Contractual exits, and the conditions that make them workable.
Esshaki Legal Media TeamCurrent as of October 2025
Put and call rights create liquidity where none exists naturally, and their
value depends on the detail.
Put right. The holder may require the company or the majority to purchase
their interest, on defined triggers — after a period, on termination of
employment, on a failure to achieve a milestone, or on a governance breach.
Call right. The company or majority may require the holder to sell, commonly
on termination of employment or on a breach.
Price. The same mechanism issues as in a buy-sell: standard of value,
valuation date, discounts, and the appraisal process. Good leaver and bad leaver
pricing distinctions where the trigger is a termination.
Funding. A put with no funding mechanism is an unsecured claim against a
company that will resist. Installments over a defined period with interest,
security where available, and a covenant to seek financing.
Lender consent. Credit agreements almost always restrict redemptions and
distributions, which can make a put unexercisable at the moment it matters.
Address the interaction expressly and consider a deferral mechanism rather than
a default.
Notice and exercise mechanics with deadlines, and a consequence if the
purchaser fails to close — interest, an escalation in price, or a right to
compel a sale of the whole company.