Owning your own business offers both financial and personal benefits. However, if you are in a business partnership that is now looking at splitting up, engaged in an accounting dispute, or some other business litigation, owning a business can be extremely stressful. In either of the aforementioned scenarios, receiving sound legal counsel from DC business litigation lawyers is extremely important as you move forward through complicated business litigation.
With more than 20 years of complex legal, accounting, and tax experience, Antonoplos & Associates business litigation lawyers have the knowledge and expertise required to help you quickly resolve any business litigation you may encounter. Because our firm has helped large and small businesses in almost every type of DC business litigation, we are prepared to help you through any legal issues fast, efficiently, and in a cost-effective manner.
Comprehensive Planning for Your Individualized Litigation Needs
Because we work closely with clients, we are able to fully understand our client’s needs and help them know exactly when and how to bring about a suit. Additionally, we offer advice on how to ideally defend the suit and how it can affect their long-term goals. Furthermore, creating a plan of action before you enter into a legal suit is the best way to ensure that you avoid high expenses associated with business litigation.
Knowledgeable Business Litigation Representation
Our team of experienced attorneys is ideally suited to handle the most complex business litigation issues, including:
- Breach of contract
- Breach of fiduciary duty
- Misappropriation of funds
- Trademark infringement
- Divorce valuation issues
- Partnership splits
- Misappropriation of trade secrets
- Violation of confidentiality
- Misappropriation of funds
- Violation of noncompete clauses
With our comprehensive knowledge of business litigation coupled with our highly trained support staff, we can cover the entirety of your claims and put you in the best position to win your lawsuit.
Types of Alternative Dispute Resolution
Lawsuits—whether you are suing or being sued—disrupt your business. This can be an extremely costly process. Furthermore, lawsuits are also time-consuming and ultimately work to keep you away from focusing on your company. Therefore, we work to resolve disputes in an effective, timely manner. In some business lawsuits, the best way to proceed with a case is to avoid litigation. In these scenarios, a claim moves forward and focuses on alternate dispute resolution (ADR).
While our attorneys are more than capable of taking your case to court—and winning—a form of ADR may be the most efficient path to ending the lawsuit. Two common methods of ADR used to resolve business litigation are mediation and arbitration. Many business contracts even include provisions that require the parties exhaust these avenues before taking their cases to court.
Mediation
Mediation is a form of alternate dispute resolution. The parties choose a third-party mediator that facilitates settlement discussion. Mediators both assist the parties in defining the issues in the dispute while helping them communicate productively so as to resolve the issues. While the mediator attempts to help both parties along, the power remains with the parties to agree to a resolution.
Many mediation cases begin as a joint session. However, mediators eventually typically meet with the parties individually to learn more about their individual position. The mediator may also discuss weaknesses with the parties in their position to help them understand why compromising to reach a settlement is going to be the best choice.
Finally, mediation is not binding and as such, the parties are not required to settle the matter and can pursue a lawsuit if they do not agree with the mediator’s decision.
Arbitration
Arbitration is more formal than mediation as it can be binding on the parties. Thus, the arbitrator’s decision is enforceable in court—if pre-agreed that the decision is binding. As such, the parties may have extremely limited reasons to appeal the decision. Especially for this form of ADR, having experienced DC business litigation lawyers is key to your success.
For this form of alternative dispute resolution, an arbitrator attempts to render a decision that resolves the dispute. The arbitrator does so after both party’s present testimony and evidence. In this situation, the arbitrator is the sole person ruling on the case. Furthermore, an arbitrator can hear evidence that would not be admitted in court. Arbitration can be extremely useful as this process is typically less costly and time-consuming than a traditional trial.
While a company can save some legal fees if they choose to move forward with the arbitration, if the arbitrator decides against the company, they have little ability to appeal the decision. Because of this fact, a binding arbitration should be viewed in the same way you would view a trial because the consequences could be devastating for the business. Therefore, if a company chooses arbitration as their choice of alternative dispute resolution, it is imperative that they hire a firm that has multiple experienced business litigation attorneys.
Contact our DC Office
For more information regarding our DC business litigation lawyers, contact us at 202-803-5676. You can also directly schedule a consultation with one of our experienced business attorneys.