Contract redlining and negotiation
Analyze agreements to spot terms affecting your work, with suggested redlines and negotiation points.
- CategoryLegal
- ModelSonnet 4.5
- Features
- ShareCopy link
1
Describe the task
Claude’s understanding of contract terms and their business implications allows it to read contracts like a legal team would. It can flag risks, suggest protective edits, and explain implications in plain English so you can negotiate with confidence.
Ask Claude to review your contract and protect you from any surprises. Provide your business context and any aspects of the contract you're worried about.
I'm reviewing a vendor services agreement for our marketing automation platform. We're a Series B startup with limited budget flexibility.
Create a redlined version that protects us from getting locked into something we can't get out of, ensures we keep ownership of our data and any work we pay for, and gives us flexibility to adjust or leave if things don't work out.
Create a new file that is an exact copy of the contract with track changes enabled. The redlines should show deletions (strikethrough red text) and insertions (underlined colored text). Use a script to create real comments or suggestions in the margins of the doc for each edit explaining the issue. Flag anything that could bite us later.
2
Give Claude context
Share your business context and the contract to review, so Claude can identify what matters most for your situation.
Required context
Enable the Google Drive integration, click the (+) button in the chat bar to browse through your Drive files, and select the contract that needs redlining.
Alternatively, paste the Google Doc link in your prompt or drag and drop the file into the chat box area.
Google Drive
Vendor Contract
DOC
Vendor Contract
DOC
Optional context
Turn on Extended Thinking for Claude to spend more time on complex tasks, like conducting thorough analysis.
Extended Thinking
3
What Claude creates
Claude creates a redlined contract with tracked changes and margin comments explaining each edit—like having your legal team mark up the document with both what to change and why it matters.
From Claude
I'll review this vendor agreement through your Series B startup lens, focusing on flexibility and protection. Let me create a fully redlined version.
[View your redlined contract]
I've made 19 strategic edits to protect your interests:
Major Wins:
- Removed the auto-renewal clause that would have locked you in for 2 more years
- Capped liability at 12 months of fees (was unlimited)
- Added your right to export data in usable formats
- Ensured you own all custom work you're paying for
Flexibility Added:
- Monthly scaling rights instead of annual lock-in
- 30-day termination for convenience with pro-rated refund
- Quarterly performance reviews with exit rights if SLAs aren't met
4
Follow up prompts
Continue the conversation with Claude to refine, expand, or explore further.
Turn redlines into negotiation strategy
Ask Claude to convert your marked-up contract into an approach for your negotiation conversation.
Based on the edits, create a negotiation email that's collaborative but clear about our requirements. Prioritize the edits by what matters most, explain why we need each change, and suggest compromise language where we have flexibility.
Adapt the format for easier comparison
Ask Claude to create a comparison table to see all proposed changes in one view.
Create a comparison table showing their original terms, our requested changes, and business impact for each item. Organize by priority so I know what to push hardest on and where we can be flexible.
5
Tricks, tips, and troubleshooting
Request actual redlined documents with tracked changes
If Claude summarizes edits instead of marking them in the document itself, ask explicitly for "a redlined Word document with tracked changes and margin comments." Claude can write a script to programmatically insert tracked changes and comments into the file. The result is an editable document where you can see exact language changes, accept or reject suggested edits, and share markup with your team.
Improve recommendations with more context
Claude can give more relevant advice when you detail your situation. For contract negotiations, explain what makes you valuable to the vendor, whether the deal is urgent, and what other options you have. The more specific details you provide about your circumstances, the more useful Claude's recommendations become—you get advice that fits your situation instead of generic guidance.
Use Projects for consistency
Projects allow you to upload relevant context and set instructions that Claude follows in each project chat. Upload your contract standards, deal-breakers, and review criteria once—Claude remembers them for every future contract review within the project without re-explaining. You can also set instructions like "always flag unlimited liability clauses" or "prioritize payment terms in your analysis." This works for any recurring workflow where you want Claude to apply consistent standards, follow specific approaches, or remember important context.
Ready to try for yourself?
Upload any contract and Claude breaks down what matters, spots issues, and helps you decide what to push back on before you sign, turning legal complexity into clear business decisions you can make with confidence.
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