Legal Question in Business Law in Maryland

Company Theft

My business partner and I started a heating and air conditioning business in 1972 and we are joint owners of the business - it is incorporated in maryland. Several weeks ago he set up his own company (with a different but very similar name) and is having all of the payments for work done paid into his own account for this new company. I am disabled and having serious medical issues and cannot physically go into the office. He has also drained all of our joint bank accounts so I have no money to hire an attorney yo help me. What can I do about this injustice?


Asked on 9/04/08, 8:07 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Sher Wagshal and Sher

Re: Company Theft

There is not much you can do about his starting a new company unless you had set up non-compete agreements somewhere along the way, which I suspect is unlikely. If the work he is doing now is under contracts for your business, it would be improper for him to convert payments to his new company, but I suspect he's now contracting under his new business as well. He certainly had no right to take corporate funds either, but he might claim this is "salary" for work he did. You will probably have to take him to court over this, but if you can't afford an attorney, the only other possibility would be to see if you can obtain a pro bono attorney through the local bar association. But this might not be the kind of case they would accept (i.e., business).

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Answered on 9/05/08, 9:48 am


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