To not want parents to give away half of my business?

[Bubs101]

First-time poster here! So go easy on me.

I set up a small consultancy business about 10 years ago and am doing quite well for myself now, however it hasn't been easy. My parents gave me an initial sum of £10,000 to help set things up, however, this was on the condition that they own 50%, which at the time I agreed to, as they were my parents and kindly invested in the business and me. 10 years later their initial investment has been paid off and they have been regularly receiving dividends, so have done quite well of the initial £10,000.

However, as I'm in a good place financially I asked them about buying back the shares they have, gradually, so I can have full ownership of the business, this was initially agreed that I would be able to do this when they first invested as my parents "don't want anything from me". But now this is where it gets tricky as they have now refused saying they are going to gift my brother the shares instead! As he is expecting his first DC (I have none) I'm shell-shocked and livid. My brother and I have a very complex relationship and he was physically and verbally abusive to me before I moved out, though he faced no consequences as he was the golden child who could do no wrong! My parents are aware of how I feel about my brother and we are virtually NC, except Christmas where we are civil for the sake of the family.

I'm just really upset by this and was wondering if there was a way I could stop this from happening. I've worked so hard to get my business to where it is, my brother is working but has always expected handouts and is naturally smarter than me but very very lazy so he earns about a third of what I do. I just don't want him to reap the rewards of my blood sweat and tears especially after how awfully he has treated me. I've told my parents how I feel but they are having none of it and have told me that they own half the business and are entitled to do with it as they please. AIBU in wanting to seek out some legal advice regarding this, I just fear my doing so my parents will cast me out.

Just dissolve the company OP and start a new one without any input from them. Apart from the cost and legal issues for you (which is an inconvenience), it shouldn't impact on your clients other than needing to change details re payment.

Is there any point in getting into a battle with them? Take back control!

Fucking hell!

I know nothing about running a business but I know this is all kinds of wrong.

Sepecialist solicitor asap!

Tell them either they sell it to you as previously agreed or you will close the business down!

Yes definitely fold the business. I have no idea about this kind of stuff and no idea what kind of business you do but could you do it in such a way that you tell all your clients (or the like) that you are restructuring etc. and then cut the bastards off!!

Please be a bit more specific - is this a limited business and they own 50% of the shares? Do you employ anyone and what is the skill set?

www.gov.uk/strike-off-your-company-from-companies-register

I eould get legal advice, but make sure it is from someone who is specialised in the appropriate area of law.

What do your articles of association and shareholders agreement say about transfer of shares?

I'm just really worried my parents will disown me over this, they always talk about we are a family, and that families make sure everyone is well taken care of. And because I'm the higher I've been accused of not wanting to help my brother out, whilst they blissfully ignored the abuse going on in their house! I was potentially thinking of paying my self and the staff a bigger salary so the dividend payouts would be nil, but this wouldn't be tax efficient. Just feel like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place.

You need legal advice. Wind the business up and restart if necessary. If they try to stop you, quit! The company will be worthless and unviable if you stop working for it.

Why do you care if they disown you? They obviously don’t give a shit about you anyway!

Get legal advice. Seriously. It sounds like they gave you a loan of 10k and in return you paid it back and gave them 50 percent of your business. It sounds extortionate. Given your relative positions and how young you were and the return on investment they have received (as well as the repayment of what should have been the consideration for the shares in the business) it is well worth getting legal advice.

They sound despicable. If you borrowed 10k from a moneylender you might have done better.

The first thing I would do is look at them coolly and say "well if you insist on giving what you call your half share in my business to your son, please warn him he will have to get up to speed on how to work the business very quickly because I will be quitting - and I will be expecting him to pay me half the profits he makes of course"

I hear you buns but there’s a difference between helping your family and being taken for a fucking ride a treated like a mug!!if they disown you it’s their loss!! They will come round when they need you I’m sure

I agree with the others, look at folding the current company and starting a new one. Take legal advice though.

Your parents and brother sound awful.

Dissolve the Business OP and start up again, with your two staff.

When they say families make sure everyone is taken care of, they mean you must be a cash cow for them and your brother. Who takes care of you? Do you have a partner/spouse? You need to get very angry about this and treat them accordingly.

Wow, your family sounds as screwed up as mine, you poor thing. But well done on your success! Please make it your mission in life that your abusive brother doesn't get a penny out of your hard work.

What is down in paper, e.g. is their 50% ownership legally documented? Is there anything else regarding their say in the running of your business?

So sorry your family are treating you this way, however now that your eyes are wide open, please get yourself some top notch legal advice.

I think that if you concentrate on coming out of the FOG with your parents you won't care what they think. They after all seemingly have never cared that much about your feelings.

Get some legal advice about getting out of this stranglehold your parents have you in and take it from there. Slowly slowly catchy monkey.

If it's a consultancy then most of the value of the business is you (and the other staff).

I'd agree with others - set up a new business in your own name, advise clients that from now on you will be trading as XYZ, offer the two staff jobs with your new company (which they'll take because presumably there will be naff all business at old company). In a small company the clients will know you personally, they're not going to stay with old company who won't be able to provide the service because you will have left.

You are under no obligation to keep working for the old company. Your parents have had more than enough money back, and they're being arseholes.

Don't feel bad about helping them. They don't feel bad about having mugged you off and favouring your abusive brother.

Christ. Some families...

Can you begin a new business, similar name, and begin trading from it almost in parallel? Tell your parents you wanted to do some rebranding? Move the staff over... let the earnings of the original business quietly dwindle to a pitence?

Aside from that - is there any kind of shareholder agreement? Do they need to sell the shares at a particular value to your brother?

I wanted to go to the bank and take out a loan but they insisted I would be better off taking the money off them, I was quite young at the time and had quit my job so was quite desperate. Sorry hearing your replies have just hit me a little hard, knowing all I seem to be is a cash cow.

What a cheek. Solicitor, asap OP.

And yes, good point PP - are they directors or just shareholders?

Bloody good on you, by the way. If you’ve turned a £10k investment into something paying dividends of that level. Kudos.