I sent a contact my first draft of an article about—what else!—dysfunctional mainstream contract language. In the modern way, my contact fed my draft to Claude, to see what Claude thought of it. They then forwarded to me what Claude
Adams on Contract Drafting
Adams on Contract Drafting, published by Adams Contacts Consulting LLC, focuses on the nuances and precision of contract language and drafting techniques. The blog discusses interpretation issues such as ejusdem generis and defined terms, the implications of specific word choices like "reasonably agree" or "once," and the roles of entities acting on behalf of parties in agreements. It addresses practical drafting challenges and stylistic considerations to improve clarity and effectiveness in contract documents. The content is aimed at legal professionals interested in refining contract drafting skills and understanding the impact of language in legal agreements.
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Latest from Adams on Contract Drafting
Building a Center for Textual Interpretation
This week, The Volokh Conspiracy blog published my latest article, Comma Mischief from the Florida District Court of Appeal. The closing section explains that many judges are bad at textual interpretation. It ends with a rallying cry—the only fix would…
Feedback from a User of an Adams Contract Highly Customizable Template: Katie Butler of Torch Law
In this blog post, I describe how Adams Contracts is in limbo. But some people are using Adams Contracts’ highly customizable templates! One of them is Katie Butler, managing attorney at Torch Law, a law firm based in Arkansas that…
Highly Customizable Templates: Moving from Limbo
Where do things stand with my grand project to remake contract drafting? It’s in limbo. Thanks to A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting and the training I offer, there’s now a path to becoming an informed consumer of contract…
The Volokh Conspiracy Publishes My New Article About a Comma
Thanks to a tip from Glenn West, I heard of the decision of the Florida District Court of Appeal in Treasure Coast Classical Academy, Inc. v. Optima Foundation, Inc., No. 4D2025-1577, 2026 WL 2104076 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. July 22, 2026).…
A New Kind of Syntactic Ambiguity
Friends, today is a special day, as I’m able to introduce to you a new kind of syntactic ambiguity. (As A Manual of Style for Contract Drafting says, “Syntactic ambiguity arises principally out of the order in which words and…
Two Mistakes in a Contract-Drafting Textbook
As I mentioned in this blog post, I’ve been leafing through some textbooks intended for teaching contract drafting. One of them is Tina L. Stark & Monica L. Llorente, Drafting Contracts: How and Why Lawyers Do What They Do (3d…
New “Drafting Clearer Contracts” Presentation Set for 28 and 29 October 2026
I’ve just scheduled the next public Drafting Clearer Contracts presentation. It’s on 28 and 29 October 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:10 p.m. ET. Go here for more information. I hope to see some of you there!
The post New…
A Feature of Defined Terms That Textbooks Get Wrong
For an article I have to write in the next few days, I’ve been leafing through textbooks intended to be used in teaching contract drafting. I had contemplated doing reviews of one or more textbooks, but I decided I’d rather…
My New Article in Contracting Excellence Journal
Last week Contracting Excellence Journal, a journal of World Commerce & Contracting, published my article Copy-and-Paste Contract Drafting Can Dull Your Wits or Leave You Demoralized. We Can Do Better! This article features one thought I haven’t articulated previously: That…