A contract’s attorney is a legal professional who works exclusively on legal matters on a contract basis, with little or no chance of obtaining a traditional employment. Such work is usually of a short-term nature, with little or no guarantee of ongoing employment. Yet such work is required by many businesses that enter into long-term contracts with their employees. Without this kind of contract lawyer expertise, businesses would risk the possibility of having a key employee leave without notice, and then be unable to re-employ that employee when the contractual relationship comes to an end. This would render the business even further at risk, as if the employee had not been paid his agreed salary. Without a contracts attorney on board, businesses are left to their own devices in these situations.
In order for a business to be able to function in the modern global economy, it needs to have the ability to engage in a wide range of contracting activities. The need to engage in such contracting activities is not limited to any one aspect of the business; rather, it encompasses all areas of the business at all times. Thus, a business may need to enter into contracts with clients, suppliers, or even employees. Without a means to ensure a successful outcome from such activity, a business is at the mercy of any number of factors which may result in financial losses, or delay in the process of obtaining some contracts.
In order to ensure that a business enters into successful contracts, it is essential that legal counsel is employed. Without such counsel, a business can easily find itself at the whim of any number of external factors. Without legal guidance, a company may discover that its intended contract with a supplier does not provide for the best possible outcome, for example. Or perhaps it needs a particular feature from that supplier, but the contract does not specify that feature. Without legal help, a business may also not understand what features constitute a good contract, or if they do what they actually do.
When a business needs to engage in contracts with other businesses or individuals, it is vital that those contracts are clear and fairly balanced. A business’ desire to establish a long term relationship with a supplier may mean that it desires to enter into a long term contract with that particular supplier. However, a business need only that the supplier be willing to supply a certain amount of the requested goods or services at a rate that is reasonable for that business.
Contracts can also become confused by the actions of a business. For example, what appears to be a perfectly reasonable contractual offer, could actually be an unfair one. For example, what appears to be a twelve month contract might in reality only be a four or five year contract, where the length of the contract has been increased due to the business’s failure to meet its obligations in the initial period. Such a discrepancy will be a severe disadvantage for a business seeking to establish a long term relationship with a supplier or a client.
If a business wishes to avoid entering into a bad contract or entering into an agreement that is beyond its ability to execute, it is essential that it engage the services of a contracts attorney. Such an attorney will ensure that all parties involved in the drafting and execution of the agreement, have fully considered all aspects of the agreement and are not driven by self-interests. In fact, the very purpose of a business entering into an agreement is to establish a relationship with a supplier or client. It is imperative that the business be careful and protect that relationship from being damaged by an unhealthy contractual agreement.
