As you entered your business endeavor with your partner, you probably had high hopes for the future. After all, you probably thought long and hard about how to make your business relationship work. Yet, as with most relationships, partnerships tend to see their fair share of bumps in the road. While many of these can be smoothed over while protecting the business, others can lead to serious and severe partnership disputes.
How should you handle your partnership dispute?
It really depends on your circumstances. With that in mind, let’s look at some things that you can try to do to resolve your dispute while protecting your investment in your business.
- Think about using alternative dispute resolution, especially if you and your partner can’t even have a productive conversation amongst yourself. This can allow you to gain some outside perspective that may help you navigate favorable resolution.
- Consider a buyout agreement. If you or your partner want out of the business, then you should consider one of these agreements. Your partnership agreement may speak to how a buyout is to occur, but if it doesn’t, then make sure that you’re negotiating an arrangement that is fair.
- Try not to take the dispute personally, as doing so can just fuel the fire and make it even more challenging to work through the issues at hand.
- Consider legal action if your partner has engaged in wrongdoing such as fraud or misappropriation of funds. Here, legal recourse may be the only way to protect your business, its reputation, and your finances.
- Think about whether dissolving the partnership and closing your business is right for you, particularly if you don’t think that you can keep the business running without a reliable partner.
Develop a customized approach that’s right for you
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to partnership disputes. That’s why you need to develop a custom-tailored strategy that fits your circumstances. If you’d like to learn more about which approach is best for you, then consider discussing the situation with an experienced business law professional of your choosing.
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