Wine distribution agreements come in all shapes and sizes and sometimes, to the horror of us lawyers, parties enter into distribution agreements without a written contract at all.

While in some circumstances foregoing a written agreement may be to the advantage of one of the parties but in most cases, entering into a written distribution agreement is advisable and provides both parties with a road map to their obligations and rights in the relationship.

Distribution agreements will vary greatly depending on the laws of the territory in which the distribution is occurring, and of course depending on whether the state in question is a franchise state, but in any agreement, the following five key points should be covered:

5 key points you must cover in your wine distribution agreements