This Deal Point Checklist is designed to highlight areas of importance when entering into a Writer Employment Agreement. Attorney Michael Norman Saleman offers these Deal Point Checklists as a courtesy to users of this website. Contact Mr. Saleman if you need help with any of your project’s legal documentation.
Download (Writer-Employment-Agreement.docx
) and use this checklist when negotiating a Writer Employment Agreement to assist you in reaching an agreement on major deal points. Return this Word document with the details to facilitate the drafting of your agreements.
- Date
- Producer
- Writer
- Assigned Material
- treatment
- notes
- adaptation
- Credits
- Employment
- page limit
- where delivered
- Committed Material
- first draft
- re-write
- due dates
- Compensation/Step Payments
- upon execution
- upon first draft
- upon re-write
- second re-write option
- polish option
- Reading Periods
- deferral of services (If writer exclusive, can he/she so other work during reading periods)
- Screenplay Credit Bonus
- sole credit
- payment
- back-end contingent compensation
- shared credit
- usually one-half of sole credit amounts
- who has final determination of writing credits? (usually producer unless WGA writer, then WGA rules and arbitration control)
- sole credit
- Expenses
- general
- living and traveling
- Rights held by Producer
- ownership
- work-for-hire basis
- alteration rights
- rental rights
- permission to use name and likeness
- Remakes and Sequels
- conditions to allow writer to share
- amounts
- Contingencies
- delay by writer and termination right of producer
- force majeure
- default by writer
- Producer allowed to assign rights?
- producer allowed to sell