Arbitration & Mediation

The Forthright Negotiator "Rule" and Creative Ambiguity at Adams Drafting

By Victoria Pynchon

Anyone who's been living in outer Mongolia for the past couple of years should head on over to Adams Drafting straight away.  Why?  Because once you negotiate the best deal you can, you have to write it up on the best terms you can.  Hence the need -- yes need -- for Adams' Drafting.

Today Ken Adams addresses a "rule" that one Court has dubbed "Forthright Negotiator" and the rest of us have always understood to be . . . well . . . the law, i.e., that one's subjective intent can be used to interpret an ambiguous contract term so long as that intent has been objectively manifested.

This gives Ken Adams an opportunity to address the question whether it's ever beneficial to purposely include ambiguity in your contracts -- a question I'd answer after nearly a quarter century of contract litigation practice with this -- sure, if you'd like to put my husband's and my grandchildren through prep school and college.  Otherwise, not so much.

But don't take it from me.  Go see what the master of contract drafting says.

NOW!

Full post as published by Settle It Now Negotiation Blog on January 14, 2009 (boomark / email).