Signing example
Sign a catering contract online
Signing a catering contract online should lock the menu, the price per head and the date final numbers are due, because those three decide the invoice. This four page contract for a Sydney architecture firm's end of year lunch has the office manager type the estimated guest count, initial the menu, and sign, then the caterer signs, before the deposit falls due.
The document, with its fields
The pages as a signer sees them, with the signature, name, title and date fields placed where each party has to complete them.
Catering Contract
This contract is made on Friday 2 October 2026 between Quandong and Thyme Catering Pty Ltd (the Caterer) and Tallow Street Architects Pty Ltd, represented by its office manager, Harriet Penhaligon (the Client), for catering at the Client's end of year lunch.
1. The event
| Event | Tallow Street Architects end of year lunch for staff and partners |
|---|---|
| Date | Friday 11 December 2026 |
| Times | Caterer arrives 10.30 am, canapes from 12.30 pm, lunch served from 1.15 pm, dessert from 2.30 pm, Caterer packed down and off site by 4.30 pm |
| Place | The Client's office, Level 2, 17 Lanyon Mews, Surry Hills NSW 2010, in the studio and the rooftop terrace |
| Service | Canapes roaming, then a shared table lunch and a dessert station, with two wait staff and one chef |
2. Estimated guests
The Client types the number of guests it expects below. The Caterer uses it to plan staff, equipment and the deposit in clause 5. The number charged is the final number confirmed under clause 4, not this estimate.
3. Price
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Menu in clause 6, per guest | $68.00 |
| Staff, two wait staff and one chef, 6 hours | Included |
| Crockery, cutlery, glassware, linen and serving equipment | Included |
| Minimum charge, whatever the final number | 30 guests |
All prices exclude GST, which is added to each invoice. Drinks are supplied by the Client; the Caterer's staff will serve them and provide ice buckets.
4. Final numbers
The Client confirms the final number of guests, and every dietary requirement, by email by Friday 27 November 2026. The final invoice is based on that number. The number can go up after that date only if the Caterer can source the extra food, and cannot go down. If no final number is received by that date, the estimated number in clause 2 is treated as the final number.
5. Deposit and payment
| Payment | Due | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit, 30 percent of the estimated total | Friday 16 October 2026 | Invoiced on signing |
| Balance, on the final number | Friday 4 December 2026 | Final invoice |
The booking is held once this contract is signed and the deposit is paid. If the deposit is not paid by its due date, the Caterer may release the date after telling the Client in writing.
6. The menu
The menu below was chosen at the tasting on Monday 28 September 2026. The Client initials it to confirm it is the menu the Caterer will prepare. Seasonal produce may change a garnish or a side, but not a main dish.
| Course | Dishes | Service |
|---|---|---|
| Canapes | Five pieces each: smoked trout blini, pea and mint arancini, chicken and lemongrass dumplings, beetroot and goat's cheese tartlet, lamb kofta with yoghurt | Roaming |
| Lunch | Slow roasted lamb shoulder with salsa verde; whole baked snapper with fennel and orange; roast pumpkin with freekeh, feta and pomegranate | Shared platters |
| Sides | Potatoes with rosemary salt, charred broccolini with almonds, leaf salad with house dressing, sourdough | Shared |
| Dessert | Lemon myrtle tart, chocolate and hazelnut brownie, seasonal fruit with whipped cream | Dessert station |
| Dietary | Vegetarian, vegan, gluten free and nut free plates prepared separately for every guest confirmed under clause 4 | Plated |
7. Allergies
The Caterer's kitchen handles nuts, gluten, dairy, eggs, fish and shellfish. Dishes for guests with allergies are prepared separately and labelled, but the Caterer cannot guarantee that any dish is free of traces. Guests with severe allergies are told this before the event by the Client.
8. Food safety
All food is prepared in the Caterer's licensed kitchen in Alexandria, which is inspected under the NSW Food Act 2003, and transported in refrigerated vehicles. Staff on site hold food safety training, and food that has been out of temperature control for more than four hours is discarded rather than left for guests or packed for the Client.
9. What the Client provides
- Access to the building from 10.30 am, a goods lift, and a space in the office kitchen for a staging area.
- Tables for the shared lunch in the studio, and power for two warming ovens on separate circuits.
- All drinks, including any alcohol, and someone responsible for its service under the Client's own arrangements.
10. Cancellation
| If the Client cancels | What is payable |
|---|---|
| Before Friday 13 November 2026 | Nothing; the deposit is refunded less $200.00 for the tasting and planning |
| Friday 13 November to Friday 27 November 2026 | The deposit is kept |
| After Friday 27 November 2026 | The full invoice on the final number, less food the Caterer has not yet bought |
If the Caterer cannot provide the catering for any reason, it refunds everything paid within 7 days and helps the Client find another caterer.
11. Breakages and damage
Equipment the Caterer brings is counted on arrival and on departure. Missing or broken items are charged at replacement cost, with a list sent with the final invoice. Each party is responsible for damage it causes to the other's property, and the Caterer holds public liability insurance of $20 million.
12. Leftovers
Food that has stayed under temperature control may be left with the Client in the Caterer's disposable containers, labelled with the time, at the Client's own risk. Anything else is taken away or donated through the Caterer's food rescue partner.
13. General
This contract is the whole agreement for the event. A change to the date, times or menu is agreed in writing. Nothing in it limits the Client's rights under the Australian Consumer Law. It is governed by the law of New South Wales.
14. Key dates
| Date | What |
|---|---|
| Friday 16 October 2026 | Deposit due |
| Friday 27 November 2026 | Final numbers and dietary requirements due |
| Friday 4 December 2026 | Balance due |
| Friday 11 December 2026 | End of year lunch |
15. Signatures
The Client's office manager signs first, after typing the estimated guests on page 1 and initialling the menu on page 2. The Caterer signs second.
16. Contacts
| For | Contact |
|---|---|
| Event planning | Mirela Okonjo, events manager, events@quandongthyme.example, 02 9557 3018 |
| On the day | The head chef, 0411 330 527, from 10.00 am |
| Client | Harriet Penhaligon, 02 9361 4470 |
Who signs what
- Harriet Penhaligon, office manager, for Tallow Street Architects Pty Ltd
- Text field on page 1: estimated number of guests · Initials under the menu on page 2 · Signature and stamped date on page 4 · Email link
- Mirela Okonjo, events manager, for Quandong and Thyme Catering Pty Ltd
- Signature block on page 4: Name and a stamped Date · Email link
The signing journey
Step 1
Five fields across four pages
A guest estimate on page 1, menu initials on page 2, a signature and date on page 4 for the client, and a block for the caterer.
Step 2
The client types the estimate
Harriet types how many guests she expects. The caterer plans staff and the deposit from it, though the final number is confirmed later.
Step 3
The menu is initialled
One drawing becomes her initials under the menu table and her signature on page 4.
Step 4
Signed before the deposit date
Sign in order is on. Mirela countersigns after Harriet, and both signatures land on 5 October 2026, before the deposit is due on Friday 16 October.
Every field, and who fills it
Harriet Penhaligon types the estimated guest count on the ruled line in clause 2 on page 1, initials the box under the menu on page 2, and signs page 4 with a stamped date. Mirela Okonjo's block beside her prints FOR QUANDONG AND THYME CATERING PTY LTD with her name and the date. The $68.00 per head price, the 30 guest minimum, the deposit, balance and final numbers dates, and the canapes, shared lunch and dessert station are printed.
How to adapt this envelope
A wedding with two clients adds the second as a signer with their own initials and signature. A caterer that wants the final number signed rather than emailed sends a one page confirmation as a second envelope after Friday 27 November 2026. A contract with several menus initials each menu page.
What makes this valid in Australia
The Electronic Transactions Act 1999 and the New South Wales equivalent accept an electronic signature that identifies the signer and shows intention by a reliable method. The caterer's kitchen and its food handling sit under the Food Act 2003 (NSW) and the national Food Standards Code, and clause 8 names the NSW Act.
What makes this signing flow work
The menu is fixed by initials
A caterer may swap a garnish for the season but not a main dish, which clause 6 says. Initials directly under the menu table show which dishes the client approved at the tasting, so the snapper and the lamb on the day are the ones in the signed copy.
An estimate, clearly separate from the final number
The typed estimate on page 1 sizes the deposit and the staffing. Clause 4 then sets Friday 27 November 2026 as the date the final number is confirmed and invoiced. Keeping the two apart stops an early guess becoming the bill.
The contract is signed before money moves
The booking is held once the contract is signed and the deposit paid. Completing the envelope eleven days before the deposit date means the 30 percent invoice goes out against terms both sides have already agreed.
Questions people ask
Can a catering contract be signed electronically by an office manager?
Yes, if the firm has authorised her to sign for it. The signature line names her role and the firm, and the certificate records her email, the time and her IP address. Australian electronic transactions law accepts that signature where it identifies her and shows her agreement.
Can the client sign without visiting the caterer?
Yes. Her link arrives by email and she signs in a browser wherever she is, with no account to create. The caterer's events manager is invited automatically once her signature is stamped, and both of them receive the certified contract by email when the second signature completes it.
What if the client signs after the deposit date?
The envelope itself stays open for 30 days from creation, a period the app does not let the caterer change. But clause 5 lets the caterer release the date if the deposit is late, so signing well before Friday 16 October 2026 matters more than the link.
What happens if the client declines the catering contract?
The envelope moves to declined and the caterer is emailed with the client's reason. The caterer is never invited to sign and nothing is stamped. The caterer can adjust the menu or price, withdraw the envelope and send a revised contract.
Does the estimated guest count bind the client?
Not as the final number. Clause 4 bills on the final number confirmed by Friday 27 November 2026. Only if no final number is sent does the estimate typed on page 1 become the number charged, subject to the 30 guest minimum.
How are allergies handled in this contract?
Clause 7 says dishes for guests with allergies are prepared separately and labelled, but the kitchen handles common allergens and cannot guarantee no traces. Dietary requirements are confirmed with the final numbers, and the client tells guests with severe allergies before the event.
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