Broward Private InvestigationsIf you suspect a business partner of stealing or diverting business, start by using the information rights Florida law already gives you: as an LLC member or a partner, you can demand access to the company’s books and records. At the same time, avoid anything that could backfire — logging into your partner’s accounts, recording their calls, or confronting them before you know what the records show. A licensed investigator can then lawfully fill the gaps the books do not answer. This guide is for owners of closely held businesses in Broward County, from medical practices in Plantation to restaurants in Fort Lauderdale and service companies in Weston and Sunrise.
What duties does my business partner owe me?
In a Florida LLC, each manager of a manager-managed company, and each member of a member-managed company, owes fiduciary duties of loyalty and care to the company and its members (s. 605.04091(1), F.S.). The duty of loyalty includes:
- Accounting to the company for, and holding as trustee, any property, profit or benefit derived from the use of company property or from taking a company opportunity.
- Not dealing with the company on behalf of someone with an interest adverse to it, except as the statute allows.
- Not competing with the company before it is dissolved.
The duty of care is to refrain from grossly negligent or reckless conduct, willful or intentional misconduct, or a knowing violation of law (s. 605.04091(3)). Your operating agreement may shape these duties, so have your attorney read it alongside the statute.
What warning signs point to partner fraud?
- Revenue falls while the customer base, schedule or foot traffic looks the same.
- Your partner suddenly controls the bookkeeping, the bank login or the accountant relationship, and resists sharing.
- Vendors you do not recognise, or payments to companies with vague names.
- Customers or staff mention your partner doing similar work under another name.
- Company equipment, inventory or employees being used for something that does not show up in the books.
- Financial statements that are late, incomplete or keep changing.
None of these proves anything by itself. They are reasons to look at the records.
What records am I entitled to see?
Florida requires an LLC to keep core records, including a current list of members and managers, the operating agreement, filed articles, and the last 3 years of tax returns and financial statements (s. 605.0410(1), F.S.). Your access depends on how the company is managed:
- Member-managed LLC: on reasonable notice, a member may inspect and copy those records and other company records material to the member’s rights and duties (s. 605.0410(2)(a)).
- Manager-managed LLC: a member may inspect the core records, and may obtain fuller information by making a demand in a record that describes, with reasonable particularity, the information sought and the purpose (s. 605.0410(3)(b)).
Either way, the company must respond to a demand within 10 days, saying what it will provide, when and where, and why anything is being withheld (s. 605.0410(2)(c), (3)(c)). If the company refuses, the circuit court where its principal office is located may summarily order inspection, and must generally order the company to pay your costs, including reasonable attorney fees, unless it refused in good faith with a reasonable basis for doubt (s. 605.0411, F.S.). For a Broward-based company, that is the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit (s. 26.021(17)). General partnerships have a similar rule: partners and their agents and attorneys get access to the books and records (s. 620.8403, F.S.).
What should I not do?
Owners who feel betrayed sometimes damage their own case. Avoid:
- Logging into your partner’s email, phone or personal accounts. Accessing a computer, network or electronic device without authorization is an offense under s. 815.06, F.S., even if you suspect wrongdoing.
- Recording conversations without consent. Florida requires all-party consent to intercept oral, wire or electronic communications (s. 934.03, F.S.).
- Moving money or locking your partner out on your own. Self-help can breach your own duties. Talk to counsel first.
- Tipping your hand early. A premature confrontation gives records time to disappear.
What can a private investigator lawfully find?
Once your attorney has the books, an investigator fills in what the books cannot show, using public records and lawful observation:
- Related companies. Searching state business filings and other public records for entities your partner formed or manages, and comparing them with vendor names in the ledger. This is core corporate investigation work.
- Diverted business. Documenting, from public places, whether company vehicles, staff or equipment are being used at another business, through lawful surveillance.
- Assets. Identifying real property, vehicles and business interests through asset searches, which matters if your attorney later seeks to recover money.
- Background on new vendors or associates. A background investigation can show whether a supplier is a real business or a shell connected to your partner.
The investigator should work for your attorney, so findings go into the legal strategy and are handled carefully. The goal is evidence that holds up in a dispute or a buyout negotiation, not suspicion.
Do I need a forensic accountant, an investigator, or both?
They answer different questions. A forensic accountant works inside the numbers: tracing transactions, reconciling bank statements to the ledger, and quantifying what is missing. An investigator works outside them: who is behind a vendor, where company equipment actually goes, what other businesses a partner is connected to, and what assets exist if money has to be recovered. In a smaller case, an investigator’s public-records work may be enough to tell your attorney whether a full accounting is justified. In a larger one, the two usually work in parallel, both reporting to counsel, so that each finding can be checked against the other. Either way, decide the scope with your attorney first, so you are not paying for work that will not be used.
What if my partner did nothing wrong?
That happens, and it is a good outcome. Poor bookkeeping, a bad quarter or a misunderstanding about the operating agreement can look like theft from the outside. An honest investigation should be able to tell you that too, before a relationship or a company is destroyed over a mistake.
Broward Private Investigations works with licensed Florida private investigators across Broward County. If you think a partner is taking from the business, call (954) 235-4955 or contact us for a confidential consultation. Related: our fraud investigations page.