The problem with acting as your own attorney is that you only have yourself to blame when things go wrong, and they will!

AN EXAMPLE
Bill just discovered his best customer has an entirely different idea of what was promised versus what Bill just delivered. To keep the customer happy will mean going in the hole financially to the tune of several thousand dollars, not to mention wiping out the profit on the transaction.

Bill had a verbal agreement backed by a letter spelling out the details, but his customer read the letter as promising something Bill never intended. Bill is going to have to bite the bullet and pay up or lose one of his better customers.

THE TEST
The question on your mind should be: "When do I need an attorney to draw up a contract as opposed to using the same boilerplate I've been using?" The test is money. If you stand to make or lose a great deal of money you should consult an attorney. If it's a small amount, use your standard forms. You make the determination as to what is large and small. The cutoff amount varies according to your company. For any deal over $50,000, I would suggest you absolutely NEED an attorney. For $1000 or so, maybe not.

CONTROLLING THE COST
When you visit an attorney, the real secret of controlling costs is to know beforehand what it is you want accomplished. Sit down and write out what you want to happen. Go into as much detail as necessary to get your point across. This action alone could save you an hour of billable time. Type this material and take it with you on your first visit to the attorney.

ATTORNEY IN A BOX
There's nothing wrong with purchasing one of the legal software packages for your computer. In fact, I would recommend it! These packages offer more-or-less standard contracts (which you could use for small contracts). I wouldn't suggest using computerized standard forms for the large contract, but by putting your parameters into the software, you will at least be aware of some of the pitfalls of doing it yourself. It could also give you a list of questions for your attorney to answer.

ATTORNEY PACKAGES
You may not know this, but your attorney has at his disposal a complete library of tested contract blanks. Usually all he or she does is grab one of these, modify it just a bit, and put your name on the top.

You can do one of two things. Let your attorney know you know, then ask him for a copy of one of the standard forms for you to look over; or you could go to your local law library and ask the attendent to help you find it for yourself. Yes, you have every right to the library, it was paid for with your tax money.

PREPAID SERVICES
We've talked about these services in other Success Tips. There are several companies offering prepaid legal service at a fraction of the cost of hiring an attorney. You might wish to look over their offerings

LEGAL AID
Some universities and colleges offer free or low cost legal aid to small or start-up businesses. Call both the business school and the law school. One or the other will be able to help you for practically no cost. Be aware! The help you get may or may not be supervised by a competent attorney.

YES, YOU CAN BARGAIN WITH AN ATTORNEY
There is absolutely no reason why you have to pay the published rate for your needs. Most attorneys will lower their hourly rate if they feel you could become a regular customer. Also many attorneys will offer a flat rate for work instead of billing by the hour. ASK! If at first you don't succeed, there are a lot of hungry attorneys out there!

FINAL NOTES
Don't be intimidated by attorneys. The bluster they present is their courtroom attitude rubbing off. It's an attorney's job to question everything, then check the answers. Other than that, they really are human beings in business just like you and me. You have not only the right, but I feel you have the duty to negotiate for their services. Good luck!