Legal Question in Business Law in California

Re: Possession of equipment

There are two or three options, all involving going to court, now that negotiations seem to have failed. The options involve different theories that you could allege in a lawsuit. It is permissible to sue on more than one theory, bur before doing so, you should consider that you might get your recovery on your least-desired theory and therefore not on your preferred theory.

1. If you really want your equipment back, rather than a judgment for money (and they keep the stuff), your suit would be for replevin. Replevin is legalese for an action to recover possession of personal property in the unlawful possession of another. See Civil Code sections 3379 and 3380. An action for replevin can be titled "Complaint for Specific Recovery of Personal Property" and in addition to recovery of the property you can get some money damages for at least interest on its fair value, (Code of Civil Procedure section 667), and there are cases holding that you can also recover the fair rental value based on the use made by the party improperly detaining your property.

(2) Your can sue for the tort of conversion. Conversion is the civil-suit equivalent of the crime of theft, and the remedy is money damages for the highest value of your property at any time from the unlawful refusal to return it to you; however, on paying you, they keep the equipment. You can also get interest and, if the circumstances are especially vicious, you might get an award of punitive damages as well.

(3) The third possibility is to sue for breach of contract. Whether this is a solid line of attack depends on facts not given, e.g. what sort of an agreement you had when you turned the equipment over to the company, what its terms were, whether the existence and terms of the contract are easily proven through witnesses or writings, and so on.

There are other possible civil or criminal charges you could consider as well, but these are the ones that command the most attention based on your brief facts.

Other options or choices you face are whether to get a lawyer or handle this yourself, and related to that, whether the money involved warrants going to Superior Court or whether this is a small-claims case. Also, whether further attempts to coax or threaten and prospective defendant would be worthwhile.