Service Agreement

-Be clear and specific when describing the tasks required, and indicate any important dates.
-It is good practice to refer to the parties as the ‘Contractor’ and the ‘Client’ as these terms are used consistently throughout the agreement.

The deposit amount depends on the trustworthiness and financial stability of the Client. A reasonable amount is usually 10-50% of the total contract amount.

Typically, 15-30 days is sufficient time to pay an invoice.

-Enter a rate of 0% to charge no interest on overdue payments.
-Reasonable late fees are up to 25% per year on unpaid sums. Usury laws prohibit extortionate interest rates, even if the parties agree to them. An interest rate that exceeds the maximum rate permitted by law in Alberta will not be enforceable.

Typically, one week's notice is sufficient for most short-term contracts. If the contract is for more than a few months, it is better to require notice of at least 15-30 days.

Where payment is due when the Services are complete, you may want to address whether a partial payment is appropriate in the event of the contract ending early. This may depend on how much notice you want to stipulate is required, whether the Contractor has done any work or made any investment, or which party is issuing the termination notice. You can add your own clause to deal with this as you see fit later in the questionnaire.

Intellectual property is any work that is a creation of the mind. For example, music, logos, blueprints, software, etc.

Confidential information refers to any of the Client's business or personal information that is not publicly available.

This section is optional and should only be used if you wish to include terms that have not already been addressed in the Service Agreement.

-The goal is to avoid ambiguity. Use complete sentences and avoid abbreviations.
-Avoid using personal names and pronouns (we, us, you, they) and instead use the "Client" or the "Contractor".
-Make sure to proofread your clause.

-Most documents and contracts do not require a witness for them to be legally valid. However, many banks and other institutions have their own policies about signing requirements and may refuse to accept documents that are not witnessed regardless of whether they are legally correct.
-Also, if there is a possibility of a misunderstanding then you may want to get your document witnessed.

Ideally a witness should be an adult who does not have any interest in the document being signed and who is capable of understanding the witnessing process.