Resolve the remaining terms explicitly instead of treating an agreed figure as the whole settlement.
Corporate Recovery Partners
01 / 06
The number is settled but the document is not
A business owner agrees to a payment amount during a call. The draft that follows also releases claims on other jobs and requires both parties to make public statements. Neither point was discussed. The owner needs advice on what has already been agreed and a precise way to address the remaining terms.
Keep the original offer, response, call notes and every draft. Identify any wording about further documentation, approvals or conditions.
Do not declare that nothing is binding because signatures are missing. Ask your lawyer to assess the effect of the actual exchange before rejecting or changing the proposal.
Create a short table covering payment, timing, costs, release scope, confidentiality and any continuing work. Mark each item as agreed, unclear or disputed.
Use the table to prevent negotiation from drifting back over settled points unnecessarily. It also shows whether the outstanding issue is a drafting detail or a substantial commercial concession.
Identify which transactions, entities and claims the proposed wording covers. A settlement of one invoice should be reviewed carefully if the draft also addresses unrelated projects.
Business.gov.au advises ensuring the written contract contains what was agreed. Have your adviser explain provisions that go beyond your understanding instead of relying on reassuring informal descriptions.
Use a clearly identified draft with tracked changes or an agreed change list. Ask each side to confirm the complete terms through the appropriate representatives.
Avoid parallel email and phone discussions producing different versions. Keep any formal case deadlines monitored while the documentation is resolved. Check schedules and attachments against the main document; an unchanged attachment can preserve a term that both sides believed had been removed.
