About AMA

Executive Summary
Litigated dissolution severely hampers exchange partners’ international efforts. Despite the importance of this issue, limited research has been conducted to understand the process of litigated relationship dissolution in international distribution channels, thus leaving academics and practitioners with an incomplete understanding of issues involved in this process. Zhang, Griffith, and Cavusgil develop a process framework of litigated relationship dissolution in international distribution relationships on the basis of a systematic analysis of legal cases identified in the LexisNexis legal database and the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods online case resources over the 1985–2005 period. They also review the literature on commercial relationship dissolution and channel relationship management.

The proposed framework identifies two types of litigated relationship dissolution: proactive and reactive termination initiation. Proactive termination initiation is triggered by a manufacturer’s ownership changes, its need to integrate channels, and its discovery of more competitive distributors. Reactive termination initiation is a response to a manufacturer’s or distributor’s opportunism. The identification of litigated relationship triggers suggests that to prevent or prepare for unexpected relationship dissolution, managers should monitor not only changes that are internal to the focal distributorship but also developments that are external to the relationship. For example, if a distributor pays close attention to a manufacturer’s ownership change or policy change regarding distribution management, it can work toward enhancing communication with its partner to head off any potential issues and to prepare more appropriately for the possibility of relationship termination.

Furthermore, Zhang, Griffith, and Cavusgil identify two distinct processes of litigated relationship dissolution in international distribution relationships. Reactive termination initiation often experiences an interactive phase before termination, whereas proactive termination initiation moves directly to relationship termination after a noncooperation incident is initiated. The different processes of relationship termination indicate that in reactive termination initiation, it is important for managers to adopt a problem-solving approach and an open exchange of information in the interactive phase. By doing so, managers may be able to preserve valuable relationships and facilitate relationship recovery.

Biography
Chun Zhang is an assistant professor in the Department of Marketing, School of Business Administration, University of Vermont. She received her PhD in Marketing from Michigan State University and is currently an assistant professor in the School of Business Administration at University of Vermont. Her research interests are in the areas of business-to-business relationship management, channels of distribution, and international marketing. She is currently investigating supplier–original equipment manufacturer relationship management in the automotive industry and relationship dissolution phenomena in international distribution channels. She has published in Journal of World Business, Journal of Macromarketing, and Journal of International Marketing.

David A. Griffith is Assistant Professor of Marketing and Supply Chain Management in the Eli Broad Graduate School of Management at Michigan State University. He received his PhD and MBA from Kent State University and his B.S. from the University of Akron. His areas of expertise are international marketing strategy and global supply chain management. David has published his work in Journal of International Business Studies and Journal of International Marketing. He is currently researching dynamic capabilities, firm capital, and knowledge/technology management.

S. Tamer Cavusgil is University Distinguished Faculty and John W. Byington Endowed Chair in Global Marketing at Michigan State University. He also serves as the Executive Director of MSU-CIBER. Professor Cavusgil specializes in international marketing strategy, early internationalization, and emerging markets. He is the author of several books and more than 100 peer-reviewed articles. Doing Business in Emerging Markets (Sage Publications 2002) is his most recent contribution. He is also the author of several computer-aided diagnostic tools for managers, including CORE V, COmpany Readiness to Export. Professor Cavusgil edits the Elsevier book series Advances in International Marketing.