So my employer just decided not to pay me.

[J.R. Ewing]

I was working as a part time consultant engineer for a small software firm.  We agreed on a weekly rate of $1000 a week.  I worked for them for 7 weeks.  After seven weeks they were moving to a phase were they wouldn't nee me as much so they told me "We like what you've done, but we won't need you for a while.  We'll call when we do."  Cool.  They paid my first invoice for two weeks, but they haven't paid my second for the last 5 weeks. It's been three months now.  It's a different excuse each time I email.  I emailed last week, and they stopped returning my emails.

What options do I have?  It's only $5,000, but that's my money.

[Sibley]

Lawyer time. Or small claims court.

And next time, bill more regularly.

[charis]

First, send a formal letter requesting payment for that period by a certain date. CC an attorney if you have one or know one at the bottom of the letter.

[yachi]

1.  Call, don't email.  Then follow up with an email:  Per our conversation today at XX.XX my bill from XX/XX/XXXX in the amount of XXXX will be paid on XXX as soon as you XXXX.
2.  Make sure to contact everyone you worked with when you were there.  If you got along, they'll be ticked their accounting department/boss/whoever hasn't paid you.
3.  A lawyer is going to start by sending letters to important people in the company, but they are going to charge you for them, you can send letters to important people in the company too.  Reference parts of the contract/written agreement/verbal agreement they broke (payment within XX days, payment upon receipt of invoice, etc.)

[Dollar Slice]

At the company I used to work for, some people responded to us charging late fees. You could try sending a letter saying if it's not paid by, say, 120 days post invoice date, you will tack on 5% late fees and they will continue to accrue by such-and-such amount for each month they are late (or whatever you want to make up).

[sonofsven]

I did small claims court once, years ago; I was working for a landlord that knew all the tricks.
I won by default because the other party didn't bother to return the paperwork.
A judgement in my favor, yay, but how do you collect any money?
In my case the other party owned real estate (a rental house I was working on) so I went to the county and recorded the judgement against the real property (I am probably getting some of the terminology wrong).
It took four years but one day I got a call from a title company asking where to send my check as the other party was refinancing.
Then I got a call from the other party whining that I was ripping them off, no way they owed me that much, with interest! etc.
It was pretty damn sweet.
Can you hand deliver the invoice? Emails and calls are easy to ignore.

[Sibley]

I did small claims court once, years ago; I was working for a landlord that knew all the tricks.
I won by default because the other party didn't bother to return the paperwork.
A judgement in my favor, yay, but how do you collect any money?
In my case the other party owned real estate (a rental house I was working on) so I went to the county and recorded the judgement against the real property (I am probably getting some of the terminology wrong).
It took four years but one day I got a call from a title company asking where to send my check as the other party was refinancing.
Then I got a call from the other party whining that I was ripping them off, no way they owed me that much, with interest! etc.
It was pretty damn sweet.
Can you hand deliver the invoice? Emails and calls are easy to ignore.

You put a lien on the property :)

[sonofsven]

Yeah that!
It still makes me smile, not that I'm petty or anything ;-)

[roomtempmayo]

Petty?  Along with five other old roommates, I have a lien on a former landlord's property who never returned our deposits.

We long ago decided that when he sells we're going to spend the money on a grand reunion.

The longer it takes the sweeter it will be.

[JAYSLOL]

Petty?  Along with five other old roommates, I have a lien on a former landlord's property who never returned our deposits.

We long ago decided that when he sells we're going to spend the money on a grand reunion.

The longer it takes the sweeter it will be.

OMG, that’s too funny

[Roland of Gilead]

If you sue them and win, are they also responsible for your legal fees?