More than half of all business partnerships end with the business dissolving because of a dispute between the owners. The business partners who stay together until they retire or until they agree that one partner will buy out the other’s ownership interest are the exception to the rule; they only account for about 30% of cases. Business partnership breakups that are messy enough to require the intervention of a judge are about as common as divorces messy enough to require the intervention of a judge.
Take the dispute between two owners of real estate properties rented out to legal cannabis dispensaries described below as an example. If you no longer see eye to eye with your business partner, contact a San Diego business partnership dispute lawyer before your business partner shows their worst side.
Lawsuit Over San Diego Cannabis Businesses Turns Ugly
Salam Razuki and Ninus Malan owned several legal cannabis businesses in the San Diego area together, but by 2018 their partnership had gone bad. Razuki sued Malan for control of the Balboa Avenue Cooperative in Kearny Mesa. While the lawsuit played out in court, Razuki took to intimidating Malan by hiring gang members to threaten him and steal his mail. In August, Malan filed a restraining order against Razuki.
Razuki and two other business partners, Sylvia Gonzales and Elizabeth Juarez, conspired to hire a hitman to kill Malan. Razuki said that he was tired of his disputes with Malan in civil court costing so much money. They met with the hitman early in the fall of 2018 and discussed a plan where the hitman would persuade Malan to travel with him to Tijuana in November, at which point the dirty deed would take place. Gonzales went across the street to Golden Bloom, another cannabis dispensary the parties owned, and withdrew $1,000 in cash, which she gave to the hitman as a deposit.
As it turned out, the “hitman” was actually an FBI informant. In November, the informant met with Razuki and claimed to have killed Malan, After which, the informant arrested Razuki, who was later charged with conspiracy to commit murder. Then, in August 2019, Malan filed a civil lawsuit against Razuki, seeking money damages for the emotional distress Razuki had caused him.
Contact Foldenauer Law Group About Bitter Disputes Between Business Partners
Most breakups of business partnerships do not devolve into physical violence, but they can still get very unpleasant. A business dispute lawyer can help you resolve your differences with the business partner from whom you have been trying to separate yourself. Contact Foldenauer Law Group, APLC in San Diego, California to discuss your case.