Checklist before signing a contract

Signing too fast is costly; so is signing too slowly. The right approach is a short, shared checklist applied to every commitment. It is part of the contract lifecycle and of the contract management guide.

Why a checklist, and not “one last look”

“One last look” depends on the memory of whoever is signing. A checklist sets the non-negotiable minimum: what must be true before the business commits. It reduces oversights without turning every signature into a legal project.

The core checks

1. Parties: legal name, SIREN (French company number) / identifiers, authorised signatories
2. Subject matter and scope: what is included / excluded
3. Amount and payment terms (or attached price list)
4. Term: start date, end date, automatic renewal or not
5. Notice period and termination terms
6. Sensitive clauses: liability, penalties, exclusivity, data
7. Attachments and appendices: up-to-date versions, consistent with the body of the contract
8. Version to be signed: definitely the latest one approved internally, not an e-mail draft

Who ticks what

The checklist does not belong to Legal alone. Procurement can confirm the amount and the supplier; the business team, the scope; management, the commitment threshold. What counts: every box has an owner, and the overall status is visible before signature.

• Procurement / business team: subject matter, amount, deliverables
• Legal (if required): clauses and risk
• Management / delegate: green light according to threshold
• Document lead: filing of the signed version

In practice, formalise this split in the same tool as the file. An offline spreadsheet drifts out of sync the first time someone forgets to update it. With a DocPilot approval workflow, every step leaves a trace: who approved, when, on which version — useful the day someone asks “why did we sign this?”.

Adapt without diluting

A checklist that is too long stops being used. Keep the core for all contracts, then add two or three items depending on the risk: NDA (confidentiality period), strategic supplier (penalties, SLA), framework agreement (cap, planned amendments). The goal is consistency, not legal exhaustiveness at every signature.

Also document what happens if a box stays red: the contract does not go for signature, or it goes with a recorded exception. Without this rule, the checklist becomes decorative again.

After signature: don’t break the chain

A successful checklist ends with the signed version being filed in the repository, with dates and notice period filled in. Otherwise you checked everything… then lost track. DocPilot links the steps naturally: document intake, field extraction, approval workflow, search and an audit log to prove who approved.

On mobile, a signatory or an operational team member can photograph the paper document and bring it into the same workflow — useful when signature is not 100% digital. Inbound e-mail plays the same role for PDFs received from counterparties: they join the file with no forgotten manual step.