01Service
Contracts
Fixed fee help with the agreements you’re asked to sign, and with writing the ones you need.
How we can help
Contract work.
Most of the legal work in music is contracts. Our job is to make sure the one you sign says what was agreed in the room, and that you know what it costs you if things go wrong.
- 1.1Drafting
Band, management, producer, session, booking and collaboration agreements, written around what you agreed rather than the other side’s template. - 1.2Checking
Send us the agreement you’ve been given. It comes back with each risky clause marked and explained, and suggested wording where it’s worth pushing back. - 1.3Negotiation support
We write your reply and the marked up draft and brief you before the call. You stay in the conversation and we make sure you know where the money is. - 1.4Your own terms
Booking terms, commission terms or terms of business for your band or company, written once and used every time. - 1.5One page summaries
A short note on what you’re signing, for a bandmate or business partner who won’t read forty pages.
What we see most
Agreements we see most.
Management agreements
Commission, term, post term commission, key person and audit clauses, which together decide what a manager is still earning in year six.
"Commission shall be payable on Gross Income arising from agreements substantially negotiated during the Term."
Band agreements
The name, the money, the gear and the songs, and what a member takes with them when they leave.
"A Leaving Member shall have no right to use the Group Name after the Leaving Date."
Producer and session agreements
Fees, points, credits and who owns the recording at the end of the session.
"The Producer shall be entitled to a royalty of three per cent of the Dealer Price on each Record sold."
Booking and performance contracts
Fees, deposits, cancellation, riders and sound limits, for pub and club work as well as weddings and festivals.
"The Deposit is non refundable save where the Engagement is cancelled by the Hirer under clause 9.2."
Distribution and label deals
Term, territory, rights period, recoupment and what happens to your masters when the deal ends.
"All Advances shall be recoupable solely from Artist Royalties and not from any other source."
Collaboration and feature agreements
What a featured artist is paid, how they’re credited and who controls the track afterwards.
"The Featured Artist shall be credited as feat. on all Releases of the Master."
How we read a contract
The order we check things in.
We ask the same seven questions of every agreement, always in the same order. It’s rarely the order the contract was written in.
Questions
Common questions.
How long does a contract check take?
Usually a few working days from when you approve the fee. If there’s a signing deadline, tell us when you send it over.
Can you work from a draft the other side sent?
Yes. Most of our work starts from someone else’s draft. We mark it up and explain each change.
What if it ends in a dispute?
We put the documents in order and help you find someone who can take it to court if it gets that far.
Get in touch
Send the contract.
Attach the draft or the signed copy and tell us who the other side is. A fee follows within one working day.
Send us a contract and we’ll look it over
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