The partners ’agreement is a private document that complements the normative and statutory provisions, which the partners adopt to regulate certain situations that, due to their characteristics, cannot be included in the statutes, or which the parties prefer to keep private.
The articles of association of a company contain the rules of organization and operation that are reflected in the articles of association, although with the limit of what is provided in the legal norms with imperative character, although the articles of association are applied with preference to the law. , which is supplementary to him.
The partners' agreement is a private document that complements the normative and statutory provisions, which the partners adopt to regulate certain situations that, due to their characteristics, cannot be included in the statutes, or which the parties prefer to keep private, which are called of parasocial pacts, that are in any case voluntary.
The partners can agree on this type of agreement at the time the company is set up, being the recommended one, or at a later time when there is a better definition of the project to be developed and the challenges they present.
These agreements, like any other contract, only take effect between the parties that grant them (article 1257 CC), which are the signatory partners and not the company, without prejudice to the claims that proceed between the partners in the internal order for the breach of contract in accordance with the corporate agreements adopted.
Through the partners' agreement, they aim to avoid conflicts and determine the solution to possible problems that may arise between them and / or against third parties, either to ensure the viability of the project, or in relation to the rights and obligations of the partners.
Partner agreements do not respond to a single model, but their effectiveness lies precisely in their adaptation to the specific reality that has a vocation to regulate, providing flexibility and certainty to relationships, although it is necessary to group them into three main categories:
Relationship agreements: they regulate the relations of the partners directly, without intermediation of the company, usually with respect to the participation in the share capital and its possible variations: rights of preferential acquisition, rights of joint sale, obligations of not increasing the participation in the capital above certain percentages, obligations to transfer or acquire the shares under certain conditions, clauses to cover losses by partners or to distribute dividends.
- Accords d'attribution: visant à procurer certains avantages à l'entreprise, avec l'obligation corrélative des partenaires envers l'entreprise, dans le sens de fournir un financement à l'entreprise ou d'effectuer des travaux au profit de l'entreprise, ainsi que l'exigibilité de certaines actions telles que la non-concurrence avec l'entreprise ou l'obligation de rester, qui peuvent être qualifiées dans les statuts d'avantages accessoires pour leur meilleure protection. dirigits a procurar determinats avantatges a la societat, amb la correlativa obligació dels socis enfront de la societat, en el sentit de facilitar finançament a la societat o fer treballs en benefici de la societat, així com l’exigibilitat de determinades actuacions com no competir amb la societat o obligació de permanència, que poden ser referides en els estatuts com a prestacions accessòries per a la seva millor protecció.
- Organizational agreements:seek to regulate the organization and operation of society in more detail or differently than in the articles of association, generally in the field of decision-making, and in this sense the partners who are obliged to vote in a certain sense, the voting union, in which a concerted action is established to gain control of the company, or the form of its organization, administration and management is established.
Here are some examples:
Control clauses: regulate the quorums and procedures for decision-making.
Right of veto:concedeix la facultat a un soci, normalment inversor, per a bloquejar o impedir alguna decisió, normalment en relació amb decisions a l’entorn d’ampliacions de capital, endeutament, determinades contractacions i/o acomiadaments, remuneracions de personal (executius), tipus d’òrgan d’administració i la seva composició.
Drag along:The right of the majority shareholder to oblige the minority shareholders to sell in the event of receiving a purchase offer from all or most of the company.
Tag along right:the right of the minority shareholders to sell under the same conditions as the majority shareholder in the event that the latter sells its shares to a third party.
Preferential settlement in case of success:before a sale or liquidation of the project, the priority between the partners or third parties in the distribution of the price is determined.
To ensure the effectiveness of the partners' agreement, we recommend using a double mechanism: its statutory regulation as an ancillary benefit, with the provision that non-compliance entails the exclusion of the company; as well as the signing of a contract between the partners to dispose of shares outside the corporate sphere against the defaulting partner.
Consulta’ns sobre qualsevol dubte que et plantegis per a incorporar a la teva societat o projecte un pacte de socis.
Manel Casal
Lawyer
+ 376 70 70 10
EN 
CA 
FR 
ES