Agent/agency agreement

An agent is an independent person or legal entity which acts on behalf of another (the ‘principal’). In international transactions, generally refers to a sales representative who prospects on behalf of a foreign principal, earning commission on sales eventually concluded between the principal and the ultimate client (see also ‘Foreign sales agent’). To be distinguished from sales through employees and subsidiaries - who are not independent, or through distributorship relations, which involve the distributor’s buying and re-selling in their own name. Sales agents should also be distinguished from buying or purchasing agents, as the respective rights and obligations are quite different.