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Need help establishing conditions for direct clients
Thread poster: Anna Fitzgerald
Anna Fitzgerald
Anna Fitzgerald  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 05:45
Member
French to English
Apr 11, 2005

Hello,

I have worked as a freelance French to English translator for the past four years, but have always supplemented my income teaching. Now that I am devoting myself 100% to translation, I would like to handle the initial agreement with the client in a more professional manner. I have read books suggesting that direct clients should sign a contract that clearly states what I will and will not do as a translator, and what I do and don't take responsability for. Any tips on writing... See more
Hello,

I have worked as a freelance French to English translator for the past four years, but have always supplemented my income teaching. Now that I am devoting myself 100% to translation, I would like to handle the initial agreement with the client in a more professional manner. I have read books suggesting that direct clients should sign a contract that clearly states what I will and will not do as a translator, and what I do and don't take responsability for. Any tips on writing these? Do any of the translators associations give guidelines?

Thank you for reading my post. ▲ Collapse
 
Rossana Triaca
Rossana Triaca  Identity Verified
Uruguay
Local time: 00:45
English to Spanish
A good place to start... Apr 12, 2005

Would be the GILT Industry Ethics from LISA, which includes a sample contract that you can use as a template. My own contract for direct clients is based on a tweaked version of it, having mainly changed its terms & methods of payment (33% up-front, yeah, right) to suit my specific needs (a good idea is to add interests for late payment too).

And I just remember... See more
Would be the GILT Industry Ethics from LISA, which includes a sample contract that you can use as a template. My own contract for direct clients is based on a tweaked version of it, having mainly changed its terms & methods of payment (33% up-front, yeah, right) to suit my specific needs (a good idea is to add interests for late payment too).

And I just remembered this thread, where some ATA sample contacts were posted...

[Edited at 2005-04-12 10:26] ▲ Collapse
 
Jerónimo Fernández
Jerónimo Fernández  Identity Verified
English to Spanish
+ ...
Some samples Apr 12, 2005

Hi there.

You can find some sample contracts in these links:

http://www.royfc.c... See more
Hi there.

You can find some sample contracts in these links:

http://www.royfc.com/roy_contract.html

http://www.atanet.org/model_contract.htm

http://www.celerpawlowsky.com/site/downloads/TERMS%20OF%20SERVICE.pdf

I hope this helps.

Regards,
Jerónimo ▲ Collapse
 
desiderata (X)
desiderata (X)
Don't let forms get ahead of function Apr 12, 2005

These are good places to go to but do not let yourself be "formed by the forms." If you draft and present a contract, it is already your last chance to put in terms favorable to yourself. Many drafters of contracts that get published by organizations will bend over backwards to reach some sort of "middle-state contract" that might be considered the "ideal contract", one "likely to be the final product in their experience, maybe even "fair" to both parties.

You are however not necess... See more
These are good places to go to but do not let yourself be "formed by the forms." If you draft and present a contract, it is already your last chance to put in terms favorable to yourself. Many drafters of contracts that get published by organizations will bend over backwards to reach some sort of "middle-state contract" that might be considered the "ideal contract", one "likely to be the final product in their experience, maybe even "fair" to both parties.

You are however not necessarily interested in fairness and finality when you send your conditions to a client; you are interested in getting your best deal. Published form contracts, my point is, lie at the end of negotations of terms, not at the outset. Negotiate orally first, then present a written offer of terms. ▲ Collapse
 
Anna Fitzgerald
Anna Fitzgerald  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 05:45
Member
French to English
TOPIC STARTER
Merci Apr 12, 2005

Rossana Triaca wrote:

Would be the GILT Industry Ethics from LISA, which includes a sample contract that you can use as a template. My own contract for direct clients is based on a tweaked version of it, having mainly changed its terms & methods of payment (33% up-front, yeah, right) to suit my specific needs (a good idea is to add interests for late payment too).

And I just remembered this thread, where some ATA sample contacts were posted...

[Edited at 2005-04-12 10:26]


Thank you so much for sites.
 
Anna Fitzgerald
Anna Fitzgerald  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 05:45
Member
French to English
TOPIC STARTER
Merci, Gracias Apr 12, 2005

Thank you all for your helpful suggestions.

Anna
 
Jaime Bonet
Jaime Bonet  Identity Verified
Local time: 05:45
English to Spanish
+ ...
Great Apr 18, 2005

Excellent advice and resources. I will also take advantage of them!
 


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