国际商法英文案例选编4, Agency Law.pptVIP

Chapter Four Agency Law Introduction The basic theory of the agency device is to enable a person, through the services of another, to broaden the scope of his activities and to receive the products of another’s efforts, paying such other for what he does but retaining for himself any net benefit resulting from the work performed . In the eyes of law, an agency is “a fiduciary relationship created by express or implied contract or by law, in which one party (the agent) may act on behalf of another party (the principal) and bind that other party by words or actions” . Section I The Agency Relationship 1. Defining the Agency Relationship An agency relationship comes into existence when one person agrees to act on behalf of and subject to the control of another one. Principle Agent It is an accepted principle of agency that the term “agent” includes both natural persons and corporations. 2. The elements of an Agency Relationship A) Consent: B) Control: In brief, it means that the agent must respond to the directions of the principal. it is the element of constant subjection to the will of the principal which differs the agent from other fiduciary and the agency agreement from other agreements. C) On behalf of : The acting party must be behaving “on behalf of” the principal in order to have the special powers and liabilities that come with the agency relationship. An actor is an agent of another only if it is agreed that he is to act primarily for the benefit of the other and not for himself. 3. The Dual Agency Rule The rule requires that an agent cannot act on behalf of the adverse party to a transaction in relation to the agency without the permission, express or implied, of the principal. If the two principals do not know the double employment, the transaction between them is voidable. Case Study Case 4-1-1: Yeiverton v. Lamm Case 4-1-2: Thayer v. Pacific ELec. Rwyl Section Two Internal Matters: Rights and Duties between Agent and Principal