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Expert Answers to Biz Questions
Listen in! Pick up some expert advice to a reader's question that we selected from CyberSchmooz.
How to Avoid Disputes as a Business Owner?
If you are reading this article, then you know what business litigation is. It deals with disputes that stem from or are related to business transactions made between companies or individuals.
However, the question is – how do you avoid having to meet and consult with business litigation attorneys? In short, how do you prevent disputes as a business owner?
Even though most business owners believe that litigation will have a good resolution for their disputes, they fail to take into account the costs that are associated with it. If they lose the litigation, they’ll have to pay damages, endure adverse publicity and reputation damage, and much more.
So, let’s see how you can avoid disputes and business litigation as a business owner!
The Keys to Avoiding Disputes
Keep in mind that business litigation is usually costly and lengthy. Therefore, you will not only lose a lot of money with it but also the time that you could use to increase profits, come up with new marketing strategies, and so on.
Here is how to prevent disputes from happening:
- Establish and maintain good relationships with customers, employees, business partners, and suppliers. On top of that, make sure to treat them fairly, because people will not ruin a good relationship because of a dispute or litigation.
- Know who you are working with. One of the easiest ways to avoid disputes and litigation is to prevent companies and individuals who have a bad reputation or a history of litigation.
- Have every agreement in writing. Most business disputes come from ambiguities and misunderstandings that may have been avoided with the help of written agreements.
- Review standard agreements and purchase orders regularly. By doing so, you make sure that these orders and agreements respect the most recent law, as well as your business practices.
- Read before signing any agreements. If you don’t want to start a dispute over a certain agreement later, read it as soon as you are presented with it, to confirm that it reflects your business’ intentions – including yours.
- Ensure that your promotional and marketing materials are accurate. If you don’t want disputes with your customers, make sure that you are not deceptive and that you do not over-promise – ever!
- Keep complete documentation and files of your business relationships. It is never wise to rely on memories, oral testimonies, or your own interpretation when you want to avoid disputes and litigation.
- Respond promptly to issues/problems. Make sure that you address any issues and signs of a dispute before they escalate. In one way or another, litigation – and disputes – are just problems that were not addressed on time.
- Implement dispute-solving procedures. You should implement certain procedures that are meant to communicate any potential dispute up the chain of command. By doing so, the appropriate attention and resources may be dedicated to resolving any disputes before they get out of control.
The Bottom Line
As mentioned above, disputes and litigation are avoided by acting in a timely manner!
If you pay attention to what you are doing and to who you are working with, you will have no problem in noticing disputes when they start to form and neutralize them before they turn into costly litigation!
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