Commercial negotiations can reach a point where everyone expects the final contract to follow, but work, payments or preliminary commitments need to begin first; this is where a Letter of Intent needs particularly careful drafting. Under English contract law, the label placed at the top of the document does not by itself determine whether legal…
Commercial negotiations often move faster than the final contract, which is why a Memorandum of Understanding is commonly prepared while the finer details are still being discussed. Problems usually arise not because the document exists, but because it fails to say clearly whether any obligations are intended to take effect, despite English contract law and…
Many searches for a Partnership Agreement begin after a disagreement about profits or decision-making rather than at the start of a new business. In England, where partners trade without clear written terms, the default rules in the Partnership Act 1890 can apply in ways that bear little resemblance to what the individuals believed they had…