When owners decide to part, the outcome depends more on sequence and structure than on the merits of the grievances.
Establish the ground rules first. A standstill on unilateral action — distributions, hiring, firing, borrowing, contracts outside the ordinary course — while a resolution is negotiated. Put it in writing.
Preserve the business. Customers, employees and lenders should not learn of the dispute from the parties’ conduct. Agree what will be said and by whom.
Information. Both sides need the same financial information. Where one owner controls the records, an agreed accountant with defined access resolves more disputes than any legal step.
Valuation. Agree the standard of value, the date, the methodology and the appraiser before anyone commissions a report. Two unilateral appraisals produce two positions and no progress.
Structure. Buyout of one owner, a split of the business into separate operations, a sale of the whole to a third party, or dissolution. Tax treatment differs sharply among them and should be modelled before a structure is chosen.
Funding. Instalment terms, security, a note with covenants, or third-party financing. Most buyouts fail on funding rather than on price.
Continuing obligations. Guarantees to be released, leases, non-competes, and who keeps the name, the customer list and the intellectual property.