In North Carolina, business disputes commonly occur over a variety of different matters. Most often, businesses can disagree on the terms of contracts and prior arrangements. Property matters and billing issues also frequently form the basis of disputes between businesses.
What to Do in a Business Dispute?
In a business dispute in Havelock, North Carolina, the parties should first go over any relevant documents, especially contracts. There may be terms in these documents that determine how to handle the dispute. If the contracts do not have resolution clauses, or neither business has any recorded documents relevant to the dispute, then the matter may need to be taken to court. North Carolina courts may use legal principles to determine the outcome when the parties have not agreed beforehand about how to handle a dispute. In so doing, they look carefully to a particular case to discover the best resolution for all involved. The laws designed to settle contract disputes are different in each state. Attorneys practicing in Havelock are versed in the contract law of North Carolina, and can help you to handle the dispute should it go to court. Resolution of the dispute may even be reached outside of court once an attorney's knowledge of the law smoothens negotiations between the two parties.
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Sometimes contracts themselves require that disputes under them be resolved outside of court. Methods of conflict resolution of this type are called Alternative Dispute Resolution or ADR. ADR includes Mediation, Arbitration and sometimes a combination of the two. All forms of ADR are designed to reach the same decision a court would have, without needing to actually go to court. They carry their own sets of procedures and protocols, and they often involve a neutral third party listening to both sides of a dispute and making a determination based on local law. If ADR is to be used in resolving your dispute, an attorney in Havelock specialized with ADR procedures can help you develop your case.