why you should let a lawyer draft your contract

6 Reasons It’s Worth Hiring an Attorney to Draft Your Business Contracts

1. Help You Understand a Contract Better. Contracts are rather complicated paperwork. You’ll encounter a mountain of...
2. Spot Potential Liabilities. Signing a contract is a big decision. It can be difficult to know what you’re getting...
3. Ensure That a Contract is Valid. Contracts can be tricky...

Full Answer

Do I need a lawyer to draft a contract?

However, if there is any money at stake, not having a lawyer properly draft a contract is tantamount to rolling the dice. Having a lawyer draft your contracts gives you three distinct advantages: Lawyers give you an invaluable outside perspective on the terms of the deal.

Why should you hire a contract lawyer?

Lawyers give you an invaluable outside perspective on the terms of the deal. In addition to their legal skills, contract lawyers are also detailed oriented and excellent problem solvers. Having a lawyer prepare your legal documents gives you an outside perspective on your business dealings.

Why should you hire a lawyer to prepare legal documents?

Having a lawyer prepare your legal documents gives you an outside perspective on your business dealings. Sometimes the people involved are too close to the negotiations to notice potential problems with the structure of the deal.

What happens if a contract is poorly drafted?

It is critical that contracts are drafted so that they will protect you in the event that the other side fails to keep their commitments. When the original contract was poorly drafted, a breach of contract lawsuit usually ends badly for the person who was screwed over in the deal.

What are the advantages of hiring a lawyer to draft a contract?

Contract lawyers by your side can provide these seven compelling advantages:Help you better understand the contract. ... Identify potential liability isses and resolve them. ... Ensure the contract is valid and legally enforceable. ... Ensure new regulations and applicable state laws are considered.More items...

What is the purpose of drafting a contract?

Drafting a contract is the process of explicitly writing down the terms and conditions of an agreement and the goal of contract drafting is to create a legally binding document in writing that is clear, concise, and as close to the parties' intentions as possible.

What are the disadvantages of hiring a lawyer to draft or review a contract?

On the other hand, some drawbacks of hiring a contract review attorney may include:Spending unnecessary funds on hiring an attorney to review a simple and straightforward agreement;Having to wait for an attorney to review a contract, which in turn, will delay signing it and moving forward with a business deal;More items...•

What is a draft from a lawyer?

The lawyer's role in “drafting” a legal document is to ensure they identify all the relevant facts and law and then apply them to prepare a document that accomplishes their client's goals.

What happens after a draft contract?

Once the draft contract has been negotiated between the solicitors, you'll be sent a copy to check. When the final terms have been agreed and any issues have been resolved, you're ready to exchange.

Is a draft agreement legally binding?

It's easily done: following months of negotiations, a draft contract is ready for signature but other things take priority, work begins and the contract never gets signed. Six months later, a dispute arises – but, as the draft hasn't been signed, it isn't binding.

Who should draft a contract?

In many situations, hiring a lawyer to draft your contracts can be one of the best decisions you ever make. If you're not yet convinced, consider the benefits of having a competent business lawyer on your side below.

What does it mean to draft an agreement?

to draft (up) an agreement (legal term): to develop, to write, to draw up an agreement or a contract (legal term)

What are the advantages of the law of contract?

Well-drafted contracts provide you and your business many benefits such as: Clarity in business relationships, agreements, and rights of parties. Avoiding potential contract disputes and litigation. Preventing misinterpretation of communications and agreements.

Is a draft a legal document?

Drafting is a specific type of legal writing dealing with legislation, instruments, or other legal documents that are to be construed by others. Statutes, rules, regulations, contracts and wills are examples of legal drafting.

Are drafts legal?

The United States military has been all-volunteer since 1973. But an act of Congress could still reinstate the draft in case of a national emergency. The Selective Service System is the agency that registers men and is responsible for running a draft.

What does draft mean in legal terms?

"Legal drafting" can mean the preparation of any written legal document--a motion, a letter, a brief, a memo, or a contract. Lawyers and law teachers use the phrase in this way all the time: "Draft a brief" or "draft a letter."

Why is it important for a lawyer to draft and evaluate a contract?

It is much better for a lawyer to draft and evaluate a contract when there is no pressure on the viewpoint of benefits, losses or subjective competition factors. Attorneys’ perspective on contractual issues is also objective and reliable, from which legal opinions can be made appropriate to the situation and capabilities of clients during the drafting process, sign and execute contracts. This ensures the contract complies with the law and respects the principle of equality of the parties.

Is it expensive to hire a lawyer to draft a contract?

Hiring a lawyer to draft a contract may be costly, especially when compared to having someone with no expertise drafting, reviewing and analysing contractual issues from a legal perspective. But a lawyer with strong experience in drafting a contract will be a wise guide when anticipating all the problems that customers may encounter as well as developing a plan to avoid any adverse risks, especially for remote customers.

Identifying Any Loopholes

One of the most important reasons a business has a contract is to protect itself. For example, you might draft an agreement with a potential new client to ensure they agree to a specific payment by an agreed date.

Including The Latest Legislations

The business laws and industry regulations you’re currently aware of may no longer be the most up-to-date information, particularly as they can change frequently.

Ensuring The Best Terms

Depending on the type of contract you’re signing or creating, you likely want to ensure you’re as advantaged by its contents as possible. Business lawyers can do their best to make sure this happens. While the contract will outline all critical information, they can also enter a few different terms that benefit your current situation.

Helping You Understand The Agreement

You may know you need a contract to enter into an agreement with another person or business, but that doesn’t mean you understand what you agree to or what your contract even has to include.

1. Help You Understand a Contract Better

Contracts are rather complicated paperwork. You’ll encounter a mountain of legal jargon if you try to read through one. There are also many types of contracts, and each one serves a different purpose. All these can be perplexing to someone unfamiliar with them.

2. Spot Potential Liabilities

Signing a contract is a big decision. It can be difficult to know what you’re getting into, especially with many unfamiliar terms plaguing the paper. But with a lawyer’s help, you will be able to spot potential liabilities that could affect your business in the long run.

3. Ensure That a Contract is Valid

Contracts can be tricky to understand. For example, if a contract contains an illegal term or one word is in the wrong place, it could render that agreement invalid. This would require you and your counterpart to sign another document stating what both parties agreed on initially.

4. Someone to Turn To if a Dispute Arises Later on

Nothing in life is certain, and that includes contracts. Sooner or later, problems may arise. The other party might not honor the agreement, or you might unintentionally breach a term. The worse thing that could happen is for things to escalate to court. However, there’s no need to panic if you have a lawyer who helped draft the agreement with you.

5. Represent You in Court

Suppose you were not able to settle a misunderstanding diplomatically. The next thing you know, you’ve got a contract breach knocking at your doorstep. A contract dispute is challenging to handle on your own. It will require a lot of time and effort, not to mention legal knowledge that you might not have.

6. You Are not an Expert

Admit it. You’re not an expert. Unless you’ve gone through law school and passed the bar, you’ll find it hard to navigate through the treacherous world of laws and regulations. Attorneys exist for the sole reason of using their knowledge to help fight the legal battles of the people.

Why do you need an attorney to draft a legal agreement?

Reason No. 1. You may end up bound to terms that you don’t want. Without fully understanding the laws that may affect your business you may inadvertently not include terms in your agreement that are required by law.

Why do you need a contract attorney?

A contract attorney will know what terms are needed to protect your rights. Reason No. 4. You may not be protecting your interests. Without being familiar with contract law, a contract drafted by a non-lawyer may not protect your interests at all, especially if you are unaware of what rights you may have. Laws may need to be interpreted in order ...

How long do you have to cancel a door to door contract?

Many states have consumer protection laws that require businesses that perform door-to-door sales to have language concerning a three day right to cancel in its contracts. Don’t take the words “door to door” literally.

Is a contract legally valid?

If the contract is not legally valid it is not enforceable.

Is a business contract complex?

Business contracts can be lengthy and often include several complex clauses. Even if you are patient enough to read all the terms and conditions of a contract, you will come across various legal verbiage that require a detailed understanding of contract law.

Can a contract be enforced if it is not enforceable?

There are several elements that a legally enforceable contract must include. If your contract excludes any of these elements, it can’t be enforced, even if the other party does not meet their contractual obligations. Your contract lawyer will review your contract and make changes, if necessary, to ensure it is enforceable.

Draft Contracts

Gone are the days when business partnerships are sealed with a firm handshake. Today, you need to create and sign a business contract to seal the deal. This is also applicable to the professional relationship you’ll make with your suppliers and employees.

Handle Employee Issues

Your business can’t fully operate without employees. Regardless of the target audience and the nature of your business, you’ll need several employees to help you out. The bigger your company gets, the more employees you’ll have to hire to work with you.

Protect Against Lawsuits

One of the biggest mistakes business owners make is only hiring a lawyer when they’re already in the middle of business litigation. Being asked to be present in court and prepare the necessary pieces of evidence can be nerve-wracking, which is why business owners would invest in a lawyer to help them settle all of these things.

Assist With Business Structural Decisions

It’s common for business owners to invest in partnerships or merge with other businesses if they notice that theirs is growing. Any of these professional relationships can help your business earn more profit and gain more customers. While it can be very tempting to handle all these things on your own, it’s best if you won’t.

Choose Carefully

Countless business lawyers are operating in different parts of the world today. When hiring, make sure that you check their credentials and determine if their professional experience suits your needs. You should also pay attention to the quality of their customer service and the affordability of their services.