Most of our relationships are built on trust and we believe that if we did not trust someone we would not do business with him or her. Strangely, many of us fear that a written agreement signals a lack of trust.
Professional relationships, however, are unique because they involve an exchange of goods or services for significant amounts of money, property, or some other large investment. If and when something goes wrong and our expectations don’t match reality, the conflict that follows can become consuming and expensive to resolve. From a litigator’s perspective, when two parties disagree about an oral agreement and who promised what to whom, it can become near impossible to resolve.
While a written agreement won’t prevent or solve every problem, it helps the parties avoid many, if not most. Indeed, the mere exercise of putting an agreement in writing helps the parties reach a mutual understanding of what they are promising to do, what they expect from the other, how they will allocate risks, and how they will handle disagreements if they arise. Rather than risk a relationship or send the wrong message, written agreements signal competence and increase trust.
Mesch Clark Rothschild has skilled teams of attorneys experienced in drafting written agreements and litigating contract disputes. We are also seasoned mediators and arbiters. Call our law office in Tucson at (520) 624-8886.
