When I purchased my first house years ago, I remember the excitement on move-in day. As I walked into our empty house, my excitement quickly melted away when an odor led us to find that the master bathroom and bedroom had flooded the night before. You can imagine how frustrated I was that the sellers packed all of their belongings and left us with a complete and utter mess. After multiple attempts to get them to fix it, I remember running through my list of options and suddenly came up with a grand idea. I would send them a letter from an attorney to prove we were serious and hopefully force them to fix what they had broken.
When I ran this grand idea by my parents I will never forget what my Mom said: “Matt, we don’t sue people.” She meant that our family does the right thing, even when we are wronged. That one sentence has shaped the way that I conduct myself and my business today and will continue for years to come. Here are a few thoughts on the power of her message:
- God knows and notices every good deed, especially the ones that go unnoticed or unappreciated by others. Revelation 2:2 says, “I know your deeds, your hard work, your perseverance.” Even if others are not deserving, God knows when you do the right thing.
- The legal system is honorable and can be a great avenue for documenting a myriad of transaction types. But, it becomes dishonorable when one or both parties tries to exploit the system to intimidate, complicate or take advantage of someone else. A legal transaction is not an excuse to be unfair, one sided or unreasonable. In Luke 10:27, Jesus said, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Even a legal negotiation should be fair, balanced, and negotiated in a way that the result for the other party is something that you could live with if you were in their shoes.
- We spend a fortune trying to predict and detail every possible scenario and outcome in operating agreements. Trying to predict the future in these agreements is impossible. Sometimes this has worked out in my favor and sometimes it has not. Doing the right thing still prevails, regardless of what the agreement says. Win/Win is always the right choice. I am so thankful to have partners that share my view on this. I will never partner with anyone that I think would take advantage of a situation just because the language in a document lands in their favor.
I must admit that the legal process can be very frustrating for me. But I will always do my best to use the legal system in an honorable manner that is pleasing to God. I will always strive for an agreement that is fair and balanced for both sides. I will always try to do the right thing, regardless of whether or not the language in an agreement lands in my favor.