Contract Drafting for Non-Lawyers

Introduction

Well-written contracts help companies to achieve successful project outcomes: better performing contractors, satisfied customers, reduced risks, and smaller liabilities, which means increased commercial value being generated from your corporate agreements.

Badly written contracts, on the other hand, will cause you problems. Contractors may exploit weaknesses or ambiguities to avoid their obligations. Customers may be more demanding and delay their payments. Risks that you had hoped to transfer or avoid become unwelcome issues for which you must take responsibility. Costly changes may be required to correct errors and omissions. Liabilities may increase and commercial value may be damaged.

This 5-day Contract Drafting for Non-Lawyers training course has been created for staff without a legal background to assist them in their contract preparation work. It will highlight why effective contract drafting is important and teach participants how to draft a well-written, clear, and effective legal agreement.

The GLOMACS training course will include:

• How to use appropriate language in a contract
• What to look for to identify typical risks in contract clauses, and how to avoid them
• When to consider using standard templates and model form contracts
• How to draft clearly, concisely and without ambiguity
• How to structure the contract to create a logical flow
• Using checklists to identify gaps in the contract document
• How to work with the draft contracts supplied by the party on the other side of the transaction

Objectives

By the end of this Contract Drafting for Non-Lawyers training course delegates will be able to:

• Structure a standard commercial contract
• Identify the key terms and conditions that they should include in a contract
• Use model contracts and templates as a basis for their work
• Draft appropriate terms and conditions for a range of commercial activities
• Identify unacceptably risky terms and conditions in the proposed contracts of partners, contractors, vendors or other parties
• Propose alternative draft wording to protect the commercial interests of their companies

Training Methodology

The instructor will deploy a full range of lively and interactive training methods, including exercises, drafting sessions, role plays, case studies, and group discussions. Each topic will be underpinned by a presentation that highlights key issues to focus on. The learning experience will be supported by a reference manual containing contract templates, checklists, and examples of drafting best practice. Participants will draft several contract clauses and receive personal feedback on their efforts. We will review and analyse model contracts and other legal documents. Alternative approaches will be considered. Real examples will be discussed.

Organisational Impact

By enrolling your staff on this Contract Drafting for Non-Lawyers training course, your Company will enrich your commercial staff to better understand how to develop commercial contracts from the ground up. The Oxford Management Centre training assumes no prior contract drafting skills and will help in the:

• Communication of contractual ideas between different departments
• Understanding of why well-drafted contracts are essentials
• Better drafting of contracts
• Improvement of the management of risks associated with contracted-out activities
• Application of important business skills, such as the skill of contract preparation
• Negotiation of alternative wording to a supplier’s set of terms and conditions

Personal Impact

This highly interesting Contract Drafting for Non-Lawyers training course provides useful applied guidance on how to prepare and draft effective commercial contracts and other legal documentation to meet the needs of the company. The focus will be on helping participants learn to draft better commercial agreements.

Participants attending this Contract Drafting for Non-Lawyers training course will come away from the training:

• Enlightened about how commercial contracts work
• Stimulated by an engaging learning experience that tests their knowledge and abilities
• Informed about how to prepare and develop commercial agreements
• Enriched by their ability to deploy new contract drafting skills
• Progressed in their career choices in contract development
• Enthused to put their newly developed capabilities into practice on the job