The Law Offices of Paul A. Humbert, P.L. is a Miami commercial litigation firm that has a strong focus on creditors’ rights. Its services include contract disputes, unpaid invoices, fraud claims, commercial and real estate litigation, debt collection cases, and judgment enforcement.
Your customer may stop paying your invoices after receiving goods. A vendor may ignore its contractual duties after collecting advance payments. While you could consider immediately initiating a lawsuit, it may be best to first seek the advice of a business litigation attorney. An attorney can evaluate your claims and the available evidence and then determine the most practical course of action. Before spending on a lawsuit, consider what you can prove and what outcome you need.
Commercial litigation deals with disputes arising from commercial transactions and relationships. Litigation attorneys analyze disputes before filing suit, work toward agreements, and represent clients in contested proceedings. The facts of the problem and the result you need shape that work.
Have all of the documents at hand. Before filing suit for breach of contract, for example, you will need to gather and review the original contract, amendments, purchase orders, payment histories, emails, and other correspondence. You will also need to analyze the contract terms to determine whether there are any notice or cure requirements, choice of forum or arbitration provisions, or other limitations or requirements before filing suit, as well as what legal or contractual remedies might be available.
Think of it this way: it is important to assess the contract and the facts before you act or make statements. If your customer is disputing a delivery or quality of work, your lawyer needs to know that before you make any statements. Give your lawyer unfavorable records as well as the ones that support your position.
For an unpaid invoice, gather the agreement, proof of delivery or completed work, and the account history. Include any objections to the charges.
For example, let’s say a customer has accepted deliverables at various phases of a project but then refuses the final payment because he believes the final phase is incomplete. In this case, your records of the deliverables made and the client’s stated objections are very helpful in understanding what your primary claims might be as well as possible defenses.
Before you act, check your documentation of performance and ask counsel whether stopping work, terminating the contract, or accepting payment for less than what was agreed to might affect your legal rights. The fact of a breach by the other party does not mean that you are free to do what you want in response.
A fraud claim requires analysis and review of exactly what was said, when the statements were made, the evidence that exists, and their effect on the transaction. Make sure to retain all proposals, financial records disclosed during discussions, emails, and attachments. It’s also helpful to construct a timeline of events to show what promises were made before you chose to sign a contract or write a check.
Not all legal remedies are available, but they should be explored based on the facts of your particular transaction. The remedy depends on the documents, facts, and law, not just the amount owed.
Paul A. Humbert’s commercial litigation practice includes real estate litigation, foreclosure litigation, and pursuit of deficiency judgments.
Take steps to protect records. Contracts, emails, text messages, invoices, payment history, and notices are just a few examples of important records you should collect for your attorney. Let your attorney know where the records are stored and whether there is an automatic deletion policy for the records. Ask counsel what preservation steps the circumstances require.
Flag records that might be lost when an account is closed or a phone is replaced.
Create a chronology of events while details are fresh. Distinguish between events you personally witnessed and information you have been told. Identify the people who were involved in the transaction.
Learn more about the deadlines in Florida’s limitations statute. The time limits for filing a case vary depending on the claim, and there are exceptions.
Review the notice requirements in the contract. Contractual notice requirements are separate from deadlines to respond in a court proceeding.
Don’t assume negotiations or an offer of payment extend a filing or response deadline.
When the lawsuit is received, give the documents to your attorney as soon as possible. Let your attorney know when you received the documents and how they were delivered.
Which step is the right step? The answer can depend on a number of factors, including your specific goal in the situation. For example, is your goal to obtain money immediately? Or is your goal structured payments? Or is your goal to have the other side continue to perform as called for in the contract? Or terminate the contract? This is a very important discussion to have with your legal counsel.
Before suing, a demand letter may help resolve a contract dispute. Counsel should review the demand letter to ensure the other party is being notified in accordance with the contractual agreements and any cure period. Further, counsel must understand the other party’s breaches and the next steps if the breaches are not corrected.
A commercial agreement may contain dispute resolution provisions that affect whether mediation, arbitration, or a court case is the next step. Jurisdiction and other legal requirements also matter. In mediation, a neutral mediator helps both sides come to an agreement. Mediators cannot decide the case. In arbitration, an arbitrator decides the dispute in accordance with the specific rules and contract language.
The decision to file a lawsuit should always be made after a strategic discussion of the merits of the case, the relief you can obtain, and costs. Each step of the lawsuit will be different. Your litigation team should explain what each stage is meant to accomplish. Some matters are resolved at the pleading stage. Other matters will require discovery, hearing testimony from multiple witnesses, hearings on motions, and a trial.
Whether you are in an active lawsuit or are discussing a potential ADR proceeding, a settlement may be the best route. When analyzing a settlement offer, you should consider a number of things, including but not limited to how enforceable it is, if promises are being made to pay in the future (especially if the other party hasn’t performed before), what legal rights you may be giving up, and how it fits into your overall business plan.
There is not always a simple solution to a contract dispute. The best solution to a particular contract dispute is not necessarily the cheapest. There are many factors that must be considered, including the strength of your case, the amount and type of relief you can obtain, legal costs, disruption to your business, and more.
Winning a judgment with strong legal merits does not always make practical sense if there is little chance to recover. Assessing collectability early can help you avoid spending legal fees to pursue money that is unlikely to be collected.
The firm’s debt collection and judgment enforcement practice includes asset searches. Ask how potential recovery would be assessed before proceeding. The adverse party may have few assets, or the assets it has may be protected from enforcement. Further, when a debtor files for bankruptcy, an automatic stay generally pauses covered collection actions. Exceptions and court-approved relief may apply. So a review of the bankruptcy by an attorney would be necessary prior to pursuing additional collection efforts. Paul A. Humbert provides creditor bankruptcy representation.
The right attorney to resolve your commercial dispute will not necessarily be simply any attorney claiming to be well-versed in business law. For example, a creditor’s claim may require a litigator with substantial experience in collecting unpaid accounts. Likewise, a dispute between shareholders, employment litigation, or a fight over intellectual property or trade secrets may call for different experience.
When comparing business litigation lawyers, ask:
A good business litigator will not shy away from uncertainty, both in the process and the outcome of litigation. Opinions that do not contemplate a weakness in evidence or the expense of enforcing your judgment are not very practical.
The Law Offices of Paul A. Humbert, P.L. handles commercial disputes and creditors’ rights matters. Contact the firm or call (844) 448-6237. Please be prepared to share any relevant contracts, documents, correspondence, and legal filings related to your dispute. Be ready to explain what happened, what is at stake, and what outcome you want for your business.
This post is for informational purposes and is not meant to constitute legal advice. Reading this post does not form an attorney-client relationship.
