Think Like a Lawyer: Know Before You Sign on the Dotted Line

Reading & Negotiating Contracts

Join CCPL & Mark Mudd from Mudd, Mudd & Fitzgerald, as he provides expert insight into the legal framework surrounding contracts, and how to think like a lawyer would, when signing one.

Contracts are promises that the law may enforce. They are a pretty integral part of our everyday life, arising in collaboration, trust, promise and credit. Knowing the principles of contracts is not just a skill needed by lawyers, it illuminates for everyone a crucial institution that we use all the time and generally take for granted. Businesses and individuals alike are constantly entering into a variety of contracts, with landlords, suppliers, and clients, to name a few. Learn how to read common "boilerplate" contractual language and negotiate contractual terms to your advantage. 

This presentation will cover:

• Contract law basics
• Essential terms of a commercial lease: what is negotiable and what is non-negotiable
• Essential terms of a contract for goods or services
• "Typical" contracts negotiated by business people
• Caveat emptor: how to avoid problematic contracts

This program is in partnership through the Charles County Bar Association. 

About the Presenter: 

 Mark Mudd | Mudd, Mudd & Fitzgerald, P.A.

(from his website) Mark has been associated with the firm since 2000, and became the fourth generation of Mudd's to provide legal services to Southern Maryland. Mark was born and raised in Southern Maryland. He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1996 from the University of South Carolina and his Juris Doctor Degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1999. Mark has many individual, family, and business clients. He strives to understand their particular needs and to provide them with personalized counsel on the various legal issues that they confront on a regular basis. Mark has
the uncanny ability to view matters from different perspectives to achieve a client's desired resolution. When the need for litigation arises, he can draw upon his and the firm's experience. Mark's practice focuses on resolving issues both in and out of the courtroom, in addition to transactions for both business and real estate matters, probate, estate planning and administration. In addition, Mark handles administrative matters before local boards regarding land use, preservation, conservation and development. 

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