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# Simple prompt examples for AI contract analysis

## Your benefit

Instead of writing every prompt from scratch, you start from a tested template and adapt it to your own contract style. That saves hours per field builder setup and avoids the typical beginner mistakes — especially when onboarding new contract categories.

## How to use the examples

1. Open **Settings**.
2. Open **Field builder → Contract field builder** and select the field you want.
3. Copy the prompt from the sections below into the box under **"Optional: Tell AI to extract the key details by giving a specific description related to this field"**.
4. Click **Test in a contract** and pick a sample contract.
5. If the result isn't quite right, sharpen the prompt using the tips in the strategy article (see Related articles). Save with **Update**.

## Contract basics

**Contract start date**
> Look for clauses that state the start date of the contract explicitly or implicitly. Also consider terms such as "commencement date", "effective from" or "valid from". Extract the exact date. If several are named, the earliest.

**Contract end date**
> Look for clauses describing the end date or expiry of the contract (e.g. "end of term", "expires on", "ends on"). Extract the exact date.

**Contract term**
> Extract the contract term in months or years — even where it is only stated indirectly (e.g. derivable from the start and end date).

**Counterparty**
> Look for the names of the contracting parties (often in the contract header or the preamble) and extract the full legal names, including legal form.

**Contract value**
> Identify the total value or contract sum. Take recurring amounts and one-off payments into account. State the value in euros; if another currency is named, keep it.

## Term and termination

**Notice period**
> Look for clauses governing notice periods. Also consider terms such as "ordinary termination", "lead time" or "termination with a notice period of". Extract the period (e.g. 3 months) and, where applicable, what it relates to at the end of the contract.

**Automatic renewal**
> Find clauses describing an automatic extension of the contract ("renews automatically", "tacit renewal"). Extract the renewal period.

**Extraordinary termination**
> Look for the conditions for extraordinary or immediate termination. Extract the grounds (e.g. "in the event of a material breach") and the periods to be observed.

## Payment and finance

**Payment terms**
> Extract payment terms such as the payment deadline (e.g. "14 days net"), early-payment discount rules and default interest. Consider both explicit amounts and percentages.

**Recurring amounts**
> Find recurring payments (monthly, quarterly, annually). Extract the amount and the frequency. If price adjustment clauses exist, note them briefly.

**Contractual penalty**
> Look for contractual penalty clauses. Extract the amount (absolute or percentage) and the trigger.

## Data protection and compliance

**DPA / data processing agreement**
> Check whether a data processing agreement (DPA) is part of, or an annex to, the contract. If so, extract the reference or annex designation.

**Confidentiality / NDA**
> Look for confidentiality clauses. Extract the duration of the confidentiality obligation (e.g. "5 years after the end of the contract") and the scope (e.g. "all confidential information").

**Governing law and jurisdiction**
> Find clauses on applicable law and place of jurisdiction. Extract the country or legal system and the location of the court.

## Instruction: filters and special instructions

Below the prompt field you'll find the expandable section **Optional: Filters and special instructions**. This is where you define **special rules for this one field** — how the AI should handle exceptions, filters or particular formatting. The format itself (date, number, text) you choose via the **field type**, not via the instruction.

**Important:** the **prompt** above tells the AI **what** to extract. The **instruction** here tells it **how to handle special cases**. With no special case, simply leave the instruction empty — the AI then answers your question directly.

Examples you can take over as they are:

**Handle the empty case**
> Leave the field empty if the date is before 2017.

**Normalise to the start of the month**
> If the contract does not start on the first, still return the 1st of the month.

**Exclude a particular counterparty**
> Excluded: "XY AG". Leave the field empty for this counterparty.

**Extract only a particular case**
> If gross is stated, ignore it. Return only the net amount.

**Resolve multiple hits**
> If several parties are named, return the first — not the renewal clause.

**Standardise to one unit**
> Always output in months, even if the contract states weeks or days.

**Apply only to certain categories**
> Only extract if the contract category is "Lease". Otherwise leave the field empty.

## Common questions

### How do I adapt the examples to my contracts?

Read typical contract texts from your category and add the synonyms that actually occur in your contract style. For example: if you work a lot with German templates, add "Vertragsbeginn" as an additional search term in the prompt for the start date.

### Does the AI work with German contracts?

Yes, ContractHero supports both English and German contract texts. The prompt may be mixed ("Look for commencement date or Vertragsbeginn").

### What if the AI returns several hits?

Write into the **instruction** (not the prompt) **which** hit is the right one — e.g. "if several dates are named, extract the earliest" or "only the first hit, not the renewal clause". The prompt stays your question; the instruction governs the special case.

### What about complex fields such as "delivery dates"?

For multiple values, create a **multi-line text field** or a **list field**. In the prompt, state: "Extract all delivery dates named as a list, each with date and description."

### When should I use the instruction — and when not?

Use the instruction **only for special cases**: exceptions, filters, formatting rules, exclusions. For simple cases ("give me the start date") the prompt alone is enough — the instruction stays empty. Rule of thumb: if you want to write "If …", "Only …", "Always in …" or "Excluded …", it belongs in the instruction. Everything else goes in the prompt.

## Good to know

* **Read the strategy first.** Before you set up all your fields, the strategy article with its criteria is worth reading (see Related articles) — it saves iterations.
* **Testing is mandatory.** Check every prompt on 5–10 existing contracts with **Test in a contract** before putting it live. What sounds general in an example prompt may need different words in your contract style.
* **List synonyms rather than assume them.** "Start date, commencement date, effective from" — three words count for more than one perfect noun.
* **Keep prompt and instruction cleanly separated.** What you want to know → prompt. How the AI handles special cases → instruction. Mixing the two makes prompts confusing and harder to debug.
* **Improve prompt overwrites.** If you run **Improve prompt** on a template from this page, your wording is replaced in place — and a rule may be added to the instruction box. Check both before saving.
* **Onboarding support.** For a complex setup we'll build the prompts together with you — just get in touch.

## Related articles

* [How to write a prompt in ContractHero](https://support.contracthero.com/en-us/article/how-to-write-a-prompt-in-contracthero-yssq3c/)
* [How our AI reads contracts: prompt, instruction and the path to a field value](https://support.contracthero.com/en-us/article/how-our-ai-reads-contracts-prompt-instruction-and-the-path-to-a-field-value-1oswbqd/)
* [Optimizing AI Prompts — Get Better Results from Contract Analysis](https://support.contracthero.com/en-us/article/optimizing-ai-prompts-get-better-results-from-contract-analysis-17apnop/)
* [What is the Contract Field Builder?](https://support.contracthero.com/en-us/article/what-is-the-contract-field-builder-10156c/)