The agreements known as NDAs – short for “non-disclosure agreements” – can play an integral role in the protection of confidential information.
Such information may encompass trade secrets, client information, business negotiations, and other sensitive data. The signing of an NDA can help ensure the parties involved do not share this kind of sensitive or confidential information with others.
NDAs are legally enforceable contracts. This means that in the event of data being shared in a manner that violates the agreement, the breaching party could be at risk of having legal action taken against it.
If, however, you are an entity in one part of the world seeking to conclude an NDA with a company in another territory – all under English legal jurisdiction – you might have been told by the other party that you need to appoint an outsourced process agent located in England.
What is the exact relevance of outsourced process agency services to NDAs?
A process agent isn’t strictly required for all situations in which an NDA might be signed. For example, it may not be necessary if the parties to an agreement are in the same legal jurisdiction.
In the event, however, of the parties being in different states or countries, it is probable that a process agent will need to be appointed. For instance, if a UK firm commits to an NDA with a company in France, it may require the latter party to agree to the appointment of an outsourced process agent located in England.
Such an arrangement would mean that if the French party breached the NDA, the UK firm could commence legal action by serving papers at the address of the breaching party’s English process agent.
This would save the logical headaches of trying to serve papers beyond the UK’s borders – thereby avoiding potential issues like language barriers and differing legal systems.
When an outsourced process agent located in England is appointed, it will accept service of notices, proceedings, or documents on behalf of its overseas client – in effect, acting as the foreign appointing party’s representative in the UK.
Make sure you select the right process agency for your NDA
If you are reading this as the prospective “appointing party” for a process agent – in other words, you have been informed by the other party that you will need to appoint a process agent in order for an agreement to be finalised – it is obviously vital to guard against any problems or hiccups.
Given that much of the whole point of putting in place a process agent is to simplify legal proceedings if they turn out to be needed at any point, it is advisable to make sure your chosen process agent’s location matches the governing law of the NDA.
It is crucial to be mindful, too, that a process agent being in place does not render an NDA bulletproof. An agreement that is poorly drafted – for example, due to being vaguely worded or lacking clear remedies – will not be “fixed” by the appointment of a process agent.
Then, there is the all-important matter of ensuring whatever process agent you select is a reputable one. We have previously written in detail here at London Registrars about some of the things you should expect from a good outsourced process agent located in England. Such “essentials” include competitive and reasonable fees, an efficient and responsive service, and high standards of communication and transparency.
To learn more about our own team and process agency service, to help determine whether London Registrars could be the right choice for your NDA, please contact us via phone or email. You are also welcome to download our latest process agency brochure.