Working ad-hoc whilst negotiating contract

[ecc83]

I'm negotiating directly with a client for a three month contract (my first as a contractor, woop woop, high five, etc). They delivered a written contract today. I need to perform some due diligence here - it's my first contract (woop wo.... erm yeh), even to my untrained eye there are a few things that need attention, so I need to get it reviewed, both for IR35 and from a general legal standpoint. This however will take time (obv.) - and the client is very keen for me to start ASAP, and frankly, I'm keen to get in and raise my first invoice (woop!).

Is there any reason why I couldn't work on an ad-hoc basis for a few weeks whilst we haggle over the contract? Assuming that we specify some basic terms of engagement and that there's no obligation on either party to continue if a written agreement can't be reached (or sthg)

[TykeMerc]

Congratulations on stepping into contracting, it doesn't suit everyone, but I've been working this way for 20 years now and it suits me

Getting a contract reviewed really doesn't take long, Bauer and Cotterril (likely spelling wrong) and Qdos I believe will do reviews in a day or so by all accounts.
There's nothing wrong with ad-hoc work, the risk is that contracts don't have to be signed for the terms to be accepted, the maxim here is offer-acceptance-consideration, acceptance can be implied by working after the contract has been offered. If you're happy to work for them (and why shouldn't you be) then as long as you agree a few basic ground rules; in writing, exchanged emails is fine; and mention that the arrangement is separate from the contract under review then you're on sound ground.
Hopefully you can sort the main contract out quickly, they're generally a lot easier to resolve than many people think, and get on with the real stuff delivering what the customer needs.

Best of luck.

[ecc83]

Thanks for that. Yeah, some kind of email exchange is what I had in mind. Good call about the "no implicit acceptance of terms..."

Will punt the idea to the client tomorrow.

[Wanderer]

Is there any reason why I couldn't work on an ad-hoc basis for a few weeks whilst we haggle over the contract? Assuming that we specify some basic terms of engagement and that there's no obligation on either party to continue if a written agreement can't be reached (or sthg)

If they have presented you with a contract then the next step is to get it reviewed and accept it. As TykeMerc says, if you start work then it may be implied that you have accepted the contract (even if you have not signed it) and you will have a tough time getting anything changed in it once you are working.

Take a deep breath, hold your horses and get the contract reviewed, amended and then signed. It won't take long, more like a matter of hours or days than weeks so focus your energy on getting the contract sorted rather than figuring out ways to NOT sign a contract. If the client is at all professional then they won't let you work without a contract anyway.

[ecc83]

Deep breath taken, thanks. Called Boo-yah and Cow Trail this morning, got them on the case.