Weston Business Divorce Attorney

Weston business owners who have reached the point of asking whether a partnership can survive are usually weighing two bad options: stay locked in with a co-owner they no longer trust, or fight for a clean exit. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team handles business divorce, partnership and member disputes, and complex contract litigation for owners, investors, and families in Weston, throughout Broward County and Palm Beach County, and across South Florida. If you need a Weston business divorce attorney, the first questions are practical: what does your operating or shareholder agreement actually say, what is being done with company money right now, and does the business keep running while this plays out?

Business divorces rarely start with a single blow-up. They build: a partner stops contributing, distributions dry up, books become hard to get, or one owner makes decisions as if the company were his alone. By the time an owner calls a lawyer, the question is often less “who is right” and more “how do we separate, on what terms, and who pays whom.”

Florida gives a dissatisfied owner more tools than many realize, but the tools differ depending on whether the company is an LLC or a corporation, and whether the founding documents contain buyout or deadlock provisions. Getting that first read right shapes everything that follows.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for a Business Divorce

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents business owners, investors, and families in South Florida’s hardest business and real estate disputes, serving Weston and Broward County alongside Palm Beach County. Andrew M. Schwartz has spent 37 years in litigation, was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989, and has built his career around 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.

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. That matters in ownership fights, which sometimes move between a state circuit court and federal court depending on the parties and claims. Calls are answered, and there is a strict 24 hour return call policy when the team is in court.

The firm’s trial work is current. After a 5-day bench trial, a Broward County circuit judge issued a 32-page final judgment awarding the firm’s client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. That is the kind of detail-driven, document-heavy litigation that business divorces demand. The firm also handles mediation and arbitration, and Andrew’s stated approach is to act as the situation requires and use finesse when finesse will do, looking for a result that fits the client’s goals and budget rather than prolonging a case for its own sake.

Types of Ownership Disputes We Handle for Weston Companies

• Deadlocked Management: Two 50/50 owners who cannot agree on a hire, a sale, a lease, or a loan can freeze a company. Florida’s LLC statute recognizes deadlock as a ground for judicial dissolution when the deadlock cannot be broken and irreparable injury to the company is threatened or occurring.
• Buyouts and Valuation Fights: Most separations end with one owner purchasing the other’s interest. The dispute is usually over price: what the business is worth, which discounts apply, and what the agreement says about the formula.
• Breach of Operating or Shareholder Agreements: Missed capital calls, ignored consent requirements, unauthorized transfers, and violated non-compete or buy-sell terms are all enforceable claims, and these cases often turn on the exact wording of the document.
• Breach of Fiduciary Duty: Managers and controlling owners owe duties to the company and, in many situations, to the other owners. Self-dealing, diverting opportunities, and paying oneself outside the agreement are common allegations.
• Missing or Diverted Funds: Unpaid distributions, commingled accounts, and partners who cannot account for company money support claims for an accounting and recovery of funds. Florida’s LLC law lists misappropriation or waste of assets, causing injury, as a ground for dissolution.
• Minority Owner Squeeze-Outs: A minority member or shareholder shut out of information, decisions, and distributions has statutory options, including petitioning for dissolution or negotiating a purchase of the interest.
• Family and Friend Businesses: Siblings who inherited a company, parents and children who disagree about its future, and spouses or in-laws with shared ownership bring emotional weight that must be handled with discretion while financial interests stay protected.
• Shared Real Estate Held Through the Business: When co-owners also hold property together, a business split can require a partition action or a title dispute alongside the company case.

What a Weston Owner Should Do Before and After a Split Becomes Real

Start with paper. Pull the articles of organization or incorporation, the operating agreement or shareholder agreement, any buy-sell terms, amendments, and the last several years of tax returns and financial statements. Look for deadlock provisions, valuation formulas, notice requirements, and dispute resolution clauses such as mandatory mediation or arbitration. A deadlock sale clause can matter a great deal: under Florida’s LLC statute, if a deadlock sale provision is started before a court finds deadlock grounds, that provision generally controls in place of a dissolution order.

Next, protect your access. If you are a member or shareholder with the right to inspect records, make a written request and keep a copy. If money is moving out of the company in ways you cannot explain, preserve bank statements and communications now, before they become hard to obtain. Do not delete messages, lock a partner out of systems, or move funds on your own; self-help is how a strong position becomes a weak one.

Watch the clock. A claim founded on a written agreement generally must be filed within five years, while oral or implied contract claims have four years. A fraud claim runs four years from discovery, with an outer limit of 12 years. A specific performance action carries a one-year period. Because deadlines depend on when a claim accrued and what it is based on, an early document review matters.

On venue, Weston sits in Broward County, whose civil cases are heard in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit. The circuit has a complex business division that handles matters such as dissolution of certain business entities and large business litigation, and a case can be directed there only through the filing procedure the circuit’s administrative order sets out. Claims above the county court ceiling belong in circuit court, and the Southern District of Florida sits in Fort Lauderdale if a federal claim or diversity is involved. If assets are at risk, the court can be asked for temporary or emergency injunctive relief and, in dissolution cases, for a receiver or custodian after notice and a hearing.

The most common mistakes are waiting until the money is gone, signing a buyout proposal without a valuation, and assuming a handshake deal overrides the written agreement. Call early, bring the documents, and decide with counsel whether the goal is to keep the company running, buy out, or exit.

How Florida Law Lets Owners Exit: Dissolution, Buyouts, and Court Remedies

For LLCs, a member or manager can ask a circuit court to dissolve the company on listed grounds: activities conducted unlawfully; it is not reasonably practicable to operate in line with the articles and operating agreement; controlling owners acting or expected to act illegally or fraudulently; assets being misappropriated or wasted; or a deadlock that cannot be broken with irreparable injury threatened or occurring. Once a petition shows sufficient merit, the court may appoint a receiver or custodian or order a purchase of the petitioner’s interest. That second option is often the real destination: the petition creates leverage for a fair-value exit.

For corporations, a shareholder can seek judicial dissolution on grounds that include a corporation that has abandoned its business and failed to wind up within a reasonable time. Corporate law also builds in an off-ramp: when a shareholder petitions on the deadlock or misconduct grounds, the corporation or the remaining shareholders may elect 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 directing the purchase. Within 30 days of the proceeding starting, the corporation must notify the other shareholders that they can avoid dissolution by electing to buy. An election to purchase is irrevocable unless the court finds it equitable to modify it. Filing for dissolution does not cut off a shareholder’s right to use a compliant deadlock sale provision in a shareholder agreement.

During the case, the court can issue injunctions, appoint a receiver or custodian, and take steps to preserve company assets. Dissolution is rarely the first choice, because it can destroy value. Many Weston disputes end through negotiated buyout, structured wind-down, mediation, or arbitration, with litigation held in reserve to force the conversation.

Frequently Asked Questions About Business Divorce in Weston

What is a business divorce?

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

Can I force a partner out of my LLC?

It depends on the operating agreement and the partner’s conduct. Many agreements include buyout, expulsion, or dissociation provisions, and Florida law provides court remedies when an owner has engaged in serious misconduct or the company can no longer function. A review of your agreement tells you which route is open.

What if my partner is taking money from the business?

You may have claims for breach of fiduciary duty, an accounting, conversion, and recovery of funds. In urgent situations a court can order injunctive relief to stop assets from being moved or spent while the case is pending.

Do we have to go to court to end the partnership?

No. Many disputes resolve through negotiation, mediation, or arbitration, and some agreements require those steps first. Court becomes necessary when an owner will not negotiate or when assets need immediate protection.

What does a court look at to dissolve an LLC?

For a petition by a member or manager, the statutory grounds include unlawful conduct of the business, impracticability of operating under the governing documents, illegal or fraudulent conduct by controlling owners, misappropriation or waste of assets, and unresolvable deadlock with irreparable injury.

How is a departing owner’s share valued?

The operating or shareholder agreement may set a formula or appraisal method. If it is silent, the parties negotiate or a court determines fair value, usually with financial experts. Valuation is where most buyouts are won or lost, so documents and financial records matter.

What is a deadlock sale provision, and does it override a dissolution case?

It is an agreement mechanism, often a buy-sell trigger, for resolving a standoff between owners. Under Florida’s LLC statute, if it is started before the court finds deadlock grounds, it can apply instead of a dissolution order or court-ordered buyout, so timing and drafting matter.

My business partner is also my sibling. Does that change anything?

The law is the same, but the handling is not. These cases call for discretion and often benefit from mediation, while the financial rights of each owner still have to be protected step by step.

I live in New York, New Jersey, or Connecticut but own a Weston business. Can you handle it?

Yes. The firm regularly represents clients from those states who have business or real estate interests in South Florida, handles the local court appearances, and keeps you informed so you do not have to travel for every hearing.

How long do I have to file a claim over a broken partnership agreement?

A claim founded on a written contract generally has a five-year period; an oral or implied contract claim has four. Fraud claims run four years from discovery, subject to a 12-year cap. When the deadline starts depends on the facts, so do not assume you have years.

Will the business keep operating during the dispute?

Usually yes, and keeping it running is often the best outcome for both sides. Where one owner is draining assets or blocking operations, the court can appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing, or enter injunctive relief to preserve the company.

Can the firm help if another attorney refers my case?

Yes. A significant part of the firm’s practice comes from referrals from other lawyers, including out of state attorneys whose clients have Florida disputes. The firm communicates with referring counsel throughout and respects that relationship.

Serving Weston and Surrounding South Florida Business Owners

The firm represents Weston owners and the broader Broward County business community, from Fort Lauderdale and Plantation to Davie, Sunrise, Pembroke Pines, Miramar, and Cooper City. Clients also come from Coral Springs, Parkland, Coconut Creek, Margate, Hollywood, Hallandale Beach, Pompano Beach, and Deerfield Beach, where company disputes, partnership splits, and real estate co-ownership fights look much the same as they do in Weston.

The firm’s work extends into Palm Beach County, including Boca Raton, West Palm Beach, Delray Beach, and Boynton Beach. It also represents clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut whose business partners, LLC co-owners, or shared properties are in South Florida. Whether the company is a family-run operation, a professional practice, an investment entity, or a real estate venture, the same questions apply: what do the documents say, where is the money, and what separation terms are fair.

Talk to a Weston Business Divorce Lawyer Before the Dispute Hardens

If your partnership is breaking down, a conversation with a Weston business divorce lawyer at the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can clarify your options before positions harden and money disappears. Bring your agreements and financial records, and the team will explain whether your path runs through negotiation, buyout, mediation, or court. Call to schedule a consultation.