Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Re: Winning a competition

You need to carefully read what the rules were for the competition. Absent anything different from what you say, I would think that you need to be eligible only at the time of winning and what happens afterwards does not matter [if the prize was a million dollars, most people would quit working for their not-for-profit organization so the prizes would not be given out; if they are right, how long do you have to be an active staff member to remain eligible, as what if you quit the day after they award you the prize?]

Speak to them. Is the prize worth going after? If that does not work, send me all the material involved, your own detailed listing of all the facts including when events occurred, and a reciting of exactly what they said and I will, without charge, write a very short letter to them which might be sufficiently effective to resolve the issue. If the prize was a physical object, would you accept its cash value instead? Have they already given it to the second place finisher?