Employment Agreement Review Where Fine Print Meets Real Protection
An employment agreement review seems unnecessary until an ex-employee starts using your pricing model at their new company or someone claims their contract says something completely different to what you remember agreeing to.
Lazarus Legal helps NSW business owners spot the terms that fail in court, fix Fair Work compliance gaps, and strengthen restraint clauses before contract problems drain revenue or trigger expensive disputes.
How One Employment Error Becomes A Six-Figure Problem
Most business owners use template employment agreements downloaded from the internet or adapted from another company. The problem? Those templates were written for different businesses, different roles, and often different states. They contain restraint clauses that courts strike down as too broad, termination provisions that breach Fair Work Act requirements, and IP assignment terms that leave critical business assets unprotected.
Templates Work Fine Until Someone Hands A Notice
When disputes emerge three years into someone’s employment, you discover your agreement doesn’t cover what happens when they leave. By then, they’ve built relationships with your best clients, developed expertise in your systems, and potentially have access to sensitive business information. Standard solicitors reviewing these agreements miss operational realities. They check if clauses are grammatically correct, and not whether they’ll actually prevent your senior sales manager from taking your top five accounts when they resign.
The Legal Team Safeguarding Your Interests
Our team is led by Mark Lazarus, who handled employment matters for Monster Energy before founding Lazarus Legal. We have reviewed over 800 employment agreements for NSW businesses in the last three years, identifying enforceability issues in 67% of contracts drafted by other firms. We’ve defended businesses in Fair Work Commission proceedings, negotiated settlements in restraint clause disputes, and recovered damages when employees breached properly drafted agreements.
What Actually Matters In An Employment Agreement
We don’t just review legal compliance. We assess whether your employment agreement actually protects your business when someone leaves, whether your termination clauses give you flexibility during probation periods, and whether your IP provisions cover work created using company resources outside business hours. Every review includes specific recommendations on Modern Awards coverage, contractor versus employee classification risks, and whether your restraint clauses will survive court challenge based on recent NSW case law.
The Six Contract Areas We Check In An Employment Agreement Review
Employment agreement review isn’t about reading contracts top to bottom looking for typos. It’s about identifying which clauses fail when tested, which terms courts strike down as unenforceable, and which gaps leave your client relationships and intellectual property unprotected after someone resigns.
Restraint of Trade Clauses
We assess whether your restraint clauses are enforceable based on recent NSW case law, checking if geographic restrictions match where your business actually operates and if time periods are reasonable for the role's seniority. Courts strike down overly broad restraints, so we identify which terms will survive legal challenge and which create false confidence.
Termination Provisions
Your termination clauses get examined against Fair Work Act minimum requirements, checking if notice periods meet statutory minimums and if probation termination rights are properly documented. We verify whether your contract allows termination during probation without notice and if termination procedures protect against unfair dismissal claims.
IP Assignment Terms
We review IP clauses to confirm they cover work created outside business hours using company resources and whether assignment provisions extend to modifications of existing company IP. Many IP clauses only protect work created during work hours at company premises, leaving gaps when staff develop competing products at home.
Modern Awards and Enterprise Agreement Terms
Your employment agreement gets checked against applicable Modern Awards to identify where award terms override contract provisions and if any contract terms are void because they provide less than award entitlements. We assess penalty rates, overtime provisions, allowances, and leave entitlements to ensure Fair Work compliance while maximizing contractual flexibility.
Confidentiality And Non-Solicitation Terms
Your confidentiality clauses get tested against what they actually prevent, checking if they cover client lists, pricing information, and business systems beyond just formal trade secrets. We verify whether non-solicitation provisions prevent staff contacting clients they serviced and whether confidentiality obligations survive employment termination with clear consequences for breaches.
Fixed Term Contracts and Cost Recovery Terms
Fixed term employment contracts get checked for compliance with the two-year maximum limit introduced in December 2023. Cost recovery clauses for relocation expenses, training costs, and sign-on bonuses are assessed for enforceability, checking if repayment obligations apply when you terminate employment versus when employees resign.
Best of the best. Professional, prompt and always offering excellent advice. I’ve used Mark and his team for multiple businesses from a tech start up to more established businesses. Mark has advised on employee contracts, shareholders agreements, trade marks and more. I wouldn’t use any other legal service provider.
My experience with Lazarus Legal was fantastic and I can’t praise Mark and his team enough! They helped us build our website policies and T&Cs for our marketplace business. Communication was an easy. Mark patiently broke down all the legal nitty-gritty and shared with us what else we should consider as a start up. For anyone looking for a legal team I highly recommend Lazarus Legal. Massive thanks to Mark and team!
Lazarus Legal recently assisted me with preparing my contract and I couldn’t be more pleased with their service. They were thorough, professional and explained everything in a way that was easy to understand. Communication was prompt and they make sure every detail was handled with care. I highly recommend their services to anyone needing reliable legal support. 🙂
- Bringing on new staff?
Get The Employment Agreement Right
Book an employment agreement review with our commercial lawyer team and receive detailed analysis of enforceability issues, Fair Work compliance gaps, and protection weaknesses in your current or proposed employment contracts.
We provide specific recommendations on restraint clauses, termination provisions, IP assignment terms, and Modern Awards interaction. Contact Lazarus Legal today to protect your business before employment agreements create expensive problems.
Employment Agreement Review Questions We Answer Every Week
What does an employment agreement review actually check?
An employment agreement review examines whether your contract terms are enforceable, compliant with the Fair Work Act and National Employment Standards, and structured to protect your business interests. We assess restraint of trade clauses to determine if they’re reasonable enough that courts will enforce them, review termination provisions to confirm they meet minimum notice requirements and provide flexibility during probation, and verify IP assignment clauses cover work created using company resources. We check if Modern Awards override any contract terms, whether contractor versus employee classification creates risks under the new Fair Work Act definitions effective from August 2024, and if confidentiality provisions protect your client lists, pricing information, and business systems. Every review includes checking fixed term contract compliance with the two-year limit introduced in December 2023, assessing if cost recovery clauses for relocation or training are enforceable, and verifying dispute resolution procedures meet minimum standards.
How much does an employment agreement review cost at Lazarus Legal?
Our employment agreement review service operates on fixed fees starting at $850 for standard role agreements covering positions like sales staff, marketing coordinators, or operations managers. Senior executive and director agreements with complex restraint clauses, equity provisions, and termination packages start at $1,650 for comprehensive review. The fee includes document review, a consultation discussing enforceability issues and protection gaps, and a written report with specific recommendations for updating terms. Unlike firms charging $450 per hour where reviews can exceed $2,000 through multiple revision cycles, you know the exact cost upfront. Most Sydney employment lawyers charge between $350 and $600 hourly according to Law Society of NSW guidelines, creating unpredictable expenses for what should be straightforward contract verification. We quote transparent fees before starting work, with 89% of employment agreement reviews completing within the quoted amount. Additional drafting to implement recommended changes is quoted separately based on agreement complexity and required updates.
Can an employer change employment agreement terms after someone signs?
Employers cannot unilaterally change employment agreement terms after contracts are signed without employee consent. Any variation requires mutual agreement between both parties, typically documented through a written variation agreement or a new contract replacing the original terms. Attempting to impose new terms through workplace memos, updated policy documents, or verbal instructions doesn’t modify the actual employment contract. Significant changes to duties, reporting structures, or work locations may constitute a breach of contract or potentially a constructive dismissal, giving employees grounds for unfair dismissal claims under the Fair Work Act. Some employment agreements contain variation clauses stating the employer can modify certain terms like work location, reporting lines, or duties within defined parameters, but these clauses must be clearly drafted and reasonably exercised. If business circumstances require substantial changes to employment terms and employees refuse to agree, employers face options of maintaining existing arrangements, negotiating compromises, or potentially terminating employment with appropriate notice.
What makes a restraint of trade clause enforceable in NSW employment agreements?
NSW courts enforce restraint of trade clauses only when they’re reasonably necessary to protect legitimate business interests and don’t impose restrictions beyond what’s required for that protection. Legitimate interests include protecting confidential information, maintaining client relationships the employee developed through their role, and preserving proprietary business systems or trade secrets. Geographic restrictions must relate to the actual area where your business operates and the employee worked. Preventing someone working in a 50-kilometre radius when your business operates in a five-kilometre area in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs will likely fail. Time restrictions typically range from three to twelve months depending on role seniority and industry. Senior executives with extensive client access might justify twelve months, while junior staff rarely justify more than three months. Activity restrictions must be specific about what’s prohibited. “Cannot work in the same industry” is too broad, while “cannot provide accounting services to clients of the business the employee personally serviced during employment” is more likely enforceable. Courts examine whether the restraint is the minimum necessary protection, not the maximum you can impose. Recent cases show NSW courts favour employees’ right to earn a living over business protection when clauses are overly broad.
Should startup founders have different employment agreements than regular staff?
Startup founders require distinctly different employment agreements addressing equity ownership, IP assignment predating company formation, vesting schedules tied to continued employment, and what happens to shares if founder employment terminates. Standard employment agreements don’t cover these founder-specific scenarios. Founder agreements must clarify which party owns intellectual property developed before incorporation, define how equity vests over time, specify what triggers accelerated vesting like acquisition or termination without cause, and establish what happens to unvested shares if a founder leaves. Many startups grant founders shares immediately without vesting, creating situations where someone who leaves after six months retains 25% ownership despite minimal contribution. We structure founder employment agreements that protect the company and remaining founders if someone exits early, prevent disputes over who owns core IP when multiple founders contributed to early development, and align equity retention with actual contribution through time-based and milestone-based vesting. Founder agreements typically include more detailed confidentiality provisions, broader IP assignment covering pre-incorporation work, and termination procedures that don’t trigger unfair dismissal rights since founders often aren’t covered by Fair Work protections.