Know Your Business Partner Is Stealing Money From The Company? Act Fast Now
A business partnership can be straining when there is money missing or disagreements on spending and when you can't agree on how to manage the business together. If you are concerned that your partner has been stealing money from the profits and that they are withholding information from you, you'll want to talk with a lawyer right away. Before you confront your partner and give them a chance to hide any of the evidence you may be able to get, your lawyer will want information about the following.
Digital Forensic Evidence
There are forensic professionals that can get on your network and server from the office and search for the evidence that is needed to prove that your partner has been doing illegal things, such as stealing money, along with a variety of other issues. Talk with your lawyer about having a digital forensics professional look through your data so it's all done properly and legally and so you can use the evidence if you have a case.
Bank Statement and Profit Report Discrepancies
Start printing off all your bank statements for the company, along with all the profit reports and statements given to you by staff, so you can start seeing where the numbers aren't matching up with what the profits should be. Take all of this information with you to the lawyer so they can comb through it. Tax returns and a list of business expenses would also be beneficial.
Staff Interviews and Statements
Do you have staff members that have brought the problem to your attention or that have witnessed your partner taking money or scamming the business? If so, you will want to have the employees sign non-disclosure agreements so they don't tell your partner they made a statement, and then they can make a statement for your attorney about what they have seen while working for you.
You don't want to wait until you find out that they have taken all of the money out of the company or that you are missing thousands of dollars. If you know that your business partner is taking large profits out of the company that should be shared between the two of you, or that should go back into the company, you want to get a lawyer for your case right away. The sooner you get the case moving, the more money you can protect and possibly get back from the partner.