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Contract a supplier to deliver work for you

We draft the agreement that defines what done looks like, and what happens if it isn't.

When you pay someone to deliver something, the contract is the only agreed description of what you are buying. If it does not say clearly what done looks like, the supplier decides. We draft procurement and services agreements that define the deliverable and hold the timetable. They also give you a way out that does not cost more than staying.

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Done defined in advance

The agreement says what the deliverable is and how it gets accepted, so performance is a test rather than an argument.

Ownership settled early

Whatever is created in the engagement belongs to you in writing, rather than by assumption.

An exit you can afford

Termination rights that let you leave a failing engagement without paying for the whole of it.

What a services agreement has to settle before the work starts

A procurement contract or services agreement records what a supplier will deliver to you, by when and to what standard. It also records what follows if they fall short. The commercial deal is usually agreed in a meeting. The contract is where it gets specific enough to enforce.

Most of the weight sits in the statement of work, because that is the document that decides whether a supplier has performed. Around it sit the provisions that matter when they have not. Acceptance testing, payment milestones, ownership of what gets created, and the right to leave without paying for the whole engagement.

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What is a statement of work and why does it carry so much weight?

It is the part of the contract that says what the supplier is delivering, when, and to what standard. It decides whether they have performed. A vague statement of work lets a supplier argue they delivered what was promised when the result is not what you needed.

Who owns what the supplier creates for us?

Unless the contract says otherwise, usually the supplier. Australian law generally leaves copyright with the creator rather than the person paying. If you commission software, designs or reports, the agreement needs an assignment to you. A licence broad enough for what you plan to do is the minimum.

What can we do if the supplier underperforms?

That depends almost entirely on what the contract provides. Without performance standards and remedies you are left with general contract law, which is slow and expensive. With acceptance testing, milestones and a clear termination right, you have options you can use early.

Should we use our contract or theirs?

Yours, if you can. The party whose paper it is starts from their own position and the other side negotiates towards it. Where a supplier insists on their standard terms, we review and negotiate those instead. Either way it should be settled before the work starts.

The statement of work is the part that decides the argument

Deliverables, acceptance and exit rights are not formalities. They are what you rely on the day the engagement stops going to plan.

If the contract does not define done, the supplier does

The supplier has sent their own terms, or there are no written terms at all. You know what you want. What you have not done is write it down. Not in a form that means something if they deliver a version of it and ask to be paid.

The worry is not that they are dishonest. It is that you would have no way of saying they were wrong.

We will prepare or review the services agreement or procurement contract.
We will write a statement of work that defines the deliverables, standards and timetable.
We will settle ownership of the work created, confidentiality and data handling.
We will tie payment to milestones and build in acceptance testing and remedies.
We will draft termination provisions you could actually use if performance falls short.

When you are commissioning work that matters and the paperwork is thin

You are engaging a supplier for something significant. A software build, a managed service, a professional engagement, a construction package. They have sent their standard terms, or nobody has raised terms at all. The relationship is good and nobody expects trouble. You still want the arrangement written down in a way that protects the money if the engagement drifts.

What's included in your procurement contract service

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Services agreement drafting or review.
Statement of work and deliverables definition.
Intellectual property ownership and confidentiality provisions.
Payment milestones and performance remedy clauses.
Termination and exit rights.

The engagement that fails slowly is the expensive one

Procurement disputes are almost always arguments about what was agreed. The supplier delivers something that meets a loose specification and not your actual need. The project runs six months over with no contractual consequence. The developer claims they own the code, because the agreement said nothing about it.

None of these is a scandal. Each is the predictable result of starting work on a document that described the price and not the outcome. Each costs most at the point you decide to leave, because leaving means paying twice.

From a handshake and an invoice to an agreement you can hold them to

We start with what you are actually buying and what failure would look like. The agreement we draft defines the deliverables tightly enough that there is no argument about whether they have arrived. It ties payment to milestones you control.

It also settles ownership of whatever gets created, and gives you a termination right you could use without writing off the project. When the supplier performs, none of it matters. When they do not, it is the difference between a negotiation and a loss.

How the agreement comes together

From the decision to engage to a contract that holds.

Define the deliverable

We work out with you what you are buying, what acceptance looks like, and where the engagement is most likely to slip.

Draft the agreement

We prepare the contract and statement of work, then take the supplier's comments and tell you which are worth accepting.

Sign and support

We see the agreement executed and stay available for the issues that come up while the work runs.

Procurement and services agreements drafted for the buyer

Nobody commissions work expecting it to go wrong, and raising the contract can feel like distrust at the moment goodwill matters most. In our experience it does the opposite. A clear statement of work is what stops a good relationship souring over what was promised.

We draft for the principal rather than the supplier, across technology, professional services and managed service arrangements. That means acceptance criteria written so they can actually be tested, and exit rights written so you could actually use them. We have 2 Accredited Specialists in Business Law.

Our great lawyer guarantee

Six principles we hold to, whatever you bring us and however long it takes.

Take the time

We listen carefully to understand what you want to achieve, then step you through the advice and the documents.

Share our knowledge

We pass on as much as we can, so you can make your own informed decisions.

Stick to our knitting

We only do what we are good at, so you never pay for our learning.

Work as one team

Someone is always available to answer your question or point you the right way.

Fair pricing

A fixed or capped quote for advice and documents, so you do not carry the price risk.

It is your show

We are in it for a front row seat to witness your success, not for our egos.

Get the agreement right before the work starts

The terms are only negotiable while the supplier still wants the job. Once work has started, every change is a favour. Tell us what you are commissioning and we will draft the agreement, or review the one you have been handed.

Speak to a lawyer 1300 654 590