Partnership and Shareholder Disputes Solicitors

Working together to create pragmatic commercial solutions

Many partnership and companies are based upon a solid relationship between two or more partners or shareholders. It is essential that if difficulties arise within either type of business that resolution can be reached swiftly and as efficiently as possible in order to avoid matters turning acrimonious leading to difficulties in the continued running of the business itself.

Partnership disputes can involve all manner of differences such as:

• Where there has been a failure to recognise what is or is not a partnership
• Issues of dissolution or splitting up of the original partnership
• Poor performance of partners
• The value of goodwill
• The balances on partners current and capital accounts
• Personal assets

Should a dispute arise between shareholders this can endanger the entire foundation of the company which if unresolved could ultimately result in the winding up of the company by the Court. An example of a typical problem is in protecting minority shareholders in situations where the majority shareholders seek to conduct themselves in a manner prejudicial to the minority shareholders’ interests. This can arise where the controlling shareholder may be using for example company money or assets for their own benefit to the detriment of other shareholders. In such situations a minority shareholder is entitled to apply to the Court for protection.

Healys Solicitors have been assisting people resolving company and partnership disputes for many years and have the expertise to resolve such disputes using the most appropriate means. In many cases such disputes can be resolved by sensible negotiation rather than through the Courts. At the outset our efforts focus on seeking a satisfactory commercial resolution to such issues through the use of alternate dispute resolution including negotiation and mediation.

We offer the full range of funding options (other than government funding) to include fixed fees, conditional fee arrangements, after the event insurance and third party funding. We also always provide cost estimates as soon as reasonably practicable and remain within those estimates or, where (for good reason) not possible, agree a revised estimate before the previous one is exceeded. This, together with our regular billing policy and transparency on costs, means you retain a degree of control and certainly over your legal spend.