Coconut Creek Breach of Fiduciary Duty Attorney

A fiduciary does not get to treat a company, a partnership, or a family’s shared property as a personal account, and the people who learn this the hard way are usually the ones who trusted the fiduciary most. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents business owners, investors, and families in disputes with the partners, managers, and co-owners who were supposed to be looking out for them, and we serve clients in Coconut Creek, Broward County, Palm Beach County, and throughout South Florida. If you need a Coconut Creek breach of fiduciary duty attorney, the work we do starts with finding out what was taken, what was hidden, and how fast the assets need to be frozen.

These cases rarely begin with an obvious theft. They begin with a distribution that never arrives, a bookkeeper who stops answering questions, a managing member who suddenly controls every account, or a business partner who signs a lease with a company he secretly owns. By the time the pattern is clear, money has often moved, records may have been altered, and the relationship is past repair. Fiduciary claims turn on duties of loyalty and honest dealing, and on proof that those duties were broken to someone’s profit and your loss.

What a Fiduciary Breach Looks Like Inside a South Florida Company

A fiduciary duty arises when one person is trusted to act for the benefit of another or of a shared enterprise. Managers of an LLC, officers and directors of a corporation, partners, trustees, and agents all carry that duty to some degree, and the duty is strongest when one person controls money or decisions that other people depend on. Loyalty means putting the company’s interest ahead of your own. Candor means disclosing what the other owners need to know. Care means not running the business into the ground through reckless choices.

In our work, the breach usually shows up in one of a handful of ways. A manager pays himself compensation no one approved. A partner diverts a customer, a contract, or a business opportunity to a side company. An owner refuses to produce financial records, then explains the missing money with vague answers. A majority member squeezes out a minority owner through self-dealing transactions. Each of these gives rise to claims for breach of fiduciary duty, an accounting, and recovery of the money, and the evidence is almost always in bank statements, ledgers, tax filings, and the way the parties handled company funds over the years.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for Fiduciary Duty Disputes

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team is a business and real estate litigation firm serving Coconut Creek and the rest of Broward and Palm Beach Counties, along with clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who hold business or property interests in South Florida. Andrew M. Schwartz, the firm’s founder, was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989, earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1986 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1989, and has spent 37 years in litigation built around contract disputes, business divorces, and conflicts among partners, LLC members, and shareholders. Fiduciary duty claims sit at the center of that work, because most partner disputes eventually come down to whether someone abused a position of trust.

Senior Counsel Sundeep Nath, a Northwestern-trained litigator, brings years of business and real estate litigation experience in both state and federal courts. The firm practices as a true legal team, so everyone working on your matter knows the file, and a strict 24 hour return call policy applies when we are in court and cannot pick up right away. We are experienced in mediation and arbitration as well as courtroom litigation, and we look for the resolution that fits your goals and your budget rather than stretching a case out for its own sake.

On the trial side, the firm obtained a 32-page final judgment after a 5-day bench trial in Broward County Circuit Court awarding our client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. That result reflects what we bring to a fiduciary case: careful preparation of a documentary record, and the stamina to try the case when negotiation fails. Much of our work also comes through referrals from other attorneys, including out of state counsel whose clients have disputes here, and we keep referring lawyers informed throughout.

Situations That Lead to Fiduciary Duty Claims

• Diverted Company Funds: A manager or partner moves company money into personal accounts, pays personal expenses through the business, or routes revenue to a related entity. These cases often involve commingled accounts and call for claims of conversion, an accounting, and recovery of the funds.
• Self-Dealing Transactions: A controlling owner causes the company to buy from, lease from, or pay a company he secretly owns, usually on terms the other owners never saw or approved.
• Usurped Business Opportunities: A partner takes a deal, client, or property that belonged to the company and pursues it personally or through another entity.
• Minority Owner Oppression: A majority member freezes out a minority member by cutting off distributions, withholding records, or paying excessive salaries to drain profits that would otherwise be shared.
• Unpaid Distributions and Disputed Capital Contributions: Profits owed to members are withheld, or a contribution one owner made is later denied or reclassified, leaving the contributor with a dispute about what the books and the operating agreement actually say.
• Breach of Operating or Shareholder Agreement Duties: Many agreements spell out specific obligations about approvals, reporting, and competing ventures. Violating them can support both contract and fiduciary claims at once.
• Family Business Betrayals: Siblings, parents, children, or in-laws who share ownership face the same problems with the added strain of family relationships. We handle these with discretion while protecting your financial interests.
• Co-Owner Abuse of Shared Real Estate: A co-owner collects rents, takes loans against the property, or sells without accounting to the others, which can lead to fiduciary claims alongside a partition action.

What to Do If You Suspect a Partner or Manager Is Breaching Their Duty

Start by preserving what you can reach before anyone else controls it. Pull your copies of the operating agreement or shareholder agreement, tax returns and K-1s, bank and credit card statements, loan documents, and any emails or texts that discuss money, compensation, or major decisions. If you have login access to accounting software or the company’s bank, capture the records now and do not alter or delete anything. Do not confront the partner before you have a plan; a confrontation often prompts the very record clean-up you are worried about.

Next, read your agreement for what it says about information rights, dispute resolution, and buyouts. Some agreements require mediation or arbitration before suit, and others contain deadlock sale provisions that affect your options. Timing matters too. Florida’s limitations periods depend on how the claim is framed: an action founded on a written instrument has five years, an oral or implied contract claim has four, a fraud claim has four years from discovery with an outer limit of 12 years, and a negligence-based claim now has two years for causes of action that arose after March 24, 2023. Which period applies to a fiduciary claim depends on the facts, so an early review protects you from waiting too long on a claim that could be cut off.

If money is actively disappearing, ask about emergency relief. A court can issue a temporary injunction to stop assets from being moved or spent while the case is pending, and in an LLC dissolution proceeding the court may appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing with notice to the parties. Fiduciary cases arising in Coconut Creek are heard in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Broward County. That circuit has a complex business division that handles dissolution of certain business entities and large business litigation, and a filer may request direct assignment to it. If the company or property involved sits across the line in Palm Beach County, the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit would be the venue, and federal court in the Southern District of Florida is sometimes available when parties are from different states and the jurisdictional requirements are met.

The most common mistakes we see are waiting while the money keeps moving, signing a buyout or release without understanding what it waives, and taking self-help steps such as locking a partner out of accounts in ways that create counterclaims. A short consultation early often changes how these cases end.

Remedies Available When a Fiduciary Breaks Faith

The remedies depend on what was done and what the court finds. A claim for an accounting forces the fiduciary to document where money went. Damages can compensate for the loss, and where the fiduciary profited, a court may require him to give up that profit. Courts can unwind self-dealing transactions, impose a constructive trust over property bought with diverted funds, and award injunctive relief to protect assets while the case proceeds.

When the relationship cannot continue, fiduciary claims often run alongside a business divorce. For an LLC, Florida law allows a member to seek judicial dissolution on grounds that include misappropriation or waste of assets that injures the company, illegal or fraudulent conduct by those in control, or a deadlock that threatens irreparable injury. The court may appoint a receiver or custodian, or order a purchase of the petitioning member’s interest. For a corporation, a shareholder petition for dissolution can prompt the corporation or other shareholders to elect to purchase the petitioner’s shares at fair value, and if the parties agree on value and terms within 60 days after the first election is filed, the court enters an order directing the purchase. That election, once made, is irrevocable unless the court finds it equitable to modify it. In some cases a negotiated buyout, structured wind-down, or sale of the business gets our client out on fair terms without a final trial.

Questions About Fiduciary Duty Claims in Coconut Creek

What is a breach of fiduciary duty?

It happens when someone who owes you a duty of loyalty, candor, or care violates it, typically to benefit himself or harm the company or other owners. Managers, partners, officers, directors, and trustees are common examples.

Who owes fiduciary duties in a Florida business?

Partners, managers and managing members of LLCs, corporate officers and directors, and others who control company money or decisions can owe them. The scope of the duty can be shaped by the operating agreement, the entity type, and the person’s role.

Can I sue my business partner for taking company money?

Yes, if the facts support it. Claims commonly include breach of fiduciary duty, an accounting, conversion, and recovery of the funds. In urgent cases a court can order injunctive relief to stop assets from being moved or spent.

What is the deadline to file?

It depends on how the claim is framed. A claim founded on a written agreement has five years, oral or implied contract claims have four, fraud claims have four years from discovery with a 12-year outer limit, and negligence-based claims have two years for causes of action arising after March 24, 2023. Because the right period turns on the facts, do not guess; have the claim evaluated early.

Can I get a partner removed from an LLC in Florida?

It depends on the operating agreement and the conduct. Many agreements include expulsion, dissociation, or buyout provisions, and Florida law provides judicial remedies when assets are being misappropriated, when controlling members act illegally or fraudulently, or when the company can no longer function.

What if the partner already spent the money?

Spent funds can still be recovered. A court can trace money into assets or other entities, impose a constructive trust over property bought with diverted funds, and enter a judgment that can then be collected. Moving quickly helps identify where the funds went.

Do I need my operating agreement to bring a claim?

It helps, but fiduciary duties exist independently of the paperwork in many situations. If you cannot find the agreement, we can look for other records, and you may also have statutory information rights as a member or shareholder.

What if my partner is also a family member?

The legal analysis is the same, but strategy changes. Family disputes often benefit from early mediation, careful communication, and discretion. We pursue what protects your financial interest while taking the family relationship seriously.

I live in New York or New Jersey. Can I still bring a claim over my South Florida business?

Yes. We regularly represent clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut with business partners or property in South Florida. We handle the local court appearances and proceedings and keep you informed so you do not have to travel for every hearing.

Will this have to go to trial?

Not necessarily. Many fiduciary disputes resolve through negotiation, mediation, or arbitration, particularly when records make the loss clear. We prepare each case as if it will be tried, which tends to produce better settlements, and we try cases when settlement is not available.

Does a fiduciary claim affect the partner’s ownership stake?

It can. Depending on the facts and the relief sought, a court can order an accounting, set off damages against what the partner would otherwise receive, order a buyout, or dissolve the entity. The right path depends on whether you want to stay in the business or exit.

How much does a fiduciary duty case cost?

Cost depends on how contested the case is, the volume of financial records, and whether experts are needed. Most clients want a solution that makes economic sense, and we discuss the likely path and budget with you early so that fees do not outweigh the recovery.

Serving Fiduciary Duty Clients From Coconut Creek Across South Florida

We represent clients in Coconut Creek and the surrounding Broward County communities, including Margate, Coral Springs, Parkland, Tamarac, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Lauderhill, Sunrise, Plantation, and Fort Lauderdale. Our work extends north into Palm Beach County, where we serve clients in Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, Lake Worth, Wellington, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, and West Palm Beach. Whether the company is a family restaurant group, a medical practice, a real estate holding entity, or a professional services firm, the disputes that arise inside it follow the same pattern, and we handle them wherever in South Florida the parties and assets are located.

Many of our clients also live in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut while holding interests in South Florida businesses and real estate, and we work with them remotely, appearing in court on their behalf.

Talk With a Coconut Creek Breach of Fiduciary Duty Lawyer Before the Assets Move

If you believe a partner, manager, or co-owner has betrayed a position of trust, the strongest time to act is before more money leaves and before the records change. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can review your agreements and financial records, explain what claims and remedies fit, and tell you plainly whether emergency relief is warranted. Call to schedule a consultation with our Coconut Creek breach of fiduciary duty lawyers and learn where you stand.