Client Contracts for Interior Designers: How to Avoid Lawsuits and Protect Your Profit with Wendy Estela
Client Contracts Won’t Save You (But This Might)
Interior designers love a beautiful agreement.
Clean clauses. Clear terms. Signature lines in all the right places.
But according to attorney Wendy Estela, even the most perfectly drafted contract won’t protect you from the wrong client.
And if you end up in court?
You’re already losing.
During this month’s DHC Concierge Hour, Wendy joined us to share what designers actually need in place to avoid disputes — and protect their businesses long before lawyers get involved.
The “New Transparency” Designers Need
Transparency isn’t just about explaining your markup anymore.
Designers must clearly articulate how their business makes money, and make sure their contract reflects it.
Wendy recommends outlining the four revenue components right at the beginning of your agreement:
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Design Fees – your creative and conceptual work
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Retail Revenue (Markup) – because you are, in fact, a retailer
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Implementation Hours – project management and coordination
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Photography – yes, that has value too
When clients understand how the stool stands on all four legs, fewer surprises happen later.
And fewer surprises = fewer disputes.
Let’s Talk About “That” Client
Wendy also walked through some familiar archetypes:
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The Lonely, Wealthy Client who blurs boundaries and treats you like their therapist
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The Control Freak who changes decisions daily and price-checks your vendors
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The Financially Troubled Client who demands refunds and threatens your reputation
Sound familiar?
The solution isn’t a longer contract. It’s clearer boundaries, a smarter structure, and strong financial positioning.
The Two Things That Actually Protect You
According to Wendy, two elements matter most:
1. Cash Flow
Always stay ahead financially. When you hold funds in advance, the power dynamic shifts. Clients must pursue legal action to recover funds, and most won’t.
2. Termination for Convenience
Remove termination-for-default clauses. Replace them with a simple “termination for convenience” provision. Either party can end the agreement with written notice. Then you’re only negotiating dollars and cents, not proving fault.
Clean. Simple. Powerful.
One More Critical Layer: Limit Your Liability
Your contract should limit liability to the value of your services, not the product markup. Designers shouldn’t be financially responsible for the retail portion of goods.
This one clause alone can dramatically reduce risk exposure.
If you’ve ever felt uneasy about a client relationship, worried about scope creep, or wondered whether your contract would actually hold up, this conversation is for you.
Interior design is creative work.
But it’s also business.
And the most profitable designers protect both.