My accountant said to just use a generic NDA for all our client work

We got burned on a $15k project because it didn't cover the specific IP we were developing. Anyone have a good template for creative agencies?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_cameron15d agoTop Commenter

Honestly, your accountant had a point. A generic NDA is a solid starting block that covers the basics of keeping secrets. Most client work really is the same at its core, you're just protecting general business info. That $15k hit sounds rough, but was it truly the NDA's fault or a scope of work issue? You can tweak a simple template to add a line about project specific IP. Paying a lawyer to draft a new one for every single client project is a huge waste of money for most small agencies.

riley_taylor15d ago

But what about the stuff that isn't basic? Like, if you're building a custom app for a client, and that core idea is the whole project. A generic NDA might just cover "business info," but what if the client later says the actual app design itself wasn't protected? That's where you get burned. A simple tweak to say "project specific ideas and designs are included" takes two seconds and saves you from that exact fight.

the_matthew15d ago

Used to think that way too until a bad contract bit me, and @the_cameron is right about starting with a good template.