Legal Question in Business Law in California

You may have a claim. Oral agreements are enforceable, but can create issues regarding credibility and proof. Here you claim that there is a document trail through e-mail to support your claims. The bigger issue will be damages. What is preventing you from pursuing the business opportunity? Is there any reasonable likelihood that the business will get off the ground and be profitable? You would need to meet with an attorney to discuss your claims and your proof in greater detail for an attorney to really be able to evaluate your claims.

I would start with a HIDES document which includes the History, Issues, Documents, Evidence and recommend Solutions. In creating the HIDES document you will be marshalling the facts to support your claim in the event that you need to hire an attorney and/or seek to persuade him to understand your requests.

By Grace...

Shawn Jackson ESQ. (707) 584-4529

Business Development Attorney

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You are a poster child for why you must have non-disclosure and non-compete agreements in place before sharing ideas with other people. Didn't you see the movie Social Network? Seriously, though, you can't patent or trademark or copyright an idea. You may have a case if you were induced to delay and prevented from going forward with your idea because he lied to you that he was going to work with you (this was the basis of the Winklevoss twins' case against Zuckerberg over Facebook). If you actually shared proprietary trade secret information or other recognized intellectual property with this guy and he took it to start his own business you may have a case. (The Winklevosses lost on this issue because they had nothing but an idea; Zuckerberg and his team wrote all their own programming and design work). Or, if you invested money in the business and were defrauded out of it, or out of an agreed share, you would have a case (this was the basis of Edwardo Savarin's action against Zuckerberg). But if all he did was take an idea of yours and run with it, all you can do is work with him to reach mutually acceptable terms, or take the idea and go into competition with him (after consulting with an attorney about protecting yourself this time).

You can sue for just about anything; the practical issues will be proof of facts and damages. My hunch is that proving recoverable damages will be more difficult than proving the facts as stated.

One thing that is for sure is that you're lucky you didn't accept the 51-49 deal. You'd have been miserable and lost a lot more money.

I'd suggest starting the proposed business anyway, by yourself, or with reputable associates. You could also file suit, but I think its main advantage to you would be to deliver a kick in the rear rather than win you a big damages award.

As a Franchise Attorney I agree with the other attorney answers. You could have sued him for possibly misappropriating your "idea" if you had him sign a nondisclosure agreement right at the beginning. Now, you've essentially given away your idea for free. Consult with a good business or franchise attorney in your area for specific advice.

Mr. Franchise - Kevin B. Murphy, B.S., M.B.A., J.D.

Franchise Foundations, a Professional Corporation