Business partners often end up at each other’s throats. It’s sometimes inevitable that two or more people running a business, often with sizable egos, have different ideas about how to conduct the partnership, handle finances or a million other things, big and small. Finding the right partner can sometimes feel like searching for a needle in a haystack. You think you know someone before you start a business, but the rigors of daily life and the struggle to build an enterprise take their toll.

Sometimes, for whatever reason, one partner wants out. If you’ve planned well, a written partnership agreement may spell out what happens when someone leaves. Is
the remaining partner or partners to required to buy them out? If so, at what price?

Two Orange County, California men, who ran a business that generated media leads for advertisers, apparently had such an agreement. It’s not clear whether their
agreement was entered into up front or at a later date. But they agreed that the partner who wanted to leave would be paid $1 million.

Unfortunately, it now appears the man may be dead.

Although his body has not been recovered, he’s been missing for some time and authorities allege he was murdered by his business partner in order to avoid paying
the $1 million. They note a “fair amount of blood” was discovered in the office.

A business partnership can end in many ways. Arguments happen, disputes end up in court, lives are shattered. But murder, well that’s something we can all agree is
best left to Law And Order or the movies.

Schein & Cai handles partnership disputes. Call us for a free consultation.

Find us at www.sacattorneys.com.

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