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Can my former employer take these "fees" from my pay?

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alp18509

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? PA

I am a photographer who worked as an independent contractor for a modeling agency. I never signed any contracts with this agency. While on a business trip to Dallas, I quit and left early. I left because I felt I was being mistreated by the owner of the company. We shared a room and she was drinking heavily, slamming suitcases, and muttering things about me under her breath. I tried to talk to her about this situation the next day and she ignored my first attempt then refused to speak the me after the second attempt. (She was on the phone but I feel it was an attempt to not speak to me.)

I bought my own ticket home and completed the work that I owed (photographs on Cds for the models) a week after leaving. This work totaled to $690. After multiple failed attempts to meet her and exchange the CDs for my check, I finally met in her office. She then said that I had to pay for the airfare she booked for me (there and back =$270) and also for any reshoots that she may have to pay a new photographer to do. ($150) The model signs a contract with the agency and it states that if the model is unhappy with the photos for any reason, the agency will reshoot them for free. Since I am no longer apart of the agency, this is no longer my responsibility. We could not come to an agreement, so she told me to take the CDs and think about it.

In the interest of putting this behind me I agreed that I would pay $145 for the unused airfare ticket, and $30 for one reshoot. She has ignored all calls, emails, and texts about this matter.

Is my only option to file a complaint with the local magistrate? It's $100 to file a complaint and I don't know about any other fees, but I am sure there are some.
I'm assuming she will bring her lawyer to this case and I cannot afford one.

Any advice at all would be greatly appreciated.
 


Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
If you were a contractor, then this wasn't your employer. As such, yours is a contract dispute. Small claims would be the appropriate venue. If you win, the fees you pay to file would be included in the amount you are awarded.
 

Antigone*

Senior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? PA

I am a photographer who worked as an independent contractor for a modeling agency. I never signed any contracts with this agency. While on a business trip to Dallas, I quit and left early. I left because I felt I was being mistreated by the owner of the company. We shared a room and she was drinking heavily, slamming suitcases, and muttering things about me under her breath. I tried to talk to her about this situation the next day and she ignored my first attempt then refused to speak the me after the second attempt. (She was on the phone but I feel it was an attempt to not speak to me.)

I bought my own ticket home and completed the work that I owed (photographs on Cds for the models) a week after leaving. This work totaled to $690. After multiple failed attempts to meet her and exchange the CDs for my check, I finally met in her office. She then said that I had to pay for the airfare she booked for me (there and back =$270) and also for any reshoots that she may have to pay a new photographer to do. ($150) The model signs a contract with the agency and it states that if the model is unhappy with the photos for any reason, the agency will reshoot them for free. Since I am no longer apart of the agency, this is no longer my responsibility. We could not come to an agreement, so she told me to take the CDs and think about it.

In the interest of putting this behind me I agreed that I would pay $145 for the unused airfare ticket, and $30 for one reshoot. She has ignored all calls, emails, and texts about this matter.

Is my only option to file a complaint with the local magistrate? It's $100 to file a complaint and I don't know about any other fees, but I am sure there are some.
I'm assuming she will bring her lawyer to this case and I cannot afford one.

Any advice at all would be greatly appreciated.

She was not your employer. You did not have an employee/employer relationship. You did not live up to the terms of your agreement so she did not live up to the terms of hers.
 

alp18509

Junior Member
She was not your employer. You did not have an employee/employer relationship. You did not live up to the terms of your agreement so she did not live up to the terms of hers.
So does this mean I should not even file with small claims?
 

OHRoadwarrior

Senior Member
It appears the negotiation differential is you wanting paid for work not approved. Unless you can prove your contract did not compliment the contract the agency has with the model, you appear to have a loser. You walked off the job. It is not unreasonable for her to request an airfare refund, if you could have completed the job while there. IE.. Your photos could have been reviewed by the model and rejected, then re-shot. It appears the agencies loss at this point, would be airfare both ways and hotel for agency employee and new photographer. Those damages would be caused by your breach.
 

alp18509

Junior Member
I still have the 47 CDs for her models that she guarantees them to have within 6-8 weeks. It has been past 8 weeks for almost half of these people, so I'm sure they are going to start questioning her about this. I don't want to hold onto these CDs for much longer but I want to be paid for them. I am hoping that her receiving the certified letter will be enough to convince her to come to an agreement with me.
 

OHRoadwarrior

Senior Member
I still have the 47 CDs for her models that she guarantees them to have within 6-8 weeks. It has been past 8 weeks for almost half of these people, so I'm sure they are going to start questioning her about this. I don't want to hold onto these CDs for much longer but I want to be paid for them. I am hoping that her receiving the certified letter will be enough to convince her to come to an agreement with me.
It appears she doesn't care.
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
I believe that you are edging very close to that line which separates "civil" and "criminal" matters.
 

alp18509

Junior Member
It appears the negotiation differential is you wanting paid for work not approved. Unless you can prove your contract did not compliment the contract the agency has with the model, you appear to have a loser. You walked off the job. It is not unreasonable for her to request an airfare refund, if you could have completed the job while there. IE.. Your photos could have been reviewed by the model and rejected, then re-shot. It appears the agencies loss at this point, would be airfare both ways and hotel for agency employee and new photographer. Those damages would be caused by your breach.
I should have noted that these photos were from previous jobs, and she does not give the models an option to review until after they pay and receive their book. Also there was no contract between myself and the agency.
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
I should have noted that these photos were from previous jobs, and she does not give the models an option to review until after they pay and receive their book. Also there was no contract between myself and the agency.
We're talking about what, $200 max.
Send the CD's and move on. That would be much better than extorting the other party.
 

tranquility

Senior Member
She was not your employer. You did not have an employee/employer relationship. You did not live up to the terms of your agreement so she did not live up to the terms of hers.
A breach by one party in a contract does not necessarily excuse the other from performance. But, if it did get to court, each could expect the benefit of the bargain and that is where things tend to even out.

Here, it seems there was a contact for the taking of pictures in exchange for money. The pictures were taken, but money was not exchanged in full. The OP has a right to the full amount to start. (Unless the pictures are not turned over.) However, the cost of the tickets is problematical. What was the agreement with them? I know that when I had a person take wedding pictures, travel arrangements (and paying for them by me) was a part of the deal over and above the amount paid. But, that was written in the contract. I know that other's may not pay for the costs to travel (or, commute) so I am uncertain as to how that would end up. That both were in the same room and no demand was made for hotel costs, seems to me that the contractor was going to pay the extra costs involved with the contract. Conversely, there was no marginal increase in cost for the room to the contractor because of the OP where there was for the cost of the travel. Who wins that portion would depend on who has the best story for what was understood between the parties.

As to the cost of the additional shoot, certainly on a breach, the person making the contract has a right (Heck, a duty.), to mitigate damages. In this case, to get another photographer. But, was there a breach? Just because it is standard in the industry for a model to make a contract with the contractor for a right to reshoot, does not mean the OP is responsible for THAT contract. I'd say the OP is responsible for taking photographs to the standard of ability of a person envisioned when the contract was formed. If that was done, I don't think it matters if the model is happy to the OP. It does to the contractor, but not the OP.

I do know there is nothing worse that could happen to the OP than what the contractor is demanding. Therefore, it depends on how motivated the OP is on if he should sue or not. For me, the total amount of money is not enough to spend the hours I'd need to prepare and I'd just eat it. Well, unless the other person really cheesed me off, then I'd sue over a dollar. But, that's just me.
 
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