As a business owner, it is unfortunately inevitable that a time will come when you butt heads with someone else. This may be an employee, a co-owner or even someone from another business you work with.
In the case of the latter, you may feel tempted to swing immediately toward your litigation options. But is this really the best option for you?
When does litigation work?
FINRA examines alternative resolution methods for your disputes. But first, why do you need alternatives to litigation in the first place? Simply put, there are some situations in which it is more beneficial to avoid litigation. In fact, you may find that most situations would benefit from alternative resolution compared to litigation.
Litigation offers some help and support, and it is sometimes the best option, but the situations it sees the best use in are often specific ones. They involve large sums of money or assets, large amounts of wasted work, and extremely high conflict arguments and disputes.
When should you try something else?
If your case does not fall into that category – as many do not – then litigation is a time and money sink. Not only that, but it can cost you a valuable business tie. As a business owner, your ties to other companies often acts as a lifeblood. Thus, you want to do everything in your power to preserve it.
Consider looking into arbitration or mediation instead. Arbitration serves a similar role to litigation, in that an arbitrator makes a decision on your behalf based on the cases you and the other parties present. Mediation is better if you have a less severe dispute that you could work out on your own with just a bit of outside help.
