How to read a job offer letter before signing
A specific method for understanding what you are actually agreeing to in a job offer or employment contract — before you sign and before you negotiate.
The offer arrived. The base salary is what you expected. The signing bonus is a nice surprise. You scrolled past the rest because most of it is dense legal language about indemnification and intellectual property and 'at-will employment.' You are excited, you want to accept, and the impulse is to just sign and move on. Maybe you give it one quick read. Maybe. This is exactly the moment when companies tuck unfavorable terms into the contract — non-competes you did not notice, equity vesting clauses that are worse than industry standard, severance terms that protect them more than you, intellectual property assignments that reach further than you would expect. None of these will be flagged for you. They are buried in the prose, and the prose was written by people whose job is to make it hard to notice them.
Here is how to actually read a job offer or employment contract before signing it.
Find the compensation section and verify everything in writing
Salary, bonus structure, equity grant, vesting schedule, signing bonus, relocation — all of these should be in writing in the offer. If something was promised verbally that is not in the document, it does not exist. Recruiters say things in good faith that get lost in translation to legal. Before signing, every promise needs to be written down. If a promise is missing, ask for it to be added. The conversation about adding it is much easier than the conversation about enforcing it after you have signed.
Read the at-will and termination language carefully
Most US employment is at-will, meaning the company can terminate you for almost any reason. The contract may have additional language about termination — 'for cause,' 'without cause,' notice periods, severance. Understand what each phrase means. Pay particular attention to 'good reason' clauses (which let you leave with severance under specific conditions), notice periods, and any severance terms. The asymmetry here matters: their right to terminate you is usually broader than your right to leave with anything.
Look for non-compete and non-solicitation clauses
Non-competes restrict where you can work after leaving. Non-solicitation clauses restrict who you can recruit or do business with after leaving. Some are reasonable; some are wildly broad. Read the geographic scope, the time period, and the definition of 'competitor.' If a non-compete prevents you from working in your industry for two years across all of North America, that is unreasonable and may not be enforceable depending on your state — but you do not want to fight it later. Negotiate it now or push to remove it.
Read the IP assignment section
Most employment contracts assign intellectual property created during your employment to the company. This is normal. What is not normal is overly broad language that claims ownership of work done outside business hours, work using personal equipment, or pre-existing inventions you brought with you. Look for an exhibit or attachment where you can list pre-existing IP that is yours. If there is none, request one. The IP section is where companies sometimes overreach quietly.
Identify what is missing
What a contract does not say can be as important as what it does. Is there severance language for layoffs? Is there a definition of 'good reason' that lets you leave with benefits? Is there language about how disputes are resolved (especially mandatory arbitration, which is very common and often disadvantageous to employees)? Note what is missing and decide whether to negotiate for it. Many candidates only push back on things in the document and do not ask for things that are absent — but absent terms are often where the biggest leverage lies.
From confusion to action, in one document.
Paste any legal, medical, insurance, or financial document and Jargon Assassin translates it into plain language with red flags scored, enforceability notes, and a built-in glossary. Then it goes further: red-line edits to propose, comparisons against what's standard, action plans with deadlines, and ready-to-send response letters.