Welcome to the 21st Century. Where practicing law requires us to don the garb of computers and the Internet. And where litigation is as costly as ever. Lawyer bills running $10,000 a month are not unusual in a hotly contested breach of contract lawsuit. With every word, phrase and sentence carrying the potential for winning or losing, the stakes are high. Simple logic, therefore, directs us to cautious and thoughtful drafting.

　　新世纪的到来，要求我们在法律实践中应该多用电脑和互联网，不过，诉讼成本还是那么地高，面对日益竞争激烈的违约诉讼，律师每月开出1万美元的账单也是常有的事。合同中的每一个字，每一个词，每一句话，都意味着潜在的输或赢，换句话说，押在这上面下的赌注也很大，所以，在起草合同时要把握两条原则：小心谨慎和深思熟虑。

　　Drafting contracts is actually one of the simple pleasures of practicing law. Just 3 years ago at this Convention I presented 50 tips for contract writing. This article updates those tips in the context of our new tools and abilities. Following these tips could result in your writing a contract so clear no one will want to litigate it, saving your client from the trials and tribulations of litigation, truly a good reason to write the contract that stays out of court.

　　然而，起草合同的确又是法律实践中一件有意思的事儿。大约三年前，也是在这样一个会议上，我提出了合同起草的50招。本文在那些招数的基础上，结合一些新的工具和技能，推出了下面这个新版本，但愿它们能帮助你起草无可挑剔的合同，让你的客户免受诉讼的困扰。

　　These tips apply to writing all kinds of agreements: office leases, real estate contracts, sales agreements, employment contracts, equipment leases, prenuptial agreements. They even apply to stipulations and settlements in litigation, where you want an agreement so clear that it avoids future litigation. Wherever clarity and simplicity are important, these tips will guide you there. The Appendix provides a few sample forms to illustrate these tips.

　　这些招数适用于各种合同，比如，办公租赁合同、不动产合同、买卖合同、劳动合同、设备租赁合同、婚前协议。同样，如果你不想让你在诉讼中所起草的和解条款与协议再起争议的话，也可以参考一下这些招数。另外，通过了解这些招数，你就会明白，起草合同，清晰、的简明是多么地重要。本文的附录提供了一些简单的法律文书范本，这将有助于你理解这些招数。

Before You Write the First Word

第一部分：在动笔之前

1、Ask your client to list the deal points. This can be in the form of a list, outline or narration. Doing this will help the client focus on the terms of the agreement.

1、要求你的客户列出合同交易的要点，也可以说是合同的清单、目录或概述。这一招首先帮助你的客户弄清合同的重点所在。

2.、Engage your client in "what if" scenarios. A good contract will anticipate many possible factual situations and express the parties' understanding in case those facts arise. Talking to your client about this will generate many issues you may not otherwise consider.

2、让你的客户提供一些假设可能发生的情况。好的合同不仅能够预见到许多可能发生的情况，而且还能清楚地描述出发生这些情况后合同双方的立场。和客户聊这些情况将有助于你发现一些你可能没有考虑到的问题。

3、Ask your client for a similar contract. Frequently, clients have had similar transactions in the past or they have access to contracts for similar transactions.

3、请求你的客户提供类似的合同。通常情况下，客户都保留着过去的交易记录或者是类似合同。

 

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