Minneapolis, MN Business Lawyer

Shareholder Agreements and Disputes

Misrepresentation and deceptive trade are two practices that businesses frequently commit that can be punished through the use of a lawsuit. These two unfair business practices are forbidden by laws at both the state and federal levels.

Misrepresentation

In misrepresentation, a plaintiff must establish that the defendant intentionally misrepresented a fact. An example of misrepresentation is when a company deliberately brands itself to resemble a different company. For instance, Company A is almost identical in name, logo, and color scheme to Company B even though they are completely different companies operating on different levels. Company A misrepresents itself to lure customers from Company B.

Deceptive Trade

Deceptive trade is committed when someone in the position of a seller acts unfairly to or deceives a buyer in some way. An example of this is mortgage fraud. As a deceptive trade practice, an individual signs a mortgage agreement with the creditor saying one set of terms apply and then, the minute the ink is dry, a new set of rules that were sort of detailed in the fine print kicks in.

Another example of deceptive trade is when a company or business sells their product well below cost. Business A and Business B sell the same product. Business B, however, is selling the product well below the price that Business A knows the product costs.

If you are concerned about unfair business practices such as misrepresentation and deceptive trade, contact the experienced Minneapolis, MN business lawyers of Skjold Barthel at 612.746.2560 to discuss your legal options.