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A contract is a legally binding agreement between two or more parties that outlines the terms and conditions of a transaction or business relationship. It can be written or verbal, but written contracts are generally considered to be more enforceable as they provide a clear record of the parties’ agreement.
Contracts typically include the following elements: offer, acceptance, consideration, legal capacity, mutual agreement, and legality. Consider the following options:
Once a contract is formed, each party is obligated to fulfill their obligations under the terms of the agreement. If one party fails to meet their obligations, the other party may have legal remedies available to them, such as damages or specific performance. It’s important to note that contracts can be complex and vary depending on the type of transaction or business relationship involved. It’s recommended to consult with a corporate lawyer at AttorneyX to ensure that your contract is legally enforceable and protects your interests.
Do You Need a Lawyer to Write a Contract?
Technically speaking, you do not need a lawyer to write a contract but it is strongly recommended to use one if you’re unsure as to the terms you’re agreeing to follow and if there is language in the contract presented by the other party that you do not completely understand. There is also a litany of different contract types, many of which you’ve probably never encountered before.
We understand that, in today’s world, there are many contracts circulating around the Internet and we think it’s great that people have access to information in ways never before imaginable. However, just because you find a contract on the Internet, that doesn’t mean it’s legally enforceable in your state; using boilerplate language can be a great start, but there may be advantageous terms available to you that you’re leaving out because you aren’t a lawyer. Furthermore, you must ask yourself if you are prepared to defend yourself should the agreement memorialized in the contract break down between the parties. Typically, lawyers write their own contracts in such a way that they can defend them later in litigation. In many situations, we are called by clients many years later who used a contract “that worked just fine” that is—until it didn’t.
Here are a few examples of contracts we write, review, and litigate for businesses:
- Write restrictive covenants and IP assignments
- Draft franchise agreements and operating manuals
- Write independent contractor agreements
- Write employee equity incentive plans
- Write employment agreements
- Draft non-compete agreements, confidentiality, & NDAs
- Review real estate contracts & leases
- Review business licenses and permits in PA
- Litigate business contracts
- Write affiliate agreements
- Write commercial loan agreements
- Write master services agreements and SOWs
- Write SaaS agreements
- Review and draft vendor agreements
What Does a Contract Lawyer Do?
We’ve worked with small businesses in many sectors at AttorneyX. While each representation is different, pride ourselves on helping them achieve positive outcomes regardless of industry type. Here are a few examples:
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Negotiated existing employment contract for aviation consultant to successful result
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Successfully defended lawsuit against moving company for spurious contract claim
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Drafted a commercial real estate lease which was advantageous to food service client
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Wrote bulletproof employment agreement for yoga studio
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Drafted and promulgated terms of service, disclosure, and waiver for local weight training gym
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Drafted franchise agreement and operating manual for window cleaning service
What Does a Business Lawyer Do? It’s Simple; We Protect You
Many small businesses require contracts to secure the dozens of legal relationships it takes to run a business. In fact, we have heard from a reliable source that hip hop legend Notorious B.I.G. died before his seminal work was completed, entitled, “Mo Contracts, Mo Problems.”
Whenever you sign a contract, you’re at the mercy of an alphabet soup of state and federal statutes dictating how you’re permitted to enforce them. Our job is to help you navigate business laws in Pennsylvania and make sure that your contracts are ironclad. An experienced attorney is of paramount importance to any business.
How Much Does a Small Business Lawyer Cost?
There’s so much more we want to tell you about helping your small business if you’ll give us the chance! If you’re ready to receive experienced business law advice, don’t hesitate to reach out today. We can’t wait to meet you. Did we mention every consultation is free?
