Consultancy
There is no legal requirements to have a written contract in order to provide consultancy services, however most businesses engaging the services of a consultant will expect a formal document outlining the terms and conditions of engagement. It's important that the terms of engagement are clear and complete to avoid any misunderstandings by either party.
A legal contract will help protect the interests of both parties, ensure that the consultant is paid, and provide safeguards for the client's confidential business information and intellectual property. A written agreement is also useful in establishing that the consultant is not an employee of the company hiring their services.
We offer consultancy contracts as well as a range of specialist standard terms and conditions of business for consultants.
The consultancy agreement formats are useful where there is a requirement to have a contract drawn up and signed by both parties prior at the start of the consultancy. This is probably the more traditional form of consultancy contract, where the names of both parties are stated at the top of the document and signed by both parties at the bottom. The terms of the contract may have been negotiated between the parties and the contract drafted accordingly.The alternative is for the consultant to present their standard terms and conditions of business to the client for their acceptance. Such a document sets out the consultant's terms and the specifics of the particular consultancy project, with a section for the client to indicate their acceptance by signing. These consultancy T&Cs templates allow you, the consultant, to present your standard terms and conditions of business to your client along with the specifics of the particular consultancy project. A legal contract is formed once you and your client sign the acceptance section.
Either style of contract can be used to specify the terms of a consultancy project and form a legally binding contract - it just depends on how you choose to conduct business.
