An Intro

My law school contracts professor loved Judge Judy. When Asked why, he'd say because she always gets it right. And Dean Dessent knew his stuff. He even wrote our contracts textbook. My grandpa also loved Judge Judy. He'd say "now don't go on there and bullshit that lady. She'll see right through you."

I think grandpa loved Judge Judy because he related to her. I wasn't as obsessed with the Enneagram when grandpa was alive like I am now, but I have a very strong feeling he'd be a type 8, the challenger. You don't go around and disrespect type 8s.

Now Judge Judy doesn't need much more praise to earn my trust, but the cherry on top is how much she's loved by RuPaul. If that's not enough to get you onboard with this blog post, then I just don't know what to tell ya. 

The Case

In this clip - watch it below - a client brought suit against a wedding videographer for $1,800 after paying the videographer $250. Take a look and see what you think.

Now, don't worry. Judge Judy isn't going to leave us hanging. There is a verdict. Check it out.

The Verdict

What are your thoughts? Were you surprised by the outcome? Was it what you expected?

I knew from the jump that Judge Judy wasn't going to award any money back.

Breach of Contract

Generally, in a breach of contract case, you must prove that the other party actually breached the contract. This is obvious step number 1. For this, we look at what was promised of the parties. 

Typically one party is promising payment while the other promises services and/or a deliverable of some kind, in this case an edited video.

Judge Judy was crystal clear. The videographer performed under the contract. They got the edited video.

This leaves the question: Can a client sue and win for breach of contract if they got a video that was subpar. Answer: Yes.

But it's not all that easy. The plaintiff would likely need to prove that the defendant's work product was so poor that it didn't align with the quality of work expected. For example, had this videographer ripped off high quality videos to fraudulently show as samples of work, and the client relied on those samples, the client could likely win a breach of contract claim (and a fraud claim).

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Do you need a contract that'd make Judge Judy proud? Or maybe yours just need a little update? I got you covered with the Contract Vault.

Our Takeaways

1. Pricing

Pricing is relative. Price according to the value you can actually provide. This will weigh in your favor if you ever have a legal dispute. And don't sweat it if you're a beginner. Charge accordingly - but make sure you're operating at a profit - and raise your rates as your skill improves.

2. Show Samples

You should have sample on your website. We all get that, but actually have your clients sign off that they've seen your work. Address this in your contract. You should have a term for the client to acknowledge that they have viewed your work. In this provision, you should agree to produce work of like quality. This could also protect you if, for example, you are a natural light photographer, and you show up on the wedding day to unexpectedly find you will be in a dark ballroom all day. That was an actual issue I saw in a Facebook Group recently.

And if you need this term, I, of course, have it in the Contract Vault.

3. You Run a Business. Charge Like It.

Charge more than $250. It's hard to speculate at what point Judge Judy would have said, "yes you overpaid for what you got," but I'd guess at least over $1,000 or $2,000. You can't run a business and charge $250 per client for this type of work. You have taxes to pay, expenses to cover, and potentially courses to take if you need to improve your craft, which leads me to...

 4. Get Better

Do your due diligence to improve your craft. I think we all take pride in our work, so you probably don't need this reminder, but find ways to constantly improve. Find a mentor, take classes, and continue to get better. Your clients and your bank account will thank you.

5. Have a Contract

This is our last and most obvious tip. Have a contract for every client. If you need help, I've got you covered with the Contract Vault.