On child-friendly activities, contractual releases, and choice of forum: part 6 (the end!)¹

The story so far:
- brought my kids to a temporary indoor playground in a mall;
- had to fill in an online waiver form before unleashing my brood;
- actually bothered to read the legalese; and
- am now letting my nerd flag fly.

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In this post, we'll conclude with a couple more things to look out for when entering into cross-border contracts and transactions.

2️⃣ Pay particular attention to your dispute resolution clauses.

I have previously written at length² about how dispute resolution clauses are commonly overlooked, despite their central importance if a dispute arises.

I won't repeat myself here.

And if you think that you don't need to pay attention to these clauses, because you'll never have to deal with a dispute...

...heck, why even bother with written contracts? You might as well conclude all your deals with a handshake and a verbal promise.

Also, do leave a comment or drop me a DM, and I'll check in with you regularly over the next few years, so you know who to look for when something blows up.

Ultimately, it's a numbers game. Do enough deals, and one day, one of them will go wrong.

And if that day comes, you'll want the dispute resolution clause to point to a battleground and ruleset that favours you.

3️⃣ If the transaction is a big deal to you, get legal advice.

(shocked pikachu face)³

Look, I'm not saying that we should engage lawyers for every single contract we enter into. After all, it hardly makes sense to consult lawyers when, say:

a) signing up for a mobile phone plan with a telco;
b) opening a new personal bank account; or
c) dropping your car off at a workshop to get the tires replaced.⁴

But think of legal advice the same way you think about, say, insurance.

You wouldn't insure, for example, a lunchbox.⁵

But you'd probably insure your home.

So, if the deal or item in question is valuable enough to you...

...get legal advice.

Heck, it costs you nothing to obtain a proposed scope of work and fee estimate.⁶

But it could save you a world of trouble.

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So, uh, a confession.

I didn't expect this series to run for so long, or to take a turn towards cross-border commercial disputes. I just thought I'd have some fun taking the mickey out of some poorly-drafted clauses.

But, hey. Sometimes you write the story. Sometimes, the story writes itself.

Thank you for joining me on this ride. Until the next one.