Freelance Design Contracts

I’ve had 4 legal battles since starting my business. Could I have avoided them? Probably. But to be honest, I didn't have the funds to pay a proper lawyer, or the network of founders to ask the right questions to. I don't want that to happen to you. Here are 5 clauses I put in my contracts that might help you protect your work, your business and most importantly.. your sanity ↓ #1 Non-cancellable, non-refundable contracts. This shouldn’t even be an issue if you qualify your clients properly. BUT if someone signs, onboards, and then ghosts? We still get paid. And so should you 🤗 #2 Immediate or short payment terms Most businesses accept 30-to 90-day payment terms. I don’t. You wouldn’t work for 3 months without pay—so why should your business? Cash flow is your business’s lifeline. Protect it. #3 While we’re on payment terms… Your contract should include: → Interest on late invoices. → A clause that stops work if invoices aren’t cleared. → A guarantee that if a client delays the project, you still get paid. Your time isn’t free! #4 Your IP stays YOURS. Anything we bring into the agreement at Klowt stays ours. Anything we create for you is yours. Simple. I once ran a training session, and the client recorded it—then tried to sell it behind a paywall. Now, our contract states a £10,000 fine per breach. (And for that particular case, per breach = per view. 😅) #5 Don't work with d*ckheads. This isn't a legal clause, more legal... advice? 🤣 If someone is giving you red flags in any way at the beginning of your relationship, do not work with them. This could include but not limited to: - Focusing on immediate ROI. - Cost or discounts being a primary concern. - Pushing for work to kick off before contracts or payments. - Reaching out at inappropriate times - or in inappropriate ways. - Delaying initial payments. Legally binding contracts are a good insurance policy, but they're lengthy and expensive to implement if you actually have to go to court. So the best LEGAL advice I can give you as a 2x founder is, don't work with d*ckheads. And learn from my mistakes. It's a lot cheaper than learning from your own... trust me 😂. Was this helpful? 💜 I write a 2x weekly newsletter for founders and freelancers on topics like this. Join us here: https://lnkd.in/ejDbD94R

If you're a freelancer who invoices client, read this. If you hire a freelancer who sends you invoices, also read this. When you hire a freelancer, generally they give you their all. That means turning away other paying work so that they can do your job, often going above and beyond to do your work, and sometimes doing the work before you've paid them very much at all (I would hope that you're paying your freelancers at least a deposit, but I know that not every freelancer works this way). And this is the time of year when freelancers also have to realise that they're probably taking one or two weeks off over Christmas which means THEY DON'T GET PAID FOR THEIR TIME and probably won't be invoicing either. So if you have an invoice from a freelancer sitting in your inbox, on its way to or with accounts, or maybe not even due until later this month, do a good thing. PAY IT NOW. Even if it's not quite due, or you think you could get away with not paying until after Christmas. It really is the best Christmas gift you could give them. Trust me on this one. 🎁🎁🎁 If you're a freelancer and an invoice is overdue (and you're in the UK) then PLEASE go and read up on Late Payment Fees. You are entitled to charge them from when an invoice is one day overdue, and also add an admin fee for doing so. It's simple to do, and there's a handy website to help you calculate the fees and help with the wording here https://lnkd.in/eSdaVqYQ If you have an invoice that is overdue, reissue that invoice including the fees, and resend it now. Explain that the interest is charged daily, so every time you have to send a new one, there are more fees being accrued.  I know it's hard to do, but so is having to spend Christmas worrying about overdue invoices. I know, I've done it.  I am extremely lucky that I've only had to do this once in the last few years, but it worked, and now is an integral part of my contracts. I don't often ask this, but as my reach on here has been awful the last few weeks, and I really do want as many freelancers as possible to see this, please could you comment and repost (if you think your audience would benefit) this post? Let's get as many freelancers as possible paid before Christmas!

A designer called me crying. Her client ghosted her. $14,500 unpaid. She had spent two months designing a full rebrand: logo, packaging, web visuals. After she delivered everything, the client stopped replying. Two weeks passed. Then three. Until one morning...she saw her designs live on the client's website. The same logo. The same layouts. Her work. Launched. Monetized. When she followed up for payment, the client replied: "We have not accepted the work yet." I asked to see her contract. It had three fatal flaws: 1️⃣ Payment upon "acceptance." No deadline defined for acceptance. 2️⃣ Hidden clause prohibiting implied/automatic acceptance. 3️⃣ IP transfer "upon delivery." So the moment she sent the files, the ownership passed even before the payment. So the client was dragging out on payment by relying on those provisions. The fix could have been so easy: "Final payment is due within 10 days of delivery unless the Client provides written notice of specific issues within that period. Intellectual property transfers only upon full payment." 🎨 Creatives: Always be careful with payment upon acceptance wording. 🖌️ Protect your art before you deliver it. #freelance #designer #designcontract #creative #entrepreneur #smallbusiness #business #contract #intellectualproperty #businesslaw #startup

A client told us they'll only pay 90 days after our service was delivered - "it's standard in our company". It was a big deal. But it would cripple our cash flow. We deliver and pay our team today, then wait 3 months to get paid? Huge red flags. Without enough cash in the bank - salaries, rent, our expenses were at risk. So we took a tough call. Said no. And this isn't the only contract trap I've seen. Here are the 4 clauses that can kill your business if you're not careful: 1. Extended payment terms (Net 60/90/120+) ↳ Client wants 60-120 days to pay after you send the invoice.  You pay your team today. Client pays you 2-4 months later. ↳ How to handle it: Negotiate down to Net 30. Take 50% upfront. Or increase your rate by 10–20% to cover the cost of delayed cashflow. 2. Unlimited Revisions ↳ "You'll keep revising till we're happy, right?"  A $3,000 project becomes 47 revisions and 60 hours of unpaid labour. ↳ How to handle it: Cap revisions at 2-3 rounds in the contract. After that, charge per revision or per hour. 3. "We'll pay you when our client pays us" ↳ Your payment depends on a person you’ve never met. Their client delays → you don’t get paid. ↳ How to handle it: Simply say no. This is 100% a deal-breaker. 4. One-Sided IP and Liability ↳ Two problems here: They own all your work even if they don't pay. AND you're liable for everything that goes wrong. ↳ How to handle it: Add TWO clauses.  First: "IP transfers only upon full payment."  Second: "Service provider's liability is limited to the project value.” 5. NDAs that don't allow any disclosure ↳ If you do great work for them, but can't include it in your portfolio, it's worth a lot less to you. ↳ Mention that though the work is your client's IP, you're allowed to use in your portfolio for promotion. Every clause is negotiable. But ONLY before you sign. After that, you lose all leverage. Your services have value. Your agency isn't desperate. And your contract should reflect that. What's the worst contract term you've ever seen? #contracts #legal #founders #business

What To Do When a Client Doesn’t Pay for Your Work Freelancers and independent contractors—this one’s for you. Late last year, I completed tens of thousands of dollars worth of iOS development work for a client under a signed contract. Despite multiple assurances I would be paid, that day never came. I had established a good faith relationship with the client, which is why I offered some flexibility, but that kindness was taken advantage of and abused. Here’s what I learned (and did) to protect myself: 1. Do not deliver final code until full payment is made. I made sure any unshipped or critical functionality stayed with me until I was paid. 2. Keep everything in writing—especially payment terms, promises to pay, and timelines. 3. Set clear boundaries and deadlines. Don’t let months pass waiting on “fundraising” or “next week.” 4. Send a formal invoice. Even if you’ve been communicating casually, formal documentation matters. 5. Be ready to escalate. I’ve now initiated collections and legal action to recover the full balance. This has been a tough but valuable reminder that not all contracts are honored, and sometimes, the only option is to stand your ground and protect your work. I’m tagging the client not out of spite, but in the spirit of transparency and accountability. Ram Chirimunj Arrange If you’re a freelancer or founder who’s been through something similar, I’d love to hear how you handled it—and if you’re just getting started, let this serve as your warning: your code has value. Protect it.

Claiming financing charges due to late payment is a right— but many contractors lose it by missing one deadline. Yesterday, we explained how a 2-day delay in payment can create a 4-week cash disruption. Today, we continue the conversation. This new Insight Report unpacks: - When financing charges become claimable under Sub-Clause 14.8 - How to apply the interest rate formula and monthly compounding - The 28-day notice under Clause 20.2 that can make or break your claim - What documentation the Engineer needs to assess your claim - Why treating this as a cash flow issue—not just a legal one—matters If your payment was late, your margin was hit. This shows you how to recover it. Download the full report below: "How to Claim Financing Charges Arising from Late Payments under the 2017 FIDIC Red Book" #fidic #contracts #constructionclaims #disputeresolution #claimsmanagement #constructionlaw #projectfinance #claims #contractmanagement #construction #epc #construction #infrastructure #contracts

I used to think slow payment was a client problem. After building Acctual for a couple of years, I think it's a contract problem. 4 specific lines decide whether an invoice gets paid in a week or 2 months. And most freelance contracts don't have any of them. None of the 4 say "please pay on time." Here's what they actually say and why they work. 1. A 50% deposit for any project over $2k. Make the deposit an actual clause. If you only mention it verbally on the kickoff call, it won't survive the first client who wants to renegotiate. The project doesn't start until the money clears. Every freelancer I know who skipped this step eventually worked a month for a client who ghosted them. 2. A 1.5% monthly late fee, stated in dollars, printed on every invoice. The language courts actually enforce is "a late fee of 1.5% per month applies to balances unpaid after the due date." Vague phrases like "late fees may apply" are unenforceable. And put the dollar amount on the invoice itself, because $75 on a $5k invoice is more persuasive than an abstract percentage. 3. Due on receipt as the default with Net 14 as the exception. Net 30 made sense when invoices came in the mail and checks took a week to clear. It doesn't fit anything that happens in a bank account in 2026. Start the negotiation at "due on receipt" and let the client be the one who pushes you toward Net 14. 4. A work pause clause. "Work on deliverables will pause on day 7 of any overdue balance and resume within 48 hours of payment." Two things happen when this is in the contract. Your follow-up on day 6 stops sounding like an apology. And the AP team inside your client has an actual reason to push it to the front of their queue. None of these clauses are novel. They're in every enterprise MSA already. Freelancers don't put them in their own contracts because it feels pushy to ask. Ask anyway.

You’re not a bank. Stop floating the project for free. Your crew wraps up the work, invoices go out… and payments drag on for weeks or even months. Contract Clause: Vague or one-sided payment provisions. If the subcontract doesn’t clearly spell out when you’ll be paid or, worse, ties your payment to the owner’s payment, you’re left financing the project for everyone else. 💡 Solution: Negotiate clear, enforceable deadlines. Instead of “payment will be made promptly,” push for: ➡️ Specific timeframes (ex: “within 30 days of invoice”) ➡️ Defined triggers (ex: “upon substantial completion of Subcontractor’s work”) ➡️ Clarification on retention (how much, and when it must be released). ✅ Actionable Takeaway: For California trades, here’s some good news: Starting January 1, 2026, retention on private works will be capped at 5% (SB 61). That means you should already start preparing to negotiate with that standard in mind. 👉 Want to get better at spotting these profit-killers before you sign? Download my free OWN Your Contracts Quickstart Guide. It's your roadmap to reviewing, redlining, and negotiating like a lawyer. 📥 Get yours now at the link in comments ⤵️

Are you tired of waiting months for a second (or final) payment for design services because you decided to ask for half up front and the other half upon completion? Designers, do yourself a favor and implement a project payment schedule in your proposal that gives you more control over when you get paid after the initial deposit. We used to have payment schedules that were 50 up front / 50 prior to launch, but some of these projects took a few months. Waiting until the very end left us cash strapped at times so we decided to make a change… — The 50 / 30 / 20 Payment Schedule… 50% - Deposit Payment ( up front ) 30% - 2nd Payment ( pre-determined milestone ) 20% - Final Payment ( prior to 'launch' ) V V V 50% - Deposit Payment ( up front ) By ' up front ' we mean: - in advance - funds deposited - before any work starts Do NOT start any design work until you are paid! — 30% - 2nd Payment ( pre-determined milestone ) Some ' pre-determined milestones ' can be: - sample spreads > entire publication - web design > web development - signage rendering > fabrication strategy Set a checkpoint at the time initial designs are approved to move forward. — 20% - Final Payment ( prior to 'launch' ) Final payment ' prior to 'launch' ' means: - before files go to the printer - prior to a website going live - ahead of signage fabrication beginning Get your final payment BEFORE all is said and done. — With 50/30/20 payment schedule it’s nice to get a 2nd payment 50% of the way through the project. It limits the risk of the client dipping out on final payment too! What are your preferred payment schedules for design proposals?

Your Collections Problem Starts in the Quote. Most teams treat slow cash as an A/R issue. It’s usually a lead‑to‑cash design issue. By the time an invoice is late, the damage was done upstream- in quoting, contracting, and handoffs. Where cash gets trapped: • Nonstandard terms approved with no downstream plan • Missing PO requirements discovered after signature • Tax status, bill‑to, or legal entity captured incorrectly • Acceptance criteria unclear, so RevRec and billing stall • Billing contacts unknown (or trapped in a PDF) Make invoices collectible before you sell: - Gate the quote with “bill‑ready” fields (entity, bill‑to, tax, PO, payment terms, contact) - Standardize exceptions (term library, approval matrix) - Instrument the path to cash (Signature→First Invoice days, rejection rate, DSO vs terms) - Collections are an output. Fix the inputs. #LeadToCash #OrderToCash #DSO #DealDesk #RevOps #OperatingPartners