Corporate Disputes

Our commercial disputes lawyers are experts in resolving corporate disputes. We advise and represent clients across a range of industry and business sectors in the disputes that define their structures and determine their futures.

We understand that disputes within a business, whether they involve partners, directors, or shareholders, can be complex and personal, and also disruptive and damaging to the smooth running and profitability of your business. They often result from differences in opinion or misunderstandings but, when the stakes are high, matters can quickly escalate.

Our commercial dispute specialists recognise the importance of resolving these matters swiftly and effectively to minimise disruption to your business. Working closely with colleagues in our Corporate & Commercial, Commercial Property and Rural teams, we will help you to resolve the dispute as quickly and cost-effectively as possible.

We offer expert legal advice to companies, directors, shareholders, partners, and LLP members. Whatever the issue, our approach is always to understand the commercial as well as the legal context of your corporate dispute. We will then help you to understand the legal position, explore your options and develop the most appropriate strategy to achieve a favourable outcome for your business.

Types of corporate disputes

Our experienced commercial disputes lawyers advise on a wide range of corporate disputes, including:

• Partnership disputes: we handle partnership disputes governed by the Partnership Act and provide advice to Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs).
• Rural business disputes: our team has extensive experience of working with farming and rural businesses, resolving matters such as agricultural disputes, farming partnerships, and land issues. Our Rural Services page has more information.
• Director disputes: we provide comprehensive support and representation in director disputes, including claims against directors and breach of fiduciary duty matters.
• Unfair prejudice petitions: we advise minority shareholders in relation to unfair prejudice petitions to ensure that your interests are safeguarded.
• Shareholder disputes: we are well-versed in handling shareholder disputes, including deadlock situations, reflective-loss claims, just and equitable winding-up, and derivative actions.
• Joint venture disputes: we provide expert guidance in resolving disputes arising from joint ventures, ensuring a fair resolution that protects your interests.
• Breach of warranty claims: we have the knowledge and experience to navigate the complexities of breach of warranty claims and ensure that your interests are protected.

Corporate dispute approaches

In many corporate disputes, an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) method such as mediation, expert determination or arbitration, may be the best approach. Our team is highly skilled in all forms of ADR and has used these methods to achieve positive outcomes for clients across a range of disputes and sectors.

However, inevitably, some cases will require court proceedings and when they do, our commercial litigators have the skills and experience to be as robust and aggressive as is required to achieve the best outcomes for your business. Our team has a track record of success in handling complex cases, and we have been involved in notable cases reported in law reports, including disputes involving fiduciary duties and successful costs appeals.