如何写好英文合同

2021年1月26日发(作者：imrt)
如何写好英文合同
(
中英文对照
)
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. < br>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

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
1
/
33
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< br>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。


4.
Search
your
office
computer
or
the
Internet
for
a
similar
form.
Many times you can find a similar form on your computer. It may
be
one
you
prepared
for
another
client
or
one
you
negotiated
with
another lawyer. Just remember to find and replace the old
client’s name. Starting with an existing form saves time and
avoids the errors of typing.
4.
在办公室的电脑中或是在因特网上搜索类似的合 同范本
。
通常你会在
2
/
33
你的电脑上找到你想要 的东西
，
这些类似的合同范本要么是你给其他客
户准备的，要么是你和其他的律师共同 协商起草的。使用这些旧合同可
以为你节省时间和避免打印错误，不过，用这些合同范本时别忘了替换< br>掉老客户的名字。


5. Obtain forms in books or CD-ROM. Typical forms of contracts
can be found in form books, such as West’s Legal Forms (a
nationwide set) and Florida Jur Forms, as well as in treatises
and Florida Bar CLE publications. These can be used as the
starting point for drafting the contract or as checklists of
typical provisions and wording to include in the contract. Many
treatises and form books now come with forms on disk or CD-ROM.
5.
从书中或者是光盘上获取合同范本
。
典型的合同范本在一些范例书中都可能找到：比如
,
西方法律文书（全国版）佛罗里达州文书期刊，另
外
，
在有些论文和佛罗里达州律师协会的法律继续教育出版物中也可以
找到一些。起草合同时，你 可以把这些范本当做原始资料，利用其中某
些典型的条款和措词。更为方便的是，许多论文和书中的合同 范本都有
3
/
33
电子文本储存在磁盘或光盘中。


6. Don’t let your client sign a letter of intent without this
wording.
Sometimes
clients
are
anxious
to
sign
something
to
show
good faith before the contract is prepared. A properly worded
letter of intent is useful at such times. Just be sure that the
letter of intent clearly states that it is not a contract, but
that it is merely an outline of possible terms for discussion
purposes. See Appendix C.
6.如果没有特别申明，不要让你的客户在意向书上签字。有时候，在合
同未准备好之前，客户为了表示 诚意，往往急于签署某些东西，当然，
在这种情况下，如果客户急于签署的是有特别申明的意向书，这也 是可
以的，但一定要注明：本意向书并非合同，只是双方为了更好地沟通协
商，而拟定的对未来 条款的概述。类似意向书的范例见附录
C
。


Writing that First Word

4
/
33
第二部分：开始起草合同


7. Start with a simple, generic contract form. The form in
Appendix
A
is
such
a
form.
It
provides
a
solid
starting
point
for
the
structure
of
the
contract.
Like
a
house,
a
contract
must
have
a good, solid foundation.
7.
从简单、典型的合同入手。附录
A就是一个简单、典型的合同，它提
供了一个合同的基本支架。像房子一样，一个合同必须有一个牢固 的根
基。


8. State the correct legal names of the parties in the first
paragraph. As obvious as this is, it is one of the most common
problems in contracts. For individuals, include full first and
last name, and middle initials if available, and other
identifying
information,
if
appropriate,
such
as
Jr.,
M.D.,
etc.
For corporations, check with the Secretary of State where
incorporated.
5
/
33
8.
在合同的第一段要写清楚双方的名称。
，这是个简单而又不得不引起
重视的问题。如果 是个人，要写清姓和名
,
中间有大写字母和其他身份
信息的，也要注明，例如：
jr.,M.D,
等等；如果是公司，为避免弄错，
写名称时可以到公司注册地的相应机构去 核对一下。


9.
Identify
the
parties
by
nicknames.
Giving
each
party
a
nickname
in
the
first
paragraph
will
make
the
contract
easier
to
read.
For
example, James W. Martin would be nicknamed
9.
确定合同双方的别称（简称）
。为便于阅读，一般要在合同 的第一段
为双方弄一个别称，如：将詹姆士
.
马丁简写为

马丁

。


10. Be careful when using legal terms for nicknames. Do not use

contractor. Do not use
to be an agent, and if you do, then you better specify the scope
of authority and other agency issues to avoid future
disagreements.
6
/
33
10.
使用法定术语作为双方当事人的别称时，要小心。除非一方当事人
在法定上就是承包人， 否则不要将

承包人

作为其别称。同样，除非你
想让一方当事人成为法 定上的代理人，否则不要称其为

代理人

，如果
坚持要用，最好明确一 下代理范围并找到其他可以避免将来争执的方
案。


11.
Include
a
blank
for
the
date
in
the
first
paragraph.
Putting
the date in the first paragraph makes it easy to find after the
contract
is
signed.
It
also
makes
it
easy
to
describe
the
contract
in other documents in a precise way, such as the
2000, Contract for Sale of Real Estate.
11.
在合同的第一段要为书写签约时间留下空格。把签约时间放在 第一
段，当合同签署后，你就能够很容易地找到它，而且，这样做还可以给
你在其他相关文件中 准确地描述这个合同提供帮助，范例如：不动产买
卖合同，订立于
2000
年
12
月
20
日


12. Include to provide background. Recitals are the
7
/
33
clauses
that
precede
the
body
of
a
contract.
They
provide
a
simple
way
to
bring
the
contract’s
reader
(party,
judge
or
jury)
up
to
speed
on
what
the
contract
is
about,
who
the
parties
are,
why
they
are signing a contract, etc. The first paragraph in the body of
the
contract
can
incorporate
the
recitals
by
reference
and
state
that
they
are
true
and
correct.
This
will
avoid
a
later
argument
as to whether or not the recitals are a legally binding part of
the contract.
12.
书写引述语。引述语是指那些放在合同主体前面的

鉴于

条款。书写此类条款的目的是为了让读者（通常指合同双方，法官，陪审团）很
快地了解到合同的主要内容是 什么，合同双方是谁，以及他们为什么签
订合同，等等。当然，合同主体的第一段也可以加上引述语并陈 述其是
真实准确的，如果这样做了，合同双方将来就不会争执：引述语作为合
同的一部分是否具 有法律效力？


13.
Outline
the
contract
by
writing
out
and
underlining
paragraph
headings in their logical order. The paragraphs should flow in
8
/
33
logical,
organized
fashion.
It
is
not
necessary
to
write
them
all
at once; you can write them as you think of them. Try to group
related
concepts
in
the
same
paragraphs
or
in
adjacent
paragraphs.
For example, write an employment contract’s initial paragraph
headings like this:
Recitals.
Employment.
Duties.
Term.
Compensation.
13.
按逻辑顺序列出合同段落的标题词
.
合同的段落是按一定的逻辑顺
序组织起来的，当然，你并不需要一下子列出所有段落的标题词， 想到
多少就写多少，不过，这些标题词要力求总结出每个段落或相关段落的
内容。比如：撰写劳 动合同时列出的标题词就像下面这些：

引述语

聘用

职责

9
/
33