'Tis the season … for peace on Earth and good will towards all, for the miracle of the lights, for celebrating cultural heritage, for season's greetings … and for making lists. So, here is a list of rules that I wish all meeting professionals would follow:

1. Read the contract before you sign it

   I can't tell you how many times people have agreed to dumb provisions because they failed to read the contract. Read everything that you sign before you sign it. Shame on you if you don't.

2. Understand what you sign

   This is the important corollary to “read before you sign.” If you don't understand something, say so. The contract should be written in plain English so that anyone can understand it. Dense and ambiguous contract language often is blamed on the lawyers — and, indeed, they are often at fault — but there is plenty of blame to go around, including some for those non-lawyers who pretend they are lawyers and draft things like: “…the party of the first part shall without regard to the previously stated provisions notwithstanding agree to…”

3. Know when to use lawyers and when not to

   Lawyers have complicated and, indeed, screwed up countless transactions. But, even more deals have gone sour (for at least one side, if not both) because the contracting parties failed to consult their lawyers. Get a good, knowledgeable lawyer. Train your lawyer so he or she understands your business — and seek his or her advice. At the end of the day, two old clichés are true: “It is easier for a lawyer to keep you out of trouble, than to get you out of trouble.” And, “You can pay me now or pay me later.”

4. Understand cancellation, termination, and attrition

   After all that has been said and written about these subjects, many meeting professionals still do not get it. I am asked all the time whether it is a good idea to have a cancellation provision in a hotel contract. Of course it is! Without such a provision, it may not be possible to cancel the agreement at all. Instead, cancellation would be considered a breach of the contract. The real issue, of course, is not whether to have such a provision, but what it should say: who can cancel, for what reason(s), when, and with what, if any, payment. It is similarly important to understand termination and attrition — and how all three interrelate in a hotel contract.

5. Don't agree to vague liquidated damage calculations

   It feels like I'm hearing fingernails on a blackboard when I see contracts with liquidated damages provisions that refer to things like “lost revenues.” I don't really know what that means, but I fear the worst. In calculating damages, it could mean all revenues a hotel perceives as lost as a result of a cancellation (or attrition). That could include the lost revenue from sleeping rooms, taxes, food and beverage, gift shop sales, charges for ancillary services (telephone, business center, in-room movies, etc.), tips, parking … Well, you get the idea. Do not agree to a calculation of damages that you do not understand or control. And, while we are at it, do not agree to a calculation of damages that does more than make the other side whole (compensate for actual damages). The idea behind liquidation damages is to prevent one side from being hurt. It is neither necessary nor appropriate to agree to enrich the other side.

6. Do what you say and say what you do

   I am a firm believer in written agreements. If it is worth asking for, it is worth getting in writing. Long, detailed contracts that spell out the nitty-gritty points of an agreement don't bother me one bit. But, there still is an important place in business for telling others exactly what you are going to do and then living up to your promises. It is important to establish trust and to be trustworthy.

Jed R. Mandel is a partner in the Chicago-based law firm of Neal, Gerber & Eisenberg, where he heads the trade and professional association practice.