Freelance Contracts Q&A: What Do I Do If I Can’t Afford A Lawyer?

It’s been a while since our last Q&A. So I want to make it up to you today with a two-for-one deal. 😉 Both of these questions are about how to protect your business — and your wallet — with bulletproof freelance contracts.

If you’ve been reading my work for a while, you’ll know I’ve shared a bunch of different contract templates in the past.

And I’ll make sure to drop those links again below.

But first, I have to remind you — I’m not a lawyer. This is not legal advice. Everything I provide is for informational purposes only.

And you should always talk to your own legal counsel about your specific situation.

Sound good?

Good.

Let’s Get To The Freelance Contracts Questions For Today…

The first question comes from a reader we’ll call “Moe.” (I don’t know if he’s okay with me using his name.)

Moe asked:

“Can you please tell me how to make a contract by myself? I’m just starting out and can’t afford a lawyer.”

If you’re just starting out, there are two places I know about that offer free contract resources for freelancers.

The first is The Freelancer’s Union.

It’s free to join. (I’m a member myself.)

And even though they’re not “technically” a union, they provide a lot of helpful resources for freelancers. I get my long-term disability insurance from them, for example.

The second place is actually Fiverr.

Now I can’t vouch for this one from personal experience.

But back in the day, there was a company called And.co that offered freelance contracts and invoice templates for freelancers. And it looks like Fiverr acquired that company to create their Fiverr Workspace platform — which includes free contract templates according to their pricing page.

Okay, next question!

This is from a reader we’ll call “Matty.”

Matty asked:

“I would like to ask you if you have any other samples of the copywriter’s contract? I’ve already downloaded ‘the landlord retainer contract. Do you have any others I can use as a framework?”

The short answer is no. I don’t have any full freelance contract templates available.

(That’s why I shared the resources above.)

But, I do have templates for a few of the most critical contract terms freelancers need to be aware of.

And you can find them in the articles below:

• Make sure you get paid on time — every time — by adding these 12 little words to your freelance contract.
• Use my “Landlord Retainer” (which Matty mentioned in his question) to make it impossible for a client to ghost you on a retainer deal.
• Discover the kill fee clause I now use for every performance-based project I take on. (And the embarrassing story about how I lost $5,000 on a project — which led me to adopting this clause.)
• Never get trapped in a draw-out loop of revisions again. Use the revision deadline template at the end of this article to give your clients a timeframe for providing feedback after each round of revisions. And if they don’t, the project is automatically approved and closed.

Now between the full contract templates I shared earlier and the key terms I mentioned above, you have a great foundation for your freelance contract.

But I also know contracts can be complicated and confusing AF.

So If You Still Have Questions About Freelance Contracts, Join The Freelance Like A Pro VIP Email List

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I read every message I get from my VIP email subscribers. And I do my best to respond to as many people as I can, too.

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