietly in the background until the moment they matter — and by then, it's too late to negotiate them.

A real example

I once reviewed a vendor contract for a small business owner who was about to sign a multi-year agreement. Buried in the fine print was an auto-renewal clause that required 90 days' written notice to cancel — otherwise it locked in for another full year. She had no idea it was there. We caught it, negotiated a shorter notice window, and she avoided getting stuck in a contract she didn't want.

That's a fifteen-minute conversation that saved her a year of frustration.

It doesn't have to slow you down

A contract review doesn't need to be a multi-week process. For most standard business agreements, it's a focused review — flag the risks, explain them in plain language, and give you a clear picture of what you're agreeing to before you sign. If something needs to be renegotiated, we help with that too.

Think of it less as a delay and more as insurance. It's a lot easier to fix a clause during negotiation than after you've already signed on the dotted line.

When to bring us in

A quick contract review is worth it any time you're about to sign something that matters to your business:

• A new lease for your office or storefront
• A vendor or supplier agreement
• A partnership or operating agreement
• A service agreement with a new client
• Any contract with terms longer than a year, or that auto-renew.

If you're not sure whether a contract needs a second look, that uncertainty is usually a good sign that it does.

Law Office of Ali Younes, a Houston-based firm handling estate planning, probate, real estate, and business law. Questions about your own situation? Call 713-810-1000 or visit youneslegal.com.