Contract, Whats the most important line

I am in the process or redoing my contract, I am writing it the way i want it then my lawyer goes over it and fixes it out so its all legal and enforceable ect.. (i want my contract to read well and not just be all small print and i understand every part of it)

i think my most important line would be either

"In the event of a conflict between parties, Client agrees to solve any and all disagreements via arbitration"
OR
"the Provider's maximum liability will be the return of all payments received from Client"

depending on where you are in the country or world these May or may not be legal or enforceable im my state they however are.

If it were necessary to choose between the two, I would choose the latter.

I see no necessity to choose between the two, however. Include both.

However, I would not say that either is "the most important line." The lines that specify the performance required of each party are more important IMO than the lines that specify the consequences for failing to meet the required performance.

That's because you fully expect the lines specifying performances to be fulfilled, while your expectation is that the lines specifying consequences will never be needed.

This is my most important line. I put it at the bottom of my invoice, too:
"3. Grant of Rights. Upon receipt of full payment, Photographer grants to the Client the following rights in the Work."

Only your real lawyer can determine what is critical to be included in your contract, and it is never an either or option. Its stupid for amateurs to attempt to pre write the contract.

Agree with all the above, and two more…

Licensor does not warrant that he or she has secured any underlying or third party rights in the image.

This Agreement supersedes all prior agreements and understandings (whether written or oral) between the provider and client with respect to the subject matter hereof.

There is no single important clause. Depending on the scenario, any one of them missing could end up the most important depending on the current scenario. You need clauses for reshoots, releases, licensing, force majeure, limitation of liability, hold harmless, payment, etc. Its nice to keep the terms short and less scary, but the shorter it is the more exposed the party is to litigation and liability. Unfortunate byproduct of our times

sfaust wrote in post #14825991
Its nice to keep the terms short and less scary, but the shorter it is the more exposed the party is to litigation and liability. Unfortunate byproduct of our times

However, different circumstances differ greatly. I have no problem with a short, simple, and sweet portrait contract (actually, I have no actual contract--I have a workorder, a model release, and a copy license).

A wedding, OTOH, requires a lot more detail.

The signature!

Very true RDKirk. Sometimes a simple verbal agreement is all thats needed, a quick written simple agreement (e-mail, simple agreement) works, and other times a multi-page contract is required. It depends on the scope of work, type of client, money involved, and whats normal for that segment of the market. No one size fits all, and a good reason why an attorney who practices law in that particular field is worth the cost.

rob0225 wrote in post #14827842
The signature!

Ha ha, I like this!! And so true.

Just in case, this is also in my estimate and contract; "Scheduling work to be performed pursuant to this estimate shall be conclusive evidence of Clients agreement to be bound by this estimate, whether or not Client countersigned this estimate."