Deliberate Freelancer

#184: Becoming Comfortable and Knowledgeable with Contracts and Other Legalese, with Lawyer Brionna Ned

Mar 28, 2024

Brionna Ned, a former big-law lawyer turned legal educator, discusses the importance of contracts for freelancers. She emphasizes the need for customized contracts, boundaries, and understanding contract provisions. Brionna also shares insights on dealing with non-payment, explaining the difference between NDAs and confidentiality agreements, and advocating for trusting instincts in business negotiations.

54:41

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Episode guests

Brionna Ned

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Quick takeaways

Understanding contracts is essential for freelancers to establish solid business foundations.

Proactively ensuring timely payments is crucial for freelancers to maintain financial stability.

Deep dives

Importance of Understanding Legal Issues for Small Business Owners

For small business owners, understanding legal issues is crucial. The podcast emphasizes the significance of legal knowledge in building a freelance business deliberately. It highlights the anxiety that can arise from the lack of legal understanding and the potential consequences of overlooking legal considerations.

Introduction

3min

Navigating Legal Foundations for Small Businesses and Freelancers

9min

Transitioning from Corporate to Independent Legal Practice with a Focus on Empowering Clients

2min

Navigating Contracts for Freelancers and Consultants

23min

Navigating Confidentiality Agreements in Freelancing

11min

Encouraging Engagement with Legal Matters in Business

2min

Emphasizing Trusting Instincts Over Contracts in Business Negotiations

4min

Today’s guest is Brionna Ned, a former big-law lawyer and in-house counsel for tech companies. She is now a legal educator and a writer. Her company, The Everyday Lawyer, is a legal education and consulting service for small business owners that provides you with the legal knowledge you need to create solid foundations in your business. She also has a course: Contract Foundations for Freelancers.

In this episode, we talk about:

How Brionna went from lawyer to owning a legal education business.
What she loves about her business.
The basics of contracts.
Why all service providers need a contract — and the reason is probably not what you think.
How to put boundaries in your contract.
Why it’s important to customize your contract and be sure you understand what it says.
What to do if you — or your client — doesn’t want to use a contract.
What to look for in a contract that a client sends you.
How to explain to a client (and really, their lawyer) why certain contract provisions don’t apply to you and should be deleted.
Why indemnification clauses are harmful and how to try to get them removed from a contract.
If you can’t get indemnification clauses removed, know how to suggest changes to limit them in a scope.
Don’t sign a non-compete clause.
The difference between a non-disclosure agreement and a confidentiality agreement.
How to be proactive in ensuring you will be paid and paid on time.
What to do when you are not getting paid on time.

Biz Bite: Not all money is good money. (Trust your instincts!)

Resources:

Deliberate Freelancer Facebook group
The Everyday Lawyer website
Brionna’s Contract Foundations for Freelancers course
Brionna on Threads
Brionna on Instagram
Support Deliberate Freelancer at Buy Me a Coffee
Connect with Melanie on Threads @MelEdits_DC
Connect with Melanie on LinkedIn

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts

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Deliberate Freelancer

#184: Becoming Comfortable and Knowledgeable with Contracts and Other Legalese, with Lawyer Brionna Ned

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

Importance of Understanding Legal Issues for Small Business Owners

Brianna Ned's Legal Education and Consulting Service

Contract Foundations for Freelancers Course

Practical Strategies for Ensuring Timely Payments

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts