Business Partners

The Law Firm Partnership Agreement that Failed

I recently had an “OMG. Are you kidding me?!?!” moment when I came across NYT reporter John Eligon’s article on a law firm breakup, “For the Lords of Divorce, A Breakup.” The principals of Sheresky, Aronson, Mayefsky & Sloan were no babes in the woods, wet behind the ears, green, unsophisticated, inexperienced, naive [insert synonym of [...]

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Basic Training: Is My Conniving Co-Owner Embezzling?

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Q: I have a business partner (“John”). He is majority shareholder with a 55/45 split. We act primarily as a subcontractor for a small number of other companies. We do not have an operating agreement. We typically travel and complete projects together. Due to a scheduling conflict, I cannot go on our next project. Knowing this, [...]

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Basic Training: Bums as Business Partners

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Q: I have an S Corp that includes myself and my partner, 50/50 ownership. I put in all the capital and do 90 percent of the work. I cannot get my partner to leave the business. What do I do? A: Whether, and how, you can “kick the bum out” depends on whether you have a [...]

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Basic Training: Could An Agreement Save This Family Business?

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Q: I have worked for my dad for more than a decade. He recently told me he wants to stop working but says he is not retiring. He wants to be paid the same amount of money and he wants himself and his wife to keep being covered by medical insurance through the business. He said [...]

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The Complexities of Family Business Systems

Have you ever known a family that doesn’t have a fight . . . about something?  It could be about “who’s hosting Thanksgiving,” “who slighted whom,” or “how to run our business.”  In his article, Resolving Disputes in Family Businesses, David Gage points out that: A family business is really three distinct but intricately related systems: Family, [...]

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Basic Training: Ex-Partners Make the Biggest Bigmouths

Q: I can’t believe it–my former business partner has been smearing me around town! I was recently partnering with someone on a real estate deal. She ultimately pulled out of it, which created a lot of problems for me. Although I was really upset at the time, I took the high road, put my nose [...]

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Because Saks does not take restricted stock

I’m a big fan of attorney Ryan Roberts and his StartUp Lawyer blog, and just couldn’t resist the title of his recent post, “Saks Does Not Take Restricted Stock.” He touches on the need to uncover the tolerance level of your business partner’s spouse/significant other for the uncertain time of sacrifice ahead. It’s similar to [...]

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Can You Run Your Business Partnership from Home?

I’ve written a lot about choosing the right business partner, but as I was trolling the Internet, perusing article on the numbers of people laid off and contemplating entrepreneurship (whether by choice or by default), the thought struck me: Your “home office” environment is a huge factor in the success (or failure) of your enterprise.  Melinda [...]

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Partnership Q&A: When your business partner is a lawyer

OK, so I’m somewhat biased, but I think lawyers can make for great business partners.  We have a knack for detail-orientation that many entrepreneurs would rather gloss over.  We’re careful, read everything, and tend to be risk averse.  A perfect foil for the stereotypically free-spirited business owner. But sometimes, it’s not such a good idea, [...]

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Investing in the Right Investor

A while back, I wrote an article entitled “Investing in the Right Investors,” where I talked about the importance of having the right fit.  Just as you would want to have with a business partner who’s actively involved in the company. My colleague, David Greer (who knows a thing or two about investors and investing) [...]

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