Desk notes
What we’re seeing on the contract desk this month.
Short, practical notes from EU and cross-border commercial negotiations — what’s changing, which positions we take and why, and what it means for your next contract. Three to five minutes each. No legal theory.
Position of the weekPosition of the week: the placement feeThe desk position on client-side non-solicitation: twelve months, a placement fee of 20–25% as the first ask, and what to keep when they refuse the fee.What changedReverse charge, OSS and the invoice line nobody readsEU VAT for SaaS and IT services sellers: B2B reverse charge, B2C one-stop shop, non-EU sellers, and what has to appear on the invoice.Why we built itWhy a desk, not an hourly firmWhy Icon.Partners Contract Desk is a flat-fee contract desk rather than an hourly firm or another tool.Seen on the deskSeen on the desk: the €90 liability capA vendor paper with a €90 liability cap: what it signals, and what to do with it.What changedWhat changed: AI clauses are now standard in enterprise DPAsEnterprise DPAs now routinely include AI-use restrictions; what the clauses say, and how a SaaS vendor should answer them.Position of the weekPosition of the week: sub-processor notice, thirty daysThe Icon.Partners Contract Desk playbook position on sub-processor changes in DPAs: general authorisation, thirty days’ notice, objection with termination as the remedy.
General information, not legal advice. This page describes how EU and cross-border commercial contracts commonly work; it is not advice on your situation, and no engagement arises until a service agreement with Icon.Partners is signed. For advice on a specific contract, speak to a lawyer qualified in the relevant jurisdiction.
Next step
Have a contract like the ones in these notes?
Send it over. Twenty minutes, marked up, explained.