Agency Law - Agent Law

The law of agency is an area of commercial law dealing with a contractual or quasi-contractual, or non-contractual set of relationships when an agent is authorized to act on behalf of another (called the Principal) to create a legal relationship with a Third Party. Succinctly, it may be referred to as the relationship between a principal and an agent whereby the principal, expressly or impliedly, authorizes the agent to work under his control and on his behalf.

The regulations in this part apply to all Federal executive branch departments and agencies and their officers and employees.

For purposes of this section - the term ''agency'' means any agency, as defined in section 552(e) [1] of this title, headed by a collegial body composed of two or more individual members, a majority of whom are appointed to such position by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate, and any subdivision thereof authorized to act on behalf of the agency.

An agent who is acting without any form of payment must show the same standard of care as if he/she was dealing with their own affairs. That is, the agent must exercise reasonable care and skill in the matter. If the agent is being paid then the standard of diligence expected is even higher.

The Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) was enacted in 1938. FARA is a disclosure statute that requires persons acting as agents of foreign principals in a political or quasi-political capacity to make periodic public disclosure of their relationship with the foreign principal, as well as activities, receipts and disbursements in support of those activities. Disclosure of the required information facilitates evaluation by the government and the American people of the statements and activities of such persons in light of their function as foreign agents. The FARA Registration Unit of the Counterespionage Section (CES) in the National Security Division (NSD) is responsible for the administration and enforcement of the Act.

Under the law of agency, if a person is injured in a traffic accident with a delivery truck, the truck driver's employer may be liable to the injured person even if the employer was not directly responsible for the accident. That is because the employer and the driver are in a relationship known as principal-agent, in which the driver, as the agent, is authorized to act on behalf of the employer, who is the principal.

When construing and enforcing the provisions of this chapter, the act, omission, or failure of any agent, officer, or other person acting for or employed by any packer, any swine contractor, and any live poultry dealer, stockyard owner, market agency, or dealer, within the scope of his employment or office, shall in every case also be deemed the act, omission, or failure of such packer, any swine contractor, and any live poultry dealer, stockyard owner, market agency, or dealer, as well as that of such agent, officer, or other person.

The catalyst for the Uniform Power of Attorney Act (the “Act”) was a national review of state power of attorney legislation. The review revealed growing divergence among states’ statutory treatment of powers of attorney. The original Uniform Durable Power of Attorney Act (“Original Act”), last amended in 1987, was at one time followed by all but a few jurisdictions. Despite initial uniformity, the review found that a majority of states had enacted non-uniform provisions to deal with specific matters upon which the Original Act is silent. The topics about which there was increasing divergence included: 1) the authority of multiple agents; 2) the authority of a later-appointed fiduciary or guardian; 3) the impact of dissolution or annulment of the principal’s marriage to the agent; 4) activation of contingent powers; 5) the authority to make gifts; and 6) standards for agent conduct and liability.

There are many means and methods of doing business abroad. Most people who do business abroad or who are considering expanding into the international arena are familiar with the terms "agent", "distributor" and "joint venture". Many business people, however, may not realize that the meanings of these terms vary from country to country and their use in international business usually have distinct legal consequences. Therefore, it is essential for those who do business abroad to have a general understanding of the differences in the relationships that these terms describe. It is even more important, however, to investigate and understand the precise legal consequences of a particular type of business relationship in a given jurisdiction before entering into any agreements, verbal or written.

The Commercial Law League of America is a respected organization of attorneys and other experts in credit and finance actively engaged in the field of commercial law, bankruptcy and insolvency. Since 1895, The CLLA has been associated with the representation of creditor interests, while at the same time seeking fair, equitable and efficient administration of bankruptcy cases for all parties in interest.

The Office of Information Policy (OIP) is responsible for encouraging agency compliance with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). OIP develops and provides guidance to agencies on questions relating to application of the FOIA. It publishes the Department of Justice Freedom of Information Act Guide, which is a comprehensive treatise addressing all aspects of the FOIA, as well as FOIA Post, which is an online newsletter addressing FOIA issues of current interest. OIP regularly conducts a variety of training programs for FOIA personnel across the government including specialized agency programs.

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