Most businesses are privately owned, meaning they are not traded on one of the public stock exchanges. Many of these businesses are organized as privately held corporations or as limited liability companies, or LLCs.
When affairs are operating as intended, the stakeholders in these businesses, oftentimes family members, friends or long-time business associates, may have some minor differences of opinion but generally are on the same page.
For a number of reasons, though, co-owners of these businesses sometimes do not get along. In extreme cases, the end result could be that to company has to wind down so that all parties can go their separate ways.
In other cases, a shareholders who want to stay together will have to buy out a few who wish to leave the company.
Breach of shareholder agreement claims and other actions may require legal help
Ideally, a company’s shareholder agreement will spell out what happens if the owners of a business in the greater Alton area decide to split. Illinois law will fill in any gaps.
However, during the fallout, information may be discovered that leads to accusations that some of the shareholders breached their agreement.
Depending on the circumstances, some shareholders’ actions may even get challenged as a breach of fiduciary duty to the other shareholders.
Of course, every shareholder wants to be treated fairly, and sometimes filing a legal claim for breach of contract or breach of fiduciary duty is the best way to ensure fair treatment when a business is being shuttered or restructured.
Because they often resolve around the details of business decisions and financial transactions, these cases are often complicated. They require not only detailed legal knowledge but also proficiency with business and accounting principles.
