Shareholder Agreement Comparison Notes

Choosing the right Shareholder Agreement is crucial for protecting your business and defining how shareholders work together. To make selection easy, Simply-Docs provides these Shareholder Agreement Comparison Notes providing a clear, side-by-side matrix showing the key provisions included in each version of our solicitor-drafted templates.

The comparison helps you quickly see which agreement best fits your company’s ownership structure, investor balance, and management style,  whether you are issuing new shares or simply formalising existing shareholder relationships.

How the Comparison Notes Help

The Comparison Notes summarise and compare all major shareholder agreements available in the Shareholder Agreements Templates, including:

• Basic Shareholder Agreements - with and without new share issue
• Standard Shareholder Agreements - with and without new share issue
• Long-Form Shareholder Agreements - majority or minority shareholder bias
• Good Leaver/Bad Leaver Agreements

Each version is assessed against a checklist of key legal and commercial provisions so you can choose the most appropriate document for your circumstances.

What the Comparison Matrix Covers

The matrix identifies whether each template:

• Regulates finances, borrowing, and future investment
• Controls share issue, transfer, and valuation with pre-emption rights
• Defines shareholder meetings, voting, and quorum rules
• Sets reserved matters requiring unanimous consent
• Establishes a dividend policy
• Provides confidentiality and non-competition protections
• Includes management and board provisions (appointments, chairman, meetings)
• Contains Good Leaver/Bad Leaver, Drag-Along, and Tag-Along clauses
• Grants minority or majority shareholders specific rights or director appointments
• Covers completion matters for new share issues (subscriptions, loans, resolutions)

Each box in the matrix shows whether the clause is included, optional, or omitted, making it easy to compare scope and complexity at a glance.

Benefits of Using the Comparison Notes

• Clarity in Selection: Quickly identify which shareholder agreement meets your needs without reading each in full. Ideal for SMEs, start-ups, or investors comparing legal coverage.
• Time-Saving and Practical: The side-by-side format lets you spot differences in content and bias (majority vs minority) instantly, saving hours of manual review.
• Legal Confidence: Based on solicitor-drafted templates, the matrix helps ensure that your chosen document includes the protections appropriate for your company’s situation.

For additional help download the Shareholders’ Agreement Notes  which provides guidance on key clauses and the Shareholders’ Agreement Checklist  prepare for drafting the template(s).

Simply-Docs also provides a range of Shareholder Agreement Optional Clauses such as deadlock provision and a shareholder employee dismissal clause.

Together, these tools help to ensure your chosen template is legally comprehensive and tailored to your structure.

Shareholder Agreement Comparison Notes is part of Corporate. Just £38.50 + VAT provides unlimited downloads from Corporate for 1 year.