I opened a business with my friend. It was supposed to be 50/50 and he had to put his grandfather on the business so that he could cosign some equipment loans.
Things went south, he offered to buy me out. I agreed, then he kept lowering his buyout until now, it's half what it was. I think my only leverage in this is I can sue him, but I don't have the money for legal fees.
Then I looked today, and he has removed me from the corporation. Without my consent. How can he even do that?
you are kinda fucked. get a lawyer asap, don't waste time on Veeky Forums. if you think you can't afford his fees, the truth is you can't afford not to.
>removed me from the corporation
what do you mean? do you own 50% of the stock? do you have stock certificates or an official stock registry? is your company even worth anything?
The company should be worth at least 150k, but that's just a rough estimate. It does 10,000 in gross revenue a month, but it isn't profitable yet. But if we were to sell, we'd profit. Me and my business partner went down to 25% each and his grandfather went up to 50% so he had the majority in the company for cosigning reasons. It's not like I want 25% of the business, I just want my 20k back. And he's only offering me 10
He's also threatening me to sue me for embezzlement because I used the business card for a personal expense in an emergency. My wife was in the ER and we didn't have the money for the copay.
you didn't answer my question. how did he "remove you from the corporation?"
do you have a a legally binding buyout offer from him? if not, i'm not sure why you think he's obligated to cash you out. when you invested in a private business, you knew you were buying into an illiquid investment. unless you have something in your articles of incorporation or shareholders agreement that allows you to withdraw and receive your proportionate share of the company value, i think you're stuck unless you can find another buyer.
well that was stupid of you. that is stealing from the company.
>well that was stupid of you. that is stealing from the company.
Not true if it is a partnership. You can make a draw any time. Sure it should be a draw not a charge for medical expenses, but I doubt any court would give you much trouble for this.
You have to take them to court OP. You are entitled to part of the business.
op said its a corporation, not a partnership.
S Corp but I owned 25%
He did an annual report online, naming only his name on the business.
Did he ever tell you not to use the business card? Your wife is an integral part of your ability to run the business from your perspective.
If I was your attorney I would go to court to freeze the corporate bank account and I would threaten to being suit against him and grandpa.
I would ask for a list of all his personal assets and grandpa's as well as their homeowners insurance contact.
After they got through shitting they would settle.
Hey. I did something nice.