Legal Question in Business Law in Maryland
professional services
i completed a landsurveying project for a client on project a, the deliverables were delivered in a timely fashion and were delivered in dec 06. the same client also still owes money on projects b and c. i was recently (within the month) asked to turn over new copies of project a (already delivered). i informed him that since i have already delivered items from that project and closed the file and that since the client still owes for different projects, i was not inclined to reopen the project and send what has already been delivered.
the questions are:
am i in the wrong?
does he have ownership of the raw data collected used in conjunction with preparing a final deliverable?
is it ok to charge the amounts still owed if he still wants this information?
his attorney contacted me via e-mail and i informed him that since his client still owed me money i was not inclined to release any information on any projects.
as a side note, i have signed contracts stating what will be delivered and archived drawings of what was sent, to whom and when.
thanks.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: professional services
Your instincts are absolutely correct. You own the copyright in the materials unless you signed those away in your contract. You have every right not to turn the materials over....especially if you have already done so once, in fulfillment of the original contract.
If work was done in '06, you likely do not have any lien rights but that would require further investigation. The header indicated project is in Maryland(?)...
Standard disclaimer: The above is given based on limited facts and information presented. Conclusions may differ significantly based on different facts. We do not have an attorney-client relationship.
That said, good luck to you and let me know if I can be of further assistance.
Re: professional services
Need to review your contract.
How much is owed?
Any work within 120 days of today (ML window)?
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