Review contracts and agreements with AI

The problem

You've got a supplier contract, partnership agreement, or funding terms to review but no in-house legal team. You need to spot problematic clauses, understand what you're committing to, and identify anything unusual before signing. Paying a solicitor £200-400/hour for every contract isn't realistic on a charity budget, but signing without proper review is risky.

The solution

Use an LLM to do a first-pass review of contracts and agreements. The AI reads the document, explains clauses in plain English, flags common problem areas (liability, termination, data processing, IP), and highlights anything unusual or one-sided. You get a structured summary that helps you decide whether to sign, negotiate, or get legal advice. This doesn't replace a solicitor for high-value or complex agreements, but it covers the 80% of contracts that are routine.

What you get

A plain-English summary of the contract covering: key obligations on both sides, financial commitments, termination and notice periods, liability and indemnity clauses, data processing terms, IP ownership, and anything unusual or one-sided. Red flags clearly marked. You know what questions to ask and whether you need professional legal review.

Before you start

• The contract or agreement in digital format (PDF or Word)
• Paid AI subscription strongly recommended - contracts may contain commercially sensitive information. Use a tool that won't train on your inputs.
• Understanding of what your organisation needs from the agreement

When to use this

• You receive a standard supplier or service contract to review
• A partner organisation sends a collaboration agreement
• You need to review software/platform terms of service
• Funder terms and conditions need checking before you accept a grant
• You want to understand what a contract means before sending it to a solicitor

When not to use this

• High-value contracts (£50k+) - get proper legal advice, use AI to prepare
• Employment contracts or settlement agreements - always get specialist HR/legal input
• Property leases - too many sector-specific pitfalls for AI to catch reliably
• The contract is already reviewed by your legal advisers
• You need legally binding advice on your obligations

Steps

1. 1

   Prepare the document

   Convert the contract to text format the AI can read. For PDFs, copy-paste the text directly. For scanned documents, use OCR first. Check that the text is complete and readable - missing pages or garbled text will lead to incomplete review.

2. 2

   Get a plain-English summary

   Paste the contract and ask: 'Summarise this contract in plain English. For each section, explain: what it commits us to, what it commits the other party to, any financial obligations, and any deadlines or notice periods. I'm a UK charity reviewing this before signing.' The AI translates legalese into language you can act on.

3. 3

   Ask for red flags

   Follow up with: 'Now review this contract for potential problems from our perspective as a small UK charity. Flag: unlimited liability clauses, auto-renewal terms, restrictive IP clauses, weak data protection provisions, one-sided termination rights, hidden costs, anything unusual compared to standard contracts of this type.' The AI spots patterns you might miss.

4. 4

   Check data processing terms specifically

   If the contract involves any data processing (most do now): 'Does this contract include adequate data processing terms for UK GDPR compliance? Check for: lawful basis, data retention periods, sub-processor controls, breach notification obligations, data transfer safeguards (especially for US-based providers), and our rights as data controller.' This is where charities most often get caught out.

5. 5

   Generate questions for negotiation

   Ask: 'Based on your review, what specific changes should we request or questions should we ask before signing?' The AI produces a list of negotiation points you can raise with the other party. Focus on the items that matter most to your charity.

6. 6

   Decide: sign, negotiate, or get legal advice

   Based on the AI review, make your decision. Routine contracts with no red flags: sign. Contracts with negotiable issues: go back with your questions. Contracts with serious concerns or high value: take the AI summary and your questions to a solicitor. You've done the legwork, so the solicitor's time (and your cost) is much less.

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