he has authored books on technical analysis and foreign exchange trading published by john wiley and sons and served as a guest expert on cnbc, bloombergtv, forbes, and reuters among other financial media. kirsten rohrs schmitt is an accomplished professional editor, writer, proofreader, and fact-checker. kirsten is also the founder and director of your best edit; find her on linkedin and facebook. right of first refusal (rofr), also known as first right of refusal, is a contractual right to enter into a business transaction with a person or company before anyone else can. this is a popular clause among lessees of real estate because it gives them preference to the properties in which they occupy. rights of first refusal clauses are similar to options contracts as the holder has the right, but not the obligation, to enter into a transaction that generally involves an asset. the rights holder may prefer to get involved at a later point, rather than make the outlay and commitment right away, and a right of first refusal allows them to do so.