Legal Question in Legal Ethics in California
I developed a marketing plan for a company as a portfolio piece in hopes of landing employment there. They are now using parts of this plan without telling me or giving me any type of credit. Legally, would I be able to take them to court or is it out of my hands? All I wanted was a job!
2 Answers from Attorneys
Bill them for your time. Don't do any more free work.
You can TRY to collect under an ancient legal theory that is still valid called quantum meruit. It basically says that if you do work for someone at their request, they must pay the reasonable value of the work even if there is not a formal contract for the work. Other than that, you're out of luck. You should never send intellectual property/work product to anyone without a prior agreement that it cannot be used with out giving you the job or paying for the work.
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