Join the party. As someone who was recently ripped for $12k+, it's nice to see folks fighting back. In my case the work I did continues to remain online and in use by the original owner while I try to get l my client(who runs a sham design agency) into jail for writing returned checks--and having a history and a prior conviction of doing so.
Have you considered using a debt collection agency? On the first consulting gig I ever did, I was owed $10K by a client who refused to pay. After months of patience, including offers to let them pay off the debt over time I went to a collection agency and got the lot back in a court settlement less $1k in fees for the agency (which at least was tax deductable).
I should mention that this was in Australia and I had a pretty solid contract. So this may not apply to you, but the debt collector took the hassle out of chasing it up and I didn't have to get involved in the court proceedings. It might be worth a look.
For anyone who's contracting I'd recommend a few things:
1. Always have a contract and make sure you get advice before you sign it.
2. Don't be afraid to change or negotiate terms if you need to. Look out for excessive IP restrictions and restraint of trade clauses.
3. If you're doing per-diem work, get signed weekly timesheets. They're a legal record of work done.
4. If you're building a product for a fixed price, contractually define milestone payments and ideally get a partial payment up front.
5. If a client can't or won't pay at any point, stop work until they do!
This guy is far beyond the reach of debt collection agency. He has multiple active civil cases re: money owed. His own former lawyers have been owed money to and have obtained default judgement against him and yet have not been able to collect money as of my last conversation.
I don't understand how you get involved with a client like this and never take payment. Care to explain? Curious as I don't freelance. Surely you take a deposit upfront and vet the client?
I did the routine vetting on google which pulled up only the good stuff: speaking engagements at conferences like ad:tech and multiple interviews. "Pretty legit guy" I thought.
It wasn't until three returned checks, barrage of excuses and threats that I came out of my delusion and realized the guy is a scumbag. A true scumbag: the original client that his agency was hired by had paid the agency--probably several times what was owed to me. And yet, the schmuck owner of the agency thought it'd be better to cheap me than pay me my fair slice of what he made.
