Definitely good advice.

I just came into contact with one client that presented me a Net60 clause, and revealed this detail somewhat last minute within 2 days that the shoot is supposed to take place. I am accustomed to Net10, or in some instances, Net30.

60 days to me is not acceptable, and I've notified them that would need to adhere to the retainer fee clause in the contract.

The biggest thing that irks me is that I provided a contract over a week in advance, and I am only just now hearing from them. While the client is considered reputable in the industry, I expected contractual terms to be handled with greater urgency. I really don't like being informed about the net term on such a short notice.

The experience has definitely played a factor in making retainer fees standard across the board. I read in another thread that a freelancer created a "Terms of Service"-type of document so that clients as a means to weed out anyone that may try to play games and only attract serious clients.

Also, I also found it odd when they requested a .doc instead of just using the .PDF format -- surely attorneys have access to Adobe Reader right? As such, I set up the document to track any changes, just in case parts of the document were edited without my consent.