When Business Partners Disagree

Austin-based business lawyer Jack Zinda of the law firm Heselmeyer Zinda, PLLC offers some cogent advice for resolving partnership disputes.

Disagreements between business partners are often difficult to
resolve. Many issues can emerge as conflicts. Contracts can be
breached, business opportunities can be usurped, trade secrets can be
stolen, or funds can be embezzled – with or without impunity. Resolving
such conflicts can be time consuming, emotionally draining, and well,
they cause stress or worse.

“It happens all too frequently,” says Austin-based business lawyer
Jack Zinda of the law firm Heselmeyer Zinda, PLLC, “even the best
intentioned business partners often find themselves disagreeing for a
multitude of reasons.” Such disputes could arise from a failure to
honor fiduciary duties, a failure to fulfill contractual obligations
put forth in a partnership agreement, operating agreement or other
business contract, trade libel, disparagement of goods or services,
disputes among LLC members or perhaps by engaging in clandestine
business dealings which don’t happen to coincide with the best
interests of the company. “These disputes need to be resolved in an
expedient manner. Sometimes an issue that’s arisen can be resolved
internally, but most often they require legal help,” Zinda asserts.

If the dispute can’t be resolved internally, other options may
surface, including the dreaded one – litigation. Owners of close-knit
companies and small businesses will generally want their conflicts
resolved as amicably as possible, so that they can return to servicing
their customers. Negotiation, mediation, and arbitration are the best
ways to avoid litigation. Through these conciliatory routes it’s often
possible to arrive at a resolution made, if not in heaven, than in a
netherworld that makes sense to all concerned. “When a dispute occurs,
the business that you have worked to build and maintain can suddenly be
placed in jeopardy,” Zinda explains, “Our goal is to truncate a crisis
before it becomes a full-scale crisis.” Through alternative
dispute-resolution procedures such as negotiation, mediation, and
arbitration, it’s often possible to arrive at solutions that address a
business partner’s integrity issues or decision-making authority while
still preserving the infrastructure of your enterprise. “What you don’t
want to do is throw your firm’s functioning ability out with the nasty
bath water that’s been pooling in the office as a consequence of
antagonism.”

To learn more about Austin business attorney Jack Zinda visit Texasbusinessattorneys.net.