Can this be signed electronically?

Yes. Electronic signatures are valid under the ESIGN Act (15 U.S.C. §7001) and UETA where adopted, provided intent, consent, attribution, and retention requirements are met.

When is notarization required?

Notarization is generally unnecessary for ordinary commercial contracts but may be required for deeds, certain POAs, or filings; check state rules before omitting a notary.

How do I fix a signing error?

If a field is incorrect, prepare an amendment or corrected exhibit signed by all parties; do not alter an executed PDF without documented consent and a replacement signature process.

What authentication level is sufficient?

Email link or SMS code often suffices for low-risk contracts; use stronger authentication for regulated transactions or where identity is contested.

How long should I keep signed copies?

Follow retention rules tied to your industry: tax records three years (IRC §6501(a)), HIPAA six years (45 CFR §164.530(j)), and longer where state law requires.

How can a signature be revoked?

Revocation typically requires written notice between parties and may need an amendment or termination clause invocation; consult counsel for high-value or disputed revocations.

Electronic Signature
Templates
Miscellaneous
Business Document Naumann Hobbs

Business Document Naumann Hobbs

This template is fully customizable. Edit the text, fill out the fields, and send it for signature. Give it a try!

Business Document Naumann Hobbs

Parties and Effective Date

This General Business Agreement (the "Agreement") is made and entered into as of Effective Date: by and between:

Party A Name: Party A Address (for notices): Party B Name: Party B Address (for notices):

Recitals

WHEREAS, Party A is engaged in the business stated above and seeks to retain Party B to perform certain services as described in this Agreement; and

WHEREAS, Party B represents that it has the expertise, personnel and resources necessary to perform the services described herein and is willing to provide such services to Party A on the terms and conditions set forth below.

Scope of Work

Party B shall provide the services, deliverables and performance described below. All work shall be performed in a professional and workmanlike manner consistent with industry standards.

Detailed Scope of Work and Deliverables:

Payment Terms

In consideration for the services performed by Party B, Party A shall pay the amounts and according to the schedule set forth below. All payments are due in lawful currency as invoiced unless otherwise agreed in writing.

Total Contract Amount: Payment Schedule (milestones, percentages, or dates): Invoices and Due Date:

Party B shall issue invoices to Party A. Payment shall be due within days of receipt of an invoice unless otherwise stated in writing.

Late Payment Fee:

Unpaid amounts shall accrue interest at the rate of % per month (or the maximum rate permitted by applicable law), calculated daily from the due date until paid in full. In addition, Party B may suspend performance for overdue accounts after giving ten (10) days' written notice.

Payment Method:

Term and Termination

This Agreement shall commence on Start Date: and shall continue until End Date: unless earlier terminated as provided herein.

Either party may terminate this Agreement for material breach of its terms by the other party if such breach is not cured within days after receipt of written notice specifying the breach. Either party may terminate for convenience upon providing days' prior written notice to the other party.

Confidentiality

"Confidential Information" means any non-public business, technical or financial information disclosed by one party to the other, whether disclosed orally, visually, in writing, or by inspection. Recipient shall (a) maintain the confidentiality of Confidential Information with at least the same degree of care as it uses to protect its own confidential information, but not less than reasonable care; (b) use Confidential Information solely for the purposes of performing under this Agreement; and (c) not disclose Confidential Information to any third party except to its employees, contractors or advisors who need to know and who are bound to confidentiality obligations no less restrictive than those herein.

Confidential Information does not include information that (i) is or becomes publicly available without breach of this Agreement; (ii) is rightfully known to the recipient at the time of disclosure; (iii) is independently developed without use of the discloser's Confidential Information; or (iv) is rightfully obtained from a third party without confidentiality obligations. The obligations in this section shall survive for following termination or expiration of this Agreement.

Intellectual Property

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, all work product, deliverables and materials created by Party B specifically for Party A under this Agreement shall be deemed "Works Made for Hire" and assigned to Party A upon full payment. Party B shall retain ownership of preexisting tools, methodologies and know-how used in the performance of the services and grants Party A a non-exclusive license to the extent necessary to use the deliverables for its internal business purposes.

Indemnification and Limitation of Liability

Each party shall indemnify and hold harmless the other party from and against claims arising from its gross negligence, willful misconduct or material breach of this Agreement. EXCEPT FOR A BREACH OF CONFIDENTIALITY OR INFRINGEMENT CLAIMS, NEITHER PARTY'S AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR ANY AND ALL CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT SHALL EXCEED THE TOTAL AMOUNTS PAID OR PAYABLE TO PARTY B UNDER THIS AGREEMENT DURING THE TWELVE (12) MONTHS PRECEDING THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO LIABILITY.

Governing Law

This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of without regard to its conflict of laws principles. The parties submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in that State for resolution of disputes.

Entire Agreement

This Agreement, including all exhibits and attachments hereto, constitutes the entire agreement between the parties with respect to its subject matter and supersedes all prior and contemporaneous understandings, agreements, negotiations and communications, whether written or oral. Any amendment or modification must be in writing and signed by both parties.

Notices

All notices, requests and other communications required or permitted under this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be delivered to the address for each party set forth above, or to such other address as either party may designate by notice to the other.

Party A - Printed Name:

By (Signature):

Date:

Party B - Printed Name:

By (Signature):

Date:

What the Business Document Naumann Hobbs Is

The Business Document Naumann Hobbs is a bilateral commercial agreement template used to record terms between two parties performing services or exchanging goods. It sets out parties' identities, scope of work, payment and delivery terms, timelines, termination rights, confidentiality, and dispute resolution. The form is structured for straightforward customization and can be executed on paper or electronically when parties satisfy legal requirements for intent, consent, attribution, and retention under U.S. e-signature law.

Why this document matters for contracting

A clear written agreement reduces misunderstandings, defines deliverables and payment obligations, and creates enforceable expectations between parties.

Step-by-step: completing the agreement

Follow these discrete steps to prepare, confirm, and execute the Naumann Hobbs agreement reliably for both paper and electronic workflows.

01

Prepare: Populate party names, addresses, and scope of work.
02

Confirm: Verify payment terms, dates, and exhibits before circulation.
03

Execute: Collect signatures in proper order and authenticate signers.
04

Store: Save final executed copy and audit trail in secure storage.

Core sections included in the Naumann Hobbs agreement

The template includes standard contractual elements to make the document usable across industries while allowing targeted customization where needed.

Parties

Identifies contracting entities and contact details; establishes who has authority to act and receive notices, reducing ambiguity in enforcement and service.

Services

Defines the exact services or goods, delivery milestones, acceptance criteria, and references to technical exhibits or statements of work.

Payments

Specifies fees, billing schedule, payment method, late payment remedies, and any withholding or tax obligations associated with payments.

Term and Termination

Sets the contract duration, renewal mechanics, termination for convenience or cause, and survival of key obligations like confidentiality.

Confidentiality

Outlines permitted disclosures, data handling expectations, and how confidential information is returned or destroyed at termination.

Liability & Remedies

Limits liability where appropriate, states indemnification scope, and identifies exclusive remedies or dispute resolution paths such as arbitration or courts.

Who commonly completes and signs this agreement

Parties should confirm signatory authority and, where needed, involve legal counsel for high-risk or high-value clauses.

Small business owners negotiating vendor relationships and payment terms.
Legal teams reviewing liability, IP, and governing law provisions.
Procurement or contract administrators managing execution and storage.

Typical authorized signers and their roles

CEO

The CEO or other executive typically signs for smaller entities when delegated authority exists; ensure a board resolution or company policy supports single-person execution for high-value contracts.

General Counsel

General Counsel or outside counsel signs when legal approval is required; their involvement ensures clauses meet regulatory, IP, and indemnity requirements before binding execution.

Digital signing and integration prerequisites

Use a platform that maintains tamper-evident copies and preserves metadata to support enforceability and record retention obligations.

Authentication: Email, SMS, or stronger KBA
Audit Trail: IP, timestamp, and action log
Integrations: CRM and cloud storage

How to configure an online signing workflow

Set these workflow elements to reduce signer friction and preserve an auditable record for enforcement or audit needs.

Template Fields	Pre-place name, date, and initial fields for consistency.
Signer Order	Define sequential or parallel signing as contractually required.
Authentication Level	Choose email-only, SMS code, or KBA depending on risk.
Reminders	Enable automatic email reminders for outstanding signatures.
Storage Destination	Send final PDF and audit log to designated cloud folder.

Where executed copies should be sent and stored

A clear distribution plan ensures each stakeholder has the final executed agreement and that records meet retention requirements.

Counterparty: Send an executed PDF to the other party for their records.
Legal Department: Forward a copy to legal for contract management.
Finance: Provide invoicing and payment teams with payment schedule.
Cloud Archive: Store final document plus audit trail securely.

Key dates and typical timing expectations

Identify and track the critical dates below to avoid missed obligations or unintended renewals.

Effective Date:

Date when contract rights and duties begin (MM/DD/YYYY).

Execution Deadline:

Final date by which all parties must sign to preserve terms.

Deliverable Dates:

Milestone or delivery dates agreed in the scope of work.

Payment Due Dates:

Invoice due dates (e.g., Net 30) and late fee triggers.

Renewal Notice:

Notice period required to opt out of automatic renewal.

Security and compliance controls to note

Encryption: TLS 1.2/1.3 in transit, AES-256 at rest

Audit Trail: Full timestamp and IP history

HIPAA BAA: Available when required

21 CFR Part 11: Supported for regulated records

SOC 2: SOC 2 Type II certification

Access Controls: Role-based permissions and SSO

Common preparation mistakes to avoid

Leaving scope language vague — vague deliverables create disputes and make remedies harder to enforce in litigation or arbitration.
Failing to confirm signer authority — unsigned or unsigned-by-unauthorized agents can render agreements voidable or unenforceable.
Mixing governing laws without clarity — selecting multiple jurisdictions causes forum disputes and may void choice-of-law clauses.
Omitting exhibits or attachments — references to missing schedules leave obligations undefined and increase litigation risk.

Consequences of an incorrect or incomplete agreement

Unenforceable Terms: May be invalid

Payment Delays: Cash flow impacted

Regulatory Fines: Potential enforcement action

Tax Exposure: Reporting complications

Dispute Costs: Higher legal expense

Data Breach Risk: Privacy penalties possible

Sample eSignature vendor comparison for executing the agreement

Feature comparison among common eSignature providers. signNow is listed first per platform evaluation standards and pricing shown reflects typical per-user annual plans.

	signNow	DocuSign	Adobe Sign	PandaDoc	HelloSign
Starting Price	$8/user/mo	$15/user/mo	$14/user/mo	$19/user/mo	$15/user/mo
Bulk Send	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Audit Trail	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
HIPAA Compliant	Yes	Yes	Yes	No	No
Envelope Cap	No limit	100 envelopes/user/year	Varies by plan	Varies by plan	Varies by plan

Real-world examples of similar agreements in use

These examples show how organizations applied the template in practice and what they prioritized during execution.

Martin Properties

A property management firm digitized lease and vendor agreements to speed execution and maintain compliance

Project included remote signing on mobile devices to close quickly
The firm retained auditable PDFs and saved time previously spent coordinating in-person signatures.

BIS

A services company standardized vendor contracts to reduce negotiation cycles

Template added payment milestones and acceptance criteria
The company reported fewer disputes and clearer invoice processing after standardization.

Frequently asked questions and troubleshooting

Answers to common execution, authentication, and recordkeeping questions about the Naumann Hobbs agreement and electronic completion.

Need help? Contact support

Can this be signed electronically?
Yes. Electronic signatures are valid under the ESIGN Act (15 U.S.C. §7001) and UETA where adopted, provided intent, consent, attribution, and retention requirements are met.
When is notarization required?
Notarization is generally unnecessary for ordinary commercial contracts but may be required for deeds, certain POAs, or filings; check state rules before omitting a notary.
How do I fix a signing error?
If a field is incorrect, prepare an amendment or corrected exhibit signed by all parties; do not alter an executed PDF without documented consent and a replacement signature process.
What authentication level is sufficient?
Email link or SMS code often suffices for low-risk contracts; use stronger authentication for regulated transactions or where identity is contested.
How long should I keep signed copies?
Follow retention rules tied to your industry: tax records three years (IRC §6501(a)), HIPAA six years (45 CFR §164.530(j)), and longer where state law requires.
How can a signature be revoked?
Revocation typically requires written notice between parties and may need an amendment or termination clause invocation; consult counsel for high-value or disputed revocations.

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