Reviewing

Many contract design patterns are not only useful when seeking to communicate more clearly with others, they also offer a way to test our thinking, verify that provisions and processes make sense, and check that there are no omissions or blind spots.

With the help of reviewing patterns, contract crafters can look at contract content from different perspectives and in different formats (e.g., visuals). This allows spotting more easily gaps and inconsistencies in one’s thinking, which overly complex or deceptively familiar contract language may have hidden. For example, a flowchart can help contract crafters to check if all necessary contingencies and alternative scenarios have been taken into account in the logic of a provision. Reviewing patterns can help crafters and readers grasp both the big picture and the details and switch between these two views.

Reviewing patterns can help contract crafters with these problems:

• “I need to keep track of contractual topics over many appendices and documents”
• “I need to make sure that the logic of a clause makes sense and all necessary contingencies have been accounted for”
• “I need to audit my thinking”