Contract Lawyer Guide 2024: What to Expect From Your UK Lawyer

Good written agreements are essential for any business relationship or transaction. They set out the framework for the arrangement and govern the responsibilities and obligations of each party, minimizing the risk of future issues, financial penalties or misunderstandings.

Any contracts that are drafted by your own firm, particularly if you generally contract on standard terms of business, should be fair and reasonable for all parties concerned, to avoid future challenges and to protect the reputation of your business.

Selecting the right contract lawyer can be as crucial as the wording of the terms in the contract itself, but when do you need a contract lawyer and what should you look for?

What are Business Contract Lawyers and Why Do You Need Them? 

Business contract lawyers specialize in drafting and reviewing all essential paperwork to ensure you get a fair deal and do not leave your business open to onerous liability, future challenges or financial penalties.

Standard contracts between businesses can be a minefield, with many potential pitfalls. When signing any written agreement it is important to remember:

• Template terms are very popular, but may favor one party more than the other
• Significant impacts or unfair provisions are often camouflaged with technical or legal jargon, or hidden at the end of the agreement in the “boilerplate” provisions
• When drafting their own terms, some businesses will include terms that are detrimental to the other party, just to see if they can get away with it
• Those with perceived bargaining power may try to leverage their position unfairly in written contracts.  Occasionally, unfair terms will be struck out - leaving the business with limited liability or reduced options for recourse if the agreement is not upheld
• However, unfair contracts between businesses are not automatically illegal; it is vital that business contract lawyers review any important documents prior to signing

When Should You Use Contract Lawyers in a Business Setting?

It is highly recommended to employ the services of expert contract lawyers to review any important documents or contracts between your business and another business that may affect your financial or operational situation.

Challenging unfair contracts in court can be a lengthy and costly experience and it is much cheaper and safer in the long run to have the documents quickly reviewed by industry experts in advance of signing.

When drafting your own contracts to be signed by another party it is again useful to have contract lawyers take care of the legwork for you in this regard. 

Any template or standard terms used (or, worse still, terms copied from another business) may accidentally favor the other party. Even terms that work in your favor can end up costing the business if they are later challenged in court or looked upon disapprovingly by future investors as the business grows.

For any important drafting or reviewing of contracts, specialist business contract lawyers should be used.

In general, you should always seek expert legal advice if

• You do not fully understand any section of the contract you are going to sign
• You are worried that the terms of the contract may not be fair or may cause issues
• You are having doubts or have a feeling that something is “not right”
• You feel tempted to assume that the terms you’re reviewing are “all just standard”.  This is rarely the case.  

Which Agreement Types can be Handled by Contract Lawyers in the UK?

Business contract lawyers in the UK can deal with a wide range of contracts and written agreements. These include

• Supply contracts
• Website terms and conditions
• Computer and IT contracts
• Trading documentation, including standard terms and conditions for sale or purchase
• Distribution and agency agreements
• Bespoke commercial agreements
• Joint venture agreements
• Data protection
• Licenses, assignments, development agreements and service agreements
• Copyright and other intellectual property issues
• Public procurement contracts
• Framework agreements
• Franchise agreements
• Services and outsourcing agreements
• Confidentiality agreements

Choosing a UK Contract Lawyer for Your Business—What to Look For

Selecting legal representatives who specialize in business and contract law is key to ensuring the needs of your industry are catered to, for any B2B contracts.  There are several things you should look for when selecting a contract lawyer for any UK-based business.

Your contract lawyer should be able to bridge the gap between the legal aspects and the vision of your business and future goals—apart from being specialists in the industry, they should offer advice that is simple to understand and jargon-free.

In business, a contract lawyer’s role is to secure the best deal possible for your company and to act almost as a translator for the complex terminology and wording used in standard business contracts in the UK.

Their job is not to impress you with how much legal jargon they know or whether it is the Unfair Contract Terms Act of 1977 that applies or the Consumer Rights Act of 2015. 

You just want to know what the contract means in plain English and what implications it will have for your business. Of course, your contract lawyers should have the required legal experience but ideally, they should save the legal speak for dealing with the courts and other legal professionals.

When it comes to business, you want to know how exactly the terms of the agreement will affect you with regard to profit/loss and the real-life risks that you may face if signing the contract in its current form.

A good contract lawyer, apart from being adaptable, organized, and well-researched with good attention to detail, should also be a good listener and this part of communication is vital when drafting contracts.

Not every business owner will have detailed documents covering every interaction that has taken place but the top end of business contract lawyers will recognise and be able to deal with this, adapting to the situation as needed.

Today’s business lawyers are assisted by a wide range of technology but when it comes to drafting contracts, an old-fashioned conversation is still the best medium for the job.

Contract lawyers working with any UK business need to be able to listen carefully to the needs of their client and using their expert legal knowledge, translate this into the most effective contract that ensures the longevity and continued success of the client business.

Specialist Business Contract Lawyers | Biztech UK

At Biztech Lawyers we provide businesses with specially qualified contract lawyers to ensure that any existing contracts to be reviewed or future contracts to be drafted are handled with the utmost precision, securing the aims of your business objectives. 

Our specialist contract lawyers can provide you with a comprehensive analysis of prospective contracts with any potential issues or risks highlighted.

We can help you redraft sections of the contract you are not entirely satisfied with or create your own documents to be signed by another party in any B2B setting.

Contact Biztech Lawyers

For more information on contract lawyers in the UK and when they are needed, get in touch with our expert advisors today.

If there is any wording you are unsure about or any feelings of doubt about the fairness of the agreement you are due to sign, our business contract law team can review any documents and provide a clear explanation of what they mean, in terms of your business.

Even for written contracts you are entirely satisfied with, it is still highly recommended to have your legal team quickly go over the details of the agreement to provide that reassurance that there is nothing lurking in the future. 

This allows you to continue building your business relationships with mutual trust and provides peace of mind while operating within the framework of the agreement.