Hi Reader! You probably have a contract in your inbox right now that you have not fully read. This is completely normal. Even I occasionally am guilty of skimming contracts in low-stakes situations. I want you to pull that contract up right now. Then find one clause that makes you pause. Because even in good contracts, there often is at least one clause that feels hard to decode. Maybe it’s something: you assume is standard, but it still feels off that feels dense, vague, or intimidating that…

Hi Reader! Both of my sisters are currently going through different endings in their professional lives. And as I reminded one sister this week, every ending isn’t a failure. Sometimes choosing to end something is not only the right choice, but a win. Maybe: they keep pushing your boundaries you want different outcomes you’ve outgrown it it is no longer aligned Very few things last for time and all eternity. So accepting that it’s time to end and closing it out thoughtfully and clearly shows…

Hi Reader! Do you ever avoid clear language because you want to keep things friendly? Sadly, skipping this up front is exactly what makes things tense later. I’ve seen it happen time and time again. Where collaborations start with everyone trying to be nice, friendly, and avoid being the one to “make it formal”. And six months later, all the little things added up, and they felt burned or upset with the collaboration. Because clarity is not about making things legal or formal. It’s a gift you…

Hi Reader! As I mentioned last week, the length of your contract should be proportional to the risks involved. This is something that many lawyers do instinctively after years of practice, but isn’t taught in law school. (And some lawyers never seem to learn this lesson!) The reality is that for short, one-off, low-risk relationships, a single-page contract often will suffice. But you might need a 3-4 page contract to cover all the important points in a longer, ongoing, higher-risk…

Hi Reader! The goal of a contract is to pre-determine what will happen when likely hiccups occur. But you can’t foresee everything. A contract also shouldn’t include ALL the unlikely hiccups that might happen, because then every contract would be dozens of pages long. So your goal needs to be to balance the length of your contract with the risks involved in this exact project. This means maybe in your formal client contracts, you want them to be several pages long so that you can cover all…

Hi Reader! Collaborations are supposed to be fun, which is why we approach them differently than client work. With clients, we worry that they will treat us poorly. But with collaborators, we assume that everything will go smoothly. And so we don’t have the same conversations (or put the same contracts) in place before we dive in. That’s exactly what breaks most collaborations: unstated assumptions. And we only realize that we had different assumptions when something happens. When they use…

Hi Reader! One myth that I try to dispel is that smooth working relationships are just plain luck. They are about putting the right guardrails in place, so your clients know what to expect and aren’t making assumptions about what you want/expect/need from them. Most clients aren’t bad. They just don’t know what “good” is to you. Which is why when I write contracts, I start our kickoff meeting with the question, In a perfect world, what’s the exact process someone would go through from the…

Hi Reader! This week, I met with a client who’s dealing with someone taking images from her e-commerce shop and using them to sell knockoff products on another site. As part of our conversation, I downloaded one of the images from her shop and noticed that she didn’t have the copyright information embedded in the metadata. And I suggested she change this ASAP. I suggested this because the removal or alteration of metadata copyright information is another available avenue for a lawsuit. And…

Hi Reader! This has been a busy week; Ozzy and I left Wyoming and are halfway south to Arizona for the winter. I got the chance to shadow some experienced pickleball referees at a tournament (where Ozzy and I also were able to cheer some of our friends on who were playing). Both Ozzy and I had our routine medical appointments. And I’m getting everything organized to host the Copy + Paste Legal Week again. It’s been a little hectic, to say the least. When things are busy like this, I am so…

Hi Reader! About a week ago, Rebecca asked if I’d break down the Washington Supreme Court case on Old Navy and their misleading email sale promo subject lines. This case opened a bigger can of worms than it closed. But it comes into play when crafting email subject lines, especially holiday promotions. As a reminder, the CAN-SPAM Act regulates email marketing in the U.S., but several states have stricter laws that must be followed if you are emailing people who reside in those states….

Hi Reader, First off, a huge thank you to the dozen of you that shared what you were stuck on, obsessed with, or curious about earlier this week. You sent some great ideas, and I’ve got lots to write about in the coming weeks. I’m starting with the challenge that Jane and Pam sent, because many of you might be in the same boat and are thinking about bringing on holiday help. For product-based businesses, the holiday season is crunch time, and when you make most of your sales. But that comes…

Hi Reader! This week, I heard from a friend who got a cease and desist letter. What did she get the letter for? Using an image on her blog that she had downloaded from a “free” stock photography site. Sites like Unsplash, Pexels, and Pixabay are great. They provide access to free images for almost any use. But they come with one huge potential pitfall, and it’s a “scam” I’ve seen dozens of times over the years. (And I got a letter for this exact reason a few years back.) How this scam works…