Contract Disputes and Debt Recovery

Contractual disputes (including service disputes linked to unpaid invoices) can be stressful, draining valuable resources and placing significant financial pressure on your business.

Our expert commercial dispute team at Palmers Solicitors can advise on all aspects of commercial contract litigation, whether through standard court proceedings, statutory demand (for undisputed debts), or petitions for company winding-up or individual bankruptcy.

If your business suffers a financial loss due to a breach of contract, you may be entitled to seek legal redress. The law entitles you to damages that restore your business to the position it would have been in had the breach not occurred.

Our dispute resolution team can guide you through a range of breach of contract issues, including:

• Breach of express or implied terms in a Contract;
• Misrepresentation
• Sale of goods/supply of goods and services disputes (e.g., faulty goods or services)
• Failure to perform as promised
• Negligence
• Mistake
• Retention of Title issues

We use our experience to help you determine the most effective recovery procedure, assessing your chances of success while keeping costs in mind. We offer cost-effective debt recovery schemes and fixed costs at various stages, ensuring you retain control of your expenses.

Our services include:

• Payment reminder letters to customers
• Review and interpret the terms of your contract and provide advice on the strength of your case.
• Compliance with the Pre-Action Protocol
• Issuing and serving Letters Before Action and County Court/High Court Claims
• Issuing and serving statutory demands
• Advice and representation in insolvency proceedings, including issuing and serving bankruptcy or winding up petitions
• Advice and representation in insolvency proceedings
• Advice and representation on enforcement of judgments including through bailiffs, charging order or insolvency procedures
• Mediation and negotiation

For more information about the legal support we offer, please contact us.

Debt collection and enforcement can be challenging, requiring careful strategy and clear guidance on enforcement options.

With our expertise in commercial debt litigation, we can advise on all aspects, whether through court proceedings, statutory demands, or petitions for company winding-up or individual bankruptcy.

At Palmers Solicitors, we understand that debt litigation can be costly and time-consuming. To ease the process, we’ve developed a commercial debt recovery scheme to simplify your business’s debt recovery while keeping costs proportionate.

Our services include:

• Addressing financial concerns from company disputes or breach of contract
• Issuing and serving Letters Before Action and County Court/High Court claims for debt recovery
• Advice and representation in court proceedings
• Issuing and serving statutory demands
• Advice and representation in insolvency proceedings, including issuing and serving bankruptcy or winding up petitions
• Advice and representation on enforcement of judgments including through bailiffs, charging order or insolvency procedures
• Negotiations and Mediation (Pre and Post Issue of Claims)

A retention of title clause helps maintain ownership of supplied goods until certain conditions, usually payment, are met. These clauses are complex and depend on a properly drafted agreement and the specific circumstances of the case.

When well-drafted and monitored, they offer security for suppliers if the buyer defaults or becomes insolvent.

If the buyer becomes insolvent, the supplier may reclaim unused goods from the liquidators.

Our lawyers specialise in complex contractual matters like these, so please get in touch for more information.

Our specialist commercial litigation team are able to support businesses in mounting legal challenges relating to public procurement.

Where commercial bids have failed and it is believed that the public body has made fundamental errors in the procurement process, legal redress might be available.

In addition, if you have a public procurement contract you will often find that they are lengthy and time-consuming documents which can be burdensome for businesses to have to navigate. If you are experiencing issues relating to the performance of a public body, whether that be non-payment of your invoices or threats that you are breaching the performance standard, we are able to navigate the contract for you and provide you with advice as to your options.

As a franchisor, you’ve worked hard to build a successful brand, so you expect franchisees to uphold the terms of the franchise agreement. If a franchisee fails to meet these expectations, you may have grounds to raise a dispute for breach of contract.

Your brand’s reputation relies on franchisees delivering consistent quality, and a franchisee who repeatedly underperforms can damage your brand. This makes it crucial to clearly define performance expectations in the agreement. Failure to meet these terms can justify termination or refusal to renew the franchise.

The franchise agreement should also specify requirements to protect your brand’s integrity, including the use of approved goods, packaging, and marketing materials.

If a franchisee uses unauthorised products or services, this could breach the agreement and lead to sanctions.

Additionally, some franchisees may be tempted to start competing businesses once the agreement ends.

To prevent this, you can include restrictive clauses in the agreement. However, it’s important to seek legal advice to ensure these restrictions are enforceable and legally sound.

Disputes with customers can be a difficult balancing act, however, there are times when matters simply cannot be resolved without the requirement for legal advice and (whilst we always try to resolve matters amicably) possible legal action.

When the cost of leaving a matter unresolved is likely to put considerable financial pressure on your business, we are able to assist. At Palmers Solicitors, our expert commercial dispute team can advise you on the best course of action to take when dealing with customer disputes, including:

• Problems relating to the quality of goods or services provided
• Customer failure or refusal to pay (see also the debt recovery scheme)
• Non-delivery or late delivery of goods
• Customer disputes relating to a failure by one of your suppliers to deliver a product or service on time
• Being pursued for outstanding goods, services, or money which you dispute