Your Business Partner Took Company Money? Protect the Records First.

If your business partner stole money from the company, protect the records first. Then request the company’s books, and only after that decide on legal steps. Florida law gives owners real tools, but the right path depends on your entity type and your signed agreements.

KEW Legal is a Florida business law firm with offices in Coral Gables and Sunny Isles Beach. We serve business owners in Miami-Dade, Broward, and across South Florida. This guide is general information, not advice for your specific situation.

What Does It Mean When a Business Partner Takes Company Money?

It means money left the business without a clear, approved business reason. Not every payment to a partner is wrong, though. Common patterns include:

• Cash withdrawals with no receipt or ledger entry
• Transfers from company accounts to a personal account
• Vendor invoices for work that never happened, or that were inflated
• Payroll or expense reimbursements with no business purpose

The key question is authorization. A partner may be entitled to a salary, a profit distribution, or a reimbursement. Your operating agreement or partnership agreement sets those rules. A payment that breaks those rules can be a problem, even if it looks normal.

Florida law also requires loyalty from managers and members. Under Fla. Stat. § 605.04091, a manager or member must account to the company for any property, profit, or benefit taken from company property. The same conduct may also raise criminal questions under Florida’s theft laws. Civil recovery and criminal matters follow different rules, so weigh them separately.

What Records Should You Preserve Before Anything Else?

Preserve the bank and payment records before you confront your partner or change any books. Gather these items:

• Statements for every company account, including operating, savings, and merchant accounts, for the period in question
• Check images, wire confirmations, ACH detail, and card statements
• Payee names and memo lines for each suspicious transaction
• Accounting software exports, general ledger reports, and audit trails with timestamps
• Exports from any payment platform the company uses

Store copies outside the company’s systems. Keep the originals unchanged. Don’t annotate, reorganize, or “clean up” files, because that can make the record harder to trust.

Write down who holds online banking logins, who can sign checks, and whether access changed recently. A dated log is simple and useful. A common mistake is waiting until emails are deleted or accounts are closed. Start the file as soon as you spot a problem.

How Do You Request the Company’s Books and Records in Florida?

In Florida, a member or partner often has a legal right to see company records. The governing agreement can shape the details.

For an LLC, Fla. Stat. § 605.0410 requires the company to keep a current list of members and managers. It must also keep tax returns and financial statements for the 3 most recent years, if any. The company must furnish information material to your rights without being asked. If it declines a request, it must give its reasons.

If the company refuses access, Fla. Stat. § 605.0411 lets the circuit court summarily order inspection and copying, at the company’s expense. The court must also order the company to pay reasonable attorney fees, unless it refused in good faith.

For a partnership, Fla. Stat. § 620.8403 requires access to books and records during ordinary business hours. The partnership may charge a reasonable cost for copies.

Send a written demand that lists the records, the time period, your purpose, and how you want to inspect them. Send it in a way that creates a dated record. Keep requests narrow enough to defend and broad enough to capture the transactions at issue. Expect pushback. A partial or late production can itself be useful evidence.

When Does a Partner’s Withdrawal Become a Legal Claim?

A withdrawal can support a legal claim when it was not authorized and it harmed the company or you. Which civil claims may apply depends on the specific facts and on the company’s governing documents.

For partners, Fla. Stat. § 620.8404 limits the fiduciary duties to loyalty and care. The loyalty duty includes accounting for any benefit taken from partnership business.

Who can sue depends on who was hurt. Whether a claim belongs to an individual member or to the company itself can affect how a dispute is brought and who may bring it. Under Fla. Stat. § 605.0802, a member generally must first demand action from the other members or managers. They have a reasonable time, not to exceed 90 days, to act.

Timing matters. Fla. Stat. § 605.0406 bars an action over an improper distribution unless it’s filed within 2 years after the distribution. Other claims follow Florida’s limitations statute, which sets periods by claim type. Don’t assume you have time.

Some agreements require arbitration. A written arbitration clause in a business contract can affect where and how a dispute is resolved.

How Does Outside General Counsel Help Organize the Facts?

Outside general counsel is an ongoing advisory role. The lawyer reviews governing documents, organizes records, and sets out options in writing. Typical steps include:

• An intake interview about the company, the partner, and the transactions
• A review of the operating agreement, partnership agreement, and prior approvals
• A records inventory and a comparison of withdrawals against approvals and invoices
• A written list of open questions and documents still needed
• Coordination with the company’s outside accountant

Owners make the major decisions. Whether to pursue litigation, mediation, settlement, or a negotiated buyout belongs to them. Counsel explains the trade-offs of each path. Work that covers partnership disputes often overlaps with outside general counsel for businesses.

No timeline can be promised at the start. The volume of records and the other side’s cooperation both shape how long the work takes.

How Do You Protect Company Funds While the Facts Are Checked?

Start by limiting who can move money, if your governing agreement allows it. Review bank signature cards and online access levels. Check signing authority under the operating or partnership agreement.

Avoid steps that make the problem worse:

• Don’t confront your partner in a way that prompts deleted records or moved money.
• Route major communications through counsel where you can.
• Don’t accuse employees, vendors, or customers before you have records.
• Don’t change the company’s books to hide or fix entries.

A court may be asked for temporary relief to preserve assets or records. Whether that fits depends on the facts and the agreements, and no result can be predicted in advance. Keep a written log of any decision to freeze or restrict access, including who approved it and why. If a departing owner is involved, buyout terms may be covered by a business succession planning attorney review.

What Are the Common Questions About a Partner Taking Company Money?

Most of these answers depend on your governing agreement and your records.

Can my business partner withdraw funds without my consent? It depends on the agreement and whether the withdrawal was an approved distribution, salary, or reimbursement. Unauthorized withdrawals may be challengeable.

Can you sue a partner for taking money from the business? Civil claims may be available for breach of duty, conversion, or fraud. Each depends on the documents and the proof.

What proof do you need to accuse someone of stealing? Bank records, ledgers, approvals, and written messages are the usual starting point. Make any accusation carefully, with counsel’s guidance.

Should I involve the police? That’s a separate decision with its own trade-offs. It can affect civil options, so discuss it before you make or threaten a report.

If your partner has moved money and you’re trying to figure out whether you have a claim, you don’t have to sort through the bank statements alone. Call 305-990-2300 or send us a message through our contact page.