Business litigation is a formal legal dispute between businesses, or between business owners, that a court or arbitrator resolves. If you’re asking what is considered business litigation, the short answer is a dispute over company deals, contracts, ownership, or operations that has moved into a legal forum. This page explains the term, the common dispute types, and when a disagreement becomes a case.
What Is Business Litigation?
Business litigation is a lawsuit or arbitration over business dealings, agreements, or company governance. The term covers many kinds of disputes, not one legal claim. A fight over an unpaid invoice and a fight between co-owners over a buyout both fall under it.
The people on each side are often companies, shareholders, partners, contractors, subcontractors, or property owners. Sometimes one side is a business and the other is an individual investor. Sometimes both sides are companies.
In Florida, these matters are heard in circuit court or in arbitration. The firm focuses on business litigation in Florida courts and arbitration.
If a demand letter or a dispute with a co-owner has just landed on your desk, you don't have to work out the next steps alone. Our team can talk through the facts with you. Talk it through with our team — we can walk you through how a situation like yours is usually handled and what your options are.
Business Litigation vs. Commercial Litigation: What’s the Difference?
Commercial litigation usually means disputes over buying, selling, supplying, or servicing goods and services. Business litigation is the wider umbrella. It includes commercial matters plus disputes over company ownership, management, and construction or real estate projects.
People often use the two terms interchangeably, and the overlap is large. The label matters less than two things: the facts of the dispute and the forum where it will be heard. A supply contract fight and a governance fight may both be called business litigation. They still involve different rules and different proof.
Common Types of Business Litigation
The most common types are contract disputes, shareholder and partnership fights, construction claims, real estate disputes, and international trade disputes.
Contract disputes. A breach of contract claim says one side did not do what the agreement required. Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal has said that when an express contract covers the same subject, claims arising from that relationship will not support unjust enrichment. Williams v. Johnson
Shareholder and partnership disputes. Partners may sue the partnership or another partner to enforce the partnership agreement and their rights under Florida law. Under Florida law, a shareholder generally may not start a derivative proceeding unless the shareholder holds shares when the action is filed and either held shares when the conduct behind the action occurred or received that shareholder status by transfer or by operation of law from someone who did. Fla. Stat. § 607.0741
Construction litigation. Contractor and subcontractor disputes, lien foreclosure, and construction contract fraud claims all fall here. Deadlines in these cases are short and technical, so the dates matter early.
Real estate litigation. These disputes involve commercial property deals, leases, and related agreements.
International trade litigation. These disputes arise from cross-border commercial deals.
Example. A supplier sues a buyer in Hillsborough County for unpaid invoices under a supply agreement. The buyer counterclaims that the supplier missed the delivery terms. The case is commercial litigation, and it turns on what the contract says.
What Qualifies as Litigation?
A business dispute becomes litigation when a claim is formally brought before a court or an arbitrator. A disagreement alone does not qualify. Negotiating or drafting an agreement is transactional work, not litigation.
Cases usually move through a few stages. A demand letter or complaint comes first, or an arbitration demand. Next comes discovery, where each side exchanges documents and information. Then come motions, and finally settlement, trial, or an arbitration award.
Arbitration clauses are common in business contracts. Florida law says an agreement in a written record to arbitrate existing or future disputes is valid and enforceable. The exception is a ground that exists to revoke any contract. Under the Federal Arbitration Act, a written arbitration clause in a contract involving interstate commerce is generally binding and enforceable, unless a ground exists at law or in equity that would allow any contract to be revoked.
Venue follows Florida’s rule. Actions are brought in the county where the defendant resides, where the cause of action accrued, or where the property in litigation is located.
How Timing and Fees Factor Into a Business Dispute
Timing depends on the type of claim, the forum, and how contested the case becomes. Florida sets deadlines by claim type. For example, a one-year period applies to enforcing certain equitable liens for labor, services, or materials on real property. Under Fla. Stat. § 95.11, claims tied to the design, planning, or construction of an improvement to real property must be commenced within four years. The four years run from the earliest of: the issuance of a temporary certificate of occupancy, a certificate of occupancy, or a certificate of completion by the authority having jurisdiction, or the abandonment of construction if it was not completed. When the action involves a latent defect, the time runs from when the defect is discovered or should have been discovered with the exercise of due diligence. In any event, the action must be commenced within 7 years after that date. That period generally runs from a certificate of occupancy, a certificate of completion, or abandonment, whichever comes earliest. Latent defects follow a discovery rule.
Under Florida law, when a contract lets one party recover attorney’s fees for enforcing it, the court may also award reasonable attorney’s fees to the other party if that party prevails in an action on the contract, whether as plaintiff or defendant. This rule applies to contracts entered into on or after October 1, 1988. Fla. Stat. § 57.105
How much a matter costs depends on the facts. Ask the office directly about fee arrangements. Start gathering the contract, invoices, emails, and corporate records early. Keep originals and note the dates. For a sense of how long matters run, see how long commercial litigation takes.
If a Business Dispute Has Landed on Your Desk
A demand letter, a partner’s complaint, or a lien notice often arrives without warning. You may be reading this for a company, not only for yourself. The situation might be a contract that has stopped performing, a co-owner who has stopped cooperating, or a customer payment that will not come.
This page is maintained by Eduardo A. Maura. The firm’s bona fide office is at 1646 W Snow Ave, Tampa, Florida. The firm handles business matters in Florida courts and arbitration, including matters in Tampa and Hillsborough County. For the broader picture, read the business litigation guide.
Quick Answers
What is business litigation?
It is a court case or arbitration between businesses, owners, or partners over business dealings.
Does a contract disagreement count as litigation?
Not until a claim is formally brought before a court or an arbitrator.
Where can a business lawsuit be filed in Florida?
Generally in the county where the defendant resides, where the claim arose, or where the property is located.
If a demand letter or a dispute with a co-owner has just reached your desk, our team can talk through the facts with you. Contact us through the contact page or call (305) 570-2208.
