Commercial Agency Agreements

Commercial Agents and the Law is a practical approach to the modern law relating to commercial agency agreements, a complete guide to the workings of the relationship between commercial agents and their principal within its domestic and European context. This book is a complete guide to the workings of the relationship between commercial agents and their principal within its domestic and European context. The common law rules governing the relationship between principal and agent were pretty well established and well understood by English lawyers when, in 1993, the Commercial Agents (Council Directive) Regulations were enacted. The 1993 Regulations implement EC Directive 86/653 on self-employed commercial agents. The 1993 Regulations, like the EC Directives, are not, however, a complete code of rules governing the relationship, so they have to co-exist with the pre-existing common law rules. Both sets of principles therefore have to be applied.

Commercial Agency Agreements: Law and Practice, 4th edition looks at the standard commercial agency agreement where an agent is self-employed and paid a commission on sales he or she generates for the principal as it is those agents that fall within the Regulations. It addresses the drafting of such agreements as well as termination and compensation and includes examples of agency contracts and coverage of the majority of UK judgments.The fourth edition has been updated to include:New commercial agency cases which are analysed and implications of the judgments explained;Following the Jackson reforms and the new conditional fee and damages based agreements there have been major changes to the litigation regime in 2013 which have a significant impact on agents' claims for compensation;Best practice and guidance in light of case decisions on agency law and EU competition law changes.Chapter 1: Introduction and definitions; Chapter 2: Duties of the agent and principal - choosing and using and agent; Chapter 3: Competition law and agency agreements; Chapter 4: Commission and other payments; Chapter 5: Monitoring and terminating an agency agreement; Chapter 6: Compensation, indemnities and litigation; Chapter 7: Valuations of Commercial Agents; Chapter 8: Foreign agency arrangements; Appendix 1: UK commercial agency laws and materials; Appendix 2: European Community materials; Appendix 3: Transcript of judgments; Appendix 4: Sample agency agreements.

Examines the standard commercial agency agreement where an agent is self-employed and paid a commission on sales he or she generates for the principal as it is those agents that fall within the Regulations. It addresses the drafting of such agreements as well as termination and compensation and includes examples of agency contracts and coverage of the majority of UK judgments. The fifth edition has been updated to include: Ramsay v Typhoo Tea 2016 Software Incubator 2016 and application of the agency regulations to agency contracts Monk v Largo 2016 Invicta v International Brands 2013 Medsted Associates Ltd v Canaccord Genuity Wealth (International) Ltd (2119 Court of Appeal) relating to secret commissions and fiduciary duties of agents. W Nagel (a Firm) v Pluczenik Diamond Company NV 2018 Court of Appeal - about "commodity exchanges" and the agency regulations Agro Foreign Trade & Agency Ltd v Petersime NV (2017 CJEU) Choice of law issues - Belgium and Turkey. One Money Mail Ltd. v (1) Ria Financial Services (2) Sebastian Wasilewski (Court of Appeal) - 2015 post termination restrictions on agents Brand Studio Ltd. v St. John Knits, Inc 2015 ( indemnity and compensation clauses) Bailey v Angove's Pty Limited [2016] Authority of agents to recover debts (Supreme Court decision)

In this enriched new edition of a proven, indispensable practical guide to the drafting and negotiating of agency, distribution, and franchising agreements, the contributors have all updated their country reports with recent cases and commentary and an abundance of new sample clauses and other practical features. In addition, four major jurisdictions – Brazil, England, Japan, and the United States – have been added, bringing the total number of country reports to nineteen. The first edition is well known among commercial law practitioners as the preeminent hands-on guide to drafting effective distribution agreements tailored specifically to countries in which foreign direct investment is a major component of the economy. Local experts provide detailed information on specific applicable law, major current case law, drafting guidance with specific clauses, and official English versions of relevant primary material. Case law summaries clearly expose the issues from which disputes arise, – and the financial consequences of those disputes – and the practical discussion includes sample clauses designed to anticipate those issues and avoid the pitfalls to which they often lead. The enormous day-to-day usefulness of this book will be self-evident to corporate counsel and other lawyers negotiating international commercial distribution agreements. Legal scholars as well will welcome the book’s comparative study of applicable law on commercial contracts in a wide variety of national jurisdictions.

The rules presented in this volume of "Principles of European Law" deal with commercial agency, franchise and distribution contracts, and with other contracts where one party uses the other party's skill and efforts to bring its products to the market. Although these Principles are not directly applicable to other long-term (commercial) contracts, some of the Articles may be applied to such contracts by way of analogy where appropriate. The economic function of all three contracts is that they are instrumental in bringing products to the market. They are so-called vertical agreements, as they are agreements between economic actors on different levels in the production and distribution chain. Obviously, the economic importance of these contracts is enormous since they form the connection between producers and retailers who sell the products to consumers and other final users. There are only very few economic sectors where producers regularly sell their products directly to final consumer users. Goodwill compensation after the ending of a distribution contract, the moment at which the agent's commission is due, the franchisor's obligation to maintain the good reputation of the network are but a few examples of issues where specific rules are needed in order to give legal practice some guidance and to provide practitioners with a reasonable degree of legal certainty.

This new Second Edition of the acclaimed & successful work, originally produced by the EEC Law Commission of the Association internationale des jeunes avocats (A.I.J.A.), has now been thoroughly revised, updated, & also expanded to include EFTA countries. An assessment of EEC (and in turn the situation pertaining to EFTA states) law & jurisprudence as it affects agency, distribution & franchising agreements is made at the outset. There then follows a detailed comparative analysis of the different national legal regimes (country by country) governing such arrangements within the EC & EFTA states, & an explanation of the extent to which EC law & practice is or may already be applicable to them. The systematic & thorough research presented in this text is structured to facilitate cross reference & comparison, & supplemented by case law & legislative references. The authors are practitioners of law who are frequently involved in the field of commercial agency & distribution agreements in the twelve member states, & members of the Association internationale des jeunes avocats (A.I.J.A.).

The rules presented in this volume of "Principles of European Law" deal with commercial agency, franchise and distribution contracts, and with other contracts where one party uses the other party's skill and efforts to bring its products to the market. Although these Principles are not directly applicable to other long-term (commercial) contracts, some of the Articles may be applied to such contracts by way of analogy where appropriate. The economic function of all three contracts is that they are instrumental in bringing products to the market. They are so-called vertical agreements, as they are agreements between economic actors on different levels in the production and distribution chain. Obviously, the economic importance of these contracts is enormous since they form the connection between producers and retailers who sell the products to consumers and other final users. There are only very few economic sectors where producers regularly sell their products directly to final consumer users. Goodwill compensation after the ending of a distribution contract, the moment at which the agent's commission is due, the franchisor's obligation to maintain the good reputation of the network are but a few examples of issues where specific rules are needed in order to give legal practice some guidance and to provide practitioners with a reasonable degree of legal certainty.