What Is Tortious Interference With A Business Relationship?

Tortious interference occurs when one party interferes with an advantageous business relationship of another party, causing economic harm. It is important to remember that this must be an intentional act, and proving it can be challenging. This is where you need a knowledgeable team of lawyers. The team at Kurzban Kurzban Tetzeli & Pratt, P.A., is often sought to assist in resolving these difficult issues.

It is prudent to negotiate with the interfering party to see if the dispute can be resolved to your satisfaction without the cost and time needed to go to court. At our firm, we have honed our negotiation skills, style, and strategy to the advantage of our business clients.

If a settlement is not reasonable, victims of tortious interference can sue the responsible party. Our team can help you pursue damages, which may include lost income or revenue as well as the value of lost goodwill, the intangible but important value of a good reputation, brand strength, customer loyalty and community support of a business.

How To Prove Interference In Your Business

While it can be difficult to prove interference, our attorneys have decades of experience fighting for individuals and businesses throughout Florida. A few requirements must be met to prove that someone has interfered with your business relationship:

• There was an established business relationship.
• The accused knew about the business relationship.
• The accused intentionally and without justification interfered with your commercial relationship with the other party, company, client or customer.
• The interference caused financial harm to your business.

Some common questions:

Another company’s aggressive marketing is making it harder for us to penetrate the market with our products. Is that tortious interference?

An advertising campaign is probably not tortious interference. In Florida, to show tortious interference with a business relationship, the defendant must have interfered with an actual, known customer or client, or at least with a solidly probable business prospect. The speculative possibility of developing a future business relationship with someone in the community at large is generally not enough.

Another business is trying to sell to our regular customers, but we don’t have contracts with those clients. Can we sue?

Depending on the circumstances, it may be possible in Florida to sue for interference with a business relationship even if it is not based on a specific contract.

Don’t Wait; Call Our Offices Today

If your Miami-area business has been harmed by the tortious interference of a competitor, our team can help you get the best possible results. Contact our Coral Gables-based attorneys today for a free consultation at 305-744-5888 or fill out our contact form.