assistants- sign release of some sort?

[DougAxford]

Two vital things to consider in any contract should be a non-competition clause and limit of liability clause.

You don't want someone to help you build your business, then grab then clients from under you. Non-competition limits their ability to directly compete in your direct market area for a specified time period. The area and time must be reasonable in the view of the courts or it may be found invalid.

Liability is important. I had a photographer who was ordered in writing to use only equipment supplied by me but he shot a wedding with his own camera because he liked it better. The camera malfunctioned and we lost more than a dozen important shots at the wedding. He got fired, but I had to keep the client happy.

Don't be cheap. Get a good lawyer to check the PPA contract and make sure that it fits your circumstances.

Doug

[EricC]

Better still ....... JOIN the PPA.

[Randy_Brister]

<<<He is not an "employee"... I assume he is more of what you term an "independent contractor". Right now he's interning but after a few more gigs together, I plan to offer to pay him (on a per-job basis) to stay with the company. I want to make sure I DON'T have to offer workman's comp, etc... as he will only be assisting on a per-job basis.>>>

Sorry, Heather, but the above certainly seems to describe an employee, and not an Independent Contractor, IMHO. I would very strongly suggest that if you are going to talk to an expert about your contract, you should also talk to an expert about your "employee".

[DougAxford]

Heather,

The generally accepted rule for the gov't is that a contract employee works for many companies doing similar work. If he/she works just for himself/herself and you, that normally is an employee. What you want to call them is irrelevent to the gov't. As Randy says, hire an expert and get a proper opinion. I'ts well worth the $$$.

Doug

[HeatherHahn]

Thanks everyone for the advice!