What is a private business agreement?
A private business agreement records the terms of a private working relationship.
It should explain what the men and women involved are doing together, what value is being exchanged, what compensation is involved, what each side is responsible for, and how the relationship will be carried on.
It is not defined by a special title. The substance is more important than the heading.
The agreement should match the actual work
It should not invent membership if no membership exists. It should not describe a public platform relationship as though the platform were absent. It should not claim a structure has a function it does not perform.
The agreement follows the facts.
Private agreement does not mean informal
Private can be simple without being vague.
A direct relationship can still benefit from clear terms around scope, compensation, timing, responsibilities, changes, acceptance, and ending.
Capacity should be clear
A man or woman may be acting directly, or using a title, entity, membership association, or another structure for a defined function.
The agreement should make that capacity understandable.
Compensation belongs inside the relationship
The bank account or payment processor shows where money moved. It does not, by itself, explain what the payment was for.
That explanation comes from the relationship, agreement, performance, and records.
A private agreement cannot erase another agreement
If a separate agreement is already in force, the private agreement does not simply replace it by assertion.
Existing relationships have to be addressed on their own terms.
Read next: Can Private Wording Change an Existing Relationship?
Private Agreement Preparation helps express one settled arrangement clearly in writing. You can read about its scope, and begin, on the Private Agreements page.
This article supports the wider explanation of the category: What is private business?