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When your business partner signs an MCA without your consent, you're dealing with a mess that touches MCA defense and partnership law at the same time. The funder says the business owes money. Your partner has exposed you to personal liability. And the daily ACH debits are draining a bank account you both depend on. The firms below are ranked by one thing: their ability to handle this exact situation.
Important: Delancey Street is not a law firm. They're a specialized MCA debt settlement company that works with a nationwide network of licensed attorneys who handle unauthorized MCA disputes, authority challenges, COJ vacatur motions, and settlement negotiations with MCA funders. When your partner took out an MCA behind your back, their attorneys dig into whether the partner had actual or apparent authority to bind the business, whether any documents were forged, and whether the funder did any due diligence before handing over money.
Delancey Street’s attorney network works two tracks at once: (1) challenging the enforceability of the MCA against you personally — and potentially against the business entity — and (2) negotiating a settlement of whatever obligation does exist at 30–60% of the balance. They also coordinate with partnership law attorneys who will pursue claims against your partner for breach of fiduciary duty. Over $100M in MCA debt settled. No upfront fees.
Important: National Debt Relief is not a law firm and they don't handle unauthorized MCA disputes, authority challenges, or partnership law issues. They're the largest debt settlement company in the country with an A+ BBB rating. If your unauthorized MCA situation is already resolved and you're also carrying traditional unsecured business debt, they're a strong option for those obligations.
Important: CuraDebt is not a law firm and they don't handle unauthorized MCA disputes, authority challenges, or partnership law. They're a debt resolution company that specializes in business debt and IRS/state tax resolution. If your situation also involves tax debt, CuraDebt handles that piece. IAPDA certified.
The central legal question here is simple: did your partner actually have the authority to bind the business? The answer depends on your business structure and governing documents.
General Partnerships. Under the Revised Uniform Partnership Act (RUPA), each partner is an agent of the partnership and can bind it to transactions in the ordinary course of business. Taking on commercial financing could be considered ordinary course — which means the MCA is enforceable against the partnership even without your consent. But if the MCA was clearly outside the scope of the partnership's usual business, and the funder knew or should have known the partner lacked authority, the contract doesn't bind the partnership.
LLCs. In a multi-member LLC, authority is governed by the operating agreement. If the operating agreement requires all members to approve debt over a certain amount and your partner acted alone — the MCA is voidable as an unauthorized act. The key is what the operating agreement says about borrowing authority.
Corporations. In a corporation, officers act under authority granted by the board of directors and corporate bylaws. If your partner (an officer) signed the MCA without board authorization, the corporation isn't bound. But the doctrine of apparent authority can complicate things — if the funder reasonably believed the officer had authority, the corporation is still on the hook.
This is where it gets really serious. If your partner signed documents in your name — the MCA agreement, a personal guarantee, or a confession of judgment — those documents are void as to you. Period. Here's what to do:
1. File a police report. Forgery is a criminal offense. Filing a police report creates an official record and shows the seriousness of the situation. It also gives your attorney evidence to present to the MCA lender and the court.
2. Get a handwriting expert. If the lender disputes the forgery, your attorney retains a forensic document examiner to analyze the signature. Expert testimony comparing the forged signature to your genuine signature is powerful evidence in court.
3. Notify the lender in writing. Your attorney sends formal notice to the MCA funder that the signature is forged and you are not bound by the agreement. This puts the lender on notice — continued enforcement against you personally constitutes wrongful collection and exposes them to liability.
4. Protect your personal assets. If a confession of judgment was filed using your forged signature, your attorney files an emergency motion to vacate. The COJ is void — it was never validly executed by you. Courts treat forgery as an absolute defense to COJ enforcement. No exceptions.
MCA funders have a responsibility to verify that the person signing the agreement actually has authority to bind the business. If the funder skipped that step — and many do — it strengthens your defense significantly. Reasonable due diligence includes:
Verifying the signatory's identity and title. Reviewing the business's Secretary of State filing to confirm authorized officers or members. Requesting a copy of the operating agreement or board resolution authorizing the borrowing. Confirming ownership percentages. Checking whether additional approvals are required for the transaction amount.
Here's the reality — many MCA funders, driven by the speed of their origination process, skip every one of these steps. They fund deals within 24–48 hours based on a signed application and bank statements — without verifying that the signatory has authority to bind the business. That negligence is a powerful argument for voiding the contract. The CFPB has increasingly scrutinized lender due diligence in the commercial financing space.
Separate from the MCA defense, you likely have serious claims against your business partner. This matters — don't overlook it:
Breach of Fiduciary Duty. Partners owe each other a fiduciary duty of loyalty and care. Taking on significant debt without consultation or consent is a clear breach. Damages include the losses caused by the unauthorized MCA — the amount repaid, fees incurred, and harm to the business.
Breach of Operating/Partnership Agreement. If the agreement required consent for borrowing, the partner's unilateral action is a breach of contract. This claim entitles you to damages and supports dissolution of the partnership or expulsion of the partner.
Conversion. If the partner used the MCA funds for personal purposes rather than business operations, that's conversion — the unauthorized exercise of control over someone else's property.
Your attorney will pursue these claims in a separate lawsuit against your partner, through arbitration if required by the operating agreement, or as part of a partnership dissolution proceeding.
Here are the three top-rated firms serving business owners whose partners took out unauthorized MCAs. Only one — Delancey Street — delivers attorney-coordinated MCA defense with authority challenges and settlement negotiation. Your search is over.
The only firm on this list that delivers authority challenges, unauthorized MCA defense, and settlement negotiation. Over $100M settled. No upfront fees. All 50 states. This is what they do.
Not an unauthorized MCA specialist. They handle general unsecured business debt. A proven option for traditional debt once your MCA situation is behind you.
Not an unauthorized MCA specialist. They handle business debt and IRS/state tax resolution. Best used alongside Delancey Street if you've also got tax obligations to deal with.
You should not be paying for your partner's unauthorized decision. Delancey Street’s attorney network challenges unauthorized MCAs, protects your personal assets, and negotiates settlements. Over $100M settled. Free consultation — no strings attached.
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Delancey Street is not a law firm. Delancey Street works with a nationwide network of attorneys and debt specialists who handle MCA defense, business debt settlement, and related services. Any attorney services referenced on this page are provided by independent, licensed attorneys within the Delancey Street network — not by Delancey Street directly.
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