A

Arbitration Clause
An arbitration clause is a contractual clause in which the parties agree that future disputes arising under the contract will not be litigated in court, but instead will be submitted to a neutral third-party arbitrator (or to a panel of arbitrators) for resolution. Learn More
Automatic Renewal Clause
An automatic renewal clause is a provision that, if included in a contract, causes the contract to start a new term (“renew”) at the conclusion of the original contract term, unless one of the parties elects not to continue the contract. Learn More

B

Benchmarking Clause
Benchmarking clauses provide that specified terms in the contract will be periodically reviewed against benchmark levels in the applicable marketplace. Learn More
Best and Final Offer
A best and final offer represents the ultimate offer to be made in a negotiation or bidding process. Learn More
Breach of Contract
Failure to comply with the requirements of a contract, without legal excuse, is called a “breach” of the contract. Learn More

C

Capacity to Contract
One important rule is that a party to a contract must have the legal competence or legal ability (i.e., capacity) to enter into a contract. Learn More
Compliance
Compliance occurs when the parties comply with the conditions (or terms) of the contract. Learn More
Conditions of the Contract
In its simplest form, a condition of the contract is a requirement or term of the contract with which one or both of the parties must comply. Learn More
Confidentiality
Confidentiality refers to an agreement that one or more parties to a contract will not disclose certain specified information to third parties. Learn More
Continuing Services Agreement
Under a continuing services agreement, one party agrees to continue providing specified services to another party for a period of time set forth in the agreement. Learn More
Contract
A contract is a legally enforceable agreement entered into by two or more parties to do, or refrain from doing, one or more things specified in the agreement. Learn More
Contract Addendum
A contract addendum amends the terms of an existing contract, without replacing it. Learn More
Contract Amendment
A contract amendment is an addition to, deletion from, modification of, or other change to an existing contract. Learn More
Contract Audit
A contract audit is an examination and assessment of performance or information, designed to verify that one or more parties to a contract have complied with requirements or standards set forth in the contract. Learn More
Contract Clause
A contract clause is a specific section or provision in a written contract. Learn More
Contract Extension
A contract extension is an agreement between the parties to an existing contract to extend the terms of that agreement for an additional period of time. Learn More
Contract Lifecycle Management
Contract lifecycle management, sometimes referred to as “CLM,” is the process of planning, negotiating, and implementing the contracts of a company and monitoring, controlling, and analyzing each contract at each stage of the contract’s existence, from conception to termination. Learn More
Contract Management
Contract management is the process of monitoring and managing all of the company’s contracts to ensure that there is compliance with deadlines, deliverables, and all other terms, conditions, provisions and clauses within the organization’s agreements. Learn More
Contract Monitoring
Contract monitoring is the process of ensuring that parties comply with the terms of a contract. Learn More
Contract Renewal
Contract renewal is the extension of an existing contract for a new term, the duration of which is specified in the contract. Learn More
Contract Repository
A contract repository is a place where contracts are stored. Learn More
Contract Risk Management
Contract risk management is the process by which organizations identify and assess risks and manage contracts to limit liability or other harm to the company. Learn More
Contractual Agreement
A contractual agreement is a legally enforceable agreement entered into by two or more parties to do, or refrain from doing, one or more things specified in the contract. Learn More

D

DocuSign
DocuSign’s software allows parties to sign contracts and other documents electronically rather than signing them with pen and paper. This eliminates the need for parties signing a contract to be physically present at the same location. Learn More
Duress
Duress refers to coercion that causes a person to perform an act against his or her will. Learn More

E

Effective Date
An effective date is the date on which legal rights or obligations become binding between two or more parties. Learn More
Executed Contract
An executed contract refers to a contract that has been signed by all the parties necessary to make it legally enforceable. Learn More
Expiration of a Contract
The expiration of a contract is generally the ending or completion of a contract according to its own terms. Learn More

F

Fixed-Price Contract
A fixed price contract contains an agreement between the parties on the final cost of the goods or services being provided, and the cost is not subject to adjustment Learn More
Fully Executed Contract
When a contract is said to be “fully executed,” it means that all parties to the agreement have fully performed their obligations, or that all of the terms and conditions of the contract have been fulfilled in their entirety. Learn More

G

GDPR
GDPR is the acronym for the General Data Protection Regulation, a European Union law designed to protect the privacy of personal data. Learn More
General Services Agreement
A service agreement refers to a contract in which one party agrees to provide a particular service or services to the other party in return for payment as specified in the contract. Learn More

H

I

J

K

L

Limitation of Liability
A limitation of liability clause in a contract limits the amount of money or damages that one party can recover from another party for breaches or performance failures Learn More

M

N

O

Optical Character Recognition
Optical Character Recognition (OCR) is a technology by which a software program can analyze text and convert it into a format that can be processed by a computer or other machine Learn More
Outcomes-Based Contract
An outcomes-based contract is a contract, often for services, that bases payment on the accomplishment of a specified objective, rather than upon time spent working or activities performed. Learn More

P

Q

R

S

Software Integration
Software integration refers to the process of combining separate software programs or elements into one system. Learn More
Statute of Frauds
The Statute of Frauds is the generic term now given to the set of laws that require certain types of contracts to be in writing. Learn More

T

Termination Date
In contract drafting terminology, many attorneys define “termination date” to be the date that one of the parties ends (or terminates) a contract. Learn More

U

V

W

X

Y

Z