Disputes
When a partner, franchisor or landlord pushes back
Most business disputes can be settled sooner and for less than the first letter suggests. I start by reading what you signed, then tell you what the other side can and cannot do.
A partner who wants out, a notice of default from a franchisor, a landlord’s demand: each has a deadline buried in the paper. I find it first, then lay out your choices with their costs, so you can pick the one that fits your business and not just your anger.
Most matters settle across a table. When one will not, I say so early, and we talk about what a court would take and how long it would take to get there.
What I take on
Partner and shareholder disagreements
Notices of default, termination and non-renewal
Landlord and tenant disputes over a commercial lease
Supplier and customer contract claims
Mediation and settlement agreements
How a dispute is handled
- 01
Step 1: Read the paper
The agreement, the notice and the dates. I find the deadline before anything else.
- 02
Step 2: Your choices, priced
A short summary of each route, what it could achieve and what it would cost.
- 03
Step 3: A letter or a meeting
Often a clear letter or a mediated meeting ends it. I draft it, or sit beside you.
- 04
Step 4: If it must go further
I tell you plainly what a filing would involve and quote the next stage before we take it.
What owners ask before signing
I received a default notice. How long do I have?
The deadline is in the notice and the agreement, often only days. Bring both to me right away; it is the one thing I ask you not to put off.
Can a partner be bought out?
Often. The operating agreement or partnership agreement usually says how, and I help negotiate the price and the timing.
Will I have to go to court?
Most do not. Many disputes settle after a letter or a mediation, and I will tell you early if yours is unlikely to.
Got a notice in the mail?
Book a first call and bring the notice and the agreement. We will start with the deadline.