Posted July 22, 2026
Our contracts webinar with Leigh Lampert has a new date, September 10, 2026. Here’s a small taste of what’s on the menu, and why you’ll want a seat for the rest. Sign up now!
You didn’t open a restaurant to read contracts. So, most of us skim the lease, sign the supplier deal, shake hands on the business partnership, and get back to running the place. That works beautifully, right up until it doesn’t.
In our rescheduled RANS webinar, lawyer Leigh Lampert of Lampert LawGiC walks restaurant operators through the clauses that quietly impact what happens when something goes sideways. To whet your appetite, here are five things you can act on before you sign anything. Think of them as the appetizers. The full menu is served live.
Five bites, on the house
1. A few words decide whether you can ever sell.
Your lease almost certainly says it can’t be assigned or transferred without the landlord’s consent. The question is which words follow. “Sole and absolute discretion” means they can say no for any reason, or for no reason. “Consent not to be unreasonably withheld” means they actually have to be reasonable. Swapping those words before you sign is a standard ask, and one day it may be the difference between selling your business and being stuck with it.
2. Ask to see the CAM receipts.
Common Area Maintenance charges can quietly add 20 to 40 percent on top of your base rent, and the estimate you’re quoted is rarely the number that lands. Before you sign, ask for two years of actual CAM statements. If a landlord won’t show them to you, that hesitation is itself an answer.
3. When you must terminate an employee, “for cause” is a high bar, not a free pass.
Terminating someone “for cause” typically means you pay no notice and no severance, which is exactly why Canadian courts generally set the bar very high. A single bad shift, even one with some serious problems, often isn’t enough on its own. The two things that actually protect you are unglamorous but can be very effective: a proper employment contract, reviewed regularly by your lawyer, and a written warning trail, kept consistently, starting today and not the week you decide to let someone go.
4. A contract cannot reclassify an employee.
Writing “independent contractor” at the top of an agreement does not automatically mean that this is what they are. If you control when, where, and how the work gets done, and if you supply all tools and equipment, the CRA can look past the label and reclassify them as an employee. The tax and employment-law consequences can be significant. If you have long-standing “contractors,” it is worth revisiting before problems arise.
5. The auto-renewal clock starts the day you sign.
Plenty of supplier, equipment, and POS contracts renew themselves for another three to five years unless you cancel inside a narrow window, sometimes 90 days before the term ends.
Miss it by a single day and you are locked in. The fix takes about 30 seconds: the moment you sign, put the cancellation deadline in your calendar.
