December Meeting Planner HospitalityLawyer Newsletter

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Welcome to the Inaugural Edition of our Meeting Planner Newsletter!

At HospitalityLawyer.com, we are continuously striving to meet the hospitality industry's legal, safety, and security needs. With that goal in mind, we are introducing a quarterly Meeting Planner Newsletter. The Meeting Planner Newsletter will provide you with legal, safety, and security information and solutions affecting the meeting industry. We hope you enjoy the first edition of HospitalityLawyer.com's Meeting Planner Newsletter.

In this Issue:

Guidelines for Meeting Planners During These Economic Times
What Meeting Planners Need to Know About Hotel Bankruptcy
Legalese: Indemnification Defined
2010 Hospitality Law Conference

Guidelines for Meeting Planners During These Economic Times
by James Goldberg, Goldberg & Associates, PLLC
Member of the Global Alliance of Hospitality Attorneys

This dire financial prediction could have impact on meeting planners as hotel owners, striving to conserve cash, become more reluctant to waive attrition and cancellation penalties. Planned hotel improvements, and perhaps some necessary repairs and maintenance, will be delayed or cancelled altogether.

Already, planners who have not faced an attrition situation in many years are facing penalties that were unexpected when they signed contracts. In at least one instance, a meeting was cancelled due to travel restrictions placed on attendees by their employers and the resulting inability to pay more than $600,000 in cancellation fees pushed the sponsoring association into bankruptcy.

So, what’s a planner to do?

What Meeting Planners Need to Know About Hotel Bankruptcy
by Robert Sumner, Sumner & Associates, P.C.

Like many industries, the current economic woes have created a crisis in the meetings industry with little expectation for a quick turnaround. The previously unthinkable has become true for meeting sponsors: hotels and other meeting properties are operating with a risk of bankruptcy and some have already filed for liquidation or reorganization under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

You may have already checked your contracts for provisions on meetings property bankruptcy, but don’t rely on contract language for your peace of mind. This article briefly covers what happens when meetings property bankruptcies intersect unperformed contracts. Specifically discussed is what to do about handling a hotel bankruptcy and whether deposits can be recovered. Like many situations a party opposing a bankrupt entity faces, this news is not good.

However, armed with the facts, you are in the best position to make the right decisions now, as well as plan for the future.

Hospitality Lawyer Stephen Barth Explains Legalese

What does "indemnification" mean?

Stephen Barth's Hospitality Law textbook defines indeminification as "to make one whole; to reimburse for a loss already incurred."

A sample Mutual Indemnification Clause:

Each party agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the other party from any claims, liabilities, losses, damages and expenses (including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys fees) asserted against the other party and arising out of the indemnifying party’s negligent performance of, or failure to perform, any of its duties or obligations under this Agreement. The provisions of this indemnification are solely for the benefit of the parties hereto and not intended to create or grant any rights, contractual or otherwise, to any other person or entity.

Visit our Solutions Store for a Meeting Contract Template that follows the Convention of Industry Council's Suggested Formatting and Suggested Mutual Clauses.

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The 2010 Hospitality Law Conference - Focusing on Worldwide Legal, Safety, & Security Solutions
February 3-5, 2010
Omni Hotel in Houston, Texas

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Houston, Texas 77227
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