Joining the end client directly

[Lance]

Has anyone successfully removed the restriction clause when signing a contract ? I think that will be the best thing to do in future contracts.

Don't waste your breath asking. Not unless the clauses are over-restrictive, but then they become unenforceable anyway.

[northernladuk]

Don't waste your breath asking. Not unless the clauses are over-restrictive, but then they become unenforceable anyway.

This.

[Hobosapien]

I tend not to worry too much about restriction clauses if they are 'the usual'. If anything is likely to change to make those clauses come into play it is either because the agency are causing issues so are on their way out with the client anyway, or the client is pushing for changes in which case there is motivation for the client to pick up any costs associated with making those change such as paying off the agency.

The scenario of client asking contractor to go back under a new contract and new agency (either immediately or some time in the future) means the old agency are out of the picture for some reason so the old restriction clause is void as far as I'm concerned. Never had any whiff of blowback yet.

[man]

Don't waste your breath asking. Not unless the clauses are over-restrictive, but then they become unenforceable anyway.

I have been successful on more than one occasion in watering down overly restrictive clauses (i.e. where the wording is vague enough to sound like it could restrict me from providing services to any and all of client or end client's customers - as technically this would prevent me trading with large swathes of the market in some instances) - generally down to something like 'clients and customers that the consulting company is introduced to throughout the delivery of the agreed services' (words to that effect anyway, I go to B&C for the exact wording - and I don't usually get the word 'introduced' in there successfully because the agent is usually well aware that I've technically been 'introduced' to a good many of the businesses before and so they tend to insist on a more restrictive word - no harm in trying though ).