Under certain circumstances, documents simply signed through the course of business might be considered contracts. Purchase orders, receipts, sales agreements and others are contracts when they are held to be legally binding. For any such agreements, it is crucial that you understand your end of the bargain and the legal consequences of it. Otherwise, you could be held legally accountable for something you did not expect.

How Can I Ensure a Contract is Good?

Reading a document before you sign it is obviously the cardinal rule. The clauses outlining your duties under the contract are especially worthy of special attention. However, documents can often be too long for a worthwhile read, or so commonplace that reading each one is not practical. If so, there are still other ways you can effectively review it. A Pleasant Hills, Pennsylvania attorney can look over a contract before you sign it, as well as review any standardized documents that you deal with on a routine basis. In so doing, the Lawyer will ensure that the legal effect of the documents matches your intent.

What if I Don't Understand a Contract in Pennsylvania?

The words of a contract are the expression of an agreement, not the agreement itself. It is the parties' understanding of the contract as it is made that determines its legal effect, regardless of the particular words used. Since it's your understanding that matters, relying on the other party's explanation of the contract terms might lead to problems. In Pleasant Hills, you can find a neutral third party that is qualified to review and explain the contract. Contract negotiations, especially in the context of particular fields such as finance, can be time consuming and difficult. But as in all contracts, the objective is to record the intent of the parties so that their agreement will be given legal effect under Pennsylvania law.