If a commercial agency contract is terminated without notice, the commercial agent faces financial losses. Therefore, the commercial agent should respond and utilize his legal options.
Ordinary termination of a commercial agency contract is possible for both parties at any time without giving reasons, provided the notice periods are observed. This is different in the case of termination without notice. It can only be carried out for a serious reason, explains the economic law firm MTR Legal.
Through the termination without notice, the commercial agent loses commissions that he could have earned at least until the end of the notice period. He can oppose this and file a declaratory action with the aim of converting the termination without notice into a termination with notice, so that the contractual relationship only ends at the end of the regular notice period. For the commission losses suffered by the commercial agent as a result of the termination without notice, he may also be entitled to claims for damages. If the court decides that there was no serious reason for the termination of the contractual relationship, the commercial agent is entitled to commission claims and a compensation claim.
The compensation claim of the commercial agent is a frequent point of contention between the parties upon the termination of a commercial agency contract. A compensation claim may exist for business relationships that the commercial agent established with new customers and also for the expansion of business relationships with existing customers. The company gains an advantage as soon as it has the opportunity to continue using these business relationships. Whether this advantage actually materializes is not relevant for the compensation claim of the commercial agent.
The compensation claim is not automatically voided by the termination without notice. This is only the case if the termination is based on culpable behavior by the commercial agent. The burden of proof lies with the company.
The amount of the compensation claim is not regulated by law; the legislator has only set an upper limit. In practice, commissions from transactions with new customers or the expansion of business relationships in the last 12 months of activity are often used as a basis and then projected over a period of three to five years.
Experienced attorneys specializing in commercial agency law can provide advice.
