You can easily create a customised Consulting Agreement by filling out LawDepot's questionnaire. Using our template will ensure you complete the necessary steps:
Step 1: Specify how long the Consulting Agreement will last
Start your Consulting Agreement by specifying how long the agreement will last between the consultant and client. Your options are:
- Single project: until the project is complete
- For a fixed term: until a specified date
- Indefinitely: service is ongoing
Step 2: Provide details about the consultant’s services
Description of the services the consultant is providing the client. It helps to be clear and specific when providing details and include any critical dates and deadlines.
Refer to the parties as "Consultant" and "Client" as these defined terms are used consistently throughout the agreement.
Step 3: Provide the consultant’s and client’s details
Provide details about the consultant and client in your agreement. State whether each party is an individual or company, and include names and addresses.
Step 4: Outline the billing details
Your Consulting Agreement needs to outline important billing details like:
- Rate of Pay: Flat rate or hourly, weekly, monthly, etc. The appropriate rate depends on the duration of the contract.
- Payment Schedule: Whether the consultant will be paid weekly, monthly or at the end of the contract. The appropriate schedule depends on the duration of the contract.
- Retainer: A reasonable amount is usually 10-50% of the total contract amount
- Interest rate on late payments: Reasonable late payment charges are up to 25% per year on unpaid sums.
A retainer is a payment the client makes upfront to the consultant before the work begins.
Step 5: Specify the written notice necessary to end the agreement early
A Consulting Agreement for a single project or a fixed term should specify how much notice is required to end the agreement early. Contracts for indefinite periods require a clause that outlines the conditions necessary to terminate the arrangement.
Seven days is typically considered sufficient notice for most short-term contracts. If the arrangement is for more than a few months, 15-30 days' notice is more appropriate.
Step 6: Detail how expenses will be handled
Decide if the client needs to reimburse the consultant for work-related expenses. If so, the agreement also needs to clarify if the consultant requires the client's pre-approval before making purchases.
Step 7: Specify who owns any intellectual property
State whether the client will receive ownership of any intellectual property created under the contract or if the consultant will retain complete ownership.
Intellectual property is any work that's a creation of the mind (e.g., music, logos, blueprints, software, etc.).
Step 8: Decide if the agreement needs a confidentiality clause
Because consultants can receive privileged information about a client due to the services provided, it's sometimes appropriate for a Consultant Agreement to include a confidentiality or non-disclosure clause.
Confidential information is any client's business or personal information that's not publicly available.
Step 9: Write additional clauses into the agreement
Include any additional clauses in your agreement that are relevant to the services the consultant is providing the client.
Step 10: Sign the agreement
Finish your agreement by dating and signing it at the bottom.
The agreement doesn't require witnesses, but it can be a good idea to include them in case the contract's validity is ever challenged.