Q: Do I need to hire an attorney to check for any liens on the business or taxes owed? I’m already in the final stages of a purchase on a franchise. It is an existing one and I know what I’m getting into and have done all my due diligence. I would need the attorney to look over the buy/sell agreement, but won’t any liens and judgments come up at escrow? It would be less expensive because the lawyer runs at 300 dollars an hour.

A: Personally, I’m not a big fan of most attorneys I have met in my lifetime, but that’s another story.

However; you need them to complete a transaction, and you absolutely must hire your own attorney to do a lien search.

They may not necessarily all come up at “escrow”, and why take the chance?

The amount of money you’ll spend compared to the size of the deal and the potential aggravation and legal expenses you will face down the road should you overlook something is meaningless..