Greenacres Family Business Dispute Attorney

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents siblings, parents, children, spouses, in-laws, and longtime friends in Greenacres and across Palm Beach County who own a company together and can no longer agree on how to run it. Our work covers business divorce, partnership and member disputes, missing company money, shared real estate, and emergency court relief, and we serve clients throughout Palm Beach County, Broward County, and South Florida.

A Greenacres family business dispute attorney deals with a problem that a typical commercial case does not have: the people on the other side may also be the people at your holiday table. A brother who has been running the shop floor for twenty years and a sister who inherited half the company without ever working in it will measure fairness differently. A parent who wants to keep drawing a salary and a child who wants to reinvest every dollar are not arguing about the same thing, even when they use the same words. The legal question is usually narrower than the emotional one, and a good deal of the work is sorting out which one is actually driving the fight.

Those disputes tend to share a few features. There is often no written operating agreement, or a boilerplate one signed years ago that never anticipated a falling out. Roles blur, with one family member acting as manager, bookkeeper, and landlord at once. And money moves informally: loans that were never papered, salaries that were never set, and personal expenses that ran through the company account. Each of these shapes what remedies are available and how strong your position is.

Why Family Owners Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for Business Disputes

The Andrew M. Andrew M. Schwartz, the firm’s founder, was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989 and has spent 37 years in litigation, with a career built around complex contract disputes, business divorces, and conflicts among partners, LLC members, and shareholders. He earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1986 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1989. The firm serves clients in Palm Beach County, including Greenacres and West Palm Beach, as well as Broward County and Fort Lauderdale, and it regularly represents clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who hold business or real estate interests in South Florida.

Andrew is joined by Senior Counsel Sundeep Nath, a Northwestern-trained litigator with years of experience in business and real estate cases in state and federal courts. The firm works as a true legal team, which means everyone handling your matter knows the file and can answer when you call. There is a strict 24 hour return call policy when we are in court. That matters in a family dispute, where a delayed answer can mean a partner moves money or a deadline slips.

On the results side, in a matter that went to a 5-day bench trial, the Broward County Circuit Court issued a 32-page final judgment awarding our client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. We mention it because it reflects the kind of work these cases demand: careful preparation around the exact language of an agreement and the history between the parties. Andrew’s view, shaped over decades, is that clients often start out wanting the most aggressive lawyer available, when what they really want is someone who acts as the situation requires and uses finesse when finesse will do. Our attorneys are experienced in mediation and arbitration as well as courtroom litigation, and we look for the resolution that fits your goals and your budget.

Common Family Business Conflicts We Handle for Greenacres Owners

• Deadlocked Management: Two siblings each hold half of an LLC or corporation and cannot agree on hiring, pricing, or whether to sell. Neither can outvote the other, operations stall, and Florida law treats an unbreakable deadlock that threatens irreparable injury as a ground for judicial dissolution of an LLC.
• Buyouts and Valuation Fights: One owner wants out, or the others want that owner out, and nobody agrees on what the company is worth. Whether the business is valued as a going concern, on assets, or with discounts for a minority interest often decides the outcome. Florida’s corporate statutes also let the company or other shareholders elect to buy a petitioning shareholder’s shares at fair value, which can head off dissolution.
• Minority Owners Shut Out: A child or in-law holding a smaller stake finds that salaries, distributions, and information have dried up. Claims here include breach of the operating or shareholder agreement and breach of fiduciary duty by those in control.
• Missing or Diverted Funds: A family member who handles the books cannot explain where money went, or company accounts have been mixed with personal ones. We pursue accountings, recovery of funds, and claims for misappropriation, and we can ask the court to stop assets from being moved while the case is pending.
• Inherited Ownership Without a Plan: A founder dies or steps back and the business passes to several heirs who never agreed on roles. Disagreements over control, compensation, and succession surface quickly, especially when only some heirs work in the company.
• Family-Held Real Estate: A warehouse, rental building, or commercial lot owned by relatives or by the company becomes the center of the fight. When co-owners cannot agree, Florida’s partition statutes let a court divide the property or order it sold and the proceeds split.
• Title and Ownership Clouds: A deed that was never recorded, a transfer made without consent, or competing claims to the same parcel can be resolved through a quiet title action, which lets a court determine who holds title.
• Unwritten Family Deals: A handshake promise that a child would earn an ownership stake, or a parent’s oral agreement to lend money to the business. These claims turn on proof and on how long you have to bring them.

What to Do Before a Family Business Dispute Escalates

The first decision is often the one people skip: stop and decide what you actually want. Some clients want out with a fair payment. Some want the other owner out. Some want the company to survive and simply need the arrangement fixed. The legal path differs for each, and a lawyer can only help you choose the right one if you have thought it through. Resist the urge to send the angry email or confront the family member at a gathering. Anything you write can end up as an exhibit.

Next, gather documents before anyone has a reason to restrict your access. That means formation papers, any operating agreement, shareholder agreement, or partnership agreement, tax returns, bank and credit card statements, loan documents, leases, deeds, and any emails or texts that discuss ownership, pay, or promises. If you have access to the accounting system, preserve what you can lawfully see, and do not delete or alter anything. If you are being locked out, tell a lawyer right away, because the remedy may be an emergency motion rather than a letter.

Watch the clock. Florida sets different limitation periods depending on the claim. A claim founded on a written instrument has five years. A contract claim not based on a written instrument has four. Fraud runs four years from discovery, with an outer cap of 12 years. An action to rescind a contract has four years, and a suit seeking specific performance has just one. Family disputes often involve a mix of written and unwritten promises, so more than one deadline can apply to the same set of facts. Waiting while you hope things cool down can quietly cost you a claim.

Also look at whether your agreement already contains a way out. Many operating and shareholder agreements include buyout formulas, deadlock sale provisions, or required mediation. Florida’s LLC and corporate statutes recognize deadlock sale provisions, and if one is initiated in time it can take the place of a court-ordered dissolution. Knowing what your agreement says before you file anything keeps you from picking the wrong fight.

If the dispute has to go to court, it will be filed in the Circuit Court. In Palm Beach County that is the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in West Palm Beach and has branch courthouses in other parts of the county. Disputes in Broward County go to the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which has a complex business division that handles certain business entity dissolutions and large business litigation. Circuit court generally hears claims above $50,000, while smaller claims go to county court, and cases with federal jurisdiction can land in the Southern District of Florida, which holds court in West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale. Before a case is filed, we often explore negotiation or mediation, because a settled buyout is usually faster and cheaper than a contested trial, and it leaves more of the family relationship intact.

How Florida Courts Handle Dissolution, Buyouts, and Emergency Relief

Many clients assume a court will simply split a company down the middle. In practice, courts have a range of tools, and dissolution is usually the last resort. Under Florida’s LLC statute, a member or manager can seek judicial dissolution on specific grounds: the company’s activities are being conducted unlawfully; it is not reasonably practicable to carry on the business under the articles and operating agreement; those in control have acted or are expected to act illegally or fraudulently; assets are being misappropriated or wasted to the company’s injury; or the owners are deadlocked and irreparable injury to the company is threatened or occurring. If a petitioner shows sufficient merit, the court can appoint a receiver or custodian after notice and a hearing, or order a purchase of the petitioner’s interest instead.

For corporations, a shareholder can ask a circuit court to dissolve the company or order another remedy on several grounds, including abandonment of the business without a timely wind-down. Once a dissolution proceeding begins, the corporation must notify the other shareholders within 30 days that they can avoid dissolution by electing to buy the petitioner’s shares at fair value. If the parties agree on value and terms within 60 days after the first election is filed, the court enters an order on those terms; an election to purchase is irrevocable unless the court finds it equitable to modify it. During the case, the court can issue injunctions, appoint a receiver or custodian, and take other steps to preserve company assets.

That last point is why injunctions matter so much in family disputes. When a relative is draining an account, changing locks, or transferring property, waiting for a final judgment can mean there is nothing left to win. The firm handles temporary and permanent injunctions, including early and emergency requests, to hold the status quo while the underlying dispute is resolved.

When shared real estate is involved, partition is its own track. Partition cases are heard in the chancery side of the court. The complaint must describe the property and name the owners and their interests. If the court orders partition, it appoints three commissioners, and if dividing the land would prejudice the owners, it can order the property sold at public auction with proceeds split in proportion to each owner’s share. Property that passed down through a family can fall under Florida’s Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act, which adds protections before a court orders a sale, including a requirement that commissioners consider specific factors before partition in kind is rejected. Quiet title actions work differently: they ask the court to determine title and clear a competing claim, and the plaintiff generally must trace title back at least seven years.

Questions Family Business Owners Ask Us

Can I force a family member out of our LLC?

It depends on your operating agreement and the conduct involved. Many agreements contain buyout, expulsion, or dissociation provisions. Florida law also gives courts remedies when a member has engaged in serious misconduct or when the company can no longer function. Reviewing the agreement and the facts is the starting point.

What is a business divorce?

It is the separation of co-owners of a company, whether partners, LLC members, or shareholders. It can be resolved through a negotiated buyout, a sale, a structured wind-down, or court-ordered dissolution when the owners cannot agree.

What if my sibling is taking money from the company?

You may have claims for breach of fiduciary duty, an accounting, conversion, and recovery of the funds. If assets are at risk of being moved or spent, a court can order injunctive relief while the case is pending.

We never had a written operating agreement. Do I still have rights?

Yes. Without a written agreement, Florida’s default statutory rules fill the gaps, and the history of how the owners actually dealt with each other becomes important evidence. Unwritten arrangements are harder to prove, so gathering emails, texts, and financial records early is worth the effort.

How long do I have to bring a claim against a family member?

It depends on the claim. A claim founded on a written instrument has five years, a contract claim not founded on a writing has four, fraud has four years from discovery with a 12 year cap, and a specific performance action has one year. Because one dispute can involve several theories, it is best to have the dates reviewed promptly.

Does a family business dispute have to go to trial?

No. Many are resolved through negotiation, mediation, or arbitration. Our attorneys have experience in all three, and we pursue the path most likely to meet your goals without running up fees for their own sake.

Can a court appoint someone to run the company while we fight?

In a dissolution proceeding, a court can appoint a receiver or custodian, but only after notifying the parties and holding a hearing, and the request needs sufficient merit behind it. It is not automatic, and it is usually reserved for situations where assets or operations are genuinely at risk.

My parents left the business to all of us, but only I work there. What are my options?

Your options depend on how title and ownership passed and whether any agreement governs the company. Possibilities include negotiating a buyout of the non-working heirs, restructuring compensation, or, if no agreement is reached, seeking court relief. If real estate is part of the inheritance, partition may come into play.

How are co-owned properties handled if the business and the building are separate?

They often have to be treated separately. The company’s affairs are governed by the operating or shareholder agreement and Florida’s entity statutes, while the building is governed by property law and may be subject to partition or a title action. We look at both so one resolution does not undercut the other.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer if we are still talking?

Often, yes. Early advice can keep a negotiation from locking in bad terms, flag a deadline, and identify protections you can put in place without filing suit. Bringing in counsel before a dispute hardens frequently prevents a lawsuit altogether.

I live in New York or New Jersey but the business is here. Can you handle the case?

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

Do you work with other attorneys on these cases?

Yes. A significant part of our practice comes from referrals by other lawyers, including out of state attorneys whose clients have disputes in Florida. We communicate with referring counsel throughout the matter and respect their relationship with the client.

Serving Family Business Owners Across Greenacres and Palm Beach County

We represent family business owners in Greenacres and the surrounding communities of central and southern Palm Beach County, including Lake Worth Beach, Lantana, Atlantis, Palm Springs, Royal Palm Beach, Wellington, and Loxahatchee Groves. Our work extends north through West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, North Palm Beach, and Riviera Beach, and south to Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, Boca Raton, and Highland Beach. We also serve owners in the western communities of the county, including Belle Glade and Pahokee.

In Broward County, we serve clients in Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Coral Springs, Plantation, Hollywood, and the neighboring cities nearby. Many of the family companies we see are small manufacturers, contractors, restaurants, retail shops, property holding companies, and service businesses, and we also work with out of state clients whose family businesses or co-owned real estate sit in South Florida. Whether your company is run from a Greenacres storefront or your shared property is held in another part of the region, we handle the local filings and court appearances.

Talk With a Greenacres Family Business Attorney Before the Dispute Hardens

When relatives or longtime friends who own a company together stop agreeing, the choices you make early tend to set the course. If you are looking for a Greenacres family business attorney, the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can review your agreements, explain your options under Florida law, and tell you plainly whether negotiation, mediation, or court is the better route for your situation. We would rather help you solve the problem efficiently than prolong a fight.

Call us to schedule a consultation. We will listen to what you are trying to protect, look at the documents, and give you a candid view of where you stand.