Sandy leans in and shoulders my arm. “Yeahhh, just stay on your game, Jules. She gave me the chills.”
“You went to HU?” I always figured Sandy was from up north. I had no idea she studied at Harrison.
“Yep. Finished my LPC last year and, luckily, got my training contract with Trevainne right out the gate.”
“So, you have the inside gossip on all the professors?”
“Hell no! I’m like you. I collected my assignments and kept my head down. I know the professors who like to make sh—stuff harder on students for poops and giggles, though.”
I laugh. “You can say shit, Sandy. I’m from the Vale. I think I could probably teach you a word or two.”
Sandy shakes her head and grabs for a gummy. “I’m trying so hard to stay professional. It’s crazy, but I didn’t notice how much I swore until I got this job and couldn’t, you know?” She pulls the gummy apart with her teeth, stretching it out. “Ohhh hold up.” She chews fast and covers her mouth to speak. “Martin’s gettingstarted—”
We settle down and listen to Martin discussing the ins and outs of contract law. He discusses contractual intention, agreement, and consideration. From the simplest of contracts (think posters offering compensation for finding a lost pet) to contracts of incorporation, and all the way to contracts governing laws themselves. He debatesExpressandImplied Termsand when it’s beneficial to make clauses flexible or ironclad. The pit falls betweenOffersandInvitations to Treatand expectations regarding termination or breaches of these contracts.
I listen raptly to the examples he discusses, inviting the other students to weigh in with their theories or interpretations of specific or infamous contractual breaches. I almost wish I were there. By the time he wraps up, my head is full and my notebook empty.
“A bit of a gloss over the key aspects, for sure, but a strong introduction overall,” Sandy critiques. “I won’t ask if you caught it all, but I want to know if you absorbed it. Any questions?” Sandy asks.
“Not really,” I mumble, thinking over the lecture. There was a model that caught my attention, one that seemed remarkably similar to Dax’s situation here at Trevainne. “There is one thing. Marty mentioned an example that got me thinking.”
“Oohkaay?”
“The inheritance of a business. The one where, regardless of it being a family-run business, the governance contract stipulates that the business passes to a nominated person.”
Sandy grins. “You caught that, huh?”
“He was talking about Trevainne, wasn’t he?”
“He was,” she confirms but doesn’t elaborate.
“That’s why Dax runs it now, despite not being a Trevainne.”
“Correct.”
Despite noticing her reluctance to expand into detail, I can’t stop myself from asking for more. “What’s the deal with that? Wasit always that way? Did nepotism just win out for years until Dax or…”
“The contract was drawn up and enforced around nineteen years ago when Theodore Trevainne was still in charge. Until then, it had been an eldest son to the eldest son thing.” Sandy leans in and drops her voice to a whisper. “Now, no one quite knows why he chose to change it, maybe because he only had daughters, but the contract stipulates that the company would pass forward in trust to a nominated successor. The remaining family—uncles, a brother, and so on, put up a fight. Still, the most Theo would bend to their bitching was to create a board of governors to aid in the overseeing of the company. Mostly, they are impotent. They get a stipend payment to attend a couple of meetings a year and get an update on the business’s successes, failures, and upcoming projects. Their power lies in the ability to veto those projects and demand investigation should they deem the numbers or plans detrimental to the name, ethos, or success of Trevainne. They cannot hire or fire; they have no access to funds; and they canneverassume the position of head of Trevainne. They’re literally just a means of guidance.”
“Then why have them at all?”
“They supported Celeste when she took over the helm upon her father’s death. When she refused the company, they stepped in to oversee it until she nominated a new owner.”
“And she chose Dax?”
“She did, but only after changing her mind and taking over herself. She had big plans for this place, and Dax is doing his best to follow them through.”
“So, Dax will leave it to Sylvie when she comes of age or when he finishes what he set out to do?”
Sandy shifts in her chair, standing up and stretching out. She turns her back to me before answering. “I guess so. Something like that anyway.”
“You don’t sound convinced.”
“From what I hear, you’d be more likely to find out the answer to that question than I would.” She points at her chest. “Lowly assistant, remember.”
“Okay, I guess I’ll ask him.”
Her eyebrows shoot upward, but she steels her expression just as quickly. “Any other questions?”
