Liability cap · Design
Liability cap in design: what is normal
A designer's liability should be capped at the fees paid; uncapped liability on a small project is the real red flag.
Typical range
Liability capped at the total fees paid under the contract (sometimes a small multiple), with indirect and consequential damages excluded.
Off-market
No liability cap at all, combined with a broad indemnity, so a four-figure design project carries open-ended exposure if a third party raises an IP or damages claim.
One-line fix
"Each party's total liability is capped at the fees paid under this agreement. Neither party is liable for indirect or consequential damages."
What we see
The liability cap is the clause that decides how bad the worst case can get. Without one, a designer on a small project can, on paper, be exposed to damages many times larger than the fee, especially when paired with a broad indemnity that makes them cover the client's losses and legal costs.
The healthy default is a cap at the fees paid under the contract, with indirect and consequential damages (lost profits, downstream losses) excluded. That keeps the risk proportional to the deal: a $3,000 project should not carry six-figure exposure over a disputed asset or a claimed infringement.
Uncapped liability is rarely a deliberate demand; it is usually just the absence of a cap in a template. Adding one sentence capping liability at fees and excluding consequential damages is standard, reasonable, and almost never contested once raised. Its absence is the thing to catch.
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