Curriculum
Business Contracting for Professionals and Consultants
MODULE 1 Start the Contracting Process
0/3
MODULE 2 Understand Contract Elements
0/5
MODULE 3 Define Your Project
0/8
MODULE 4 Negotiate the Contract
0/12
Define warranties and liability
Clients expect you to provide warranties on your work. This includes things like saying your work product is all your own and not subject to other obligations, won’t infringe on others’ work, or violate copyrights or laws. The warranties section of your contract will contain all the representations you make about the quality of your work, as well as what happens if your work fails to meet those standards. These consequences can include reperformance of the work at no cost, refunds of amounts paid for the work, or damages due to wasted time and effort on the client’s part. Understand these consequences thoroughly, especially if you have employees or subcontractors doing the work for you. While your quality standards might be exceedingly high, your employees or subcontractors might make mistakes or deliver lower quality work, which could trigger a warranty claim. You and your client are both expected to comply with all laws, regulations, and terms of the agreement. The liabilities section will specify what happens if either party violates the compliance principles you agree upon. The liabilities section says what happens if either party breaks the contract. Liability limits are set in this section. Pay careful attention here. Limit your liability as much as possible. If you don’t and your work causes problems for the client, you could be responsible for significant damages, including lost profits, operational interruptions, and other costly claims. If you’re a smaller firm, many times you can get the client to agree that the limit of liability is the total amount of fees you’ve charged over a specified period of time. That eliminates the risk of being held liable for massive losses, like lost profits or loss of use. Definitely consult an attorney to help you craft the warranties and liabilities section of your contract. While you’ll most likely never have to rely on these provisions, if and when you do, a well-crafted warranty and liability section can save you from catastrophic damages.