Model Membership Agreement

*Last Revised: 8/19/2016

I. Membership Agreements

Membership agreements provide the structure and framework for the terms and conditions of membership and an exchange’s trading rules and regulations. This is the foundational business agreement that a barter firm uses.

IRTA has developed a Model Membership Agreement contract template designed for retail trade exchanges to use with their members to establish the exchange’s operating rules and regulations.

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The Model Membership Agreement covers the major components of the membership relationship in reasonable detail and was drafted to be easily readable and understood. Please note that every trade exchange operates a bit differently and state law and individual situations and factors will often dictate different terms and requirements.

This sample agreement template has been developed to easily permit an exchange working with its company legal counsel to tailor the sample contract form to meet its specific needs and circumstances.

II. Use of Electronic Form Membership Terms and Conditions

Internet posting of a trade exchange’s trading terms and conditions as well as any supplementary rules and regulations provides significant advantages of easier accessibility, use and updating to relying solely on paper membership documents.

Digital membership agreement terms and conditions can be implemented by:

  1. Using a short form signed paper membership application which incorporates by reference the detailed trading rules and regulations found on the exchange’s website (e.g. “by my signature below, I certify that I have read and agree to the terms and conditions posted at http://www.tradeexchange.com/rules&regulations and agree that such terms and conditions are incorporated by reference into this application/agreement”).
  2. Using an all electronic digital clickwrap agreement where the applicant evidences their affirmative assent to the trading rules and regulations by clicking on an “Agree” button after they have been offered the ability to read the detailed terms and conditions online.

Many retail trade exchanges use both digital and paper forms of membership terms and conditions before moving solely to electronic posting of their trading rules and regulations.