Legal Question in Employment Law in California

Re: Sales Commissions

I do not recall if there is specifically any caselaw on this subject, but I can tell you that I have successfully represented an employee before the Labor Commission on a very similar issue.

My client sold electrical parts on a commission basis. He was paid a commission for "sales completed" during employment. He was paid the commission after the customer paid the order, so there was usually a 4-8 week lag time from order completion to customer payment. When the employer refused to pay commission on payments made after my client quit, we took it to the Labor Board and won.

The trade show was booked with your efforts, but the employer MIGHT be entitled to a setoff if part of your duties included "services after the sale". If you duty is to simply book the trade show and others handle the fine details, then I see no reason why you couldn't recover all of your commission is a dispute does occur.

Re: Sales Commissions

There is a line in a case to the effect, "he who shakes the tree is entitled to gather the fruit." The general rule in California is that salespeople are entitled to be paid their commissions regardless of whether their employment is continuing at the time of payment. In fact, there is a case which held that a salesperson was entitled to commissions for a "reasonable" period after his employment ended (two years in that case,) when the salesperson's job was to attract a specific client. Beware, though, of commission plans which provide for forfeiture upon termination; some courts have held these provisions valid, while others have held they are unconscionable.