Disputes and lawsuits are part of the American way of doing business. You can control when you are the plaintiff bringing a lawsuit, but being sue is usually a major unanticipated and resented disruption. Businesspeople want to know if their companies will be sued so they can anticipate and plan for their resources and expenses, but unfortunately lawyers can't see into the future to know when businesses will find themselves hauled into court as defendants. Your beauty store business may not deserve to be sued but under our system, anyone can file a lawsuit against you or your business, even if the suit has no merit. Trial courts should dismiss meritless cases, but getting to that point can be expensive and time-consuming even if you ultimately win. And, some companies deserve to lose their cases and be ordered to pay the plaintiff damages. Compounding all these uncertainties, some businesses aren't sued when they richly deserve to be, some courts make mistakes and some parties choose to settle just to get the court case over with. This column will describe what happens when your business is sued, and will delve into several recent cases.
Continue reading this story in Beauty Store Business'January digital edition.
[Image courtesy of Barry Burns]