For co-founders, new partners and family businesses
Partnership agreements
Decide the hard things while everyone still gets along: who owns what, who decides and what happens if someone wants out.
- Example from $500
- Flat fee in writing
- Reply in 1 business day
Partnerships matter
Example- Stage
- Questionnaires in
- Next
- Owner meeting
- Attorney
- Ken Moriyama
- Fee
- Flat, in writing
How we handle it
Most partner fights we see started years earlier, with a template operating agreement nobody read. The fix is cheap at the start and expensive at the end.
We write operating and partnership agreements that answer the real questions: how decisions get made, how a partner can leave, what their share is worth and how it gets paid. Then every owner gets the same one-page summary.
Call us when
- You're starting a business with a friend, a spouse or a sibling
- A new partner is buying in, or an employee is earning a share
- Your operating agreement is a template nobody has read
- A partner wants out, or wants to bring in their own investor
- You're planning for a partner's retirement, illness or death
What's included, and what it costs
Always included
- A short questionnaire for each owner, answered separately
- Decision rules and a plan for deadlocks
- Buy-sell terms: when a partner can leave and how they get paid
- A valuation method everyone signs off on now
- Vesting for owners who earn their share over time
- A one-page summary for every owner
Example fees
Examples, not quotes- Two-owner operating agreement Decision rules, buy-sell, valuation $1,800 to $3,200
- Three or more owners Or any agreement with investor terms $2,800 to $5,000
- Adding or buying out a partner Amendment, transfer documents, payment terms $1,500 to $4,000
- Agreement check-up We read your current agreement and list the gaps $500 to $1,000
Example fees. We represent the company or one owner, and we put that in writing. Other owners are always welcome to have their own lawyer read the agreement.
Get your fee in writingHow it runs
-
1
Free 30-minute call
We map the owners, the money each put in and the plans.
Day 1
-
2
Owner questionnaires
Each owner answers on their own, so quiet disagreements surface early.
About 3 days
-
3
Draft and owner meeting
We walk all owners through the draft together, in plain English.
About 2 weeks
-
4
Signed and summarized
Final agreement, signatures and a one-page summary for everyone.
After final sign-off
Two things owners ask us about
Read the guides-
Plan for the five Ds
Agreements should say what happens on a partner's death, disability, divorce, departure or deadlock. These are the moments when a template usually goes quiet.
-
Money in is not the same as ownership
Write down whether money a partner puts in is ownership, a loan or both. It saves a hard conversation later.
Not legal advice. These tips are general information for small business owners. Facts matter, so talk to a lawyer about your situation before acting on them.
Partnerships questions
Still wondering? See every FAQ or call (208) 555-0164.
Can one lawyer represent all of the partners?
Usually we represent the company or one owner, and we say so in writing before we start. Owners' interests can differ, so each owner can have their own lawyer review the agreement. Many don't, but they should know they can.
We already have an operating agreement. Do we need a new one?
Maybe not. Our agreement check-up reads what you have and lists the gaps, usually for well under the cost of a new agreement. Sometimes a short amendment is all it takes.
How is a partner's share valued if they leave?
That's what the agreement decides. Common choices are a formula, an agreed yearly value or an outside appraisal. We explain the trade-offs and you pick one while everyone is on good terms.
Other practice areas
Ready when you are.
- Free 30-minute call
- Flat fee in writing
- Work starts on your timeline