Running a business means making decisions fast. You need legal advice that keeps up, gives you straight answers, and actually helps you move forward. We’re Darwin Gray, one of Wales’ leading commercial law firms, and we work with all types of businesses who want a solicitor they can pick up the phone to, not a faceless firm that passes them from pillar to post.
Get a free, no-obligation chat with our commercial team, call us on 02920 829 100 or use our Contact us form.
Excellent rating by Review Solicitors | Ranked in Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners.
Bad contracts cost money. Unclear terms cause disputes. And the wrong legal structure can limit your growth before you’ve even got started. Commercial law touches every part of your business, from the agreements you sign with suppliers and clients, to how you protect your ideas, manage your risks, and plan for the future.
Our commercial lawyers give you practical, clear advice that’s grounded in how businesses actually work. We don’t hide behind jargon or give you fifty caveats where one will do. We’ll tell you what the risks are, what your options are, and what we’d recommend, so you can make the call.
We work with owner-managed businesses, growing SMEs, and larger organisations across Wales and England. Whether you need a contract drafted, a deal reviewed, or ongoing commercial support as your business evolves, we’re here.
Not sure whether we’re the right fit? Give us a call for a free initial chat. No commitment, no pressure.
A contract that looks fine on the surface can hide significant risk. We draft, review, and negotiate all types of commercial agreements, business contracts and supply agreements, whether you’re agreeing terms with a new supplier, entering a long-term services agreement, or dealing with a client who’s presented you with their standard terms and expects you to sign. We’ll make sure your contracts protect your position, reflect what was actually agreed, and hold up if things go wrong.
Your terms and conditions are often the first line of defence when a dispute arises. If they’re out of date, unenforceable, or simply copied from somewhere else, they may not give you the protection you think. We draft bespoke terms for businesses and legal agreements of all sizes, covering sale of goods, supply of services, online businesses, and more. We’ll also advise on the terms your counterparties are asking you to accept.
View more on Terms and Conditions
Appointing an agent or distributor to sell your products or services is a significant commercial step. Get the agreement wrong and you could face unexpected liabilities if the relationship ends. We advise on the drafting and negotiation of agency and distribution agreements, including the specific obligations that apply under the Commercial Agents Regulations.
View more on Agency and Distribution Agreements
Working with another business on a shared project or long-term arrangement? We help you put the right legal structure in place from the start. That means clear terms on how decisions get made, how profits are shared, and what happens if one party wants to walk away. A good joint venture agreement prevents most disputes before they happen.
View more on Partnership and Joint Venture Agreements
Before you share sensitive information with a potential partner, investor, or acquirer, you need a confidentiality agreement that genuinely protects you. We draft and review NDAs quickly, and we’ll flag the clauses that look standard but carry real risk.
View more on NDAs and Confidentiality Agreements
The relationship between business owners rarely stays straightforward forever. A well-drafted shareholders’ or partnership agreement sets out what happens when things change: new investment, a dispute, a death, or one shareholder or partner wanting out. We help business owners get these agreements in place before they need them, and advise on existing ones when situations shift.
View more on Shareholder Agreements
Your brand, your product designs, your software, your processes. These are assets, and they need protecting. We advise on IP protection strategies including trade marks, copyright, and confidentiality, and we draft licensing agreements that let you commercialise your IP without giving it away.
View more on Intellectual Property
The legal obligations around data don’t stand still. We advise businesses on GDPR compliance, data processing agreements, privacy policies, and how to handle data subject requests or breaches. Getting this right matters for your customers’ trust and for staying on the right side of the ICO.
Even with the best contracts in place, disputes happen. When they do, you want a solicitor who knows your business and can provide strategic advice on your options, from a letter before action through to mediation, arbitration, or litigation if it comes to that. We work closely with our litigation team to make sure commercial disputes are handled efficiently and with your commercial interests front and centre.
View more on Commercial Litigation
Choosing the right commercial lawyers matters. You want someone who genuinely understands your business, responds when you need them, and gives you advice you can actually act on. That’s what we’re here for.
When you call, you speak to the solicitor handling your matter. You’ll have their direct number and email, and you’ll build a genuine working relationship with someone who knows your business. No gatekeepers, no voicemails that go nowhere.
We don’t work in silos. Our experienced commercial contracts solicitors share knowledge across departments, so if your matter touches employment law, property, or a dispute, you get joined-up advice without having to manage multiple teams. If your usual contact is unavailable, someone else can step in without missing a beat.
Businesses move fast. Decisions need to be made, deals need to close, and waiting a week for an email back isn’t good enough. Our devolved decision-making and flexible working hours mean you’ll hear from us quickly, particularly when it matters most.
We invest in getting to know our clients properly. Regular catch-ups, face-to-face meetings, practical updates on the legal changes that affect your business. We want to be the firm you think of first, not just when things go wrong.
You’ll always get the full picture from us. Clear options, clear risks, clear recommendations. We’re not in the business of hedging everything to protect ourselves. We give you honest advice you can make decisions with.
We’re the only commercial law firm with offices in both South and North Wales offering full Welsh language legal services at every level, from trainees right through to partners.
Regular updates, practical insights, and plain English explanations of the changes in the law that matter to your business. You’ll never be left wondering where things stand.
Excellent rating by Review Solicitors | Ranked in Legal 500 and Chambers & Partners.
We start with a conversation. You tell us about your business and what you need. We tell you how we can help, what it’s likely to cost, and what the process looks like. No commitment required, and no charge for that first call.
Good commercial advice depends on understanding the business behind it. Before we draft anything or advise on anything, we take the time to understand how you operate, what matters to you commercially, and where the risks in your sector tend to sit.
We’ll give you a clear view of your options, with the risks and benefits of each set out plainly. No endless caveats. No advice that leaves you more confused than when you started. Just practical, commercial guidance you can act on.
We’re not a one-and-done firm. As your business grows and changes, your legal needs will too. We’re set up to provide ongoing support, whether that’s a formal retainer arrangement or simply knowing they can pick up the phone when something comes up.
We’re straightforward about what things cost. Before we do any work, we’ll give you a clear view of likely fees and agree how we’ll charge. For some work we offer fixed fees; for more complex or ongoing matters we’ll agree a fee arrangement that works for your business.
There are no surprises at Darwin Gray. If something is going to cost more than we expected, we’ll tell you before we do the work, not after.
We have used Darwin Gray now for a number of commercial projects and have been seriously impressed. They do what they say they will and this is consistent across the firm, not just one or two main senior staff. Their customer service is second to none and they continually check in to ensure that you are happy with the project and that everything is meeting expectations. This is very different from our experience of other firms. The personal approach is what Darwin Gray are excelling at and is the reason we will continue to work with them in the future.
Cadwyn Housing Association
I have worked with Darwin Gray over a number of years and their service levels have always been exceptional. Darwin Gray are very professional and always work hard to bring about the best outcome. Highly recommended.
Ross Owen
There's a tremendous amount of very knowledgeable and proficient lawyers within the practice. They are very skilled in commercial law with various specialised lawyers able to tackle any problem.
Chambers and Partners
A commercial contract solicitor advises businesses on the legal aspects of how they operate and trade. Day-to-day, that usually means drafting and reviewing contracts, advising on commercial relationships, helping with regulatory compliance, and protecting business assets like intellectual property. Contract law solicitors also advise when disputes arise with clients, suppliers, or partners. The goal is always the same: to help the business operate confidently, reduce risk, and deal with legal problems quickly when they come up.
Commercial solicitors typically focus on the ongoing trading and contractual aspects of a business, such as contracts, terms and conditions, agency agreements, IP, and data protection. Corporate solicitors tend to focus on transactions involving the structure of the business itself, such as company formations, share sales, mergers and acquisitions, investment rounds and company restructures. In practice there’s significant overlap, and many firms (including Darwin Gray) have teams with expertise across both areas.
If you’re trading, entering into agreements, employing people, or building something worth protecting, then yes. Many businesses get by for years without proper legal support, but the cost of a bad contract, an IP dispute, or a GDPR failure usually far outweighs the cost of getting things right at the start. Having a commercial contract solicitor who understands your business and can act quickly when issues arise is one of the best investments a growing business can make.
It depends on what you need. Some commercial work, like reviewing or drafting a standard contract, lends itself well to a fixed fee. More complex or ongoing work is often charged at an hourly rate, or through an agreed retainer. At Darwin Gray we’re transparent about costs from the outset. We’ll agree how we’ll charge before we start, and we won’t increase fees without telling you. Get in touch for a no-obligation conversation about your specific needs.
Yes, this is one of the most common things we’re asked to help with. When another party presents you with their standard terms and tells you it’s non-negotiable, that’s often not the full picture. We’ll review the contract, identify the clauses that create real risk for your business, and advise you on what to push back on and how. We deal with this kind of work quickly, because we know that deals can’t wait.
We work with owner-managed businesses, SMEs, and larger organisations across a wide range of sectors. That includes professional services firms, technology and software businesses, retailers, manufacturers, construction companies, charities, and public sector organisations. We advise both private and public sector clients, Welsh-language businesses, and businesses operating nationally and internationally from a Welsh base.
Yes. We’re Wales’ leading Welsh language commercial law firm and offer full Welsh language legal services at every level of the firm.
A commercial contract is a legally binding agreement between businesses that sets out the rights and obligations of each party. A well-drafted commercial contract should clearly cover: what’s being provided and by when; how and when payment is made; what happens if either party fails to deliver; how disputes are resolved; and how and when the contract can be terminated. It should also deal with liability, intellectual property ownership, confidentiality, and data protection where relevant. We can help you draft contracts that cover all of this in plain language, and in a way that reflects how your business actually works.
For straightforward contracts, we can often turn around a first draft within a few working days. More complex agreements, particularly those involving negotiation with the other side, will take longer. We’ll give you a realistic timeframe upfront and keep you updated if anything changes. If something is genuinely urgent, let us know and we’ll do what we can to accommodate that.
The first step is to check what the contract actually says, particularly around the definitions of breach, notice requirements, and termination. Then get legal advice quickly, because how you respond in the first few days can significantly affect your options. We’ll review the position, advise on your rights, and help you decide whether to pursue a resolution commercially, through formal dispute resolution, or through the courts. We work closely with our litigation team to make sure you get joined-up advice from the start.
Yes. Some of our clients use us on a transaction-by-transaction basis. Others prefer an ongoing arrangement where we act as a consistent point of contact for day-to-day commercial legal questions and help with ongoing commercial objectives. We’re happy to discuss what arrangement works best for your business, whether that’s a retainer, a set number of hours per month, or simply knowing you can pick up the phone when something comes up.
We’re based in Wales with offices in Cardiff and North Wales, and we advise businesses across England and Wales. Most commercial contract work can be handled remotely by phone, video call, and email, which means you don’t need to be based near one of our offices to benefit from working with us.
We’re particularly well-placed to support businesses operating in Wales, Welsh-language businesses, and organisations with a footprint across both Wales and England on their commercial arrangements.
Head Office (Cardiff)
9 Cathedral Road, Cardiff, CF11 9HA
North Wales Office
Unit F12, InTec, Ffordd y Parc, Parc Menai, Bangor, LL57 4FG
Whether you need a contract reviewed before you sign, ongoing commercial support as you grow, or advice on a specific issue that’s come up, we’re here. Get in touch for a free, no-obligation chat with our commercial team and we’ll tell you exactly where you stand.
Get a free, no-obligation chat with our commercial team, call us on 02920 829 100 or use our Contact us form.
Or visit us at our Cardiff or North Wales offices.
To speak to one of our experts today, please contact us on 02920 829 100 or by using our Contact Us form for a free initial chat to see how we can help.
02920 829 100 
