Working With Counsel

Short answer: An agent finds and pitches deals; a lawyer reviews and negotiates the terms. For any meaningful deal — generally $5,000 and up, or anything with exclusivity, equity, or multi-year obligations — you want both.

Agents and attorneys play different roles and are paid differently. Agents are paid as a percentage of deal value, which aligns them with closing and against walking away. Attorneys are paid for the work performed — typically a fixed fee per contract — which aligns them with surfacing risk regardless of whether the deal closes.

Agents are also not bound by the same professional obligations: an attorney has fiduciary, confidentiality, and conflict-of-interest duties under bar rules. For routine brand deals under a few thousand dollars, an experienced agent alone is often enough. For equity, exclusivity, multi-year terms, multi-state appearances, or anything involving meaningful liability, the lawyer is not optional.