Business Law

Published on: May 31, 2018

Guest and Gray Law Firm: Terrell’s Trusted Legal Team

Guest and Gray, P.C. is committed to providing Kaufman county communities with the best possible civil litigation services. We are a full services law firm. When people ask us what kind of law we do, our response is always “its is better to explain what types of we DO NOT do,” which is basically two areas of law: bankruptcy and tax.

At Guest and Gray, there is literally no case too big. Our firm has grown to a point where no case is too big or too complex. Whether it be complex civil litigation involving business and corporate legal disputes, breach of contract, real estate law, personal injury or probate and estate planning, Guest and Gray has the lawyers that you need to help you with any legal issue.

TERRELL IS GROWING

Published on: May 29, 2018

Need Legal Help in Rockwall? Call Guest and Gray Today!

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Guest and Gray Law Firm is the firm to turn to when you have a legal problem. Our practice is quickly growing and we are the trusted Rockwall criminal and civil litigation firm. We are proud to own the title of being the largest and most highly rated local Rockwall law firm.

Sure, you can call a Dallas firm for help, but why? Guest and Gray, P.C. offers the same excellent service but we have convenient office locations for our Rockwall clients. Live in Rockwall or north of Rockwall? Our Rockwall office is located off of TL Townsend just passed the Rockwall county courthouse. Live south of Rockwall towards Heath? It may be better for you to meet us in our Forney location in downtown Forney just off the old townsquare near the city offices. Wherever you may be in Rockwall county, Guest and Gray, P.C. is the local choice.

We are skilled in all different practice areas that you may need, whether it be criminal defense, family law, civil litigation or personal injury, we have a lawyer (or two) just for you. Our attorneys are aggressive and fight hard for each client. No case is too big. We have the resources to take your case the distance. Period.

Published on: April 6, 2018

Hunt County Civil Litigation

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Hunt County is a mostly rural county. Everyone knows that Greenville is exploding in size, but what people do not know is that the rest of the county is getting ready to catch up. The people are great and the cities and towns bring back memories of what Texas was like growing up. But even Hunt County simply cannot escape the growth in nearby Dallas, Collin and Rockwall counties. Between 2014-2015 and 2015-2016, Hunt County’s year over year growth spiked from just over 1.2% to 2.48%. Similar growth has continued in the county in 2017 and early 2018 so far.

As a lawyer, what I see coming for Hunt county is increased traffic and traffic accidents and an uptick in civil litigation. Residential growth always leads to commercial growth. Both of those lead to civil litigation, such as real estate and breach of contract litigation. When most people think of hiring a lawyer, their first thought is “I need a Dallas lawyer!”

However, that is simply not the case. Hunt county has numerous attorneys who are capable handling any of your civil litigation needs. Guest and Gray, P.C. is a law firm based out of Kaufman and Rockwall counties that seeks to represent people in civil litigation matters all across East and Northeast Texas, including: Kaufman, Rockwall, Hunt, Anderson, Henderson, Hopkins, Lamar, Rains, Rusk, Smith, and Van Zandt county areas.

Published on: March 9, 2018

Contract Damages in Business Litigation in Texas

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

After businesses enter into a contract, those entities have certain responsibilities to one another until such a time that the contract has been completed. If one of the parties materially breaches the contract and the other party is harmed by that breach, then the other party is entitled to damages. But how do we measure those damages, i.e., how does the law provide an injured party damages in a contract case?

Plaintiffs in breach of contracts cases can seek several types of damages. These types of damages can be distinguished according to the function that each serves. In general, the types of available damages fall into three categories, known as “benefit of the bargain” (or “expectancy”), “reliance,” and “restitution” damages. It is sometimes said that expectancy damages are the “normal measure” of damages. What this means is that benefit-of-the-bargain damages is the most commonly sought measure or type of damages. It is does not imply that it is superior to the other measures of damages.

Benefit of the Bargain Damages: A party wishing to be placed in the same economic position that it would have occupied had the contract not been breached will seek expectancy damages as a result. Expectancy damages are tied to the expected benefit the non-breaching party was to receive had the breaching party not breached the contract.

Published on: March 9, 2018

Guide to Non-Compete Agreements in Texas

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

Non-Compete Agreements are generally disfavored by the Courts. However, they have been granted protections in Texas under the Texas Non-Compete Act. Although fully recognized in Texas, they must generally be very limited in scope and reasonable under the circumstances.

If you are purchasing a company, one of the most important sections can be the non-compete. If you purchase a business from a seller who is well known in the community without including a non-compete, you may find yourself competing against that seller again in the future if they decide to re-enter the same industry again. The seller and their business has presumably built up goodwill and name recognition. That is probably part of what drew you to want to buy the business in the first place. Now, think of potentially having to compete with that person you just paid to purchase their company and they steal all their business back by coming back into the market shortly after the sale. That would be terrible and that has happened in the past.

The following list identifies common points for buyers and sellers that our firm emphasizes during both the negotiation of a non compete agreement as part of the sale of a business and litigation that may arise out of a non compete agreement after the sale. These are all based on the law in the State of Texas and how these specific points have been treated in the past. We call them “pitfalls”. Don’t fall into one.

Published on: March 9, 2018

Purchase and Sale Agreements in Texas Business Acquisitions

by Guest and Gray Law Firm

The Purchase and Sale Agreement

Purchase and Sale Agreements are required when a person or entity acquires another business or assets of another business. These sorts of documents are common place and if you are in the market to purchase an existing entity with ongoing operations, this is a document that you should become quite familiar with before actually signing on the line. It is also a complex document that should be drafted by an attorney. Many people that I have spoken to over the years have not wanted to hire an attorney because of the additional cost. However, when you are spending hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars on purchasing a new company or business assets, saving a little bit of money on attorney’s fees is not worth it if you mess the whole thing up and it costs you big time in the future.

Here is a basic run down of a Purchase and Sale Agreement. It is a lot like a Residential Real Estate Contract, but with some additional terms and sections that make it a much more complex document that a Realtor or broker, absent a corresponding law license, should not be drafting from scratch on their own.