If you have found yourself in the middle of a business dispute, you may be unsure of what exactly your options are. Although you have the business side down to an art, when things start getting intertwined with legal issues, you may begin to feel somewhat uneasy. This is where a qualified business litigation attorney can step in and help.
What is a Business Litigation Attorney?
A business litigator handles the legal dealings of the business. Their area of expertise usually focuses on the contractual and tort claims within the company. While you may think you only need a business litigator if someone is suing you, the truth is that an experienced professional can help advise you in various areas of your business and help you avoid ending up in court. A good lawyer will help you create fair and logical contracts to ensure proper protection of your interests.
When Do You Need One?
Anytime your business property is in jeopardy, and whether it be profits, reputation, or intellectual property, you should seriously consider bringing in a qualified attorney. You don’t want to wait until it is too late to decide that you can’t handle the issue on your own. Below is a list of just some of the areas where hiring a business litigator is probably your best choice.
- Contract disputes (breach of contract) — Contracts are the heart and soul of your business. You have contracts with vendors, employees, partners, and various third parties. These agreements protect the rights of the parties involved and make specific guarantees. When one of the parties fails to fulfill the terms of the contract, that party has breached the contract.
- Non-compete violations — Non-compete agreements are standard in the business realm. They are used to protect a business’ intellectual property and proprietary information. They commonly include terms that restrict future employment with competing companies and contact with customers.
- Fraud and misrepresentation — Fraud and misrepresentation are similar in the fact that they often lead to the same outcome. The difference is that someone guilty of fraud deliberately skews or lies about the events to gain a more favorable result at the time of the contract, whereas a person guilty of misrepresentation wrongly believes the facts to be real when they enter into the agreement.
- Theft of trade secrets — If you are running a business, you know that to protect your company’s competitiveness, you must safeguard your trade secrets. Trade secrets provide a firm with economic value because they are not commonly known; hence they give a company advantage. Unauthorized distribution of trade secrets can be irreparably damaging to a company, so it is critical that you take prompt legal action.
- Partnership and shareholder disputes — In the course of running business disputes may arise between partners or between the partnership and its shareholders. When this happens, a business litigation attorney can advise you on your position in the dispute.
- Breach of fiduciary duty — A fiduciary is a person who has a legal obligation to protect the interest of another person, commonly called the principal. If these responsibilities are neglected or otherwise diminished, then the party may be in breach of fiduciary duty.
Why Should You Hire a Business Litigator?
Even if you believe that you have a thorough understanding of your company’s contracts and can adequately defend your company’s interests, the business world is ever-evolving and becoming increasingly complex. Laws are continuously changing and updated. It’s important to have representation who actively works in the legal field who can aggressively fight for you.