Legal Question in Intellectual Property in California

Re: Job

The company would argue (in court, if sued) that it had no agreement to pay you, either express or implied, and that giving them a sample of your work was just for purposes of evaluating you as part of the interview process. I think this is a common practice and that the company would win.

In the absence of an express contract (written or oral), the law recognizes contracts implied in fact and quasi-contracts, which are said to be "implied in law." This means that plaintiff has provided a valuable service to defendant, that defendant received a benefit that it wanted or needed, and that despite the lack of a contract (written, oral or implied from the facts), defendant would be unjustly enriched if the law did not require it to pay plaintiff the fair value. Cases brought on this theory are denominated "quasi-contract" or "quantum meruit," which is legal Latin for "as much as he deserves."

The reasons a claim in quantum meruit is likely to fail here are (1) the company will argue, probably with success, that it derived little or no benefit from your essay (they probably got a bunch of them from other applicants and yours, since they didn't hire you, wasn't the best); and (2) there was a bargained-for exchange here; the company would consider you for employment if you would provide an example of your work, and the existence of a bargained-for exchange is a contract which precludes the finding of a quasi-contract.

Re: Job

You are asking the wrong type of attorney, as you seem to be seeking payment for your services on a quantum meritum basis in contract law. In other words, you performed services and seek payment for work you performed. However, under the circumstances,

1.) you had no agreement written, implied, or otherwwise, that you would be paid for your services when submitting a paper to this potential employer. Is is reasonable to expect payment under such circumstances?

2.) you had no expectation of payment for the materials you submitted in your attempt to gain employment. At the time the report was compiled you were seeking employment, nothing more.

3.) You have no evidence that the company benefited from your services, nor that any of your recommendations were adopted. [If such exists, you may have a valid quantum meritum argument].

4.) You have yet to establish any basis of your qualifications to receive payment for your services, or what said payment should be. Are you an expert? You will need to qualify yourself before any proceedings against this potential employer.

5.) You were not the only candidate submitting such a report? If you were, then you have a much stronger argument.

You might try asking a labor law attorney. I believe there is a separate category from intellectual property. However, litigation is very expensive. Even if the report generats $5000 in potential billing, the litigation to recove same will be much more unless you proceed in small claims court without an attorney.