Legal Question in Employment Law in California
prevailing wage for a 1099 consultant
Hello,
I worked as a 1099 consultant for 6 days for a start up company. On my last day of work, I offered a letter of resignation along with a invoice of 750 to my boss.
After waitng for 2 weeks I sent emails to the CEO politely requesting my prevailing wage. He replied back by stating: ''Your contract said that you were to be paid $3800+ every month. It did not say anything about a daily payment. You were also a 1099 consultant, NOT a employee. Finally, the contract said that you would make ''best efforts'', which you did not. We do not owe you anything.''
What should I do? Do I have a case?
I was advised to file a report in a small claims court. what evidence should I begin to the small claims court?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: prevailing wage for a 1099 consultant
Yes, small claims court would be the proper jurisdiction based on the amount and quality of your claim. The other party is not entitled to unjust enrichment if you properly performed the services you were contracted for satisfactorily. You definitely may want to retain an attorney to help you prepare the strongest case possible herein. For further assistance, contact us directly.
Re: prevailing wage for a 1099 consultant
Hi,
Small claims is probably your best course of action, based on the amount in dispute. This is a contract issue and the court will have to define "best efforts" and evaluate, based on the testimony, whether "best efforts" were applied.
I'd bring a copy of your employment contract, the letter of resignation, the invoice, and a copy of all correspondence between you and the CEO. If your work is paper based, (proposal writing, etc.) be sure to bring examples of your work to help establish that you used your best efforts.