Consent forms are essential for some businesses, particularly in healthcare, finance, law, and technology. Business owners and managers must select and implement the right kind of consent form. Otherwise, it may not serve its intended legal purpose.
Below, we’ve outlined everything you need to know about consent forms with tips and tricks along the way:
Consent forms, sometimes called release forms, are legal documents that serve as written permission to send or receive information among participating parties. They often inform them of associated use risks and release the provider from associated claims. Upon signing, a consent form acts as an authorization and waiver .
The purpose of a consent form is to inform clients, patients, or subjects of what information you’re obtaining, what rights they’re waiving, and other pertinent details. They ensure that the lines of communication remain open among the parties and afford people the right to be informed.
Consent takes many forms. Several factors determine the type of consent you’ll use, including the relevant industry, medium, legal situation, and more. You’ll want to review different kinds of consent available to help you make a decision.
Below, we’ve outlined the six most common consent types that you should know:
Active consent is when consumers “actively” agree to a specific statement and similar to explicit consent. For example, clicking “I agree” on a website or signing a contract are forms of active consent.
Explicit consent is when you offer customers the opportunity to authorize use, risk, or disclosure. For example, global privacy regulations require explicit consent when an organization processes a consumer’s data. These laws require clear and documented disclosure of company practices and how customers can opt out.
Implied consent is when participation automatically grants permission in some cases. For example, most states impose an implied consent law for accepting a driver’s license. The implied consent in this situation is that you’re willing to provide a breath sample to police for reasonable DWI/DUI investigations.
Informed consent is when you inform the individual of all possible outcomes and consequences of granting their permission. For informed consent to remain valid, the signatory must:
Opt-out consent is when customers can refuse or rescind permission at any time. For example, you can offer an opt-out consent form so that clients can reject cookies on your website. Consent formally occurs if the consumer continues to use it without their declining it.
Passive consent is a type of implied consent in which the consumer automatically gives their authorization unless otherwise stated. You can’t use passive consent if you’re working toward privacy regulation compliance. However, you could use passive consent clauses if use doesn’t significantly affect the customer.
Meet some lawyers on our platformConsent forms can be complicated or straightforward, depending upon the situation. However, they generally contain some form of acknowledgment, authorization, and release of claims. Since you’re often asking customers to waive their rights in specific situations, it’s essential that you speak with an attorney to ensure that their civil rights remain intact.
Here are the six elements that are included in a consent form:
A consent form doesn’t release you from acts of gross negligence. There are still benchmarks and standards to uphold. Consent forms only protect you from reasonable risks, or your liability insurance company may not cover you otherwise.
Many legal situations require the use of a consent form. In the abstract sense, it’s challenging to understand how they work, especially if this is the first time that you’re drafting one.
In this section, we’ve offered three examples of consent forms in a hypothetical situation:
The example below shows how governments utilize consent forms:
Image via Pexels by Ksenia
The example below involves an online store that sells to consumers in locations with consumer privacy laws:
The example below involves a healthcare tech company:
Businesses use consent forms. They use them to authorize the permission of a specific action. Some industries, such as healthcare, tech, and finance, require companies to collect consent through consent forms at certain times.
If you need to create a consent form for your business, hire contract lawyers. They have an in-depth knowledge of the law and can apply it to your unique situation. A legal professional ensures that you walk away with the perfect consent form from the first draft to the contract signing.
Post a project in ContractsCounsel’s marketplace to receive flat fee bids from vetted lawyers. All lawyers are peer reviewed by our customers for you to explore before hiring.
ContractsCounsel is not a law firm, and this post should not be considered and does not contain legal advice. To ensure the information and advice in this post are correct, sufficient, and appropriate for your situation, please consult a licensed attorney. Also, using or accessing ContractsCounsel's site does not create an attorney-client relationship between you and ContractsCounsel.
Ms. Ayub is an attorney licensed to practice in Texas. Before moving to the US, she has a number of years of experience in contract review, analysis and drafting. Ms. Ayub is available to help you with your legal problems, as well as filling LLC and other business entity formation documents. To know more about her practice, please visit https://ayublawfirmpllc.com/.
Scott graduated from Cardozo Law School and also has an English degree from Penn. His practice focuses on business law and contracts, with an emphasis on commercial transactions and negotiations, document drafting and review, employment, business formation, e-commerce, technology, healthcare, privacy, data security and compliance. While he's worked with large, established companies, he particularly enjoys collaborating with startups. Prior to starting his own practice in 2011, Scott worked in-house for over 5 years with businesses large and small. He also handles real estate leases, website and app Terms of Service and privacy policies, and pre- and post-nup agreements.
My name is Ryenne Shaw and I help business owners build businesses that operate as assets instead of liabilities, increase in value over time and build wealth. My areas of expertise include corporate formation and business structure, contract law, employment/labor law, business risk and compliance and intellectual property. I also serve as outside general counsel to several businesses across various industries nationally. I spent most of my early legal career assisting C.E.O.s, General Counsel, and in-house legal counsel of both large and smaller corporations in minimizing liability, protecting business assets and maximizing profits. While working with many of these entities, I realized that smaller entities are often underserved. I saw that smaller business owners weren’t receiving the same level of legal support larger corporations relied upon to grow and sustain. I knew this was a major contributor to the ceiling that most small businesses hit before they’ve even scratched the surface of their potential. And I knew at that moment that all of this lack of knowledge and support was creating a huge wealth gap. After over ten years of legal experience, I started my law firm to provide the legal support small to mid-sized business owners and entrepreneurs need to grow and protect their brands, businesses, and assets. I have a passion for helping small to mid-sized businesses and startups grow into wealth-building assets by leveraging the same legal strategies large corporations have used for years to create real wealth. I enjoy connecting with my clients, learning about their visions and identifying ways to protect and maximize the reach, value and impact of their businesses. I am a strong legal writer with extensive litigation experience, including both federal and state (and administratively), which brings another element to every contract I prepare and the overall counsel and value I provide. Some of my recent projects include: - Negotiating & Drafting Commercial Lease Agreements - Drafting Trademark Licensing Agreements - Drafting Ambassador and Influencer Agreements - Drafting Collaboration Agreements - Drafting Service Agreements for service-providers, coaches and consultants - Drafting Master Service Agreements and SOWs - Drafting Terms of Service and Privacy Policies - Preparing policies and procedures for businesses in highly regulated industries - Drafting Employee Handbooks, Standard Operations and Procedures (SOPs) manuals, employment agreements - Creating Employer-employee infrastructure to ensure business compliance with employment and labor laws - Drafting Independent Contractor Agreements and Non-Disclosure/Non-Competition/Non-Solicitation Agreements - Conducting Federal Trademark Searches and filing trademark applications - Preparing Trademark Opinion Letters after conducting appropriate legal research - Drafting Letters of Opinion for Small Business Loans - Drafting and Responding to Cease and Desist Letters I service clients throughout the United States across a broad range of industries.
