Put your distribution model into a workable agreement

It helps to think about this in terms of what the service includes and what sits outside the fixed-fee. The commercial deal may already be understood at a high level, but that usually does not answer the harder questions about exclusivity, channel conflict, minimum performance expectations, customer ownership, returns, payment timing, use of branding or what happens when the relationship ends. A written agreement turns those moving parts into a clearer legal framework. That matters especially where the factual working arrangement can matter as much as the contract wording.

The short answer is that the scope matters more than the label. A distribution services agreement often covers the products or services involved, territory, exclusivity or non-exclusivity, ordering process, pricing, payment timing, delivery or fulfilment responsibilities, marketing permissions, intellectual property use, confidentiality, information handling, liability allocation, termination rights and post-termination obligations. Depending on the model, it may also address customer support, stock holding, service levels, online marketplace restrictions or whether the distributor can appoint sub-distributors. Those points usually need to reflect how the relationship works day to day, not just how it is described commercially.

The best approach depends on how the parties work together, what has already been agreed and where the main risks sit. We usually need to know whether the distributor is exclusive, what territory is involved, who controls pricing and promotions, whether stock is purchased upfront or supplied on another basis, how orders are placed, who deals with end customers, and whether the arrangement includes after-sales support or marketing obligations. If personal or customer information is shared between the parties, that also affects the drafting because the legal position depends on the way the business handles information in practice.

A template may help with structure, but it often misses the commercial pressure points that matter in a live distribution relationship. For example, a generic form may not deal properly with channel restrictions, online sales, exclusivity carve-outs, minimum performance expectations, customer data access, brand control or exit arrangements for unsold stock and outstanding orders. That is why many businesses ask for a review even when they already have a draft. This service Your lawyer will explain the practical position and your options in plain English. if the relationship later breaks down.

It can address legal issues that belong in the agreement, but not every operational issue sits inside the fixed-fee. For example, the document can include clauses about confidentiality, information sharing, customer data handling, responsibilities between the parties and certain compliance-related obligations. But the right drafting and advice depend on For Distribution Services Agreement, the wording should follow your real information flows. For Distribution Services Agreement, collection points and disclosure practices shape the drafting. information, and separate advice may be needed if your arrangements raise wider privacy, employment or operational questions. The work can make the legal position clearer and reduce avoidable gaps, though it is not a substitute for ongoing monitoring or implementation work.

Just submit an enquiry via this page or click the 'get started' button on our website to submit an enquiry. After you've submitted an enquiry, one of our legal consultants will review your enquiry within 1 business day and get in touch to get a better idea of exactly what you are looking for.

Then your legal consultant will send through an email with a bit more information about the services you need, along with a fixed fee quote setting out costs, scope of the service and timing. Have a read through it, and if you're happy with the scope, you can accept and sign our engagement letter online - easy!

Once you've formally accepted, we'll connect you with a specialist lawyer and they will work with you to complete your project. They will contact you by email or phone if they need to get in touch.

Sprintlaw works on fixed-fee pricing wherever possible, so you can review the scope and cost before you decide whether to proceed. For the Distribution Services Agreement service, pricing starts from $900.00.

After you enquire, a legal consultant will confirm what is included, the expected timing and whether any extra work is needed before you engage us.

We operate completely online, which means we can help you wherever you are in New Zealand. We have office spaces in Sydney, and in Melbourne, but our use of technology allows our team members to work remotely from around the world. Our legal team are mostly based in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. We also have a London office for Sprintlaw UK.

Our legal team is made up of experienced lawyers, who are specialists in various areas of law and hold an Australian legal practising certificate. None of our Sprintlaw lawyers are New Zealand qualified lawyers and they do not currently hold a New Zealand practising certificate.

They provide legal services working remotely from Australia via our 'legal consultancy' model, through which (under section 6 and section 35 of the New Zealand Lawyers and Conveyancers Act 2006) our Australian legal team are permitted to provide legal services to New Zealand businesses provided they do not provide services in certain 'reserved' areas of law. You can read our FAQ page to learn a bit more about our 'legal consultancy' model.

Given the strong similarities between Australian and New Zealand law, and the areas of law in which we practice (being small business and startup law), we do not view the fact that our lawyers have not qualified in New Zealand as having any substantive impact on the quality of our service. We are committed to ensuring that we provide high quality, affordable legal services to all our New Zealand clients.

Our legal team have all trained at leading firms, but have left the traditional corporate law world to join us on our mission to create a new and better way of delivering legal services. They have specialist expertise in technology law, intellectual property law, contract drafting and review, corporate law and commercial law.