Introduction

• Author: David W. Tollen
• Pages: xi-xxi

xi

Introduction

This book will help you negotiate, draft, and understand informa-

tion technology contracts. Specifically, it will help you with software

licenses and other software transfers, cloud computing agreements,

and technology professional services agreements. It addresses con-

tracts between businesses, as well as business-to-consumer and

business-to-government contracts. It also addresses both offline

contracts and contracts related to the Internet and e-commerce.

This book is for both lawyers and nonlawyers. The text stays

away from technical jargon—“legalese,” “engineerese,” and “pro-

grammerese”—and where it absolutely can’t avoid jargon, it provides

a definition. In other words, this book is written in simple English,

like a good contract.

You can use this book as a training manual or a reference guide

or both. If you’re training, read this book cover to cover. It provides

an overview of the key technology contracting concepts.

If you’re after a reference guide, you can pick and choose the

chapters to read. When you’re negotiating a contract, or reading or

writing one, look up the various clauses to learn what they mean and

what’s at stake. You’ll find sample language in each chapter, which

you can incorporate into your own contracts. Plus, if you visit this

book’s website, http://TechContracts.com, you can copy the longer

sample clauses and paste them into your document. You’ll also find

several full-length contracts at the website, which you can download

and revise to fit your deals.

Finally, you can also use this book’s table of contents as an issue

spotter—as a checklist of clauses to consider.

This book can’t replace a lawyer—or a colleague with more infor-

mation technology (IT) experience, if you are a lawyer. But it can

help you understand your lawyer or colleague. And whether you have