My ex-employer created a fraudulent non-compete contract and is suing me using this document. He has all the money in the world and I have no money to defend myself. I used all my money to open my business that is now closed because of all legal fees and loss of potential investors. His assistant is willing to testify that she saw him pull a document that had someone else’s name on it and then magically it had my name on it. It's also dated wrong and there are several things on the contract that don't seem right. I've compared it to other employees non-compete contracts and mine is very different. For one...my signature is attached to the contract on a blank piece of paper...on the other contracts I've seen the employee signature is on the same page with the witness and mine in not. The lawyers I've spoken to want $10-15K up front as a retainer. There is no way that I can afford this... I really need some direction...I'm so stressed out about this whole situation. I can't believe that someone can just make up a document and sue another person and get away with it. HELP Clutchfans!
He wants to recover his legal fees and wants me to stop doing business with the VA hospital. I'm no longer in business, so he has accomplished that much and now is going for the jugular with his legal fees recoup. In the early part of the case he was claiming that I've affected 75% of his business...We are talking about a multi-million dollar company...I made $64k in sales last year seems like a little less than 75% of $12million a year.
Yes...The contract is a total of 3 pages. Page one and two are the actual contract and the third page is just my signature on a blank paper. The only thing that matches is the border around the pages. Also pages 2 and 3 have a line going accross like if they were photocopied.
Did you sign a non-compete clause and the one he is presenting is different or did you never sign any sort of contract when you worked for him?
If your current income is low enough, there may be non-profit organizations that can help you obtain pro bono legal assistance. I don't know about what is in your city (Houston?), though. Unless someone here knows, I would just look up such organizations in your city, and contact one or more of them. They may be able to help or direct you to organizations that could help.
Have you tried pro bono? http://www.hvlp.org/home/default.aspxgg I know nothing about the subject or pro bono lawyers, but I hope this helps.
All the paperwork I signed was signed on my date of hire...October of 2005. I can't honestly say what all I signed. I'm sure that I would have never signed a blank piece of paper though...and I don't see why they would have a non-compete contract for a sales rep, when I was being hired to do customer service at the time, with no anticipation of ever transferring to the sales team.
Maybe unleash the interwebz? Seems like nowadays the best way to fight the power is by going viral on Reddit...
Is that an employee contract, with salary, benefits, title, etc? Because 2 pages sounds short for that, especially if it also includes the non-compete clause. In Texas, (even under the more employer-friendly interpretations since 2011) non-competes hold no water unless they explain why...e.g., the employer is giving you access to trade secrets in exchange for a non-compete. So, if it is just "I promise not to compete with you" and the contract offers no reason for that agreement, it won't hold water. And giving you salary is not a good enough reason why, either, in Texas. In Texas, an employer offering salary as consideration for you to sign a non-compete is not enough, even under the new Texas Supreme Court cases. I can explain further, but just know in Texas prior to 2011 non-competes were considered largely unenforceable. The recent changes still make it hard to enforce. Just no longer a laughing matter, when considering whether to sign one or not. Yours sounds likely unenforceable...and the signature on the last page is laughable.
I've been served. I had to go to a TRO Hearing by myself...When I pointed out the actual contract and the fact that this company still owed me about $1500 in commission the judge denied their request for a TRO (Temporary Restraining Order) I thought they would back off...no such luck. My trial date is Oct 1 2012. I did hire an attorney but he was not being aggressive enough...this guy was calling me for updates on the case and charging me $500 an hour. He was trying to defend the case as if the document was legal, instead of arguing the authenticity of the document.
I'm going to scan the document and post it here so everyone can see. He is abusing the legal system and his money is letting him get away with it.
Page 1 Date of hire is wrong here...There is no way I signed on this date...I was hired 2 months after this date October 24, 2005. Only thing correct is the year. <a href="http://s1141.photobucket.com/albums/n595/felixanguiano/?action=view&current=MPS_Page_1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n595/felixanguiano/MPS_Page_1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a> Page 2 On other non-competes I've seen from this company. The signature of all parties is on this page. My signature is on page 3. <a href="http://s1141.photobucket.com/albums/n595/felixanguiano/?action=view&current=MPS_Page_2.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n595/felixanguiano/MPS_Page_2.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a> Page 3 Only has my signature. <a href="http://s1141.photobucket.com/albums/n595/felixanguiano/?action=view&current=MPS_Page_3.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1141.photobucket.com/albums/n595/felixanguiano/MPS_Page_3.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
