Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Texas
Employment Agreement broken and must got to Arbitration
My husband worked for a business where an employment agreement was signed between him and the employer. This agreement was the only one that was between the employer and an employee. The agreement was a standard agreement that listed the salary and duties of the job. My husband was let go from the job because the employer said that he could not afford to keep him any longer due to that he was the only one on salary. Well in the agreement it is stated that if he was let go then a severance pay was to be payed. It was not received and also the last 3 paychecks that my husband received had bounced and caused hard ship for us. We went to a lawyer that came to an agreement with the employer to pay 1700.00 in 3 payments. No payments were received. We were worried because in the agreement it stated ''Any claim that arises out of this agreement, or the breach of it, shall be settled by arbitration.'' He told us not to worry about it and file for small claims which we did. A court date was set but the pushed back because the lawyer for the employer coudl not make. A later date was set where the arbitration law was filed and the judge agreed to it. Now we have to file arbitration and don't know where to go to do this. We could use some help!
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Employment Agreement broken and must got to Arbitration
Unfortunately, arbitration is a two-edged sword. In your case, Small Claims Court is highly prefereable to arbitration because it is cheaper. Also, because the employer was already having financial problems, you still would have to bring suit on the arbitration award in order to get out a writ of execution or garnishment. You likely are bound by the agreement to arbitrate. In absence of the arbitration agreement, you also could sue for your attorneys' fees, and have gotten a final judgment without having to go through the intermediate step of arbitration.
Re: Employment Agreement broken and must got to Arbitration
Contact the American Arbitration Association in your area. They'll send you the form for demanding arbitration, and let you know the fees for filing.
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