I never worked through an agency. But when I was freelancing, yes. I refused to sign a bunch. For others I found the only way for people to listen was to hav

I never worked through an agency. But when I was freelancing, yes. I refused to sign a bunch. For others I found the only way for people to listen was to have a lawyer involved. Once my lawyer and their lawyer got to the point they talked directly, contract modifications and negotiation proceeded at a brisk pace. But many companies were offended I didn't just blindly sign the contract. Even when they clearly contained clauses that were problematic. I was also routinely handed contracts with clauses that would have forced me to violate other contracts if I signed both. For instance, one contract would require me to disclose anyone else I worked with over a 24 month period while another contract would prevent me from disclosing anything about an engagement. (I usually signed neither.) Thankfully my main client's contract was eminently sensible, so I mostly worked with one amazing group of engineers for awhile. Eventually some of the annoyances of freelancing made me come around to exploring a full time position. So I am in one of those now and enjoy it actually quite a bit.