Contracts are the lifeblood of any business. They are often used to stipulate a variety of different relationships in the business world, including that between employer and employee, vendor and business, and even between business partners.
Every contract, however, is an important outline for the relationship between two or more individuals. Having properly drafted contracts is often the first step towards minimizing the chances of a legal dispute down the road.
Unfortunately, it is all too common to make contract disputes that can end up costing you and landing you in a court to deal with a litigation issue.
Get a Lawyer to Review It
Make sure you always read a contract fully and understand all of the terms inside it before you sign. You should also have your experienced business attorney evaluate the contract and provide recommendations for edits, if necessary.
Not every contract needs to be accepted as is. In the event that you need to update the contract or change the terms, speaking with your business lawyer can help you.
Do the Research
Doing research on the people you’re going into business with and their past performance and reputation before you sign any document. This is a great way to verify the facts and potentially uncover any issues ahead of time.
You should never begin working with someone without having a signed contract. There are two components to protecting yourself.
First of all, both sides have to agree as to what kind of value will be exchanged in the form of services, goods, or money. Both sides also need to agree on the expectations and obligations outlined in the [inaudible 00:01:49] have agreed to how the transaction will unfold.
Get Legal Help
The jargon inside in terms of intellectual property law. There are often many aspects of a business contract, and it is imperative that you understand how they influence your business and can protect, or harm you down the road.
Simply signing without having an attorney review this document could put you at significant risk of sustaining damage down the road in the form of a legal conflict, where you have to spend the time, energy, and money to protect yourself in court.
It is far better, where possible, to avoid conflicts altogether. An experienced contract attorney can help you with this process.
Always Ask Questions
It is not enough to just evaluate what is written inside the contract that could lead to problems in the future. You also need to get answers to all of your questions up front. If you fail to do this, you could be looking at expenses or an unpleasant outcome that you hadn’t considered when you started out.
Some of the clauses that frequently should be included to protect you, but are often left out include:
1. What is the kill fee?
2. When is payment due?
3. Who pays for reimbursements for accrued expenses of an argument?
Set Expectations
While the contract is doing the heavy lifting for defining the relationship, there are major issues when an entrepreneur creates a contract that doesn’t have clear guidelines about how revisions will be handled once work is completed.
The verbiage of the contract may specifically outline whether or not someone is entitled to multiple revisions, or bonuses, or discounts.
Putting this inside the contract can make it crystal clear what everyone is responsible for so that there are no questions down the road and so that you minimize the chances of a legal dispute later on.
Taking action now is strongly recommended so as to avoid problems in the future. Legal disputes over contracts can be expensive and frustrating for anyone so make sure you work with a lawyer who will do everything possible to prevent this.
Get Help from An Experienced Florida Contract Litigation Attorney Today
Working with an experienced contract attorney is strongly recommended if you find yourself in the position of using these tools on a regular basis.
This is because your attorney can point out problematic areas and give you guidance as to what to do next. You should never initiate a contract with someone until you have had the opportunity to have your lawyer review it.
Know how to protect yourself in your new business partnership:/blog/2016/10/how-to-protect-yourself-in-your-new-business-partnership/