A Founders’ Agreement is a contract that a company’s founders enter into that governs their business relationships. The Agreement lays out the rights, responsibilities, liabilities, and obligations of each founder. Generally speaking, it regulates matters that may not be covered by the company’s operating agreement.

Ultimately, Founders’ Agreements are designed to protect each founder’s interests and memorialize that all founders are in agreement about the venture’s basic structure and how the founders will work together to move their business forward. Forging an agreement between all founders helps mitigate the risk of a lawsuit over who owns the business. There is a wide range of provisions that could be addressed in a Founders’ Agreement.

The template below includes provisions about:

*Transfer of ownership;

*Ownership structure;

*Confidentiality;

*Decision-making and dispute resolution;

*Representations and warranties; and

*Choice of legal authority... and more!

Also known as a consultant or freelancer, an independent contractor is a business or individual that is typically self-employed and provides a product or service for a customer in exchange for monetary compensation. This contract will stipulate the services needing rendering, the time requirements around them, and the compensation expected in exchange.

This Independent Contractor Agreement is a written contract that spells out the terms of the working arrangement between a contractor and client, including:

• A description of the services provided
• Terms and length of the project or service
• Payment details (including deposits, retainers, and other billing details)
• Confidentiality, non-solicitation, and dispute resolution clauses.

This should not be used as a mechanism to avoid providing de facto employees with rights which they are deserved of under law. Because this mechanism has been abused within South Africa, regulatory authorities are very strict about protecting the employee. Here is a general differentiation:

Independent Contractor

• May have more than one customer
• Sends invoices to his or her customers
• Uses their own tools or equipment
• Has a personal investment in contracting business and may incur profit and loss as a result
• Customers have little overview of the work or services being provided
• Has signed an Independent Contractor Agreement
• Works on a fixed-term basis
• May hire employees or subcontractors to help complete services
• Does not receive employment benefits from clients or customers

Employee

• Employer controls how the employee's work is carried out, and when and where the employee works
• Employer controls the employee's wages
• May receive employment benefits, such as medical, pension, vacation, or sick pay
• Has signed an Employment Contract
• May undergo employment reviews
• Receives in-house training
• Employer creates his or her job description

A Partnership Agreement is an agreement between you and your partner(s) that sets out the duties and obligations of the partners to each other and to the partnership. It establishes the rights and responsibilities of general partners, and the rules of a for-profit partnership. As a general rule of thumbs, once operations are more established, a shareholder agreement will better dictate the terms of the relationship going forward.

A Non-Disclosure Agreement is a contract used to maintain privacy in agreements where sensitive information is exchanged between two parties but with information sensitive to one group.

A Non-Disclosure Agreement is a contract used to maintain privacy in agreements where sensitive information is exchanged by one party to another. This Mutual agreement aims to protect both parties within the agreement who have the potential to be sharing information to each other.