Put your engineering consultancy terms into one clear client agreement

The problem is often not simply having a short contract. It is using wording that does not match how your consultancy actually works. Engineering engagements can involve staged deliverables, reliance on client information, specialist inputs, design ownership questions and limits on what you are responsible for. If those points are not dealt with properly, the contract can create confusion rather than clarity. A tailored agreement can help you assess and reduce risk, but the factual working arrangement can matter as much as the contract wording.

These agreements usually set out the services being provided, project scope, assumptions, deliverables, timing, fees, invoicing, client responsibilities, confidentiality, intellectual property, liability limits, suspension or termination rights and dispute procedures. For engineering and architecture businesses, the drafting may also need to address reliance on plans, reports, site information or third-party inputs. The exact wording depends on the engagement model and the documents used in practice, especially where the consultancy is providing advice, design work or ongoing project input across different stages.

Key details include the type of engineering or design services you provide, whether work is fixed-fee or time-based, how project stages are structured, what deliverables you produce, whether subcontractors or specialist consultants are involved, and who is meant to own or licence the work product. It can also matter how information is shared, approved and relied on during the project. The legal position can depend on the documents, the commercial context and the way the relationship actually functions, not just the label placed on the agreement.

Once you provide your project and service details, a lawyer reviews the information and prepares the agreement around the engagement model you use with clients. You will then be able to check the draft and raise any changes needed to reflect your pricing structure, deliverables or risk settings. The service is for the agreement and related legal drafting work described on this page. It does not include ongoing representation, technical implementation, security remediation, dispute representation or ongoing HR management unless separately arranged.

Yes, where those issues intersect with the client engagement. For example, if your consultancy handles project information, personal information, or uses contractors or subconsultants as part of delivery, the agreement may need wording that reflects those arrangements. That said, the legal position depends on how the business handles information in practice, and the contract is only one part of the picture. This service addresses the agreement itself and the related drafting points, rather than broader operational implementation or ongoing advisory support.

Just submit an enquiry via this page or click the 'get started' button on our website to submit an enquiry. After you've submitted an enquiry, one of our legal consultants will review your enquiry within 1 business day and get in touch to get a better idea of exactly what you are looking for.

Then your legal consultant will send through an email with a bit more information about the services you need, along with a fixed fee quote setting out costs, scope of the service and timing. Have a read through it, and if you're happy with the scope, you can accept and sign our engagement letter online - easy!

Once you've formally accepted, we'll connect you with a specialist lawyer and they will work with you to complete your project. They will contact you by email or phone if they need to get in touch.

Sprintlaw works on fixed-fee pricing wherever possible, so you can review the scope and cost before you decide whether to proceed. For the Engineering Consultancy Agreement service, pricing starts from $900.00.

After you enquire, a legal consultant will confirm what is included, the expected timing and whether any extra work is needed before you engage us.

We operate completely online, which means we can help you wherever you are in New Zealand. We have office spaces in Sydney, and in Melbourne, but our use of technology allows our team members to work remotely from around the world. Our legal team are mostly based in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. We also have a London office for Sprintlaw UK.

Our legal team is made up of experienced lawyers, who are specialists in various areas of law and hold an Australian legal practising certificate. None of our Sprintlaw lawyers are New Zealand qualified lawyers and they do not currently hold a New Zealand practising certificate.

They provide legal services working remotely from Australia via our 'legal consultancy' model, through which (under section 6 and section 35 of the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006) our Australian legal team are permitted to provide legal services to New Zealand businesses provided they do not provide services in certain 'reserved' areas of law. You can read our FAQ page to learn a bit more about our 'legal consultancy' model.

Given the strong similarities between Australian and New Zealand law, and the areas of law in which we practice (being small business and startup law), we do not view the fact that our lawyers have not qualified in New Zealand as having any substantive impact on the quality of our service. We are committed to ensuring that we provide high quality, affordable legal services to all our New Zealand clients.

Our legal team have all trained at leading firms, but have left the traditional corporate law world to join us on our mission to create a new and better way of delivering legal services. They have specialist expertise in technology law, intellectual property law, contract drafting and review, corporate law and commercial law.