This topic contains 22 replies, has 10 voices, and was last updated by 
Vlad 10 months, 1 week ago.
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FK!
I worked for a dishonest company – the principal owner, the President and the Controller were all dishonest pieces of s~~~.
I caught them screwing me on my commissions (they had to issue me a check for more than ten grand), they screwed with our 401(k) (that must be a big nono), etc. Paid me and other employees late and we were always cut off and on credit hold by our vendors.
So, I finally had it and was planning to leave. On my way out I accepted an order through my own company I’d created. The customer was not an existing customer of my s~~~ty companies – but this violated my non-compete.
I ended up landing a great job with an ethical company and things have been great. My non-compete lasted a year and is up this month. BOOM – my old company finds out about that one order and is coming after me to increase my non-compete another year. I told my new company about it b/c it affects them. So, now I’m in jeopardy of losing a great job and opportunities like these do not grow on trees.
Its true, I was p~~~ed at the unethical treatment by my s~~~ty former boss – but I screwed up and this could be colossal.
I consulted a lawyer and he had a “fk it” attitude like “you’re screwed” and didn’t seem to really care or want to fight for me.
I’ve been freaking out for the last 4 days over this bulls~~~ and can’t sleep, etc. Believe it or not, this is more stressful than the divorce bulls~~~ I’ve been through over the last year. I knew I was going to lose half my assets, but I still had the ability to earn.
It looks like my vindictiveness against a company of assholes has come back to bite me.
my old company finds out about that one order and is coming after me to increase my non-compete another year.
Is it possible to buy your way out of that ? Essentially have your lawyer offer them x amount of dollars ?
I may also be on “borrowed time” with my present situation, and being an old white man doesn’t help the situation any.
In a World of Justin Beibers Be a Johnny Cash
my old company finds out about that one order and is coming after me to increase my non-compete another year.
Is it possible to buy your way out of that ? Essentially have your lawyer offer them x amount of dollars ?
I may also be on “borrowed time” with my present situation, and being an old white man doesn’t help the situation any.The “damages” from that single order are minuscule – what they really want is to keep me out of their customers for another year b/c I can really take a lot of their sales and profit. I would offer them the profit from the order that I took in a second. But that isn’t what they want.
Wait. Non compete clauses are not legally enforceable. Some states do not allow it at all like California.
The thing is, you are a PRIVATE person. Not a company. Not an entity. Unlike a patent, your labor is not an object or goods for sale so to speak.
It also goes against the law of commerce.
Say for example, I work at Best buy. I work at Dell too. So if Dell can give a better deal on their website, that would violate a non compete claws. But we were told to push people their to buy ink supplies etc.
Now, this would be a GREAT TIME to call 1-800 GET-A-JEW You need to find the best lawyer you can. And use whatever leverage you can in order to make that happen. If your Old employer is doing this, take a look at that non compete clause in DETAIL. If the deal was outside of business hours for example, the main business can not say you were competing with them since they do not offer 24 hour service etc.
Laws are MADE to be BROKEN. So are RULES. Follow that mantra, and you can reach and agreement. You also have to ask, how can they extend something without you agreeing to it? These non compete clauses have to be updated every year depending on local laws. Like I said. Either BUY a paralegal to read the law, and see if they can find loopholes, or get a full blown lawyer.
There are CRACKS in EVERY law.
-That’s — why — WORDS —- have —– spaces.
I hope this helps.
You are all alone. If you have been falsely accused of RAPE, DV, PLEASE let all men know about the people who did this. http://register-her.net/web/guest/home
I think you are in the clear based on my experience. I’ve signed non-compete agreements all my professional career. Am a certified public accountant and this is a relationship business.
Not me, but I’ve known a few cases in town actually go to court. The judge’s finding was always the same. He said “I’ll not deny a man the right to earn a living. You can contact anyone in town to solicit clients, just not the clients of your old firm.”
Of course agreements vary, but if this customer was not a customer of your old company, I’d get a new lawyer and have him tell your old company to go pound sand and we will see you in court. I think the attorney you talked to is an idiot, many of them are.
Since your old company is teetering on being broke, they may just forget it.
TTW
I ain't got a wife to spend my money, I have to do that all by myself.
Find a new lawyer and counter-sue them for what they did to you and make it clear to them you will do everything in your power to drag everything THEY DID onto the court records during the competing court trials.
Discovery motions are a wonderful tool to use.
Thanks, gents.
This has been eating at me.
I live in the South and the laws are skewed towards employers. “right to work” is a misnomer for – f~~~ your rights as an individual.
Hopefully the lawyers at my new company will help me out. I will also be proactive and find an aggressive lawyer.
When I told the lawyer that I consulted with about the shadiness that my former employer engaged in he ignored it! I almost feel like I could call a whistleblower about it. F~~~ing with 401(k)? Making the withdrawals and not depositing them into the account for 2-3 months at a time. That must be a federal violation.
I don’t understand why the old company thinks they would be able to extend the non-compete agreement for another year. Or why you would ever agree to sign an extension.
If they feel wronged, they would have to go to the trouble, effort and expense of going after you for … what? Seems hardly worth it to pursue you.
If they had to screw their old employees out of commissions and salary, and their credit to vendors was often on hold, would they really have the means (time, money, staff) for a long expensive legal fight?
I don’t understand from your post if you are self-employed, an employee or why you had to divulge that order to your new company if you are their employee. When you talk about danger of losing a “job”, do you mean a customer/contract? Did your own company get absorbed into another company? I’m missing a piece.
Anyway– on the face of what I read– I would let your old company come after you. They have to make their case. If they have grounds and make progress to proving damages, some settlement would be reached. I would not agree to an extension of the non-compete. Not unless they pay YOU appropriate compensation for that.
I'm going my own way. Maybe I'll see you there.
I don’t understand why the old company thinks they would be able to extend the non-compete agreement for another year. \
So there is a clause that if a violation of the Non Solicitation (actually what it is) exist then the watch starts over for the 1 year duration.
I’ll be more clear: I started my own company but only took one order (stupidly it was while I was still employed by them – I should have waited til after my notice). I ended up not continuing down the path of having my own company, so I then went to work with my current employer – a great company that is really ethical.
It affects my new employer b/c one reason they hired me was for my book of business. They understood I would have to sit out one year. Now it might be 2 years and that is a long time to wait for ROI on the new business I could bring from my old customers. Make sense?
Their goal is to come after me. Win a judgement that would invoke another year of non-solicitation based on that ONE minor infraction.
Don’t get to hung up about what the other guy does. That is the first mistake people make. Your job it to only care about the prize. Focus only on that and do not put any energy in anything else but the goal at hand. Sure they did some stuff. But these things can come back to haunt you. And it may tarnish YOUR record. You said you live in the south. Southern People rarely forget the actions of others. Rumors tend to take hold like words in the bible.
You are all alone. If you have been falsely accused of RAPE, DV, PLEASE let all men know about the people who did this. http://register-her.net/web/guest/home
Makes sense. Well, the onus is on them. I wouldn’t want to voluntarily sign any extension, and keep it to the issue of that one order. They have to show their hand. Keeping in mind whether their THREAT of action achieves the same effect as extending the non-compete, if it ultimately keeps you from signing new deals. This could be be a ploy, and would cost them little.
Good luck.I'm going my own way. Maybe I'll see you there.
Hopefully the lawyers at my new company will help me out.
DO NOT TRUST THE COMPANY LAWYER! The company lawyer will do what is in the best interests of the company, NOT YOU!
Get a new lawyer, or settle with the proviso you do not pay any legal fees and you find a new job. Any other way and you are going to get hosed.
You signed up the customer before you left your old company right? And then AFTER that you signed the non compete? Then you didn’t violate your noncompete. You ALREADY had that client. The noncompete was for one year after you signed it, not for anything you did before. And you lawyer is a f~~~ing idiot for not thinking of that. If the one year starts over when you violated the noncompete, then it actually ends it earlier.
And you are right about the whistleblower idea. If you have proof, you could threaten them with a whistleblower call to the IRS about what you know. At a minimum it will most likely trigger an audit. That would be more expensive to the old company than just walking away. To be very clear, that 401k money is YOUR money. If they were late in depositing it then they were using YOUR money to float their business. The IRS will NOT take kindly to that. That’s the type of stuff that people end up in jail over.
Order the good wine
Get a lawyer to basically write a letter on legal letterhead:
1. You wont sign an extension non compete.
2. Cease and desist contact over this issue.
3. If you pursue, be prepared for a countersuit and irs audit regarding your documented 401k ilegalities across multiple workers 401k’s.
Then lets see where
Women want everything, but want responsibility and accountability for nothing.
You signed up the customer before you left your old company right?
NO – I had signed that non-solicitation years before and I secured the customer JUST before leaving my last company.
So – regarding the IRS illegalities. Where do I go to report that. The lawyers I told this seem to not give a damn! Is there a gov’t entity that would take the ball and run with this? I know it isn’t the IRS – they are understaffed and inept.
You signed up the customer before you left your old company right?
NO – I had signed that non-solicitation years before and I secured the customer JUST before leaving my last company.
So – regarding the IRS illegalities. Where do I go to report that. The lawyers I told this seem to not give a damn! Is there a gov’t entity that would take the ball and run with this? I know it isn’t the IRS – they are understaffed and inept.Yes, the IRS has a whistleblower program. I’m sure if you google it you’ll find instructions. And although they are understaffed, that’s more for individual tax returns than on the corporate side.
A question for you: Did you get paid specifically to sign the non-solicitation? In many states, unless you get a payment specifically for signing it, then it is not valid. Just saying that you had to sign it to get the job isn’t enough. There has to be an exchange of money for services. Worth looking into.
Order the good wine
You signed up the customer before you left your old company right?
NO – I had signed that non-solicitation years before and I secured the customer JUST before leaving my last company.So – regarding the IRS illegalities. Where do I go to report that. The lawyers I told this seem to not give a damn! Is there a gov’t entity that would take the ball and run with this? I know it isn’t the IRS – they are understaffed and inept.
Yes, the IRS has a whistleblower program. I’m sure if you google it you’ll find instructions. And although they are understaffed, that’s more for individual tax returns than on the corporate side.
A question for you: Did you get paid specifically to sign the non-solicitation? In many states, unless you get a payment specifically for signing it, then it is not valid. Just saying that you had to sign it to get the job isn’t enough. There has to be an exchange of money for services. Worth looking into.j
CORRECTION to my above statement: Yes, I did sell to that customer before leaving my last company.
Good point: I wasn’t “paid” to sign it. I will ask a lawyer that questions if I can ever find one worth a f~~~.
I am googling IRS Whistleblower right now.
Thanks
My guess is the lawyer you talked to was uninterested in the case because there wasn’t going to be any money in it.
I wouldn’t go to the IRS just yet, as it’s best to use that as leverage against your old company. Tell the old company you’d like the whole thing to be dropped. It was a mistake on your part and you don’t think being vindictive about the experience while employed there is going to be beneficial to either of you. You really don’t want to get legal involved since it’s only going to make lawyers richer.
Ok. Then do it.
I am googling IRS Whistleblower right now.
Form 3949-A. It’s on irs.gov website.
I wouldn’t go to the IRS just yet, as it’s best to use that as leverage against your old company. Tell the old company you’d like the whole thing to be dropped. It was a mistake on your part and you don’t think being vindictive about the experience while employed there is going to be beneficial to either of you. You really don’t want to get legal involved since it’s only going to make lawyers richer.
Agreed. The threat alone may be enough to get them to back off. Wait and see the response before you act.
Order the good wine
Signing a non-compete is a job requirement, like having a certain education level or so many years of experience. It makes sense when you consider the employer is paying the employee to build a relationship with a customer.
Not work to be paid for.
TTW
I ain't got a wife to spend my money, I have to do that all by myself.
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