There are many grounds that can lead to business disputes in Massachusetts. Business may disagree about the terms of contracts and prior arrangements. Billing issues, property matters and other grounds can also give rise to disputes between businesses.

What to Do in a Business Dispute?

If involved in a business dispute in Wilbraham, Massachusetts, reviewing any relevant documents, especially contracts, should be the first step. These documents might decide how the dispute will be resolved. If the contracts do not have resolution clauses, or neither business has any recorded documents relevant to the dispute, then the matter might need to be taken to court. Massachusetts courts look to the individual cases in determining the best resolution. Where two parties have not agreed beforehand on how to handle a dispute, a specific set of legal principles is used instead. Disputes over contracts and other agreements are handled differently depending on the laws of each state. Lawyers in Wilbraham know the laws of Massachusetts, and can offer individualized advice for those involved in business disputes. An attorney's knowledge of the law may also lead to a more streamlined discussion with the other business about how to resolve the dispute. Negotiations might even enable you to resolve the dispute without going to court.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

Contracts often have terms requiring that a dispute be handled outside of court. This is called Alternative Dispute Resolution or ADR, and it includes Mediation and Arbitration among others. ADR makes going to court unnecessary, because it is designed to reach the same result that a court would have. Still, some methods of ADR entail their own formal procedures, most enlisting a third party to determine a dispute based on local law just as a judge would do. In Wilbraham, Lawyers specialized in ADR can help if your business dispute is to be resolved out of court.