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Our commercial lawyers specialise in court litigation. We deal with conflicts in business and will initially attempt to settle commercial disputes by agreement failing which we will not hesitate to issue legal proceedings in a court of law. We do not allow these matters to drag on and prefer to let a judge decide any contentious issues in early course. If you need urgent advice on a potentially litigious matter just call us on our helpline for instant free advice from a specialist company/commercial solicitor with absolutely no further obligation.

In the absence of a contrary agreement or where an agreement is silent on a specific point this type of business relationship is governed by statute. Under this legislation general partners usually have unlimited liability however more recent legislation may have allowed the liability of some partners to be limited. Business partnership litigation solicitors are often called upon to help resolve disputes between those who were unaware of the effects that this legislation would have on their commercial relationships.

A partnership is defined as "the relation which subsists between persons carrying on a business in common with a view to profit". Limited companies fall under different legislation and are excluded from all of the provisions of partnership statutes however as a limited company is a legal entity, it is possible for individual companies to enter into a partnership between themselves or with an individual. The relationship may be in writing or it may only be implied. By definition charities and members clubs are usually excluded due to the fact that they are not designed to make a profit.

If a formal written agreement is lacking or if a written agreement does not have the relevant content, business partnership litigation solicitors and the courts will refer to the partnership legislation to resolve any disputes. Where there is no written agreement, it will be left to the party alleging the existence of the relationship to prove it. If the party claiming the partnership exists can prove it then the court will determine the issues in dispute.

A limited company may appear to give respectability and most people feel safer dealing with a limited company however a business partnership litigation solicitor will usually advise that partnerships are likely to be more secure due to the unlimited liability of the partners.

A limited company does provide some protection for the directors in the event of a financial collapse; however there are other financial requirements which will typically mean that a limited company will have higher accounting expenses than a partnership or sole trader. For a limited company all annual accounts and reports need to be filed and will generally be open to public viewing. In addition, details of the company directors will be publicly available. Matters relating to these issues should be discussed with a commercial solicitor. Making the right decisions at an early stage can prevent numerous problems in the future.

The business arena is a difficult and demanding discipline for a lawyer and specialists tend to gravitate to the large commercial law firms that have commensurate fee scales with many of them not being interested in dealing with anything other than multi-national corporations. Our solicitors deal with small and medium sized business from start up ventures to long established family firms. Our lawyers are well versed in the problems and difficulties facing local businesses and they are able to assist in all legal matter relating to business.

Our experienced company lawyers are located across Australia and will give you clear, unequivocal advice. If after talking to us you wish to proceed no further you will be under no obligation to do so and you will not be charged anything for our initial advice.