The Battle of the Brothers

Client: Brother # 3 (minority shareholder)

Industry: Retail (fish)

Family business, in which father’s shares were transferred to his three sons. Two of the brothers were working in the smoke house and real estate, while the third brother was in charge of sales and hospitality. After years of silent endurance it came to a blowup between the two brothers (party 1) and their sibling (party 2).

Because the two brothers had a severe allergy to lawyers and advisors, which could even lead to bouts of aggression, the ‘suits’ (including Nederhof) tried to stay out of sight as much as possible. Nederhof performed an economic value analysis, which was kept confidential. Based on the report the resigning brother (and his legal counsel) negotiated his departure with his brothers, settling to keep his health and sanity. A smart decision. His son who was also working in the family business quit.