Palm Beach Gardens Breach of Fiduciary Duty Attorney

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents business owners, LLC members, shareholders, investors, and family co-owners in Palm Beach Gardens and across Palm Beach County who have discovered that someone they trusted with company money, decisions, or property put their own interests first. A Palm Beach Gardens breach of fiduciary duty attorney is often called in after a quiet realization: the distributions stopped, the books will not reconcile, or a partner has been steering opportunities somewhere else.

Fiduciary claims are different from ordinary contract disputes because they do not depend on a clause in an agreement that was violated. They depend on a relationship in which one person was entrusted with authority over something that belongs, in whole or in part, to someone else. Managing members, corporate officers and directors, general partners, majority owners who control the checkbook, and agents acting for a principal can all owe duties of loyalty and care. When those duties are broken, the remedies can include an accounting, recovery of diverted funds, removal of the person in control, and in the right circumstances a court order freezing assets before they disappear.

North Palm Beach County has a dense mix of closely held companies, medical and professional practices, real estate holding entities, and family investment vehicles, many of them owned by people who split their time between Florida and the Northeast. That ownership pattern, a few trusted insiders and one person handling the money, is exactly where fiduciary problems tend to surface.

What a Fiduciary Duty Claim Actually Requires

A breach of fiduciary duty case generally comes down to three questions. Did the person owe you a fiduciary duty? Did they breach it? And did that breach cause you harm that can be measured or remedied? The first question is where many cases are won or lost. In a manager-managed LLC, the manager’s duties run to the company and its members. In a corporation, directors and officers owe duties to the corporation and, in certain circumstances, shareholders can bring claims directly or on the company’s behalf. In a partnership, partners owe one another duties of loyalty and care. Operating agreements and shareholder agreements can shape those duties, and the exact language matters, so we read the governing documents closely before deciding which claims to plead and who the proper plaintiff is.

One distinction deserves early attention: whether your injury is personal to you or whether the company itself was harmed. If a manager siphoned money out of the business, the harm may belong to the company, which can affect whether you sue directly or derivatively and who receives any recovery. Getting that framing right at the start avoids a motion to dismiss later.

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 Palm Beach Gardens, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, and the rest of Palm Beach and Broward Counties. Founder Andrew M. His career has been built around complex contract disputes, business divorces, and conflicts between partners, LLC members, and shareholders, which is the territory where most fiduciary claims arise. He earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1986 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1989.

Senior Counsel Sundeep Nath, a Northwestern-trained litigator, brings years of experience in business and real estate cases in both state and federal courts. That matters when a fiduciary dispute involves parties in different states or claims that could end up in federal court. The firm works as a true legal team, so everyone on your matter knows the file, and a strict 24 hour return call policy applies when the attorneys are in court and cannot respond right away.

The firm’s results include a recent final judgment after a 5-day bench trial in Broward County Circuit Court, a 32-page ruling awarding our client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. That outcome came from the same skills fiduciary cases demand: building a detailed record from documents and the parties’ history of dealing, and presenting it to a judge. We are also experienced in mediation and arbitration, and we look for the resolution that fits the client’s goals and budget rather than prolonging a case for its own sake. Many clients also reach us through referrals from other attorneys, including out of state lawyers whose clients have disputes in Florida.

Situations That Lead to Fiduciary Duty Claims

• Diverted or Missing Company Funds: A manager, officer, or partner moves money to personal accounts, pays personal expenses through the business, or cannot account for cash. Remedies can include an accounting, recovery of the funds, and emergency relief to stop further transfers.
• Self-Dealing Transactions: The person in control sells company property to themselves or a related entity at a discount, awards contracts to a relative’s business, or pays themselves compensation the other owners never approved.
• Usurped Business Opportunities: A partner or officer takes a deal, client, or lease that belonged to the company and routes it to a competing venture they own.
• Freeze-Outs of Minority Owners: Majority members or shareholders cut a minority owner off from information, distributions, or decision making, sometimes while continuing to pay themselves.
• Refusal to Provide Books and Records: An owner who is denied financial statements, tax returns, or bank records often has the first sign that something is wrong, and the denial can itself support further claims.
• Commingled Accounts: Business and personal funds mixed in the same account make it hard to trace where money went, and the person who commingled them is typically the one who must explain it.
• Family Business Betrayals: A sibling, parent, or in-law running a family company favors their own side of the family, drains value, or makes unilateral decisions about a jointly held asset.
• Real Estate Joint Ventures: A co-investor who controls a property-owning entity refinances, encumbers, or sells without proper authority, or keeps rents and sale proceeds that belong to the group.

What to Do If You Suspect a Fiduciary Has Betrayed You

Start by getting your hands on the paper. Collect the operating agreement, partnership agreement, or shareholder agreement, along with any amendments, plus tax returns, K-1s, bank statements, and any financial reports you have received. If you are a member or shareholder with a right to inspect company books, make a written request and keep a copy. A refusal, or a pattern of delay, is useful evidence. Preserve emails and text messages and do not delete anything, even material you think looks bad for you.

Resist the urge to confront the person before you understand what they can do in response. A fiduciary who learns you are suspicious may move money, change passwords, or alter records. If you believe assets are at risk right now, tell your attorney that at the first conversation, because Florida courts can issue temporary injunctions to preserve assets and, in dissolution proceedings under the LLC and corporate statutes, can appoint a receiver or custodian after notice and a hearing. Talk to a lawyer before you stop making required contributions, resign a position, or sign anything the other side hands you.

Deadlines depend on how the claim is characterized, so do not assume you have unlimited time. Florida’s statute of limitations is five years for actions founded on a written instrument and four years for contract claims not founded on a written instrument and for fraud claims, with fraud running from discovery and capped at 12 years. Claims against professionals can fall under a two-year period that runs from when the problem was or should have been discovered. Which period applies to your claim is a question for an attorney who has read your documents, and the safest course is to act as soon as you suspect a problem.

Cases in the Palm Beach County area are filed in circuit court, part of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, which handles claims above the county court ceiling and the equitable relief fiduciary cases often require. The North County Courthouse in Palm Beach Gardens serves the northern part of the county, while the main courthouse is in West Palm Beach. If your dispute has a Broward County connection, it may be heard in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which has complex business divisions for larger business disputes. Federal claims in this region are heard in the Southern District of Florida, which sits in West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale among other locations.

Remedies Available When Ownership Relationships Break Down

A fiduciary case rarely ends with a single check. Depending on the facts, the court can order an accounting that forces the fiduciary to document every dollar, return diverted funds, and set aside transactions that were unfair to the company. Where the relationship itself cannot continue, the Florida LLC statute allows a member or manager to seek judicial dissolution on grounds that include misappropriation or waste of company assets, controlling members acting illegally or fraudulently, and deadlock that threatens irreparable injury. A court can also order the purchase of a petitioning member’s interest instead of shutting the company down. For corporations, shareholders have a parallel statutory path, and the corporation or other shareholders may elect to buy the petitioner’s shares at fair value, with the court stepping in if the parties cannot agree on price within 60 days.

Before choosing a route, we look at the agreement for built-in tools such as buy-sell or deadlock sale provisions, because those can displace a court-ordered remedy if they are properly invoked in time. We also weigh the realistic goals: some clients want to stay in the business with the wrongdoer removed, some want a clean buyout, and some want the company wound down. Each goal points to a different strategy, and the best choice often changes once the financial records come in.

Common Questions About Fiduciary Duty Claims in Florida

What is a breach of fiduciary duty?

It is a violation of the duties of loyalty and care owed by someone who holds a position of trust, such as a manager, officer, director, or partner. The person must put the interests of the company and its owners ahead of their own and handle entrusted assets responsibly.

Does a majority owner owe duties to minority owners?

Often yes, particularly when the majority owner controls management and finances. The scope depends on the entity type and the governing documents, which is why those documents are the first thing we review.

What can I recover if a partner took company money?

Depending on the facts, you may seek an accounting, return of the funds, damages for the harm caused, and removal of the person from a management role. If the company itself was harmed, recovery may flow to the company rather than to you directly.

Can a court stop money from being moved while the case is pending?

Yes. Florida courts can issue temporary injunctions to preserve assets when there is a real risk of dissipation, and the firm handles early and emergency injunctive relief for that purpose.

How long do I have to file?

It depends on the type of claim. Written-instrument claims carry five years, contract claims without a writing and fraud claims carry four years (fraud from discovery, capped at 12 years), and certain professional claims carry two years from discovery. Do not wait to find out which one applies to you.

Do I need to prove the other person intended to steal?

Not necessarily. A fiduciary can breach a duty through carelessness, conflicts of interest, or unfair dealing without acting with criminal intent, although intentional misconduct can support broader remedies.

Can I be shut out of the company’s financial records?

Members and shareholders generally have statutory and contractual rights to review certain company information. A refusal to provide records is a warning sign, and we can pursue the records as part of the case.

What if the wrongdoer is a family member?

These cases carry additional weight, and we handle them with discretion. The legal duties are the same, but we pay close attention to whether the family relationship opens a path to resolution through mediation before a lawsuit hardens positions.

I live in New York or New Jersey and my partner is in Florida. Can you handle this?

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

Which court will hear my case, and how long will it take?

Claims above the county court limit go to circuit court, and fiduciary matters often involve equitable remedies that belong there. Timing depends on the track the case is assigned, how contested the facts are, and whether early injunctive relief is needed. Many matters resolve earlier through negotiation or mediation, and we will tell you candidly how long yours is likely to run.

Is it worth hiring a lawyer if the amount missing is modest?

That depends on the amount, the evidence, and the cost of pursuing it. Many clients also want to stop ongoing harm, regain control, or exit a bad ownership situation, and those goals can matter more than the dollar figure. We will give you a practical assessment of whether litigation makes sense.

Can a fiduciary dispute lead to dissolving the company?

It can. Misappropriation of assets, illegal conduct by controlling owners, and deadlock causing irreparable injury are statutory grounds for judicial dissolution of an LLC, though a court may order a buyout instead.

Serving Fiduciary Duty Clients Across Palm Beach Gardens and South Florida

We represent clients in Palm Beach Gardens and throughout Palm Beach County, including Juno Beach, Jupiter, Tequesta, North Palm Beach, Lake Park, Riviera Beach, West Palm Beach, Palm Beach, Wellington, Royal Palm Beach, Lake Worth Beach, Greenacres, Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, and Boca Raton. Our work also reaches into Broward County, including Fort Lauderdale, Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, Coral Springs, Plantation, and Hollywood, and throughout South Florida generally.

Many of the owners we help live elsewhere, including New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, while their business partners, investment property, or co-owned real estate are here.

Talk With a Palm Beach Gardens Fiduciary Duty Attorney

If you believe a partner, manager, or co-owner has betrayed the trust placed in them, the sooner you speak with a Palm Beach Gardens fiduciary duty attorney, the more options you are likely to have, particularly if money is still moving. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team will review your documents, explain which claims and remedies fit your situation, and give you a straight assessment of cost and likely outcomes. Call to schedule a consultation and tell us what has happened.