In Hawaii, the short answer is no.  And the why is a whammy.

There is no guaranty the online form is effective!  There is no one there to promise you so.  In other words, the form might not protect your business deals well.

The quickest way to have a case against a nonpaying homeowner dismissed from the court is to have a form contract missing some crucial element that would make it a binding agreement.

Though in Hawaii there is some protection for contractors, there are numerous legal requirements for contracts. Coupled with the necessary considerations of traditional contracts and case law, these legal requirements make it all too easy for Hawaii contractors to miss something.

Strict statutory compliance is required by law.

And in Hawaii, a contractor subjects themselves to fines and professional discipline (having a license suspended, for instance) for failing to comply with the strict statutory language.  It is folly to trust the creation of large construction contracts to a responsible managing employee (RME), even if the RME is well-experienced in contracting.

If, when you drafted your agreement, you googled “construction contract form template” and used the form from the top-ranking Webpage without knowledge of the numerous administrative rules in Hawaii, you a run risk that the form does not hold up in court.  No agreement, no case, lose money.

For instance, in Hawaii did you know that all contractor agreements require a notice to the homeowner?  That notice must have the exact same language as appears in administrative rules. The statute where the notice requirement appears also has a laundry list of requirements for every construction contract. Contractors do not meet all the requirements simply by using a very thoroughly drafted form template.  The substance changes with every job. A contractor who fails to provide such notice and observe formalities subjects themselves to lost contracts, unrecoverable fees, costs, and civil fines.  They also run into practical issues with homeowners that thoughtful lawyering avoids altogether. Contractors can avoid these headaches by following the statute and using careful legal drafting by a licensed attorney.

Most fines for contractor misconduct in Hawaii are $500 per offense.

A review by this article’s author of the last year of fines imposed by the contractor’s licensing board revealed that most civil fines were $500. No matter the degree or nature of the misconduct! That is a steep price to pay for simply forgetting to place a word-for-word notice in bold type near the signature line. As a contractor, wouldn’t you like to know what such notice requires? As a homeowner, you want to know your contractor knows these things or hire someone who does.

A lawyer, on the other hand, can promise you that an agreement will hold up in court.  No online form can promise you that.  That goes for the forms available for purchase at most office supply stores, too.  Retailers cannot guaranty their effectiveness in Hawaii. The peddlers of these forms will tell you so.

Lastly, professional use contracts tailored to fit the needs of each job. For most large jobs, the contract and its exhibits are the guiding stars for the project. They describe the scope, timelines for payment and the completion of work, lien rights, and other indispensable elements.  Every contractor should have a licensed attorney review their contracts for compliance with the law.  In addition, a lawyer may offer you insights into drafting specific to each contracting subspeciality. Lawyers, by practice, know the industry custom and practice, and that is worth its weight in gold.  The lawyer inevitably imparts this special knowledge at no extra cost to the contractor.