A legal principle that an agent is deemed to have whatever power or authority a person would reasonably infer， either from the principal\'s (employer\'s) representations concerning an agent\'s (employee\'s) authority or from the agent\'s holding himself out as having proper authority. The principal or insurer may be obligated as if it had expressly granted the authority to the agent.
表见代理，是指无权代理人所为的民事行为，善意且无过错的第三人基于某种事由能够确信其有代理权，即可使被代理人承担有权代理法律后果的无权代理。我国《合同法》第49条规定：“行为人没有代理权、超越代理权或者代理权终止后以被代理人名义订立合同，相对人有正当理由相信行为人有代理权的，该代理行为有效。”
表见代理还可以译为"Agency by Estoppel"
“不容否认的代理(Agency by Estoppel)”，其原理基本等同于大陆法上的表见代理。其差别在于两个概念的侧重点不同：前者强凋被代理人对这种行为的后果不能否认，应当承担相应的责任;后者强调善意第三人有足够的理由相信行为人有代理权。
