I own a small sourcing business. We act as a conduit between clients and Chinese factories. To date we have been dealing with small orders but as our business grows the value of the orders are also getting larger.
Our business is not larger enough to have a solicitor draw up contracts fro each client. I was wonderig if it is possible to have three templates :
1/ A contract between us and our client... along the lines of the goods ordered, the fixed price, the lead time and the service we offer and anything else deemed to be relevant
2/ A contract between us and the factory
3/ A signing off document stating that the goods have been delivered as per clients instructions and per their approved sample and there is no ongoing claim
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Tricia S
Hello Tricia, unfortunate first thought is that contracts available on the web for free are typically not sufficient to protect yourself and your partners from any future challenges problems or litigations.
1-The contract between you and your client depending on the product or service that your offering may be drawn up by yourself without too much challenges if it is not a complicated contract i.e. I agree to sell you X for Y price, and a description of your delivery time, payment terms, and the purchaser's responsibility.
2-A contract with the factory might be different especially if it is with your Chinese factories. Definitely this contract must be written by a lawyer that knows about international law. The Chinese are a very difficult group of people to deal with and you must protect everything and I state everything in this contract.
The more I think about your question more would really recommend you to meet with a lawyer. I understand that there are expenses to meeting with lawyers but unfortunately these expenses are necessary if you're dealing with the Chinese government, factories, for people..
Dear Tricia,
it is always a good idea to have templates. So, the short answer is: YES.
The three types of templates you have drawn are ok. They could be extended depending on the type of business you are doing. If it is a repetitive business than I would split up either 1 or 2 (or both) to consinst of a frame contract with your supplier / customer and an individual contract or order for the specific case. This way the paper work shrinks even more.
Other than that, you are on a good road: Standardize the process, eliminate unnecessary steps, automate the whole thing.
If you need more tips or have a look at the agreements, felle free to call me
Cheers
Volker
