Law360, New York ( December 18, 2013, 8:31 PM EST) -- Conflicts between the owners in closely held businesses are common and very disruptive. Indeed, the closely held corporation structure itself often leads to the abuse of minority shareholders. This is primarily due to the fact that owners of a closely held business are often its primary decision-makers, but the backgrounds and qualifications of ownership in a closely held business rarely reflect the depth of knowledge and expertise that a large corporation's elected board of directors possess. Owners may include early investors, old friends, family members and/or long-standing employees, and frequently the owners are also the executives. As a consequence, the owner of a closely held business typically has more vested, personally and financially, than the traditional corporate decision-maker....