If you accept the much-used description of a franchise relationship as a "business marriage", the signing of the agreement is akin to muttering the clinching "I do". But this is no shotgun wedding, you are going to want a solicitor to read through the agreement beforehand.

Bear in mind that the Franchise Agreement is a standard contract that the franchisor has had drawn up by his lawyer and had signed by all his other franchisees in the network - it is therefore unlikely that the franchisor will play ball if you attempt to negotiate the finer points of the contract. The franchisor is likely presenting the contract in a 'take it or leave it' fashion - you should be checking the agreement to ensure that it creates a framework within which your business can prosper and if you're not satisfied, leave it.

There are a number of specialist franchise solicitors operating in the UK, and many are affiliated to the British Franchise Association. Because they are familiar with the nature of the franchising relationship, these practices will be familiar with franchise contracts and should be able to provide advice that not only protects your business legally, but also takes into account how commercial considerations will be affected.

The main function of the contract is to clearly set out the extent of the rights to be granted, the territory in which those rights apply, the exclusivity of the rights in the territory and the term in which the rights exist. A typical agreement must outline your exclusive rights to market, build a business under, profit from and possibly sell sub-franchises under the brand within the territory for a reasonable term. Take special notice of the exclusivity of your territory - it stops the franchisor granting franchises within your territory, but does it forbid franchisor-owned operations as well? It is worth making sure that the franchisor is not going to open a competing outlet round the corner if you make a success of the business.

The contract should also set out how the agreement can be extended at the end of the term. Barring any failures on your part to adhere to the franchisor's contractually proscribed practices, the power to extend must be in your hands if you are to enjoy the fruits of your initial labours. The last thing you want is to build up the brand recognition and repeat and referral business in your territory and have the franchisor claim the lot when the agreement ends.

The contract will set out both parties' obligations. Make sure you are aware of who is responsible for the costs involved in your training and support. It is common for franchisors to require additional contributions for national advertising, staff training programmes, territory canvassing, etc., but you need to be aware of these to make sure you factor them into your feasibility study and financial projections.

The contract will also spell out your own obligations to the franchisor, which has generated value in its brand and must protect its reputation. The franchisor will want to include strict quality requirements for the products and services provided under the brand - this protects both the franchisor and other franchisees. Again, this is common practice, and you will need to make yourself aware of these obligations during the decision-making process to ensure you enter the agreement with your eyes open.

The agreement may require that the franchisor is the sole provider of certain goods and services. This should be inserted only if it provides the franchisee with either a cost or quality advantage. If this requirement guarantees a significant income stream for the franchisor, this should enter the equation when calculating the management service fee.

Whether you are investing in the franchise to provide yourself with an income for the rest of your life, or simply to build an asset, there is a good chance that one day you will be looking to sell it on. Franchise re-sales have added complications to normal business sales as most franchisors insist on approval of the buyer. This is a reasonable requirement - the franchisor will want to be as selective of the buyer as he is with the original franchise investor, but the contract must also guard against him being too restrictive. Many agreements now allow the franchisor to buy back the licence at the same price proposed by a prospective purchaser, and in many situations this has been the most satisfactory solution for both parties.

Another point to bear in mind while reading the franchise agreement is that it is standard practice for the franchisor to prohibit you from further involvement in a business that could be judged as competing with the brand for a significant period of time upon the termination of the contract. The franchisor is handing over substantial valuable and unrecoverable intellectual property to you in the form of the training in the workings of the franchise concept and its systems and procedures, and this requirement is a reasonable safeguard to prevent you from taking all the franchisor's systems and training to a competitor, or using it to operate a competing business.

The importance of reading through the Franchise Agreement and entering into the franchisor-franchisee relationship with your eyes open is paramount - once it is signed and the deposit paid it it is going to become much more costly if you change you mind. Make your mantra "check before cheque" - satisfy yourself that you have thoroughly checked out the opportunity before signing over your capital.