Contract management glossary

A 360 deal is a contract in the entertainment industry that allows a label or management company to claim a percentage of an artist’s earnings from various sources, such as music sales, tours, merchandise, and endorsements.

Artificial intelligence is the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, especially by computer systems. Specific applications of AI include natural language processing (NLP), speech recognition, and machine vision.

A bonded title is issued when a person cannot provide sufficient evidence of ownership for a vehicle or property. It involves purchasing a surety bond, which protects the state and any previous owners from financial loss if a legitimate claim to the property arises.

A Certificate of Trust is a legal document that verifies the existence of a trust and outlines essential details, allowing parties to engage with the trust without reviewing the entire trust agreement.

Clickwrap agreements are clickable elements that confirm users’ agreement to the terms of a website or application. They are commonly used for online agreements that users agree to and click on a button or checkbox.

A consignor is the sender of goods in a shipment, while the consignee is the recipient. These two roles are crucial in the process of transporting goods, determining responsibilities and ownership throughout the shipment process.

Contract administration is the management of contracts entered into with customers, suppliers, partners or employees. It refers to the management of all actions related to contracts.

Contract administration software helps organizations create, negotiate, renew and manage contracts. Contract administration software is an indispensable tool for ensuring that the intent of each contract is fully realized, accelerating time-to-revenue and reducing the risk of non-compliance.

Contract auditing is the process of reviewing a company’s contracts. The purpose is to ensure that the quality, compliance and fulfillment of contracts are correct and to reduce contract risks as much as possible.

Contract automation eliminates manual work in Word documents and lets you create legally compliant contracts automatically.

Unlike traditional ways of storing contracts in different locations, a contract database is a central repository where contracts are stored in an organized and accessible way.

Contract lifecycle is the process of tracking and managing every aspect of a contract for performance, compliance, and other success factors - from execution through renewal or expiration.

Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) is the effective management of contracts and relationships between organizations through proper planning of all phases of contract management, resulting in the reduction, elimination or mitigation of financial and legal risks.

Contract management encompasses all activities that revolve around contracts in a company: From the contractual negotiation between the parties, to the creation and approval of the contract, to the management of deadlines, to the archiving of the contract.

A contract management platform is used to create, negotiate, sign, and renew contracts and to collect actionable data about business contracts. It helps companies and lawyers replace manual management of physical contracts so that large volumes of contracts can be handled quickly without requiring more staff.

Contract management software serves as a centralized management of legal agreements such as contracts with suppliers, leases, service contracts, license agreements, etc. An important purpose of contract management software is to streamline and reduce administrative workload.

A contract management system is an indispensable tool for ensuring that the intent of all contracts that affect an organization are adhered to.

A contract manager is responsible for the administration and management of contracts and for overseeing the process of consolidating, creating, and executing contracts.

A contract repository is a place where contracts are stored. In the past, it was usually a physical location where originals and copies of paper documents were stored. Nowadays, it is understood as a digital storage of contracts.

A contract review is a process used to identify and analyze the key provisions of a contract. The purpose is to minimize legal and financial risk.

Contract software maps the process of digitally managing contracts with customers, suppliers, partners or employees. This includes the creation, management, sharing, analysis and archiving of contracts.

A declaration of intent is a formal expression indicating a party’s intention to enter into a legal agreement or perform an action. It forms the basis of a legally binding contract when clear, voluntary, and in accordance with legal requirements.

Deep Learning goes beyond Machine Learning by creating more complex hierarchical models designed to mimic how humans learn new information.

With increasing automation, paper contracts are a thing of the past. Digital contracts increase efficiency and enable companies to keep pace with their competitors.

A digital document management system is a system for receiving, tracking, managing and storing documents and reducing the amount of paper used. It is an indispensable tool in today’s digitized world.

A digital signature (also called an electronic signature) is the equivalent of a handwritten signature. The eIDAS regulation of the European Union distinguishes three quality levels of electronic signatures.

A DMS software is a software used to capture, store, manage and easily retrieve digital documents within an organization. It provides the necessary functionality for companies to digitize documents and automate their business processes.

Document management systems are used to digitally archive and manage electronic documents.

A document management system (DMS) tracks documents electronically using software instead of keeping track of them in folders, spreadsheets, or loose papers. It enables the creation, storage, management, categorization, protection, and retrieval of digital documents.

The effective date is the date when a contract’s terms and conditions officially become enforceable, marking the start of the parties’ obligations.

The eIDAS regulation is an EU regulation on the use of electronic signatures. eIDAS is the abbreviation for Electronic Identification, Authentification and Trust Services.

Estoppel is a doctrine in contract law that prevents a person from going back on a promise or statement, particularly when another party has relied on that promise or statement to their detriment. It ensures fairness by stopping inconsistent claims that would result in unjust outcomes.

The European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) entered into force on May 25, 2018, on the basis of an EU regulation and regulates the handling of personal data by companies and other legal entities.

An implied contract is an unwritten and non-verbal agreement that arises from the conduct of the parties or circumstances. Despite not being explicitly agreed upon, it holds the same legal standing as an express contract.

Legal SaaS is a collective term for software that deals with the digitalization of processes in legal departments or law firms. It includes many different types of software, from case management to billing to contract automation software.

A lien waiver is a document used in construction projects that waives the right to file a lien against a property once payment has been received, ensuring that the property is protected from future claims.

A living document is a flexible and continuously updated document that adapts to changing circumstances or new information. Unlike static documents, living documents are designed for ongoing revisions and are often used in collaborative environments.

Machine Learning is a concept that allows computers to learn automatically from examples and experience and to mimic humans in decision making without being explicitly programmed.

NLP or Natural Language Processing refers to all tasks that enable a computer to process data in human language.

Nunc pro tunc is a vital legal term used to correct dates on legal documents, ensuring they reflect when actions were intended to take effect, preserving fairness in contract management and legal procedures.

OCR (Optical Character Recognition) is a technology that can analyze text and convert it into a format that can then be processed by machines.

In legal disputes, the plaintiff is the party bringing a lawsuit or claim, while the defendant is the party being sued or accused. These roles are fundamental in both civil and criminal cases.

Preemptive rights give existing shareholders the right to purchase additional shares before new shares are offered to external investors, ensuring they can maintain their ownership percentage.

Privity of contract is a legal principle stating that only parties involved in a contractual agreement can enforce its terms or be liable for them, excluding third parties unless certain exceptions apply.

A Qualified Trust Service Provider (QTSP) offers one or more qualified trust services and must have been granted qualified status by the national supervisory authority. The decision of the supervisory authority granting the qualified status is included in the corresponding national trusted list.

Redlining is the process of editing a contract where two or more parties negotiate or collaborate. The goal is to produce a joint document that satisfies all parties.

A signature field allows you to add a blank digital signature form field to a document. When a signer clicks on the field, a dialog opens and prompts the signer to co-sign the file.

Signing a contract means that the parties agree to the terms and conditions contained therein and their contractual obligations.

Signing software is the basis for agreeing to the terms of a contract with an electronic signature.

Sua sponte is a legal term meaning “on its own motion.” It refers to when a judge acts without a request from either party, ensuring fairness in legal proceedings.

Tenancy at sufferance refers to a situation where a tenant continues to occupy a property after the lease term has ended, without the landlord’s approval. This type of tenancy gives the tenant limited rights, while the landlord may seek eviction or decide to formalize a new tenancy.