Parkland General Counsel

The value of a company’s lawyer is usually decided long before anyone files a lawsuit, in the operating agreement nobody revisited, the lease signed without a second read, and the partner handshake that never made it into writing. Outside Parkland general counsel work is built around that fact. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team provides outside general counsel services to businesses in Parkland and throughout Broward County and Palm Beach County, with a litigator’s eye for the clauses and habits that turn into disputes later.

Parkland’s business community is made up largely of owner-operated companies: professional practices, family-held real estate, construction and contracting firms, consultants, and investors who hold property through LLCs. These owners rarely need a full-time in-house attorney, but they do need someone who knows their documents, answers questions the day they come up, and can step into a dispute without starting from scratch. A general counsel relationship fills that gap, and because ours comes from a litigation practice, the advice tends to be shaped by how contracts and ownership structures actually fail in court.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team as Your Parkland Outside Counsel

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team is a business and real estate litigation firm serving business owners, investors, and families across Broward County, Palm Beach County, and South Florida, including clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who hold business or property interests here. 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 centered on 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.

Sundeep Nath, Senior Counsel, is a Northwestern-trained litigator with years of experience handling business and real estate cases in state and federal courts. The firm works as a true legal team, meaning everyone assigned to your matter knows the file and can answer when you call. A strict 24 hour return call policy applies when we are in court or otherwise unavailable, and conference calls can be scheduled at times that suit everyone involved. Through the general counsel program, the firm can also serve as your company’s registered agent and help with the contract, compliance, and operational questions that arise in ordinary business.

That litigation background matters for a Parkland company because the people best positioned to draft a durable agreement are the ones who have seen what happens when it breaks. The firm has real courtroom results to point to: after a five-day bench trial in Broward County, the Circuit Court issued a 32-page final judgment awarding our client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. Mediation and arbitration are also part of the practice, and the goal is the resolution that fits the client’s objectives and budget, not a longer case for its own sake.

What an Outside General Counsel Handles for a Parkland Business

• Operating and Shareholder Agreements: The agreement that governs ownership decides what happens in a deadlock, a buyout, or a falling out. Florida’s LLC statute lets members seek judicial dissolution for deadlock with irreparable injury, misappropriated assets, or an impracticable operating structure, but a well-drafted agreement with a deadlock sale mechanism can replace that fight entirely.
• Commercial Leases: Parkland tenants and landlords face personal guaranty language, default and cure provisions, and renewal terms that deserve review before signing, not after a notice arrives.
• Contract Drafting and Review: Purchase agreements, vendor and customer contracts, loan documents, and construction agreements are reviewed with an eye to how a court would read the exact wording.
• Registered Agent and Compliance: Service of process lands on the registered agent, so a missed lawsuit or notice is a real risk when that role is neglected. Our program covers it and keeps routine corporate housekeeping in order.
• Real Estate Holdings: Many Parkland owners hold property with partners, siblings, or investors. Co-ownership structure, title questions, and exit rights are planned for up front, before a partition or quiet title action becomes the only way out.
• Family Business Planning: When relatives share ownership, clear rules on control, compensation, and succession prevent the disputes that damage both the company and the family.
• Early Dispute Triage: When a disagreement surfaces, counsel who already knows your documents can decide quickly whether a demand letter, mediation, or emergency injunctive relief is the right move.

When Something Goes Wrong: Deadlines and Next Moves for a Parkland Company

The most useful thing an owner can do when a problem appears is gather the paper trail and call counsel before responding to the other side. Collect the signed agreements, any amendments, emails and texts showing how the parties actually dealt with each other, bank and accounting records, and anything showing who did what and when. Cases frequently turn on the exact language of the contract and the history of the parties’ dealings, so what you save now shapes what we can prove later.

Timing matters, and Florida’s limitation periods vary by claim. A lawsuit on a written contract generally must be filed within five years, while a claim on an oral or implied contract has four years. Rescission claims carry four years, and fraud claims run four years from discovery with an outer limit of 12 years. A specific performance action has only one year, which is why a buyer or seller who wants to compel a closing cannot sit on the claim. Negligence claims now carry two years, and non-medical professional malpractice claims have a two-year period that runs from when the claim was or should have been discovered. Those shorter periods are a reason to get advice early instead of waiting to see if the problem resolves itself.

If money or assets may be moving out of the company, the situation can be urgent in a different way. A court can order injunctive relief to stop funds or property from being moved or spent while a dispute is pending, and in an LLC dissolution case it can appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing. Those remedies work best when requested quickly and supported by documents, so resist the urge to confront the other owner first.

Where a case is filed depends on the amount and the nature of the dispute. Since county civil courts hear claims up to a statutory ceiling and circuit courts hear larger ones, most significant business disputes belong in circuit court. For a Parkland business, that means the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Broward County, and which maintains complex business divisions that handle business dissolution cases and large commercial litigation. Disputes involving property or parties in Palm Beach County go to the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, and cases with federal jurisdiction can be heard by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, which sits in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. Out of state owners should know we handle the local appearances so they do not have to travel for every hearing.

Finally, avoid the common mistakes: signing a settlement or amendment without review, accepting partial payments without documenting them, moving company funds to “protect” them, and letting a registered agent lapse so a summons goes unnoticed. Each is easier to prevent than to repair.

Ownership Disputes a General Counsel Relationship Is Meant to Prevent

Much of the value of ongoing counsel shows up in what never becomes a lawsuit. Consider the exit mechanics alone. Under Florida’s corporate statute, when a shareholder petitions for judicial dissolution on certain grounds, the corporation or other shareholders may elect to buy the petitioner’s shares at fair value; if the parties agree on value and terms within 60 days of the first election, the court enters an order on those terms, and the election is irrevocable unless the court finds it equitable to modify it. The corporation must also notify the other shareholders within 30 days that they can avoid dissolution by buying out the petitioner. A shareholder agreement that addresses valuation and buyout in advance spares everyone that scramble.

The same logic applies to real estate. Florida’s partition statute lets a co-owner ask the court to divide property or, when division would prejudice the owners, order a public sale with proceeds split by ownership share. Where property passed among relatives, the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act can change the process, including how a court weighs partition in kind against sale. Title problems can be cleared through a quiet title action, which requires the plaintiff to trace title back at least seven years unless the court orders otherwise. Knowing these rules in advance lets us structure co-ownership, buy-sell terms, and succession so that a future owner has a defined way out.

That is the practical case for retaining a litigator as general counsel. We know how the buyout, dissolution, partition, and contract claims play out, so we draft to avoid them, and if one cannot be avoided, we already know your company.

Questions Parkland Business Owners Ask About General Counsel

What does an outside general counsel actually do?

An outside general counsel acts as your company’s ongoing legal advisor without being an employee. That includes reviewing contracts and leases, answering operational and compliance questions, helping with ownership agreements, and handling disputes or coordinating them if they escalate. Our program can also include serving as your registered agent.

Is outside general counsel worth it for a small or family-owned company?

Often it is most valuable for smaller companies, because they lack an in-house lawyer and tend to run on informal arrangements. Having counsel review agreements and answer questions early is usually less costly than litigating over an ambiguous contract or an undocumented partner understanding.

Why hire a litigation firm as general counsel instead of a transactional-only firm?

Because contracts are tested in disputes. A lawyer who has tried contract and partnership cases knows which clauses courts enforce, which wording invites arguments, and how a judge reads the parties’ history. That perspective improves the drafting and the day-to-day advice.

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

A claim founded on a written contract generally has a five-year limitation period, and an oral or implied contract claim has four years. A suit for specific performance has a one-year period, so claims to force a closing cannot wait. Because the right deadline depends on the facts, have counsel confirm it for your situation.

Can you serve as my company’s registered agent?

Yes. Through our general counsel program, the firm can act as the company’s registered agent, which ensures legal notices and service of process reach people who will act on them promptly.

Can you help if my business partner is taking money from the company?

Yes. Depending on the facts, claims can include breach of fiduciary duty, an accounting, conversion, and recovery of funds. When assets are at risk of being moved or spent, we can seek emergency injunctive relief while the case is pending.

What happens if my operating agreement says nothing about a deadlock?

Florida law gives LLC members a path to judicial dissolution if managers or members are deadlocked, cannot break the deadlock, and irreparable injury to the company is threatened or occurring. The court can also appoint a receiver or custodian or order a buyout of the petitioning member’s interest. Having a deadlock sale provision in the agreement lets you control that process instead of leaving it to a judge.

Does retaining general counsel mean I will end up in court more often?

No, the opposite is typically true. Early review and clear documents resolve many problems before they harden into disputes, and when conflicts do arise, mediation and negotiation are frequently possible. Our attorneys handle mediation and arbitration as well as courtroom litigation.

I own a Parkland business but live in another state. Can you still represent me?

Yes. We regularly work with owners and investors from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who have business or real estate interests in South Florida. We handle local court appearances and keep you informed so you do not have to travel for each proceeding.

Which court would hear a significant business dispute involving my Parkland company?

Larger commercial disputes are typically filed in circuit court, which for Broward County is the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit. That circuit has complex business divisions for matters such as business entity dissolutions and large commercial and construction cases. Cases tied to Palm Beach County go to the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, and federal claims can proceed in the Southern District of Florida.

Do you work with other attorneys on referrals?

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

Serving Parkland and Surrounding South Florida Communities

Our general counsel and business litigation work begins in Parkland and extends across Broward County, from Coral Springs, Coconut Creek, and Margate to Tamarac, Sunrise, Plantation, and Fort Lauderdale, along with Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, Weston, Davie, and Hollywood. We also serve companies and property owners throughout Palm Beach County, including Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, Wellington, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, and West Palm Beach. Whether your business is a professional practice in a Parkland office park, a family real estate holding company, or an investment shared among out of state partners, we work with owners across South Florida and the clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who hold interests here.

Speak With a Parkland General Counsel Attorney Before a Problem Starts

If your company has been running on handshake understandings, an outdated operating agreement, or contracts no lawyer has read closely, now is the time to fix it. A Parkland general counsel attorney who also litigates can tighten your documents, serve as your registered agent, and be ready if a dispute develops. Call the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team to discuss how an outside general counsel relationship could work for your business.