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IT, SaaS and System DevelopmentFrom SaaS terms of service and SLAs to acceptance under development agreements, our attorneys review each document against your specifications and development structure.

Free consultation Why LegalAgent
Response time
1 business day*
First consultation
30 min free
Scope
Terms of service · SLAs · Development · Maintenance

* As a rule, for contract reviews and routine legal questions. For complex or urgent matters we propose a schedule that fits the matter.

Client companies served*

150+

Selected clients shown, in no particular order. * Clients and partners. Not limited to IT, SaaS and System Development matters.

KADOKAWA FRONTEO YAMAP ACROVE LAPRAS AVA Intelligence OPTIEUM Biotechnologies ReDelta Concrew LINEA Innovations TECHSUITE YStory

Aligning terms and contracts with your product specifications and development structure

The scope of responsibility to check differs between a SaaS provider and user, and between the client and developer in system development. We check the clauses of your terms of service, SLA and development agreements against your actual service specifications, pricing structure and development structure, and turn the findings into concrete proposed revisions and a negotiation strategy. Because SLA levels, acceptance criteria, ownership of intellectual property and data handling are interrelated, we also check that they are consistent as a whole.

  • Your terms lack proper clauses for plan changes and service termination
  • Refunds and exclusions for missed SLA targets are not fully worked out
  • The acceptance criteria say only "complete upon approval"
  • The line between the maintenance scope and additional fees is unclear

Why LegalAgent

With LegalAgent, you can put terms and contracts in order without stopping development

We support your SaaS and development transactions in three ways: fast answers, upfront fee estimates and support with problems that arise after signing.

  1. 01Speed

    Typical law firms3–5 business days

    LegalAgent1 business day, as a rule

    Working back from release and delivery dates

    For contract reviews and routine legal questions, we respond within one business day as a rule. If a release date or delivery date is set, we propose an order for reviewing the terms and contracts worked back from that date.

  2. 02Fees

    Hourly billingTotal unknown at the start

    LegalAgentScope and fee set before we start

    Document scope and fees agreed before we start

    We ask which documents to review and whether you are the provider or user, or the client or developer, and give you an estimate before we start. Matter-based work is generally on a fixed fee.

  3. 03Disputes

    • Specification changes
    • Acceptance disputes
    • Development delays
    • Termination

    Problems after signing, handled from the history

    If an acceptance dispute or delay arises, we check both what the contract says and what has happened so far, and prepare a draft notice and a negotiation strategy.

* Response times are for contract reviews and routine legal questions; they vary by matter.

How it works

The AI Agent organizes clauses and history; attorneys judge the issues

The AI Agent organizes contracts, terms and records of what has happened and drafts proposed revisions; attorneys judge the clauses from your position and set the negotiation strategy.

AI Agentdoes the work

  • Extracts clauses on scope of responsibility and acceptance from terms and contracts
  • Puts records of specification changes in chronological order
  • Drafts revisions drawing on past know-how and templates

Attorneysmake the judgment

  • Judge from your position as provider or user, or client or developer
  • Judge consistency across SLAs, acceptance and IP ownership
  • Take responsibility for the final revisions and negotiation strategy
ConsultationRevisions and negotiation strategy
  1. STEP 01Confirming the service or development and the current status

    Confirm whether you are the service provider or user, or the client or developer, and identify the issues to be checked

    A list of issues to check and candidate approaches

  2. STEP 02Analyzing the terms and contract clauses

    Check the relevant clauses of the terms of service, SLA or development contract against actual operations or the history

    Clause-by-clause issues table

  3. STEP 03Preparing proposed revisions and a negotiation strategy

    Prepare proposed revisions to the terms of service, SLA or contract, or a draft strategy for negotiating acceptance disputes or delays

    Proposed revisions or a negotiation strategy memo

  4. STEP 04Preparing explanations for internal stakeholders and the counterparty

    Organize the review results into a form that can be explained internally or to the counterparty

    Internal explanatory materials or a draft notice to the counterparty

  • Attorneys make the final callAn attorney checks every deliverable and takes responsibility for it.
  • Your inputs are not used to train AIOn top of attorneys' statutory duty of confidentiality, we work in an environment where your inputs are not used to train AI.
  • An AI Agent built in-houseOur own engineers develop it. Information Security Policy

Use cases

Common requests and what you receive

From putting SaaS terms of service in order to acceptance disputes in system development, this map shows five typical consultation scenarios, with the business impact, what LegalAgent checks, and the deliverables.

  1. 01

    A SaaS product's official release is approaching, and you want to check that the terms of service, SLA and privacy policy do not contradict each other

    If left aloneIf you publish while the documents are inconsistent on the scope of responsibility and the handling of data, what users are told will diverge from how the service actually runs, and the terms will need revising after launch

    What we doReview the plan details, availability levels, data handling and scope of exclusions, and align the terms of service, SLA and privacy policy across the board

    What you receive
    • Proposed revisions to the terms of service
    • Draft SLA clauses
    • Memo checking consistency across the documents

  2. 02

    Specifications keep changing in a commissioned development project, and the reality has drifted from the original estimate and delivery date

    If left aloneDevelopment proceeds with vague records of specification changes and agreements on additional costs, and disputes over who bears costs and responsibility surface just before delivery

    What we doCompare the specification change management clause in the contract with the actual history of changes, and set out the status of agreements on additional costs and changes to the delivery date

    What you receive
    • Proposed revisions to the specification change management clause
    • Memo summarizing the history of changes
    • Draft strategy for negotiating additional costs

  3. 03

    You are in dispute with the developer over acceptance of a system you commissioned

    If left aloneIf the acceptance criteria and the period of non-conformity liability are not clear in the contract, decisions on payment and demands for repair drag on and the impact on the business grows

    What we doReview the acceptance criteria, acceptance period and non-conformity liability clauses in the contract, assess the merits of each side's position against the facts, and set out a negotiation strategy

    What you receive
    • Issues memo
    • Draft notice to the counterparty
    • Negotiation strategy memo

  4. 04

    An enterprise customer has asked for individual changes to your terms of service and stronger SLA and DPA terms

    If left aloneAs individual accommodations pile up, terms differ from customer to customer, undermining fairness to other users and consistency in operating the service

    What we doIdentify the differences between the requests and your standard terms and SLA, and distinguish what can be accepted as an individual agreement from what should be absorbed into the standard terms

    What you receive
    • Draft individual contract clauses
    • Proposed revisions to the SLA and DPA
    • Internal response policy memo

  5. 05

    A development project has been delayed or has collapsed, and you need to consider termination or damages

    If left aloneIf you enter negotiations without sufficiently analyzing fault and the scope of damages, you may end up terminating on worse terms than expected or with costs you cannot recover

    What we doReview the termination clause, scope of damages in the contract and the history so far, and assess whether termination or continuation is more appropriate

    What you receive
    • Memo summarizing the history
    • Draft termination notice or proposed terms for continuation
    • Memo on the strategy for claiming damages

Scope of our IT, SaaS and system development support

From designing terms of service and SLAs to putting development contracts in order and handling disputes during development, we support you with checkpoints and deliverables separated by theme.

SaaS terms of service and SLA design
After checking the service specifications, pricing structure and how the service actually runs, we design terms of service and SLAs that are consistent with each other.
  • Drafting and revising SaaS terms of service
  • Designing SLAs and turning them into clauses
System development agreements
From requirements definition through acceptance, we set contract terms that match your development structure and how the project actually proceeds.
  • Designing multi-stage contracts and contract types
  • Putting specification change management clauses in order
  • Acceptance and non-conformity liability
Development disputes and data clauses
We handle negotiations over acceptance disputes and development delays, and sort out data clauses in IT transactions.
  • Negotiation support for acceptance disputes and development delays
  • Data clauses in IT transactions

Our approach

What we focus on in IT, SaaS and System Development

In IT, SaaS and system development legal work, we focus on the following points.

  1. 01

    Reviewing against product specifications and development structure, not just terms and contracts

    We check whether the clauses of the terms of service, SLA and development contract match the actual service specifications, pricing structure and development structure. Polishing the wording means nothing if it diverges from how things actually work.

  2. 02

    Separating issues by provider and user, client and developer

    The scope of responsibility to check and the negotiation priorities differ between a SaaS provider and user, and between the client and developer in system development. Since the clauses that matter change with your position even in the same contract, we start from your position.

  3. 03

    Practical handling of ongoing disputes such as specification changes, acceptance and delays

    Beyond preparation before signing, we also handle specification changes, acceptance disputes, and delays or collapses that arise as development proceeds, setting out a negotiation strategy after checking both what the contract says and what actually happened.

  4. 04

    Cross-cutting review of issues specific to IT transactions

    SLA level design, acceptance criteria, ownership of intellectual property and data handling may look like separate clauses but are interrelated, so we check overall consistency rather than stopping at revising individual clauses.

Pricing

IT, SaaS and system development fees

For IT, SaaS and system development legal consultations, the workload varies with the scale of the service or project, the range of documents to be reviewed and whether a dispute exists, so we provide an estimate after hearing the details.

How fees are set

Scope and fee agreed before we start

Matter-based work is generally on a fixed fee. For complex or urgent matters, we propose a schedule and an estimate that fit the matter.

First consultation

A free 30-minute online meeting.

You can come to us before your documents are in order. Tell us what you know so far.

Free consultation

What we check before quoting

  • The number of users and pricing structure of the service, or the scale of the development project
  • The range of documents to be reviewed or drafted (terms of service, SLA, development agreement, maintenance agreement, etc.)
  • Whether we act for the client, developer, provider or user
  • Whether disputes such as acceptance disputes, specification changes or delays have already arisen
  • Whether an ongoing system for managing terms and contracts is needed

Individual estimates are provided after we hear the range of terms and contracts to be reviewed and whether there is a dispute. We may give a rough estimate at the time of consultation, but it is not a guaranteed final amount.

Team & Record

Attorneys who know business practice handle your matters

Contract reviews and drafts
2,000+
Client companies
150+
Startup legal matters
200+
Legal and investment DD
20+

* Approximate figures based on matters handled by our firm; actual figures vary by matter.

Engineers

Shinya Makita and Sota Miya build our product on the same team as the attorneys.

Practical guides to IT, SaaS and system development legal work

Development agreementsBasics of Reviewing Software Development Agreements: Definitions, Checklist, and Risks by Position

In development agreements, estimates made before specifications are fixed and requests for additional features can lead to later disputes over costs. In addition to change approvals and acceptance criteria, you should also check source code, existing assets, and the scope of responsibilities when moving into maintenance.

Related practice areas

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Can we consult you about a SaaS product that is still at the planning stage or before release?

Yes. After hearing about the service specifications, pricing structure and the data handling you envisage, we identify the issues in the terms of service and SLA that should be put in order before release.

Can you act for either the client or the developer in system development agreements?

We act for either side. Since the clauses that deserve emphasis differ by position, we first ask which side your company is on and what stage the development is at, and then carry out the review.

Can we consult you if we are in dispute with the developer over acceptance?

Yes. After reviewing the acceptance criteria and non-conformity liability clauses in the contract and the history so far, we set out a negotiation strategy.

Can we ask for both a one-off review of our terms and ongoing involvement in a development project?

We handle both. Depending on your needs, we can do anything from a one-off review of your terms of service or SLA to ongoing review at each stage, from executing the development contract through acceptance and maintenance.

What kinds of contracts can we request through this page?

You can request SaaS terms of service, system development agreements, maintenance and operation agreements and other contracts relating to IT transactions. We review them including issues specific to IT transactions, such as SLAs, specification change management, acceptance, intellectual property rights and data handling. If you are not sure which area applies, please contact us anyway.

Can we consult you on this page about terms of service for SaaS that includes AI features?

We handle putting the terms of service as a whole in order on this page. However, if issues specific to AI features, such as training use and rights in outputs, are central, please also see the AI Legal Consulting page.

Can we consult you if all we have is a draft contract?

You can start a consultation with just a draft contract. If you can also provide information on the service specifications or development structure, we can carry out a review that is closer to actual practice.

Can you handle outages or acceptance disputes that require urgent action?

Yes. However, the time required for review varies with the length of the contract, whether documents on the history exist and the complexity of the issues.

Contact

Talk to us about terms of service and development agreements

Please tell us about the service or development project and the issues you are aware of at this point. Even if your terms or contracts are not finished, we will work through them as we hear the details.

  • A free 30-minute online first meeting
  • You can consult us whether you are the client or the developer
  • You can consult us in the middle of an acceptance dispute or delay