A bit of a tricky subject, so please bear with me.
I have been recruited to create some documentation regarding an upcoming game. The contract ended and the employer decided to not pay me, keeping all the documents I have done regarding system balance, interface, etc.
Considering he broke the contract in many different ways, and to top it off he decided to not pay me (with a very professional “what are you going to do about it lol”), I was wondering if that entitles me to use the documentation I have done as I see fit.
In other words: I have worked a couple hundred hours doing simulations and writing concepts, and d not want that work wasted. I am not going to see a single cent, but maybe it can help someone else. Do you think I can make such documentation public so that anyone can use it?
Kids like him are everywhere; my intention is not to damage his project, but to make some positive use of my work.
You either use escrow service provided by a third party (which handles disputes and arbitration), or do not hand over the deliverables until you’re paid, no matter what.
Working hundreds of hours without payment is insane, in my opinion.
Regarding your question:
What are the terms of contract? This sounds like something that requires a lawyer. Basically, if you were contracted to create something for other party, signed contract that required you to hand over the right to said party, and the other side breached the contract… I’m not sure if that means that the rights to the work are yours. Consult a lawyer.
Also it could be a ground for lawsuit, if law works in your country and if you have proof of contract.
Either way… reasonable actions in this situation would be:
(aka “Honorable Samurai” route). Forget about it. Learn the lesson, and never let this happen again. Record him to your personal blacklist and never work with him again.
(aka “I shall seek vengeance!” route). Rat the guy out to his employer and defame him via social media (facebook, twitter, etc). Don’t be rude, act in polite business like manner. Ask when you’re going to be paid. On his facebook page/twitter feed. Elevate the situation to the employer (if the dude subcontracted you to do his job). Post an article about this guy on your blog. Again, in polite, business-like manner.
(aka “I believe in law”). Lawsuit. Depending on your country’s code of law, breach of contract may be punishable. Also see Epic Games vs Silicon Knights
I wouldn’t release documentation to public without consulting a lawyer first. It shouldn’t be a very complex matter, though so I doubt that lawyer consultation on this subject would cost too much.
Please note that I have accepted defeat. I do not want his money. All I want is to know if I can make the documents public, for everyone to make use of them. Maybe some new developer needs help making an RTS and can use my formulas and tables for his game.
As for your three options, I will do path #1. #2 will cost too much in cash and health; did it in the past and ended up very badly. #3 feels like too much effort for just this project, and could take too long.
You’d definitely need a lawyer. If you did sign a contract with a nda clause & they wanted to they could probably take action against you for breaching it. It wouldn’t matter if you hadn’t been paid as that is likely to be treated as a separate issue.
Standard disclaimer: I am not a lawyer so seek professional advice.
That absolutely requires a lawyer, with 100% certainty.
The reason why it requires a lawyer is because it is unclear whether you would be entitled to the rights of your work when the other side breached the contract. I think the answer to that may wary depending on your country. Wrong action can result in you getting sued back (depending on nuttiness of your ex-client).
I’d cough up money for a lawyer visit in this case. It is something that is worth knowing either way.
P.S. I believe in general those kinds of things are handled as disputes in a court (“administrative court” or something like that)
It really depends. How much of the work is dependent on preexisting IP from the employer? Releasing any employer owned IP into the public domain is likely to open you up to law suits from them. You could sue them for not paying. They could sue you for releasing their IP. You have the potential to loose a lot of hair over this one.
The next thing to consider is how likely the employer is to sue. Chasing contract violations across international borders is difficult. If you are in a different country go ahead and release. Its not like they can do anything about it anyway. If you are in the same country its still worth considering releasing. If the employer is up to a bunch of dodgy practices, its not likely they want to sue and open their business up to scrutiny.
I’d go for release. With a very professional “What are you going to do about it?” But I don’t know all the ins and outs of your situation. This may be very bad advice.
Do you still have all the email exchanges? If you’ve got all the evidence you need that you were conned I personally dont think you should let him get away with it for free
I design games for passion, so not going to sour my day trying to find ways on how to get back to a little man like this individual. What I would like is to help others with my work, and not let it go to waste in his incapable hands.
If it is voice conversation that hasn’t been recorded, then you’re probably out of luck.
If it is skype text chat, then it sits on the skype server (which is linked to guy’s financial data) and would be slightly more credible than email.
Either way, the only right action here is “lawyer”.
Just don’t do this kind of thing again, alright?
“hundreds of hours without getting paid”… just why?
I record everything, voice and text, and back it up on the cloud.
Already presented my case to a couple lawyers, we’ll see how that goes.
I tend to trust people. I get scammed, yes, but at least I can look at myself in the mirror knowing that I did what was right.
Will be more selective with who I do business with in the future.
Humanity isn’t a nice thing. We can like to think that everyone else is just as nice as ourselves but the painful truth of the matter is they are not. So do yourself a favour, and try not to be so trusting of those who have not earned it
It is less about “trusting people” and “being selective” and more about leaving no opportunity for them to screw you over.
Be nice and polite, but leave no opening for them to run off with your work without paying. Once you’ve worked with someone for few weeks or months, you can drop your guard a bit, and not treat every payment as hollywood briefcase/hostage exchange scene.
