An
Agent in
Commercial Law is a person who is authorised to act on behalf of another (called the
Principal or
client) to create a legal relationship with a Third Party.
[1] Agency law deals with the tripartite relationship between
There are three broad classes of Agent
For these purposes, the Principal must give, or be deemed to give, the Agent authority to act.
Even if the Agent does act without authority, the Principal may ratify the transaction and accept liability on the transactions as negotiated. This may be express or implied from the Principal's behaviour, e.g. if the Agent has purported to act in a number of situations and the Principal has knowingly acquiesced, the failure to notify all concerned of the Agent's lack of authority is an implied ratification to those transactions and an implied grant of authority for future transactions of a similar nature.