Parkland Business Attorney

Parkland sits in the northwest corner of Broward County, and a business dispute that starts here is heard in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Broward County, with its own complex business division for the larger commercial cases. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team handles business and real estate litigation for owners, investors, and families in Parkland and across Broward and Palm Beach Counties, and a Parkland business attorney who knows how the Broward courts sort these cases can shape strategy from the first demand letter.

Parkland has many closely held companies: professional practices, family-run service businesses, real estate holding entities, and investment LLCs owned by people who live here but do business across South Florida. The disputes that come out of them tend to be about the same few things, namely who controls the company, where the money went, what a contract actually obliges each side to do, and what happens when co-owners can no longer share a company or a piece of property. Each of those questions is governed by a different Florida statute, a different deadline, and sometimes a different court, and getting the first move right often matters more than any later one.

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

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents business owners, investors, and families in South Florida’s difficult business and real estate disputes, serving clients in Parkland, Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and throughout Broward and Palm Beach Counties. Firm founder Andrew M. Schwartz has spent 37 years in litigation and was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989. He earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1986 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1989, and his career has centered on complex contract disputes, business divorces, and conflicts among partners, LLC members, and shareholders. He 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 practices as a true legal team, so everyone working on a matter knows the file and can answer when a client calls, and there is a strict 24 hour return call policy when the attorneys are in court. That matters in business litigation, where a partner draining an account or a closing date slipping away does not wait for a convenient week. The firm is experienced in mediation and arbitration as well as courtroom litigation, and it looks for the resolution that fits the client’s goals and budget rather than stretching a case out for its own sake.

The firm’s trial work is a matter of record. After a 5-day bench trial in Broward County Circuit Court, the court issued a 32-page final judgment awarding the firm’s client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. That result reflects the kind of detailed, document-driven preparation that contract and real estate cases demand. A significant part of the practice also comes from referrals by other attorneys, including out of state lawyers whose clients have Florida disputes, and the firm keeps referring counsel informed throughout.

Business Problems Parkland Owners Bring to a Litigation Firm

• Business Divorce: Co-owners who can no longer work together may need a negotiated buyout, a sale, a structured wind-down, or court-ordered dissolution. Deadlocked management and valuation fights are the usual flashpoints.
• Partnership and LLC Member Disputes: Disagreements over contributions, profit splits, and whether one owner is acting in self-interest often turn on the operating agreement and on fiduciary duties owed among owners.
• Family Business Conflicts: Siblings who inherited a company, parents and children with different visions, and in-laws holding equity all face questions of control and compensation that need discretion alongside firm financial protection.
• Complex Contract Litigation: Purchase agreements, shareholder agreements, commercial leases, loan documents, and construction contracts frequently turn on precise wording and the parties’ history of dealing.
• Missing Funds and Accounting Claims: Unpaid distributions, commingled accounts, diverted company money, and managers who cannot account for funds can support claims for an accounting, breach of fiduciary duty, and recovery.
• Partition and Title Disputes: Former partners, heirs, unmarried couples, and co-investors who cannot agree on shared real estate may need a partition under Chapter 64, or a quiet title action to clear competing ownership claims.
• Injunctions and Emergency Relief: When assets are being moved or a business is at risk, temporary and permanent injunctions can freeze the situation while the case proceeds.
• Outside General Counsel: Ongoing contract, compliance, and operational advice, with the firm acting as registered agent, often prevents a disagreement from becoming a lawsuit.

What to Do Right Now When a Business Dispute Surfaces

Start with the documents. Gather the operating agreement or shareholder agreement, the articles of organization or incorporation, bank and accounting records, tax returns, written communications with the other owners, and any contract at the center of the fight. Do not alter, delete, or reorganize anything, and stop discussing the dispute by text with the other side, because those messages become evidence. If you suspect money is leaving the company, copy the records you are lawfully entitled to see before access changes.

Deadlines drive more decisions than people expect. A claim founded on a written contract generally must be filed within five years, while an oral or implied contract claim has four years. A fraud claim runs four years from discovery, subject to a 12 year outer limit. An action seeking specific performance has just one year, which is why a failed commercial closing cannot sit while the parties talk. Negligence claims now carry a two year limit, and a professional malpractice claim has a two year period measured from when it was or should have been discovered. If you are weighing a claim, confirm which period applies before anything else.

Where you file depends on the amount and the claim. County court in Broward handles actions at law up to the statutory ceiling, and circuit court handles larger claims and the equitable matters such as partition, quiet title, injunctions, and dissolution. Broward’s Seventeenth Circuit also maintains a complex business division for large commercial cases, dissolution of certain business entities, and major construction litigation, and a filer can request direct assignment there through the procedure the court’s administrative order sets out. Federal claims go to the Southern District of Florida, which holds court in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. Because Parkland owners often have partners, property, or customers in Palm Beach County, the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Palm Beach County, may also be the right forum.

The most common mistake is waiting. Owners hope a partner will stabilize, keep funding a company whose books they cannot see, or sign a buyout offer without a valuation. Another is assuming the operating agreement is irrelevant; many contain buyout, expulsion, deadlock sale, or mandatory mediation and arbitration provisions that control what you can do and in what order. A prompt review of the agreement usually tells you whether you should negotiate, demand an accounting, seek an injunction, or prepare for litigation.

How Florida Law Handles Dissolving a Troubled Company

When owners are stuck, Florida’s statutes provide structured exits. For an LLC, a member or manager can ask the circuit court to dissolve the company on specified grounds, including that all or substantially all of the company’s activities are conducted unlawfully, that it is not reasonably practicable to carry on the business in line with the articles and operating agreement, that those in control have acted or are expected to act illegally or fraudulently, that assets are being misappropriated or wasted to the company’s injury, or that managers or members are deadlocked and irreparable injury is threatened or occurring. If the operating agreement has a deadlock sale provision that is properly initiated before the court finds deadlock grounds, that provision applies in place of a dissolution order. In these proceedings the court may, on a sufficient showing, appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing, or order the company or other members to buy out the petitioner.

Corporations have a parallel path. A shareholder can seek judicial dissolution on grounds that include abandonment of the business without liquidating within a reasonable time. Once such a proceeding begins, the corporation must notify the other shareholders within 30 days that they can avoid dissolution by electing to purchase 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, and an election to purchase is irrevocable unless the court finds it equitable to change it. During the case the court can issue injunctions, appoint a receiver or custodian, and take steps to preserve corporate assets. Filing for dissolution on certain grounds also does not strip a shareholder of the right to start a deadlock sale provision found in a compliant shareholder agreement.

Partition, Quiet Title, and Shared Real Estate in Broward

Co-owned property is a frequent offshoot of business breakups. Partition actions are brought in chancery, and the complaint must describe the land, name the owners and where they live, and state each owner’s share. After a judgment of partition, the court appoints three commissioners, chosen by the parties if they agree. If the commissioners report that dividing the land would prejudice the owners, the court may order a sale at public auction and divide the proceeds in proportion to ownership. A sale on credit is possible for good cause, but at least one-third of the price must be paid at the outset unless everyone consents otherwise.

Inherited property raises a separate layer. Florida’s Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act applies to actions filed on or after July 1, 2020, and it governs where cotenants hold as tenants in common without a binding partition agreement, at least one acquired title from a relative, and further conditions are met, such as relatives holding twenty percent or more of the interests. In those cases a partition in kind is entered only after commissioners consider the statutory factors and find that dividing the land would prejudice the cotenants as a group.

Quiet title is the tool for clearing a cloud on ownership. A complaint can be filed in any county where part of the land lies, a plaintiff generally must trace title back at least seven years unless the court orders otherwise, and a claim based on a fraudulent attempted conveyance can proceed on the court’s summary procedure with the case advanced on the calendar. Adverse possession, which requires seven years of actual, continuous possession under a claim of title, sometimes lies behind these disputes.

Questions Parkland Business Owners Ask

What is a business divorce?

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

Can I force a partner out of my Florida LLC?

It depends on your operating agreement and the conduct involved. Many agreements contain buyout, expulsion, or dissociation provisions, and Florida law offers remedies for serious misconduct or when the company can no longer function. An attorney should review the agreement before you act.

What can I do if a partner is taking company money?

You may have claims for breach of fiduciary duty, an accounting, conversion, and recovery of the funds. In urgent cases, a court can issue an injunction to stop assets from being moved or spent while the dispute is pending.

How long do I have to sue for breach of contract in Florida?

Five years when the claim is founded on a written instrument and four years for oral or implied contracts. Specific performance carries a one year period, so real estate and commercial closing disputes need faster attention.

Does every dispute have to go to court?

No. Many are resolved through negotiation, mediation, or arbitration, and some agreements require those steps first. The firm pursues the path most likely to reach your goals efficiently.

How does a partition action work?

One co-owner asks the court to divide the property or, when division is impractical, to order a sale and split the proceeds by ownership interest. Commissioners appointed by the court report on whether division can be done fairly.

If my operating agreement has a deadlock buyout clause, can I still ask for dissolution?

For an LLC, a properly initiated deadlock sale provision can displace a judicial dissolution order or a court-ordered purchase, so the sequence of what you file and when can change your options. This is a point to resolve before filing anything.

Can a Parkland company owner handle a dispute with a partner who lives out of state?

Yes. The firm regularly represents clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut with Florida business or property interests, handles local court appearances, and keeps clients informed so travel for every hearing is not required.

Is it worth hiring a litigation attorney for a smaller commercial dispute?

Often it is, because a short consultation can confirm the governing deadline, whether the amount belongs in county or circuit court, and whether a demand letter or mediation could resolve it. Fees should be weighed against what is at stake, and the firm aims for cost-effective solutions.

What happens to a business while a dissolution case is pending?

The court can issue injunctions, appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing, and take other steps to preserve assets, and in corporate cases it may allow the business to keep operating until a full hearing. Owners may also resolve the case by buyout before trial.

Why is an outside general counsel relationship useful before a dispute begins?

Regular review of contracts, compliance, and ownership documents tends to catch the vague operating agreement terms and missing buyout provisions that later fuel litigation. The firm serves as registered agent for companies in its general counsel program.

Representing Business Clients Across Parkland, Broward County, and Palm Beach County

The firm begins with Parkland itself and the surrounding Broward County communities, working with owners in Coral Springs, Margate, Coconut Creek, Tamarac, Sunrise, Plantation, Weston, Pembroke Pines, Davie, Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, and Fort Lauderdale. Because many Parkland businesses and investment properties reach north, the team also serves clients throughout Palm Beach County, including Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, Lake Worth, Wellington, Palm Beach Gardens, and West Palm Beach. The firm also acts for clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut whose co-owners or real estate are in South Florida. Whether the dispute involves a deadlocked company, a contract that failed at closing, a shared property that must be divided, or missing money, the team handles the proceedings in the courts where the case belongs.

Speak With a Parkland Business Lawyer About Your Dispute

If a partner, co-owner, or contract counterparty has put your company, investment, or property at risk, a conversation with a Parkland business lawyer at the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can clarify your deadlines, your options under the operating agreement, and whether the situation calls for negotiation, mediation, or court. Call to discuss your case, and the team will give you a straight assessment of where you stand and what to do next.