Most commercial disputes trace back to one of a handful of clauses nobody read closely.
By LISORBIS Editorial Team · Published August 2026 · Last reviewed August 2026
Commercial contracts are long, and most people skim them — but a small number of clauses do most of the work when something goes wrong. The termination clause defines how and when either party can exit the agreement, and vague termination language is one of the most common sources of disputes, since both sides often assume it means something different.
Limitation of liability clauses cap how much one party can be made to pay the other if things go badly, and businesses frequently sign these without registering how low that cap actually is relative to their real exposure. Indemnity clauses work differently — they shift the cost of specific risks from one party to the other, and unlike liability caps, indemnities are often uncapped unless the contract says otherwise.
Governing law and dispute resolution clauses decide which country's courts — or which arbitration process — will actually hear a dispute, which matters enormously in cross-border contracts. And confidentiality and non-compete clauses need to be specific and reasonable in scope to be enforceable at all; broad, generic versions are often the first thing a court strikes down when a dispute reaches that stage. None of these clauses are exciting to negotiate, but they're the ones that actually decide how a dispute plays out.
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