Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Common Interests Owed $13000/ Won't pay! NEED Some IDEAS

You make it sound like you broke some laws..if you have nothing to hide...then what is the problem?

I think you need to see a better lawyer then. You could possibly sue for "pain and suffering" if the money caused you grief or to be late on other bills, causing harrasment from collection companies etc...I am no law expert, but if you have proof, something could be done legally and a good lawyer goes a long way. I would do the news thing first, and then see how many lawyers call you....LOL

the problem is he won't pay.
I have broken no laws.
My temper is getting short though.
As a sub-contractor i am legally allowed to work for more than one contractor but he does not see it that way. Is there anything the irs can do to help me? If you work for someone specifically and that is implied then you are considered an employee right? He is just trying to avoid paying taxes which is a huge problem if the irs finds out.

Id go to a different lawyer, there should be no problem getting the $13K+legal fees. I really bothers me when someone has a legitament case against someone and they cannot get what they are owed. But some fraud will claim false information and walk away with millions. I hate the whole legal system. Good luck to you though.
-tropictour

A guy I know was in the same situation as you, but for a significantly larger sum, here's how he finally got paid.

Sue him for part of what he owes you, the max falling under small claims court. Then subpeona his employees who are relatvent to your case, to wit, call on each and every one of them to show up to court at some point. You need these witnesses to proceed with your rightful case, so what if just so happens to shut down his staff. If he's gonna play hardball and hide behind the legal process that he's betting you won't pay to pursue, you have to turn the tables on him.

True, can't win back the entire amount owed, but when he sees what you're doing to him, he'll be much more open to negotiating a payment. Small claims prefers that you end the matter in arbitration anyway, the hard part is getting him out there and then having him follow through on whatever agreement you can reach.

this kinda crap makes me wish there was a legal section on CEG so maybe some lawyer CEGers could offer advice

that really sucks, im not a lawyer and have no idea what you could do...call the police? hope you work this out!

I hope you included late payment fees and back interest in your contract for non-timely payment.

That said, I see no reason why you could not collect legal fees as a cost of recovering the unpaid bills. The lawyer you spoke too seems to be utterly spineless when you need an attack dog.

If this guy is so concerned about his reputation... there's nothing wrong with airing the truth publicly. VERY publicly.

thats my problem. We have no contract. When i started there i never had been independent before. I thought with no doubts that i could trust him. I did not know something like this was required or recommended. I was not experienced with this work. He was my mentor and i learned alot from him. Then a year later something happened and he became angry and frustrated. Then greedy. Always kept everyone in the company behind with pay, even employees. When i would ask for money he would tell me i need to collect money so we could start the job after i would turn in a 7000 dollar check a week ealier for the same house.

I do have all the contracts that i have sold for the company so there is a set standard with in the company of what i was paid. I do have proof of that.