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Young Entrepreneur Forums » General Business » Legal » What makes a contract legal?



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Old 11-21-2007, 09:48 AM   #1 (permalink)
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What makes a contract legal?

Hey guys, I run a small web-development firm with my business partner, and we'd like to start drawing up contracts to go with our signed customer specifications. Do we need to see a lawyer to check to make sure they will be legal? Or can we do them ourselves? - and if so, how legally binding will they be?
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Old 11-21-2007, 10:36 AM   #2 (permalink)
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Answer: What Makes a Contract Legally Valid
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Old 11-21-2007, 02:23 PM   #3 (permalink)
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great article thanks
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Old 11-21-2007, 02:34 PM   #4 (permalink)
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Thanks for the reply - its resolved a lot of my questions
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Old 11-29-2007, 09:41 AM   #5 (permalink)
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You dont need a solicitor but they are highly advisable - for webdesign they should be able to create a generic template where you just copy and paste the individual details for each client/ project
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Old 11-29-2007, 03:13 PM   #6 (permalink)
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Always consult with a lawyer. Even thought there are a lot of business related things I would of done on my own; forming my LLC, Trademarks, Copyrighting, etc....I always consult with a lawyer and have them review all the paperwork that I have filled out.
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Old 11-29-2007, 07:37 PM   #7 (permalink)
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Great question, that link chriswick provided helped me also. I would think making your own contracts is legal, make sure your clients read it carefully because you don't want any problems.
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Old 12-02-2007, 07:39 PM   #8 (permalink)
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As far as i know, an electronic signature or real signature is all you need for a contract to be legal. Then anything on the contract is legal binding to the person/s who signed.

And yes get a lawyer to word it so you dont break any laws.
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Old 12-02-2007, 08:26 PM   #9 (permalink)
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As far as i know, an electronic signature or real signature is all you need for a contract to be legal. Then anything on the contract is legal binding to the person/s who signed.
not really. contracts don't need to be signed to be valid, and not everything in a contract is enforceable. some terms may be inequitable and become severed from the rest of the contract...such as unreasonably penalty provisions, or non compete clauses.
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Old 12-02-2007, 08:27 PM   #10 (permalink)
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Its not about breaking laws, its about the enforceabilit of the contract. Yes, you can write your own contract, but no, it's not a good idea. An attorney should be able to draw up a contract for a few hundred dollars and tell you how to set up the electronic signature so as to make the contract enforceable. Good luck.
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Old 12-02-2007, 08:32 PM   #11 (permalink)
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not really. contracts don't need to be signed to be valid, and not everything in a contract is enforceable. some terms may be inequitable and become severed from the rest of the contract...such as unreasonably penalty provisions, or non compete clauses.
Cool thats good to know
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