As a business owner or company manager, you already know that business contracts are the structural supports of your business, keeping everything standing strong, no matter what else changes. Another analogy is comparing business contracts to the gears of a clock, unseen from the outside but completely integral to all base functions. With so much importance placed on your business contracts, big issues can arise as soon as a little problem with them occurs. Namely, you need to look out for contract disputes.
A contract dispute occurs whenever two interested parties do not agree upon how a contract should be followed, or when one party intentionally deviates from a contract. Employees and employers are often at odds regarding expectations of employment. Sometimes contract disputes occur between two businesses that joined in a partnership or similar business relationship; for example, if a retailer fails to pay a vendor for a product shipment. No matter what parties are involved in a contract dispute, one thing remains true: the dispute needs to be solved – and quickly.
Contract Dispute Resolution Methods
The longer a contract dispute is allowed to exist, the more likely it will cause problems, and those problems will only get worse and more expensive as time goes on. Businesses face the real possibility of losing out on time, energy, resources, and finances when a contract dispute is unsolved. Using the right contract dispute resolution method can help overcome the problem in a way seen as amicable to all parties.
The three main contract dispute resolution methods are:
- Prevention: The first method is assuredly the best, but also the the most difficult to use. You can potentially prevent any contract disputes by ensuring the contracts your business uses are effective and legally sound. If you are not sure how to create a business contract, talk with a business lawyer about where to start. You might be able to work with a contract attorney who can draft or review your contracts, making adjustments where needed.
- Negotiation: If or when a contract dispute does arise in your company, negotiation is probably the first resolution you will want to explore. Through negotiation or mediation, you and the challenging parties can work together to come up with a solution. Through determined effort, you have a good chance of maintaining relationships between the parties and stay in more control of the situation.
- Litigation: When compromising with challenging parties would feasibly jeopardize your business, civil litigation might be the only option. Through litigation, you will be asking a judge to review the situation, hear both sides, and come to a decision. While this might not be your first choice of contract dispute resolution, it will provide finality and allows you to really fight for your side.
Rhode Island’s Trusted Business Litigation Lawyers
Any business can find itself in the thick of a serious contract dispute. You might run a mom-and-pop shop or a multinational corporation and still have the same headaches caused by a contract conflict. In either situation, McIntyre Tate LLP and our Rhode Island contract dispute lawyers can come to your aid. With 150+ years of total legal experience, we have the know-how to represent and uphold your business’s best interests.
Talk about your case strategy today. Contact us at (401) 351-7700 to begin.