Initial contract considerations - Checklist

Checklist

Businesses enter into contracts on a daily basis covering many different aspects of their business. It is important that commercial entities understand and address the negotiation and performance of the contracts that they enter into.

This Checklist is intended to give guidance to drafters of contracts and their clients on the initial contract considerations when entering into contracts generally. It does not address the particular considerations of specific contracts.

Considerations	Description	Notes
Set objectives	Consider: what you want to achieve whether it is realistic, and whether you have a clear understanding of the purpose of the agreement. It is important that both sides to an agreement are aligned in their thinking. The core of any contract is agreement and if there is either misunderstanding over what has been agreed or outright disagreement as to terms, either the negotiations may prove terminal or there may be issues with performance in due course.
What do you do?	Translating what you want to achieve into a contract requires a good knowledge of the customs and nuances of the party's business.

Considerations

Description

Notes

Set objectives

Consider:

what you want to achieve
whether it is realistic, and
whether you have a clear understanding of the purpose of the agreement.

It is important that both sides to an agreement are aligned in their thinking. The core of any contract is agreement and if there is either misunderstanding over what has been agreed or outright disagreement as to terms, either the negotiations may prove terminal or there may be issues with performance in due course.

What do you do?

Translating what you want to achieve into a contract requires a good knowledge of the customs and nuances of the party's business.