Review a heads of agreement or letter of offer before it locks in the wrong terms

A lot can turn on the wording, even where the document is described as preliminary or non-binding. Some clauses may still create obligations around confidentiality, exclusivity, costs, timing or the next stage of the deal. A review helps you spot where the draft could limit your options, leave important points unresolved, or create leverage for the other side later. That is especially useful if the heads document will shape the full agreement that follows.

We look at the draft itself and assess the main legal and commercial pressure points. That often includes whether the document appears intended to be binding in whole or in part, whether the deal terms are expressed clearly, and whether important items such as price, scope, conditions, timing, exclusivity, confidentiality or termination have been dealt with properly. We also flag gaps that may need to be settled before a long-form agreement is negotiated, so you know what still needs attention.

Usually, we can give you a view on how the wording reads and where the risk sits, but the answer is not always as simple as the heading on the first page. Whether a document is binding can depend on the language used, the surrounding communications, and what the parties do in practice. That is why the review focuses on the actual clauses and context, not just the label. If needed, we can point out wording that may need to be clarified before signing.

This page is for reviewing an existing draft heads of agreement or letter of offer. If you need a fresh document prepared, or if the other side's draft needs substantial rewriting, we can usually help with that under a separate service. In the review, we can identify what is missing or problematic in the current draft, but the fixed-fee here is not for full redrafting, negotiation with the other party, or managing the wider transaction from start to finish.

Once we have the draft and any helpful background, we will review the document and provide a written summary of the main issues. We then use the consultation to explain the practical significance of those points and discuss your options, such as signing as is, asking for changes, or moving the issue into the full agreement. Timing can vary depending on the length and complexity of the draft, so if your matter is time-sensitive, let us know when you enquire.

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 Heads Of Agreement Letter Of Offer Review 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.