How to confirm the provision of information services in court

Now, coaching, mentoring, and various types of consultations remain among the most in-demand information services on the market.

Based on our experience, many providers of such services still have gaps in their contracts and often lack primary supporting documents. These business-process mistakes make it easier for clients to challenge the services in court and recover money already paid, typically by filing a claim for unjust enrichment.

In this article, we explain how to properly confirm the provision of information services and reduce the risk of having to return payment for services already rendered.

1. The Contract

The terms of cooperation between the service provider and the client must be clearly set out in the contract. The provider should prepare a solid contract template for each type of information service offered.

This may sound obvious, but in practice many entrepreneurs demanding significant payments for “packaging” or “unpacking” a client save on legal support. As a result, we often see contracts that cannot withstand even basic scrutiny. They are drafted by assistants, project managers, or taken from the internet, and they often contain contradictory clauses, meaningless provisions, or a complete lack of essential information.

Sometimes the subject of the contract is described so vaguely that it is impossible to understand why the provider is receiving such a substantial fee.

It is important to remember that if the contract is unclear to us, it will be even less clear to a judge who reviews dozens of cases a day and is far removed from the specifics of the information-services market.

That is why contracts should be drafted with the help of a lawyer. A lawyer understands the procedural nuances of disputes involving this type of service relationship. To prepare a proper and comprehensive contract, the lawyer will ask many questions and carefully examine the essence and specifics of the services provided.

Conclusion: draft the contract with a lawyer.

2. Confirming That the Services Were Provided

Many coaches and mentors believe that the less paperwork there is, the better. In court, the opposite is usually true: the more evidence confirming service performance, the higher the chance that the court will find that the services were actually provided, including in the amount paid by the client.

One of the key pieces of evidence is a signed acceptance act. By signing it, the client confirms that specific services were provided within a certain period, for a specific price, and with appropriate quality.

In practice, most information-service contracts include a clause stating that an act of services rendered will be sent to the client. However, in reality, this document is often never sent. As a result, such neglect can lead to a court ordering a refund, because the court will side with the client.

Conclusion: be sure to sign acceptance acts with the client.

3. Other Evidence of Service Provision

There are many additional ways to confirm that services were provided. One useful example is a work plan with the client that records the number of lessons or meetings.

We recommend making the terms in this document as clear and measurable as possible and specifying how the client is expected to achieve the required goals or results.

What can be included in the work plan:

• date, time, duration, number, and topic of the meeting;
• conditions that must be met for the client to achieve a specific result;
• how that result will be achieved, in measurable and specific terms.

Additional actions that help confirm the fact of service provision in court:

• drafting and signing an acceptance act for each meeting, session, or lesson, indicating the place, date, time, duration, cost, and name of the service; by analogy, this is similar to how a real estate agent signs a viewing act with a client after each property showing;
• video recording of meetings, whether in person or online;
• task acceptance procedures, where the client signs upon completion, with the procedure for completing and handing over tasks described in the contract;
• client control over the correct and complete filling out of the profile on the platform used for work, for example, GetCourse;
• exchange of documents via EDI or Russian Post, with retention of inventories and postal receipts.

The above list is only an example. For a more precise solution tailored to your situation, we recommend booking a consultation.

If a client is asking for a refund for a completed course, or if you want to draft a solid information-services contract, contact us for legal assistance. Do not wait for claims or a lawsuit to speak with a lawyer.

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Write to us at law@pravoislovo.ru.