Rowe Bristol Lawyers recommends that clients obtain pre-contractual advice to (among other things):
- tailor a proposed contract to address the specific circumstances;
- ensure that the parties’ obligations are set out accurately and comprehensively; and
- identify the risks that could affect the performance of each parties’ obligations and to ensure those are apportioned or mitigated as intended by our clients.
Although receiving pre-contractual advice increases the initial legal costs for clients, this advice frequently results in a better drafted contract that contributes to the parties avoiding subsequent disputes and legal proceedings. In this way, pre-contractual advice can result in lower overall costs to the parties in the long term, by avoiding disputes and a breakdown of the relationship between the parties.
Rowe Bristol Lawyers has extensive experience in advising clients in relation to drafting contracts and negotiating with other parties as to appropriate terms of contracts, including:
- considering the commercial objectives of the parties to ensure that the advice given fits within that commercial framework;
- providing advice as to contractual clauses that clients ought to propose to best serve their interests;
- amending contracts to clarify the obligations of each party to avoid subsequent disputes;
- providing advice as to the interpretation of contractual clauses proposed by other parties and their effects if accepted; and
- providing advice as to recommended clauses that would apportion risk away from the client or mitigate the risk and potential quantum of loss.
We recommend that our clients receive such advice early on in the negotiation phase of contracts to ensure that future negotiations are not obstructed by compromises already made by the parties. In particular, clients ought to seek advice in relation to the negotiation of contractual terms in relation to non-standard contractual clauses or with respect to circumstances that are out of the ordinary.
If you require legal advice in relation to a contract, please contact us to arrange a meeting so that we may consider your specific circumstances.
The above information is provided as general information only and should not be relied upon as legal advice. The accuracy of this information may have changed from the date when it was published.