diff --git a/errors.go b/errors.go
index f365a57990..ffd6471f23 100644
--- a/errors.go
+++ b/errors.go
@@ -150,10 +150,12 @@ func HandleExitCoder(err error) {
 	}
 
 	if exitErr, ok := err.(ExitCoder); ok {
-		if _, ok := exitErr.(ErrorFormatter); ok {
-			_, _ = fmt.Fprintf(ErrWriter, "%+v\n", err)
-		} else {
-			_, _ = fmt.Fprintln(ErrWriter, err)
+		if msg := err.Error(); msg != "" {
+			if _, ok := exitErr.(ErrorFormatter); ok {
+				_, _ = fmt.Fprintf(ErrWriter, "%+v\n", err)
+			} else {
+				_, _ = fmt.Fprintln(ErrWriter, err)
+			}
 		}
 		OsExiter(exitErr.ExitCode())
 		return
diff --git a/errors_test.go b/errors_test.go
index 35aaab54d4..6a497c58f5 100644
--- a/errors_test.go
+++ b/errors_test.go
@@ -232,3 +232,28 @@ func TestErrRequiredFlags_Error(t *testing.T) {
 	expectedMsg = "Required flag \"flag1\" not set"
 	assert.Equal(t, expectedMsg, err.Error())
 }
+
+// TestHandleExitCoder_EmptyMessage is a regression test for
+// https://github.com/urfave/cli/issues/2263.
+// HandleExitCoder must not print an empty line to ErrWriter when the ExitCoder
+// message is empty (e.g. cli.Exit("", code)).
+func TestHandleExitCoder_EmptyMessage(t *testing.T) {
+	called := false
+
+	OsExiter = func(rc int) {
+		if !called {
+			called = true
+		}
+	}
+	ErrWriter = &bytes.Buffer{}
+
+	defer func() {
+		OsExiter = fakeOsExiter
+		ErrWriter = fakeErrWriter
+	}()
+
+	HandleExitCoder(Exit("", 2))
+
+	assert.True(t, called)
+	assert.Empty(t, ErrWriter.(*bytes.Buffer).String(), "expected no output for empty-message exit")
+}
diff --git a/flag_bool_with_inverse.go b/flag_bool_with_inverse.go
index 272dd98fec..680fe2c64e 100644
--- a/flag_bool_with_inverse.go
+++ b/flag_bool_with_inverse.go
@@ -179,6 +179,14 @@ func (bif *BoolWithInverseFlag) String() string {
 		prefix = "-"
 	}
 
+	// Guard against a FlagStringer that returns a string without a tab (e.g.
+	// a custom stringer or the default stringer when the flag does not
+	// implement DocGenerationFlag). In that case treat the entire output as
+	// the tab-delimited suffix so the slice never goes out of bounds.
+	if i < 0 {
+		i = 0
+	}
+
 	return fmt.Sprintf("%s[%s]%s%s", prefix, bif.inversePrefix(), bif.Name, out[i:])
 }
 
diff --git a/flag_bool_with_inverse_test.go b/flag_bool_with_inverse_test.go
index 981494586b..fbb7e43ff8 100644
--- a/flag_bool_with_inverse_test.go
+++ b/flag_bool_with_inverse_test.go
@@ -520,3 +520,26 @@ func TestBoolWithInverseFlag_SatisfiesVisibleFlagInterface(t *testing.T) {
 
 	_ = f.IsVisible()
 }
+
+// TestBoolWithInverseFlagStringNoPanicWithNoTabStringer is a regression test for
+// https://github.com/urfave/cli/issues/2303.
+// BoolWithInverseFlag.String() panicked with "slice bounds out of range [-1:]"
+// when the FlagStringer returned a string without a tab character.
+func TestBoolWithInverseFlagStringNoPanicWithNoTabStringer(t *testing.T) {
+	orig := FlagStringer
+	defer func() { FlagStringer = orig }()
+
+	FlagStringer = func(f Flag) string {
+		return "no tab here"
+	}
+
+	flag := &BoolWithInverseFlag{
+		Name: "verbose",
+	}
+
+	// Must not panic.
+	got := flag.String()
+	if !strings.Contains(got, "verbose") {
+		t.Errorf("expected String() to contain the flag name, got %q", got)
+	}
+}