When businesses enter into commercial contracts, they run the risk that the other party will not perform their contractual obligations. If a business has the right to terminate a contact due to a breach, it has a choice of remedies to make it whole. The business must elect the most appropriate re...
Blog Posts
How Is Repudiation of a Contract Different than Termination?
A contract can be brought to an end in a number of ways. The concept of terminating a contract encompasses different actions a party could perform contrary to the parties' intent when they signed the contract: breach of an essential term, serious breach of a non-essential term, mutual agreement t...
Basics of Terminating a Contract Before It Ends
Parties to a commercial contract may, at some point, wish to terminate the contract before it ends. In other words, they want to discharge their obligations to perform any remaining contractual requirements. To terminate a contract without the other party's agreement and without facing penalties ...
Discovering Information and Requiring Disclosures from Third Parties in The Bahamas
Often parties to lawsuits discover that third parties have information that the parties need to pursue or defend their legal claims. Third parties are people or entities that are not named in the lawsuit as plaintiffs or defendants. The third party could have documents needed to prove or disprove...
Whistleblowers in the Workplace: The Business Owner’s Response
When your business or compliance officer receives a report of some unlawful action having occurred from an employee or whistleblower, you will need to take action quickly to investigate. Not only should you address the substance of the report, but also you should consider the reliability of the w...
Do Directors Have Fiduciary Duties to Shareholders of Their Company?
Company directors in The Bahamas have fiduciary duties to their company because of their decision-making power and level of control over the company's operations. These duties require them to act in the company's best interest – not necessarily any individual shareholder's best interest. Sometime...
The Constructive Trust as a Remedy for Fraud
Bahamian law may imply the formation of a constructive trust as one of the remedies for fraud. Other remedies include damages or rescission of a contract formed on the basis of fraud. A previous article discussed rescission. Unlike a traditional trust that is used in estate planning and describe...
Summary Versus Unfair Dismissal from Employment in The Bahamas
In The Bahamas, summary dismissal and unfair dismissal from employment differ because of the reasons underlying the dismissal. Both employees and employers should become familiar with the grounds for dismissal permitted by Bahamian law. Summary Dismissal Bahamian employers may summarily termina...
How Do Creditors Use Mareva Injunctions to Freeze Debtor Assets?
A debtor in The Bahamas who tries to move assets to avoid paying creditors may find himself restrained by a Mareva injunction from doing so. Debtors' first instinct when confronted by a creditor demanding payment may be to dispose of or hide all valuable assets so there is nothing left for the cr...
Obtaining a Default Judgment in The Bahamas
When a defendant does not respond to a plaintiff's claims in a court case, the court may grant a default judgment in the plaintiff's favor. Plaintiffs can use this powerful procedural tool to obtain judgments requiring payment of damages without the need to further pursue absent defendants. In T...
Using a Court Injunction to Stop an Unlawful Action
In The Bahamas, you can use a legal tool called an injunction to stop someone from taking an unlawful action. An injunction is a legal remedy for an injustice that is permitted by law. When you obtain an injunction, you get a court order requiring another party to do something or to stop doing s...
Independent Contractor Versus Employee in The Bahamas
The differences between independent contractors and employees may seem obvious on paper, but in practice it is not so easy to distinguish between these two types of workers. Employers should take care to follow the Employment Act for all workers who qualify as employees under the law. The Employ...
Life Insurance as an Estate Planning Tool
Life insurance works well as part of an estate plan because it is fairly easy to obtain and will provide support to a chosen beneficiary. Most estate plans, however, include other estate planning structures to compensate for some of life insurance's downfalls, discussed below. Why Purchase Life ...
Business Planning and Insolvency: Thinking Ahead to Save Your Business
Without careful business planning, your company could be at risk for insolvency. Learn the warning signs of an insolvent business and think ahead to keep the company running. What Is Insolvency? Insolvency means that your company cannot pay its debts on time or has liabilities that exceed its a...
Declarations of Trust and Trust Deeds in Estate Planning
Declarations of trust and trust deeds are the documents used to set forth basic information about the formation of trusts. They explain who is forming the trust, who will manage the trust property, and who will benefit from the trust. The terms “declaration of trust”, “trust deed”, and “trust in...
Why to Memorialize Your Agreement in Writing
People can form binding legal contracts both orally and in writing. Since talking through an agreement can take much less time and effort than writing out a formal contract, it may seem that oral agreements are the easiest choice to get business done. Unfortunately, making an oral contract has ma...
Contesting a Will in The Bahamas
Coming to terms with the death of a relative becomes more difficult if you need to contest your loved one's will. Contested probate matters can be emotionally taxing and time consuming for families, so seek out legal advice regarding wills from an attorney. A will may be contested for different ...
Choosing a Bahamian Business Structure
The Bahamas offers a number of possible business structures from which aspiring business owners can choose. Each business structure has slightly different benefits depending on your industry and specific business area, your goals, your desire for liability protection, and your practical limitatio...
Rescinding a Commercial Contract in The Bahamas
The concept of rescinding a commercial contract arises in business disputes when one party misled another party into signing an agreement. Rescission refers to the remedy available through the court to the wronged party who proves it was misled. A contract is formed when one party makes an offer...
What Is Arbitration, and When Should You Use It?
When two or more people have a dispute, they can choose among several different ways to resolve it, including informal discussions, going to court, demanding arbitration, or engaging in mediation. Because informal discussions do not always resolve disputes and going to court can be time-consuming...
When an Act Is Intentional, Not Just Negligent
In The Bahamas, the laws distinguish between negligent and intentional acts. Whether an act is negligent or intentional often affects the amount of damages or criminal penalties a person faces. In contrast, if the legal violation of which a person is accused requires an intentional act, but a cou...
Do You Have to Obey a Dispute Resolution Clause in a Contract?
As dispute resolution clauses in contracts become more common, more people may wonder whether they can avoid their impact. A party to a contract may prefer to file an action in court rather than go to arbitration or mediation. Generally, disputes regarding contracts that include arbitration claus...
What Is Involved in a Civil Claim for Fraud in The Bahamas?
Victims of fraud committed by someone in The Bahamas may want to seek help from the courts in pursuing their claims. Fraud can lead to serious consequences for victims such as loss of money or property. In The Bahamas, fraud is a serious crime punishable by the criminal courts and it is a civil w...
Protecting Your Business from Commercial Contract Disputes
Saving your business the time and cost of litigation requires affirmative steps to avoid commercial contract disputes. In the current litigious business climate, businesses must do more than sign simple written agreements. Anticipate and Investigate Anticipate commercial contract disputes befor...
How Courts in Other Jurisdictions Obtain Evidence from The Bahamas
When someone files a lawsuit in another country, sometimes the parties need to obtain evidence from The Bahamas. The need may arise because people or companies involved in the lawsuit are Bahamian residents, or because part of the incidents leading to the lawsuit occurred in The Bahamas. Gatherin...