How do you know whether a contract requirement has been satisfied?
"Done" is an opinion until the contract says how you'd show it. The test is whether the clause carries its own proof.
Most contract disputes are not about what the parties wanted; they are about whether a requirement was satisfied — and about who has to prove it. A requirement that reads well can still be impossible to demonstrate, because the clause never says what "satisfied" would look like in evidence.
A useful way to read any requirement is to ask four questions in order:
1. Is there independent proof? Something a neutral third party could receive — a test result, an accredited certificate, a measurement, a named inspector's report — rather than one side's confirmation that it is happy. 2. Is there a clear standard? A named threshold or specification the result is measured against, not "good quality" or "to satisfaction". 3. Does the standard prove the point? Would meeting that threshold actually establish the thing promised? 4. Does it cover everything, for the right period? The whole consignment, not one bag; the whole term, not one inspection at handover.
The six checks Warrant Check runs on every promise
- Independent Verification — could the evidence be produced to, and checked by, an independent third party (an accredited certificate, a result from an independent method, a measurement), rather than one party's own assertion?
- Suitable Method — does the method reliably establish what is claimed, at the strength or magnitude claimed, rather than a weaker proxy standing in for proof?
- Defined Benchmark — is there a specific threshold, technical specification, or named standard the result is measured against, rather than a vague term like "good quality"?
- Conclusive Link — does meeting that benchmark actually establish the promise itself, rather than something merely adjacent to it?
- Comprehensive Coverage — does the evidence cover the full scope of the claim (the whole lot, area or population), whether directly or through a properly representative sample?
- Relevant Timeline — does the evidence cover the period the commitment runs for: the full term of a continuing obligation, or the relevant moment for a one-off one?
Where all four hold, a requirement is not just stated but provable — anyone can check it the same way and reach the same answer. Where one is missing, that is precisely where the requirement would be hard to hold to. Warrant Check shows you, requirement by requirement, which of the four are present and which are absent.
Check a clause free with Warrant Check →