One of the key questions we are often asked by startup restaurant businesses is what type of business entity the founders should form – a corporation or a limited liability company. There are multiple factors that go into the corporation vs. LLC decision, of course — taxation, management, liability protection, investment structure, etc. But […]
Read more...Category: Business Law
PRESS RELEASE: The Morris Law Firm Achieves Unanimous Jury Verdict on Behalf of Client Mezeh Mediterranean Grill
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Bethesda, MD) — On January 19, 2017, a federal jury in Maryland returned a verdict in favor of Mezeh Mediterranean Grill on trademark infringement and unfair competition claims brought by one of its larger competitors. The lawsuit, brought by Cava Group, Inc., claimed that Mezeh’s logo unfairly infringed on one of Cava’s […]
Read more...A Hidden Danger in Lease Assignments and Restaurant Sales
We have written here before about important things to consider when purchasing a restaurant, and we have also written about exclusivity provisions in restaurant leases. A recent deal we were working on, however, has highlighted how those two topics work together – and demonstrated a hidden danger for restaurant purchasers that can be hidden in […]
Read more...In Restaurant Sales, its You and Me and the Landlord Makes Three
When involved in a restaurant transaction, the parties (understandably) spend much time and effort on examining the health of the business and the terms of the deal itself. The buyer will, among other things, study the restaurant’s revenues and operating expenses, any potential liabilities, and the condition of the equipment involved. On the other side, […]
Read more...Bad Agreements with Bad Actors: A Few Words on Contracts
Contracts are a necessary element of business. They form the relationships and set the expectations on which we all rely as businesspeople. But, at the end of the day, a contract is nothing more than a promise. And a promise, as we all know, is only as good as the person who makes it. When […]
Read more...The Four Relationships that Can Make or Break Your Restaurant Business
The restaurant business, like almost all businesses, is about relationships. And, of course, the most important one you will have is with your customers. If you don’t preserve that relationship, you won’t have a business for very long. But there are other relationships that must be protected just as jealously, because if any of them […]
Read more...Client Alert: Minimum Wage Increases in Maryland and DC
This post is to remind all clients or interested business people reading this that, effective this past Friday, July 1, 2016, the hourly minimum wage in Maryland and the District of Columbia has increased as follows: Maryland: Statewide. The minimum wage for regular hourly employees is now $8.75 per hour. It had been $8.25 and […]
Read more...Don’t Even Think About Buying a Restaurant Without Answering These Four Questions.
For generations, owning and operating a restaurant has been a common dream for would-be entrepreneurs. Unlike many other businesses, most of us think we understand how restaurants operate (we all eat at restaurants, don’t we?), and there is a certain charm and allure to the idea of welcoming our friends and neighbors to a place […]
Read more...Three Common Mistakes to Avoid When Starting your Business
Let’s get one thing out of the way: when you are starting a business you are going to make mistakes — a million of them. That’s okay. It’s how we learn and grow, and it also keeps things interesting. But what’s not okay is when we make mistakes that are easily avoidable, and which can […]
Read more...12 Questions to Ask (and Answer) Before Signing Your Restaurant Lease
As I’ve written here before, perhaps the document that will have the greatest impact on the success of your restaurant will be your lease. It sets the terms of your relationship with your landlord, governs the manner in which you may use your space, and determines what you must pay – each and every month […]
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