Sub-Contracting And Assignment : Resolving The Legal Conundrum

The performance of a contract may require third party involvement towards the fulfilment of obligations under a contract. In certain specific circumstances, the contracting parties may decide to "sub-contract" or "assign" their rights and obligations to a third party depending upon the nature of the contract.

In common parlance, sub-contracting and assignment are used interchangeably, however, a significant difference lies between the two when one examines the terms from a legal stand point. This post aims to discuss the concept of Sub-Contracting and Assignment and explains the key difference between the two concepts.

Sub-contracting

Sub-contracting refers to the delegation of certain duties and obligations by contracting parties to a third party, i.e. a sub-contractor who aids in the performance of the contract. According to the Black's Law Dictionary, a sub-contract is"where a person has contracted for the performance of certain work and he, in turn, engages