Commercial Disputes

Your Solicitors for Commercial Disputes

Cunningtons can assist in resolving a broad range of commercial disputes, including:

• Intellectual Property and Domain Name Disputes;
• Partnership Disputes;
• Company Shareholder Disputes;
• Contract Disputes;
• Defamation & Brand Protection;
• and general Consumer Advice.

Have a look at the information below, and if we can be of any help, please contact us for a chat.

Partnership Disputes

When business partnership doesn’t run smoothly

Friends, family and trusted associates will often go into business together. Sometimes complete strangers will work together and inadvertently form a partnership, which carries with it certain rights and imposes certain duties on the parties, even if they do not realise it.

The protection provided by a Partnership Agreement

Whilst a future dispute can often be something which none of the parties have envisaged, many disputes do arise where no partnership agreement exists and Cunningtons can advise on the rights, duties and terms of any unwritten partnership.

A properly drafted partnership agreement will often include provisions for the resolution of disputes and set out the specific rights, duties and liabilities of the partners in certain circumstances, notably when a partner leaves, dies or is expelled from the partnership and how that person’s share is to be calculated.

Even where a partnership agreement does exist, arguments sometimes about the interpretation of its terms or its effect, and alleged breaches of it.

Cunningtons can assist you in resolving partnership disputes.

Company Disputes

Advice and help for company shareholders in disputes

Cunningtons advises both companies and individuals in respect of:

• breaches of shareholder agreements,
• minority shareholder claims,
• derivative claimes and
• unfair prejudice disputes.

If you are a shareholder or director and are considering or facing a claim that the company is not being run properly, Cunningtons can assist you.

Contract Disputes

Contract law pervades every aspect of our lives

Buying a loaf of bread in a shop, entering into a tenancy agreement, buying a house and starting a new job are just examples of situations where contracts arise. Disputes often arise in relation to the performance of contractual obligations.

Such disputes may turn on the interpretation of a written contractual clause or on evidence regarding what was agreed orally. One party to the contract may believe that they have complied with an agreed term of the contract but the other does not.

The courts apply certain principles and presumptions in determining what it was that the parties intended when they entered into the agreement.
Further, the law will sometimes impose contractual obligations into agreements depending on the circumstances of the case and the status of the parties. A good example of this is the contractual rights that the law imposes into consumer contracts which cannot even be excluded by agreement between the parties.

We can assist you in bringing and responding to claims for breach of express or implied terms of contracts whether those contracts are in writing or oral.

Intellectual Property and Domain Name Disputes

These days your online presence is more important than ever

The brand and set up of a business and the products, as well as the intellectual property rights owned by it, can often be a considerably valuable asset of that business.

If someone has copied your work or design, is offering goods or services under a registered trademark you are the proprietor of, or is otherwise using your goodwill or passing themselves off as you in order to sell their products or services, we can assist in bringing this a claim to stop this.

However, we live in free market and competition between competing businesses is generally considered a good thing for the ultimate consumer.

Intellectual property rights generally exist to protect the financial investment a business puts into generating its goodwill with customers or original products and services which it offers, and not to stifle competition.

Cunningtons can assist with resolving disputes which relate to things such as alleged breaches of copyright, design rights, trade mark infringement or passing off.

Looking after client lists and data theft

Equally, lists of clients and information databases can also be a valuable asset of a business and its theft or duplication by unscrupulous individuals and/or employees can often be very detrimental to it.

Rights exist in databases, which have been complied with the time, effort and often considerable financial investment on the part of the business. These rights can be enforced, and we can assist you in bringing or defending a claim.

Your website is your business’s front door

Websites are often the first point of contact for customers and clients and therefore the right domain name is a valuable asset to a business. Cyber-squatting occurs when someone registers a domain name which you want – or may want in the future – with the sole intention of selling it to you at some other point in time.

There are also individuals what deliberately cause damage to a business by registering a domain name similar to yours with a view to causing you or your business damage. In such circumstances, action can be taken. This can often result in the transfer of ownership of the domain name from the infringing party to the rightful owner.

We offer legal help and advice on all aspects of intellectual property and domain name disputes.

Defamation & Brand Protection

Branding is important in today’s business world: protecting it has never been so important

Freedom of speech and the right to have an opinion is a fundamental principle enjoyed in this country. However, this right can be abused and the law seeks to address situations where a company or person is attempting to damage another person or company’s reputation.

If disparaging comments are being made about you or your business and these statements are likely to cause serious harm and in particular, serious financial consequences, we may be able to assist you in bringing a claim based on defamation.

Consumer Advice

Consumers need protection

Cunningtons is able to provide advice to retailers, service providers and consumers in respect of claims relating to faulty goods or unsatisfactory services which have been rendered.

FURTHER INFORMATION