Commercial contracts are a major part of the business world, with contractual business relationships affecting every part of a company’s operations; from employees, suppliers, and business partners, to investors, customers, and landlord. In fact, according to PWC consultancy, the average number of contracts per organisation is 20,000 to 40,000 with a majority of all business transactions being governed by contracts (source).
In recent years, businesses have been able to create commercial contracts with ease and little to no fee online by using innumerable templates found online. However, you must note that in contracts every sentence, every word and every piece of punctuation matters when stating both parties’ obligations.
Without being an expert, it is easy to make small mistakes that may change the meaning of your contract and take it further away from your intentions and goals behind your commercial contract. These mistakes may leave your business open to liability that you may not even be able to comprehend.
In fact, there are numerous cases (source) where poorly written contracts containing even a single ill-defined term or even misplaced punctuation has cost large companies millions in litigation costs.
This is a common problem that is not exclusively for larger corporations. It is estimated that around 36-53% of small businesses are involved in litigation at least once annually and one of the most common reasons for litigation is contractual disputes (source).
With a task so intricate and important, it is vital that you allow an expert in contract law to advise your business in what terms to include in your contract and write your contract professionally to minimise any risk of such court proceedings.
In this blog post, we will aim to explain why you should hire a specialised contract lawyer to draft your business contracts instead of using free-for-all templates you can find from a search engine.
Firstly, we will tackle the question of what exactly is a contract?
In short, a “contract” Is a written, or even verbal, agreement that is intended to be enforceable by law; they are especially common and important in commercial areas concerning sales, employment and even property.
On the other hand, an “enforceable contract” means that if one were to break the terms set out in the contract, they would be liable for damages and providing a remedy to the damages that were incurred as a result of the breach of contract.
Now that we understand the concept of a contract, let us move on to how hiring a contract lawyer can benefit your end result.
Let’s be honest, the law is complicated: from unbelievably long regulations and legal jargon. But unfortunately abiding by the law is a key component of keeping your business alive and running.
Commercial contract lawyers go through vast amounts of education to better understand the law and contracts: their restraints and their capabilities.
Laws and regulations are constantly shifting and changing; it can be difficult to keep up with the latest developments. It is a commercial lawyer’s full-time job to follow these and help to keep your business compliant!
In terms of contracts, without an educated and trained contract lawyer, you may find yourself breaching important terms within your contracts without knowing and furthermore, you may leave out important liability-protecting clauses out of your contracts to begin with. Working with knowledgeable lawyers can help with these problems.
Many times free online contract templates use incorrect and vague language. A contract lawyer is aware of the most direct and clear legal language to reduce the risk of ambiguity of terms.
The best commercial contract lawyers will know the customary and essential terms for each industry. In the long run, the use of appropriate language could save your company thousands of pounds..
When you hire a contract lawyer, they are working for a single person: you. Following on, when drafting your contract, they will have your best interests prioritised, giving yourself more bargaining and negotiating power.
All contract lawyers will priorities their client as failing to do so, also entails risking the loss of their own business and clients.
An unexpected benefit of hiring a contract lawyer is their ability to discern what type of contracts your business requires. There are so many different types of commercial contracts: employment agreements, non-disclosure agreements, terms and conditions and many more.
The right contract lawyer will not just advise the one document that you have approached them with; they will advise you on other documents they believe your business requires in order to maximise legal protection.
If, after the contract has been drafted, approved and signed, you find yourself dealing with a contract breach matter, the most ideal resource when enforcing the contract is the same professional who helped you draft the original document.
Although it must be said that even if you have drafted a contract yourself, it is still worth asking a qualified contract lawyer for counsel in times of breach.
We know that many businesses try to avoid hiring legal professionals wherever possible in order to avoid costly fees; however, the hiring of a contract lawyer could be your business’ most effective risk management strategy.
It provides long term security when you know that an expert contract lawyer has drafted your contracts with your business prioritised and the protection of your liability in mind. This feeling of security passes onto the rest of the business, employees and other commercial relationships.
As contracts provide the foundation of a business, make sure you build a strong one with Adam Bernard’s expert Commercial Contract Lawyers who are able to provide a wide range of contractual services including: industry-specific, data protection, employment, commercial tenancy, sales and many more.
To make it even better, we offer a free 15 minute consultation and operate strictly on a fixed fee basis.
Call today on 02071002525 for your free 15 minute consultation or visit our Central London branch of Adam Bernard Solicitors.
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