Contract Clause Library

Assumptions clause

Lists the conditions the price and timeline were built on — and signals that the deal changes if any of them turn out to be false.

Every quote is built on assumptions: that the client's existing site is on a modern CMS, that brand assets already exist, that a stakeholder will be available for weekly review calls. This clause writes those assumptions down explicitly, so if one turns out to be wrong, it's a documented basis for a change order rather than an argument about what was "obviously" implied.

Sample wording

Sample language (illustrative, not legal advice)

This proposal assumes: (1) Client will provide brand guidelines and existing assets within 5 business days of kickoff; (2) the current website is hosted on WordPress with no custom framework; (3) a single Client stakeholder is authorized to approve deliverables. Should any assumption prove incorrect, Vendor reserves the right to revise the timeline and fee.

Red flags

  • Assumptions that are actually undiscovered scope wearing a different label
  • No stated consequence when an assumption turns out false, so it has no practical teeth
  • Assumptions so generic ("Client will cooperate") they can't be objectively checked

How MarginFlow reads it

MarginFlow extracts each numbered assumption as a discrete, checkable statement, so when incoming email or project activity contradicts one — a legacy custom CMS instead of WordPress, say — it can be flagged as a broken assumption worth a change-order conversation, not just background noise in the contract PDF.

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