Planning a wedding is a big responsibility. A wedding planner has to make sure that everything goes smoothly.
And while a wedding planner's responsibilities, roles, and expectations vary from client to client, outlining these roles and responsibilities well in advance is important so you don't have to deal with any last-minute negative situations.
And that’s where a wedding planner contract can help. This contract will outline all the expectations and document everything so there aren’t any disagreements as you move forward with your event.
Even though the expectations will be different for every wedding planner, this article will give you a good idea of what to include in the contract. We’ll also talk about how you can modify our free wedding planner templates to suit your needs.
Wedding planners have the incredibly stressful responsibility of creating and organizing a wedding event. They bring a wedding to life and ensure everything goes according to plan. And to do that, they use wedding planner contracts. A good wedding planner contract is tailored for personalized services. Typically, a contract outlines responsibilities of both parties involved.
The contract outlines responsibilities of both parties, ensuring a smooth and well-coordinated celebration. It defines the scope of services and addresses potential disputes fairly and objectively.
A wedding planner contract is an essential, formal, and legally binding agreement between you and your client. The wedding festivities are based on a set of conditions your client or wedding planner provides.
Such an agreement binds both parties in a commitment to crafting the perfect wedding experience. The length of your wedding does not affect the contract. The terms and conditions will remain the same whether it’s a quaint, one-day or a week-long wedding.
A professional wedding contract outlines the exact role of the wedding planner, the terms and conditions of both parties, the payment process, and more. Its primary role is to offer legal assurance around all the clauses mentioned in the contract. Secondly, it ensures clear terms for all aspects of the wedding planning process, leaving no room for confusion.
When you use a pre-made template, you can draft all the requirements in one place without leaving out any essential clauses. You can also easily edit these templates without disrupting other clauses in the agreement.
The agreement is valid for a specific period according to agreed-upon terms. It can be amended based on changing needs and circumstances. The contract also sets expectations for both parties, including terms of confidentiality in protecting your privacy.
And that’s not all. Here are some other reasons why you should use a contract template for a wedding planner:
Like any other job, planning a wedding is a job. So, it is necessary to approach the role with a professional mindset. A contract will outline the responsibilities of both parties and protect both parties in case of any problem.
The responsibilities of a wedding planner may include:
Effective guest management and RSVP tracking are essential for a stress-free wedding experience, ensuring that seating arrangements, catering, and other logistical details are perfectly tailored to accommodate the expected number of attendees.
So, mentioning all of these in the contract can help the other party better understand their role and your expectations. The more detail you include in the contract, the better.
Wedding planners need to know how many hours they’ll be working for. So, the contract should mention their exact work hours. Plus, it should outline whether or not the planner will be present at the wedding.
So, in a nutshell, a typical contract should include the following:
You can also provide an invoice template with your contract if you’re expecting your wedding planner to work overtime or as a contractor. The document typically includes payment details for transparent financial arrangements.
Let’s see how to use a wedding planner contract template.
All the vendors should be documented in the contract. This means including information like:
Also, the contract should confirm that the payments for all items will be made on time and that any relevant advance or installment payments will be cleared.
Decor and theme coordination are pivotal aspects of a well-planned wedding, ensuring that every element harmoniously aligns with the chosen theme, creating a visually stunning and cohesive atmosphere.
As part of the wedding planner contract, the wedding planner’s job is to coordinate everything with the couple and all those involved. This means the color palettes, ideas, floral arrangements, musicians, and catering should all be decided by them.
Planners can begin by interviewing the couple and understanding what they want in their dream wedding. Once they’ve done their research, they should note everything down in their contract template.
The contract should also establish a process to handle last-minute changes and accommodate them without any hiccups.
Moreover, it should specify the guidelines for finalizing these changes and clearly communicate if any additional fees will be charged for last-minute requests.
The contract should detail the process for postponing the wedding or canceling it altogether and clearly outline the fees or penalties charged in such cases. The rescheduled dates and availability should also be communicated in the contract.
Plus, the contract will outline the reallocation of payment already made in such a scenario. To ensure you have all the clauses in your wedding planner contract, check out our free planner template.
Getting an acceptance in writing ensures you have a proper paper trail. A standard wedding planning contract covers cancellation policies for unforeseen circumstances.
Here are some common points that you should include in a wedding planner contract:
Make sure the contract’s purpose is to formalize the new relationship and outline various legal obligations both parties owe to each other. It should outline the nature of these obligations and the actions that either side can take if the commitments are not met.
The contract should have a detailed section listing the client’s information. This includes the following:
A wedding planner contract should outline the job role of the wedding planner, what they’re expected to do, their tasks, how they will organize the wedding, and where they’ll source their materials from.
Each service should be broken down into smaller categories with their respective costs documented in the contract.
The next clause to include is the payment structure. The structure should include:
In the wedding contract, you should also talk about the following:
Rehearsal arrangements are crucial in preparing the wedding party for the big day, allowing everyone to familiarize themselves with the ceremony proceedings and ensuring a smooth and confident walk down the aisle.
Double-check all these details because even a slight change of address can wreak havoc on your plans.
A wedding planner contract should include details about how the planner will coordinate with the vendor management. However, this is a variable clause as the client can choose to handle vendors and coordinate with them independently, or they can ask the planner to do it.
Either way, it is important to confirm whose responsibility it will be to ensure no last-minute confusion and potential arguments.
Lastly, all the responsibilities and duties of the wedding planner should be clearly mentioned in the contract.
The client should be clear on what they expect from the wedding planner, and the planner should have the liberty to agree or disagree with those expectations and requests before signing the contract.
Here are some types of wedding planner contracts you can start with based on the offered services:
A full-service wedding planning contract means the wedding plan will cater to everything. From coordinating with the vendors to managing lodging for guests. This contract should include:
This contract includes clauses for the wedding day itself. It should finalize all the details, the timeline, and what will be managed by the planner and have a proper breakdown of all the services and respective dues for each service.
A consultation-only contract offers consulting services without any direct involvement. This means giving the couple a few ideas, designing mood boards for them, and offering guidance on vendor selection, floral arrangements, and planning tips for the big day.
A destination wedding planner contract template simplifies wedding planning projects and guarantees client collaborations. It talks about the following:
Here are some tips to help you create your very own professional wedding planning contract:
Make sure your wedding planner contract has a clear title and introduction. These should reflect what you’ll be talking about in the contract.
You don’t want to use any jargon in the contract. Be as straightforward as possible so nothing is confusing for the other party.
Also, avoid using metaphors or language that cannot be understood easily. Remember, you’re not signing a corporate contract; it’s a wedding contract, so it should be as simple as possible.
Moreover, make sure your contract includes a comprehensive guide that explains every section in plain English. This will help everyone involved know what the contract is talking about.
Define clear timeframes for expecting the payment. You should also have a meeting about these clauses and clarify anything that could lead to legal problems in the future, such as the matter of who owns the intellectual property of the wedding ideas.
A contract should mention the scope of work in detail, such as the deliverables of the wedding tasks, the timeline, and relevant updates on how everything is structured. This helps all parties understand their responsibilities.
Clauses for cancellations and refunds should be included in a contract. They look like this:
You can structure this section according to your rates and policies. Also, a good practice is to include as many clauses around cancellation and refunds as possible so both parties have an idea of what will happen if they need to cancel services.
Liability insurance clauses will provide protection against claims resulting from damage or injuries to other people or property. The insurance will cover any legal costs and payouts the insured party is responsible for when you’re working.
Wedding planning can be a nightmare without a contract. Fortunately, Bonsai’s free wedding planner contract template can help you understand your priorities and execute them without any confusion.
The template is very comprehensive. It talks about everything you need to include in a professional wedding planner contract and even helps you understand what edits you’ll need to make to fit it to your situation.
Yes, you can easily edit a wedding planner contract template without disrupting any of the other sections.
This clause should be included in the contract and say that any changes or modifications, if acceptable, should be catered to once the contract is signed.
Yes, Bonsai’s free wedding planner is reviewed by lawyers and is legally binding.
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This Contract is between Client (the "Client") and Acme LLC, a California limited liability company (the "Wedding Planner").
The Contract is dated [the date both parties sign].
1.1 Project. The Client is hiring the Wedding Planner to do the following: [SERVICE DESCRIPTION]
1.2 Schedule. The Wedding Planner will begin work on [DATE] and will continue until the work is completed. This Contract can be ended by either Client or Wedding Planner at any time, pursuant to the terms of Section 6, Term and Termination.
1.3 Payment. The Client will pay the Wedding Planner a flat fee of [PROJECT RATE]. Of this, the Client will pay the Wedding Planner [DEPOSIT AMOUNT] before work begins.
1.4 Expenses. The Client will reimburse the Wedding Planner's expenses. Expenses do not need to be pre-approved by the Client.
1.5 Invoices. The Wedding Planner will invoice the Client at [INVOICE FREQUENCY]. The Client agrees to pay the amount owed within [X DAYS TO PAY] days of receiving the invoice. Payment after that date will incur a late fee of [LATE FEE PERCENTAGE]% per month on the outstanding amount.
1.6 Support. The Wedding Planner will not provide support for any deliverable once the Client accepts it, unless otherwise agreed in writing.
2.1 Client Owns All Work Product. As part of this job, the Wedding Planner is creating “work product” for the Client. To avoid confusion, work product is the finished product, as well as drafts, notes, materials, mockups, hardware, designs, inventions, patents, code, and anything else that the Wedding Planner works on—that is, conceives, creates, designs, develops, invents, works on, or reduces to practice—as part of this project, whether before the date of this Contract or after. The Wedding Planner hereby gives the Client this work product once the Client pays for it in full. This means the Wedding Planner is giving the Client all of its rights, titles, and interests in and to the work product (including intellectual property rights), and the Client will be the sole owner of it. The Client can use the work product however it wants or it can decide not to use the work product at all. The Client, for example, can modify, destroy, or sell it, as it sees fit.
2.2 Wedding Planner's Use Of Work Product. Once the Wedding Planner gives the work product to the Client, the Wedding Planner does not have any rights to it, except those that the Client explicitly gives the Wedding Planner here. The Client gives permission to use the work product as part of portfolios and websites, in galleries, and in other media, so long as it is to showcase the work and not for any other purpose. The Client does not give permission to sell or otherwise use the work product to make money or for any other commercial use. The Client is not allowed to take back this license, even after the Contract ends.
2.3 Wedding Planner's Help Securing Ownership. In the future, the Client may need the Wedding Planner's help to show that the Client owns the work product or to complete the transfer. The Wedding Planner agrees to help with that. For example, the Wedding Planner may have to sign a patent application. The Client will pay any required expenses for this. If the Client can’t find the Wedding Planner, the Wedding Planner agrees that the Client can act on the Wedding Planner's behalf to accomplish the same thing. The following language gives the Client that right: if the Client can’t find the Wedding Planner after spending reasonable effort trying to do so, the Wedding Planner hereby irrevocably designates and appoints the Client as the Wedding Planner's agent and attorney-in-fact, which appointment is coupled with an interest, to act for the Wedding Planner and on the Wedding Planner's behalf to execute, verify, and file the required documents and to take any other legal action to accomplish the purposes of paragraph 2.1 (Client Owns All Work Product).
2.4 Wedding Planner's IP That Is Not Work Product. During the course of this project, the Wedding Planner might use intellectual property that the Wedding Planner owns or has licensed from a third party, but that does not qualify as “work product.” This is called “background IP.” Possible examples of background IP are pre-existing code, type fonts, properly-licensed stock photos, and web application tools. The Wedding Planner is not giving the Client this background IP. But, as part of the Contract, the Wedding Planner is giving the Client a right to use and license (with the right to sublicense) the background IP to develop, market, sell, and support the Client’s products and services. The Client may use this background IP worldwide and free of charge, but it cannot transfer its rights to the background IP (except as allowed in Section 11.1 (Assignment)). The Client cannot sell or license the background IP separately from its products or services. The Wedding Planner cannot take back this grant, and this grant does not end when the Contract is over.
2.5 Wedding Planner's Right To Use Client IP. The Wedding Planner may need to use the Client’s intellectual property to do its job. For example, if the Client is hiring the Wedding Planner to build a website, the Wedding Planner may have to use the Client’s logo. The Client agrees to let the Wedding Planner use the Client’s intellectual property and other intellectual property that the Client controls to the extent reasonably necessary to do the Wedding Planner's job. Beyond that, the Client is not giving the Wedding Planner any intellectual property rights, unless specifically stated otherwise in this Contract.
The Wedding Planner won’t work for a competitor of the Client until this Contract ends. To avoid confusion, a competitor is any third party that develops, manufactures, promotes, sells, licenses, distributes, or provides products or services that are substantially similar to the Client’s products or services. A competitor is also a third party that plans to do any of those things. The one exception to this restriction is if the Wedding Planner asks for permission beforehand and the Client agrees to it in writing. If the Wedding Planner uses employees or subcontractors, the Wedding Planner must make sure they follow the obligations in this paragraph, as well.
Until this Contract ends, the Wedding Planner won’t: (a) encourage Client employees or service providers to stop working for the Client; (b) encourage Client customers or clients to stop doing business with the Client; or (c) hire anyone who worked for the Client over the 12-month period before the Contract ended. The one exception is if the Wedding Planner puts out a general ad and someone who happened to work for the Client responds. In that case, the Wedding Planner may hire that candidate. The Wedding Planner promises that it won’t do anything in this paragraph on behalf of itself or a third party.
5.1 Overview. This section contains important promises between the parties.
5.2 Authority To Sign. Each party promises to the other party that it has the authority to enter into this Contract and to perform all of its obligations under this Contract.
5.3 Wedding Planner Has Right To Give Client Work Product. The Wedding Planner promises that it owns the work product, that the Wedding Planner is able to give the work product to the Client, and that no other party will claim that it owns the work product. If the Wedding Planner uses employees or subcontractors, the Wedding Planner also promises that these employees and subcontractors have signed contracts with the Wedding Planner giving the Wedding Planner any rights that the employees or subcontractors have related to the Wedding Planner's background IP and work product.
5.4 Wedding Planner Will Comply With Laws. The Wedding Planner promises that the manner it does this job, its work product, and any background IP it uses comply with applicable U.S. and foreign laws and regulations.
5.5 Work Product Does Not Infringe. The Wedding Planner promises that its work product does not and will not infringe on someone else’s intellectual property rights, that the Wedding Planner has the right to let the Client use the background IP, and that this Contract does not and will not violate any contract that the Wedding Planner has entered into or will enter into with someone else.
5.6 Client Will Review Work. The Client promises to review the work product, to be reasonably available to the Wedding Planner if the Wedding Planner has questions regarding this project, and to provide timely feedback and decisions.
5.7 Client-Supplied Material Does Not Infringe. If the Client provides the Wedding Planner with material to incorporate into the work product, the Client promises that this material does not infringe on someone else’s intellectual property rights.
This Contract is ongoing until the work is completed. Either party may end this Contract for any reason by sending an email or letter to the other party, informing the recipient that the sender is ending the Contract and that the Contract will end in 7 days. The Contract officially ends once that time has passed. The party that is ending the Contract must provide notice by taking the steps explained in Section 11.4. The Wedding Planner must immediately stop working as soon as it receives this notice, unless the notice says otherwise. The Client will pay the Wedding Planner for the work done up until when the Contract ends and will reimburse the Wedding Planner for any agreed-upon, non-cancellable expenses. The following sections don’t end even after the Contract ends: 2 (Ownership and Licenses); 3 (Competitive Engagements); 4 (Non-Solicitation); 5 (Representations); 8 (Confidential Information); 9 (Limitation of Liability); 10 (Indemnity); and 11 (General).
The Client is hiring the Wedding Planner as an independent contractor. The following statements accurately reflect their relationship:
8.1 Overview. This Contract imposes special restrictions on how the Client and the Wedding Planner must handle confidential information. These obligations are explained in this section.
8.3 Third-Party Confidential Information. It’s possible the Client and the Wedding Planner each have access to confidential information that belongs to third parties. The Client and the Wedding Planner each promise that it will not share with the other party confidential information that belongs to third parties, unless it is allowed to do so. If the Client or the Wedding Planner is allowed to share confidential information with the other party and does so, the sharing party promises to tell the other party in writing of any special restrictions regarding that information.
Neither party is liable for breach-of-contract damages that the breaching party could not reasonably have foreseen when it entered this Contract.
10.1 Overview. This section transfers certain risks between the parties if a third party sues or goes after the Client or the Wedding Planner or both. For example, if the Client gets sued for something that the Wedding Planner did, then the Wedding Planner may promise to come to the Client’s defense or to reimburse the Client for any losses.
10.2 Client Indemnity. In this Contract, the Wedding Planner agrees to indemnify the Client (and its affiliates and their directors, officers, employees, and agents) from and against all liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) related to a third-party claim or proceeding arising out of: (i) the work the Wedding Planner has done under this Contract; (ii) a breach by the Wedding Planner of its obligations under this Contract; or (iii) a breach by the Wedding Planner of the promises it is making in Section 5 (Representations).
10.3 Wedding Planner Indemnity. In this Contract, the Client agrees to indemnify the Wedding Planner (and its affiliates and their directors, officers, employees, and agents) from and against liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) related to a third-party claim or proceeding arising out of a breach by the Client of its obligations under this Contract.
11.1 Assignment. This Contract applies only to the Client and the Wedding Planner. The Wedding Planner cannot assign its rights or delegate its obligations under this Contract to a third-party (other than by will or intestate), without first receiving the Client’s written permission. In contrast, the Client may assign its rights and delegate its obligations under this Contract without the Wedding Planner's permission. This is necessary in case, for example, another Client buys out the Client or if the Client decides to sell the work product that results from this Contract.
11.2 Arbitration. As the exclusive means of initiating adversarial proceedings to resolve any dispute arising under this Contract, a party may demand that the dispute be resolved by arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association in accordance with its commercial arbitration rules.
11.3 Modification; Waiver. To change anything in this Contract, the Client and the Wedding Planner must agree to that change in writing and sign a document showing their contract. Neither party can waive its rights under this Contract or release the other party from its obligations under this Contract, unless the waiving party acknowledges it is doing so in writing and signs a document that says so.
11.4 Notices.
(a) Over the course of this Contract, one party may need to send a notice to the other party. For the notice to be valid, it must be in writing and delivered in one of the following ways: personal delivery, email, or certified or registered mail (postage prepaid, return receipt requested). The notice must be delivered to the party’s address listed at the end of this Contract or to another address that the party has provided in writing as an appropriate address to receive notice.
(b) The timing of when a notice is received can be very important. To avoid confusion, a valid notice is considered received as follows: (i) if delivered personally, it is considered received immediately; (ii) if delivered by email, it is considered received upon acknowledgement of receipt; (iii) if delivered by registered or certified mail (postage prepaid, return receipt requested), it is considered received upon receipt as indicated by the date on the signed receipt. If a party refuses to accept notice or if notice cannot be delivered because of a change in address for which no notice was given, then it is considered received when the notice is rejected or unable to be delivered. If the notice is received after 5:00pm on a business day at the location specified in the address for that party, or on a day that is not a business day, then the notice is considered received at 9:00am on the next business day.
11.5 Severability. This section deals with what happens if a portion of the Contract is found to be unenforceable. If that’s the case, the unenforceable portion will be changed to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, unless that change is not permitted by law, in which case the portion will be disregarded. If any portion of the Contract is changed or disregarded because it is unenforceable, the rest of the Contract is still enforceable.
11.6 Signatures. The Client and the Wedding Planner must sign this document using Bonsai’s e-signing system. These electronic signatures count as originals for all purposes.
11.7 Governing Law. The laws of the state of California govern the rights and obligations of the Client and the Wedding Planner under this Contract, without regard to conflict of law principles of that state.
11.8 Entire Contract. This Contract represents the parties’ final and complete understanding of this job and the subject matter discussed in this Contract. This Contract supersedes all other contracts (both written and oral) between the parties.
THE PARTIES HERETO AGREE TO THE FOREGOING AS EVIDENCED BY THEIR SIGNATURES BELOW.
