Contract Review

⚠️ EXPERIMENTAL — This skill is provided for educational and informational purposes only. It does NOT constitute legal advice. All responsibility for usage rests with the user. Consult qualified legal professionals before acting on any output.

Contract Review

Automated contract review tools that analyze agreements against organizational playbooks, classify clause risk with GREEN/YELLOW/RED severity, and generate prioritized redline suggestions with fallback positions.

Table of Contents

• Tools
  • Contract Analyzer
  • Redline Generator
• Reference Guides
• Workflows
  • Standard Contract Review
  • Rapid Risk Triage
• Troubleshooting
• Success Criteria
• Scope & Limitations
• Anti-Patterns
• Tool Reference

Clarify First

Before reviewing the contract, confirm these inputs. If any is unknown or vague, ASK — do not assume:

• Which side you represent — customer/buyer vs vendor/provider flips which clauses are favorable and reverses the direction of every redline
• Contract type — SaaS, services, vendor/supply, or license — sets the standard-clause baseline and which missing clauses get flagged
• Risk tolerance / playbook positions — what your org treats as a deal-breaker — defines the RED vs YELLOW cutoff and the Must-Have vs Nice-to-Have tiering
• Deal leverage / value — calibrates which redlines are walkaway (Tier 1) vs tradeable concessions (Tier 3)

Stop rule: ask only the 2-3 that most change the output. If the user says "just draft it," proceed and list your assumptions at the top of the review.

Tools

Contract Analyzer

Analyzes contract text files for clause types, missing standard clauses, and risk indicators.

# Analyze a contract file
python scripts/contract_analyzer.py contract.txt

# JSON output for pipeline integration
python scripts/contract_analyzer.py agreement.md --json

# Save analysis to file
python scripts/contract_analyzer.py contract.txt --output analysis.json --json

What it detects:

• Clause types: Limitation of Liability, Indemnification, IP, Data Protection, Term & Termination, Governing Law, Reps & Warranties, Force Majeure, Confidentiality, Payment Terms
• Missing standard clauses against a baseline checklist
• Risk indicators: uncapped liability, perpetual terms, unilateral indemnification, automatic renewal without opt-out, broad IP assignment, unlimited audit rights

Risk Classification:

Redline Generator

Takes contract analysis JSON and generates formatted redline suggestions with priority tiers.

# Generate redlines from analysis
python scripts/contract_analyzer.py contract.txt --json --output analysis.json
python scripts/redline_generator.py analysis.json

# JSON output
python scripts/redline_generator.py analysis.json --json

# Save redlines to file
python scripts/redline_generator.py analysis.json --output redlines.md

Output includes:

• Priority tier (Must-Have / Should-Have / Nice-to-Have)
• Preferred redline language
• Rationale for each change
• Fallback position if counterparty rejects
• Negotiation notes

Priority Tiers:

Reference Guides

Clause Analysis Guide

references/clause_analysis_guide.md

Deep reference covering 8+ clause types:

• Limitation of Liability (cap types, carveouts, consequential damages)
• Indemnification (mutuality, scope, procedure)
• IP (ownership, licenses, work-for-hire, feedback)
• Data Protection (DPA, sub-processors, breach notification, transfers)
• Term & Termination (auto-renewal, cure periods, transition)
• Governing Law (jurisdiction, arbitration, jury waiver)
• Representations & Warranties
• Force Majeure

Negotiation Playbook

references/negotiation_playbook.md

Negotiation priority framework with:

• Tier 1 deal-breakers and walkaway criteria
• Tier 2 strong preferences with trading strategies
• Tier 3 concession candidates for strategic give-backs
• Redline format template
• Common negotiation pitfalls

Workflows

Standard Contract Review

1. Ingest -- Save contract as .txt or .md file
2. Analyze -- Run contract_analyzer.py with --json flag
3. Review findings -- Check RED items first, then YELLOW
4. Generate redlines -- Run redline_generator.py on analysis output
5. Prioritize -- Focus on Must-Have redlines, prepare fallbacks for Should-Have
6. Send to counsel -- Attach analysis and redlines for final review

Rapid Risk Triage

1. Run contract_analyzer.py in text mode for quick scan
2. If any RED findings: escalate immediately to legal counsel
3. If YELLOW only: schedule review within 48 hours
4. If all GREEN: proceed with standard approval workflow

Troubleshooting