Oral contracts might not be worth the paper they’re not written on, but nonprofit organizations do need to enter into contracts at some point or other.

Large organizations often have plenty of experience with contracts and other legal entanglements, but small or start-up organizations could be facing the contract maze without even knowing where or how to begin.

In her book Starting and Building a Nonprofit, Peri H. Pakroo offers several tips for modifying or drafting a contract. By far, the best approach is to keep things simple and aim for clarity. That can be accomplished by the following:

• To prevent confusion, don’t use “he,” “she,” “they” or other pronouns in your contracts. Instead, use the actual names of the parties or their roles, such as Client or Contractor.

• Stay away from legalistic words like wherefore, herewith or hereinafter. This kind of language is both unnecessary and outdated.

• Make at least a couple of drafts of your contract. After completing the first draft, let it rest a day or so, and then go back over it. Does it leave any questions in your mind?

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