One of the first bail applications that I made was for a murderer.  In retrospect it was not difficult as however good my argument may have been the magistrate was not going to grant bail.  Your property lease negotiations do require tactics.  They are a minefield for the unwary and can make your stay in a property miserable. They contain delayed action mines that can go off six months, one year or three years later, usually when your business is facing its darkest hour. The lease document only ever becomes important if there is a dispute between the Lessor (the landlord) and the Lessee (you). Unfortunately there is plenty to argue about and to send you rushing to find a copy of your lease. Lease Rule One – there is no such thing as a standard lease. There is, however, a fairly standard procedure: Stage 1: You negotiate and agree a lease with an estate agent. Stage 2: The Lessor’s lawyer will provide a lengthy document – sometimes 30 pages or more – which invariabl...

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In Queensland, Australia, the estate agents have produced a standard conveyancing contract. It would be churlish of me to point out that this is the lunatics taking over the asylum however, one slight criticism of the Queensland Real Estate Institute’s Standard Contract for Commercial Land and Buildings is that it bores the pants off people.  Where is that estate agent pizzazz? Shouldn’t there be exciting references like water rate glimpses; just a few minutes from the breach; or, warranties that must be seen to be believed? In fact, it is so boring it looks like lawyers put it together and have somehow convinced the real estate agents to carry the can.  Most people can’t be bothered to read legal documents. Who can blame them? Well, judges can. For hundreds of years, courts have listened to people saying they did not know what they were signing. Generally, if you sign a contract then you are stuck with it. Consumers get some leeway, but not business owners.    ...