Partnership Disputes
Partnerships usually take one of two forms: Traditional partnerships governed by the Partnership Act 1890 or the more recent innovation of a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) under the LLP Act 2000. An increasing number of partnerships are starting life as or converting to LLP status to take advantage of the limited personal liability which the LLP structure affords.
Disputes between partners can arise in many circumstances. There may be serious differences over the future direction of the business, the level of work and commitment from each partner or, not uncommonly, arguments over how much remuneration each partner should take from the business.
Ideally, every partnership should have a comprehensive written Partnership Agreement which sets out each partner’s rights and obligations. However, such an agreement is often absent which serves to aggravate the dispute. In the absence of a written agreement, the applicable regime depends on whether the partnership is formed under the 1890 Act or the LLP Act 2000.
Members of the team, in particular Ian Carson and Tristan Benson, have handled numerous partnership disputes. We appreciate the emotional and personal issues involved and the fact that our client’s livelihood is often on the line. We also consider the impact on the business itself as, invariably, a dispute between the owners has a detrimental effect on the fortunes of the partnership business.
Where necessary, we can move quickly to seek an Injunction from the High Court to prevent one partner from damaging the partnership business or removing partnership assets. We are also skilled at promoting a mediated settlement to enable the parties to put the dispute behind them and, if necessary, go their separate ways.
