hi guys, dont mean to intrude here but just poking in to offer a little help.
i read the first 16 pages! and then the last 4 or 5. too many to read now.
i got the gist of what's going on though.
i am currently in law school and can hopefully shed a little light on this, but dont take it as legal advice..
i read someone say something about finalizing the contract. sounds normal, but not necessarily true. the shop guys is talking like he knows what he is talking about. if negotiations have already begun and both parties intend to form the contract, then the contract can be legally binding depending on the circumstances/facts.
for a class action, you need a 100 plaintiffs. wont do much here.
There could also be a breech of contract against Kaotic(?). you dont necessarily need a lawyer. this can be handled in small claims court. the person who dealt with the shop, Nirish?, can file in his town handle it (up to $5k only). it sounds like Nirish and the shop are in the same state, and nearby? so thats good. as far as suing out of state via small claims court, im not sure. but im sure you can find out on the web. lawyers (unless you know them personaly) are only going to advise you to go with the action that will get you to pay him.
Please remember people, there are statutes of limitations for whatever action you seek to address (breech of contract, fraud, etc..)
out of curiosity, has anyone contacted the FBI? any kind of fraudulent legal actions via interstate is a federal offense and the fbi takes it seriously. they are very friendly. give your local office a call, they will put you on with an actual agent immediately and answer all of your questions as to if they can help you or give you advice as to where to go. I have called them before.
If whoever is the most knowlegable on this situation would like to pm please feel free. you can give me some info/list of questions and i would be more than happy to take them to class and discuss with one of my professors. they are very nice and helpful. (and obviously unbiased cuz they dont stand to make any money off it). dont spend $2500 on a lawyer when each person only has $700 or so invested. IF he can get you any money back, when you divy it up, youll have much less, some none. He might not even be able to do anything.
another thing, is the shop incorporated or no? as someone said earlier they might not truly "own" anything but be in mass debt. this is true, BUT, if they are not Inc, and you get a judgment, then you can file a lien against his house or any assets (car, tax returns, etc...garnish wages if he loses his business and gets a real job).

anyway, sorry to interrupt and only trying to help.
feel free to contact me if you like, ill be sitting here studying and reading the posts.

Originally posted by Tourgasm:
Sometimes you can mess up a word so bad that spell check doens't know what the hell you're talking about.