Entering into business partnerships—and choosing the partner—can have a major impact on your business for decades to come, which is why you should share a future vision; in fact, you may not have formally chosen someone to share your company to begin with, but rather you may have worked together for years, and perhaps even before your business was started. Many business partners come up with an idea, product, or business model together, sometimes in high school or college, and work for years until they are actually able to open a company of their own.

You may spend more time with your business partner than you do your marriage partner in some cases, and at times the stakes may be high as you are forced to make serious professional and financial decisions that affect not only you and your ability to make an income, but that of your entire team of employees too. Because there will be many important decisions to be made over the years, it is important to work with someone who shares your vision.

Although you and your partner may have started a company together, and there was never any sort of selection or interviewing process, many details should be worked out as you create your business partnership contract with the help of your business attorney from an office like the Bolender Law Firm. Many of the details regarding your company vision should get worked out naturally when creating the contract, on deciding who will act as the head of the business or CEO, how profits will be paid out, how job duties will be designated, who will be in charge of the hiring and firing, and how shares will be passed on if a partner were to leave the company or to pass away unexpectedly.

A vision for the future is vital to the success of any company, so, along with many of your other employees most likely too, establish what you want to achieve in the present and in the long-term. Various business models should be created, with goals set and monitored closely. It is also critical to discuss how you want to hire employees, whether in part time or full-time capacity, or as independent contractors. You may also need to establish whether intellectual property requires registration, and how to handle such issues with contractors who could feasibly walk out the door with company designs.

While the challenges may be great, the rewards are often even greater when it comes to owning your own business. In many cases, every day is exciting, but most entrepreneurs or even large corporate owners will find themselves running into conflict at some point. Because of this, you should have a dispute resolution clause built into the business partnership contract. This can be created while everyone is still on good terms, allowing you to decide how any dispute would be decided—whether in arbitration or mediation—or litigation. You can also discuss who would be responsible for attorneys’ fees and where any proceedings will take place, in terms of the courthouse or county.

Do you need legal assistance with a partnership or business dispute? If so, contact the Bolender Law Firm. Our attorneys are experienced in representing clients in state and federal courts, at both the trial and appellate level. Call us at 310-320-0725 now or submit an easy consultation request online. We are here to help!

Owning a business is full of challenges; in fact, there may be days when you wish you had never come up with that original mind-blowing idea that set you in motion for working long days and nights, expending all that proverbial blood, sweat, and tears, and often feeling like more time is spent at the office with employees and those engaged in business partnerships than at home with your family. The irony is that while you are busy trying to make a living and sock away the dough for your family, you are forced to leave them for long periods of time. That doesn’t mean you forget about them though—and on the contrary, as family is first in the mind for most of us all day.

While it is important to make sure your family is covered in your will and all estate planning, this could play a part in your business partnership also. This critical contract should cover a long list of items to foresee that everyone is protected, beginning with items like who the officers and shareholders are, and what titles they hold in the business, if any. General job duties and pay should be outlined, along with discussion of other financial issues such as when profits are distributed each year.

What happens, however, if you or another partner were to die? Who gets your shares in the business? This should be established when you are forming the partnership contract, as there may be some discussion regarding how you want to structure it. You may want to consider whether you would want the right of refusal to buy the other partner’s shares should they die or want to leave or discuss the best structure if you do want to leave your shares to a surviving spouse, other family member, or outside party. If this is not agreed upon by all in the contract, it is usually not possible, by law, for a third party to be ‘substituted’ for a family member or other partner.

Speak with your business attorney about creating an airtight partnership contract. This is key in the beginning, and especially when everyone is getting along. A dispute resolution clause should be included also, establishing what type of resolution all parties would turn to in the case of a legal issues, whether that would be litigation, mediation, or arbitration. Details such as what county the resolution would take place in and who would pay attorney’s fees are usually included too.

Do you need legal assistance with a business dispute? If so, contact the Bolender Law Firm.  Our attorneys are experienced in representing clients in state and federal courts, at both the trial and appellate level. Call us at 310-320-0725 now or submit an easy consultation request online. We are here to help!