Ask HN: Freelance client won't pay. What now?

1 point·mkrecny··5 comments

It's not that they've outright refused to pay, it's just that they're a) past the payment due date specified in the contract (which was 21 days from receipt of invoice ... really lenient) b) not responding to emails as of about 2 weeks ago

View on HN

Talk to your lawyer. Don't waste time faffing around with this. You don't have to sue them but you do need to get advice from a legal professional who specializes in this kind of thing.

Small claims court. However big companies pay late, it's likely not intentional. Check it is first.

You can't assume it's not intentional, and we don't have enough info to know if this claim is small or not. Really the only thing to do is to talk to a lawyer. You should already have a lawyer since you've got a contract: talk to them. If you don't have a lawyer, then get one immediately. No one who runs a business should be without legal advice.

At this stage you don't want to threaten your client with a lawsuit until you know the status.

Talking to a lawyer is not a step towards a lawsuit, is a step towards knowing your options. You don't have to sue, and in fact unless there is a lot of money involved that's probably the last thing you want to do. But saying "I don't want to sue, therefore I will not talk to a lawyer" is stupid and dangerous. Talk to a lawyer, and tell the lawyer "What are my options? I don't want to sue these people but..." and they will help you chart a course.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com