Legal Question in Business Law in California
Hello,
My name is Wes. I started a business with a partner. The business is a gymnastics and ninja warrior training facility. I am a 20 year experienced former professional gymnast. My business partner Adam is a wealthy business owner. Our agreement was to start a gym and he would do the financial investments and I would run and operate the gym. The agreement was a 50/50 profit split. The agreement was initially verbal. I asked for a written agreement countless times. By the time I received a contract from him, all the manual labor and hard work to start and have the gym functioning was complete. The written contract he presented me is not the same as our original deal of a 50/50 profit split. I am concerned Ive been resourced of my knowledge and expertise and now that the business is functioning, I will not receive my fair share for the work I've completed and money that I've earned. Feel I was used to build a gym and now will be slowly forced out in time. I moved here under these pretenses. No money, just experience and time. I am now trapped working for pennies in my own business, living in a RV in Santa Maria, commuting to San Luis, working around the clock with nothing to show and zero programmers made.
If you can assist me, what are your rates to review the contract, and possibly give advice and feedback on what I can do to regain my status power in the business, or the smoothest, most professional exit strategy from the business while still receiving the value or finances for the work and time I have invested? I have very limited money, so I'm in a tight squeeze. I have to work at my own business now on the clock just to get by and make ends meet. This is a business deal gone south and I need professional help. Thank you for your time and hope to hear back.
Sincerely,
Wes Haagensen
2 Answers from Attorneys
Hello Wes,
I am sorry to hear about your situation.
I think the best advice I can give you here is how to go about finding a lawyer . This forum is designed only to let lawyers answer general questions about the law. The ethics of the profession, and our duty to keep your personal information confidential, make it difficult to respond to a direct request for representation like this.
You need an attorney that handles disputes between business owners. Those of us who handle business litigation, or general civil litigation, should be able to help. You also need to pull together as big a file of your communications with your partner as you can, and you need to be able to tell a more detailed story when you interview a lawyer to help you.
You can look on this site for an attorney to help you --- but reach out to that person directly. You can contact your county bar association for a referral. There are other sites that you can use to help you find an attorney. You are then going to need to write some E-mails, and pick up the phone, and call people. You are going to want someone to help you that you like, and that you trust, because you and that person are going to be working very closely together if that person takes your case. As such, you'll probably want to talk to several people. Don't be afraid to reach out a little further geographically -- a lot of work is now done by Internet.
I hope this helps you in your search.
The good news is that if you performed your part of the verbal agreement by setting up the gym and running it, then it's legally binding and enforceable. The hard part is proving the terms of the deal if you have nothing in writing. If, however, you have e-mails and voicemail messages showing the terms you agreed to, it will go a long way toward proving the agreement exists and making it enforceable. If you later sign something that contradicts the verbal agreement, then the later agreement would control.
As the previous answer says, there are resources for finding an attorney through the local (county) bar association. Call them for a referral before you negotiate further or sign anything.
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