If you are a business owner, at some point in your business you probably have a form contract that you use for sales or services. The first page of your contract probably has all the important information on it, the: who, what, where, and when. Stapled to the back of that first page are probably 2-5 pages of the generically named ‘Terms and Conditions.” The only thing that most business owners know about the terms and conditions is that they have to be there. However, most business owners do not know exactly why they need to be there or what they need to say.
Terms and conditions are not hard to obtain. Search the internet and you can find a plethora of free boiler plate terms and conditions that you can download and staple right to the back of your contract. Many business owners trying to save on costs follow this approach rather than having an attorney draft a contract for them, and none of them know just how costly that decision ends up becoming. This is because most people who put their own contracts together don’t know exactly what they are putting in there.
Some provisions are easy. But do you know what force majeure means? Do the boilerplate terms and conditions have a warranty stuck in the middle somewhere that you are not planning to give? Did the provisions you downloaded make the exclusive law and venue California for disputes when your business is located in Chicago? Does your contract let you collect attorney fees if you need to sue your customer for payment or will you have to pay those fees without reimbursement?
The main issue is that boilerplate items need to be tailored to your business needs. Unless they are prepared by a professional who knows your business, your contract could end up becoming a legal and financial nightmare.
Disclaimer
This is a passive blog and the materials contained herein are provided for informational purposes only. Nothing contained in this blog should be interpreted as a solicitation of business and none of the information contained herein constitutes legal advice. The law is subject to change without notice, and the local laws of your residence may be different from the general information displayed on this blog. You should not rely on the information provided on this blog without first consulting an attorney. Contacting this website does not establish and attorney/client relationship between you and its publisher Christopher A. Cali
An attorney/client relationship can only be established with Christopher A. Cali by engaging in direct person-to-person contact with Christopher A. Cali. Christopher A Cali does not intend to practice law in any jurisdiction in which he is not licensed.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment