legal, mobile-appsI was wondering about how to protect myself when starting a business partnership. Something as simple as software development, if one partner is an apple and one an android developer, How do you go about getting info on protecting earnings, not allowing any partner to sabotage earnings. The reason I ask is with these software development accounts, they are usually set up in one persons name and they hold all the purse strings. What’s to stop them not paying me if the relationship deteriorates? I realise this is a naive question I have never had any business experience before. What would you do in my situation?
If you do not trust your developers you are better off not partnering with them from the start. This is probably the best advice you will get.
If you want to continue working with them you can have a signed & approved agreement according to the laws of the country you are in. Though you should learn exactly how much the agreement protects you.
My advice, make smaller projects with them and see how the relationship goes. You can estimate the rest of the relationship by doing a weekend project together.
One of the ways you can protect yourself is with a partnership agreement that legally binds all of the parties to a certain course of business conduct. I’m not sure if you live in the United States, but the courts in California will absolutely enforce these agreements. Go to your local civil litigation courtroom at 9am and watch what happens when people do not abide by these agreements.
An easy way to protect earnings in a three person partnership is to require a majority vote for each expenditure. The person who steals from the business risks civil and criminal penalties (embezzlement, theft, and fraud to name a few). To answer your question, the courts, lawyers, and law enforcement officers are what stops people from not paying software developers.
In your situation, I would hire an attorney to advise me on the best course of action and to draft a partnership agreement to protect my interests.
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