When parties to an agreement intend it to have legal effect, that agreement is called a contract. In Missouri, contracts may be oral or written, as long as both parties have the same understanding of the terms of the agreement. Most businesses want to solidify their agreements in writing so that they can rely on them in the future. Since many legal principles may be involved, drafting a contract works best when done with as much knowledge of the law as possible.

Negotiating a Contract in Kirkwood

Negotiation of each specific term in a contract is important to ensure that the intent of each party is met. Also, there are certain clauses that should be included in every Kirkwood contract to give it the desired legal effect. Being forthright about your intentions can help the contract goal of mutual understanding of expectations. To conclude negotiations, you may want to include a clause that determines what is to be done if a party fails to meet its duty.

Using a Form Contract

Many Kirkwood, Missouri Attorneys use form contracts as a template for any new agreement. The attorney will add or remove contract provisions that the parties want, plus modify the specific language of the form contract to meet the parties' needs. This usually saves all parties time and money. Using a form contract without the help of an attorney may pose problems. First, parties using form contracts often do not read all the terms, and can therefore be unaware of their obligations under the contract. Second, the difficult language used in the field of contracts can make agreements written by others challenging to understand. An attorney can ensure that a written contract matches the intent of the parties, both with form contracts and in negotiations. In Kirkwood, many Attorneys specialize in Missouri contract law.