Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Company should have said sooner I was personally included in a lawsuit?

53 replies

Whulfc86 · 09/04/2023 05:12

I was emailed today and made aware by a company I work for (contractor not employee) that I had personally been included in a discrimination lawsuit against them.

They had retained a solicitor and the email was letting me know vaguely about the lawsuit and that I needed to sign the attached document to agree to hiring the solicitor that will represent us.

This is the first I had heard of any lawsuit and the email claimed they had been dealing with this since February and I needed to sign within 24 hours. It's Easter weekend and I'm lucky I even checked my email on a Saturday. They signed off with sorry if this seems out of left field we should have looped you in sooner but please sign the attached within 24 hours.

The lawsuit is against the company, the two owners individually and me. It's a very small company and I assist on a part-time freelance basis. The client that is suing I've had no communications with whatsoever, I'm guessing they found my name online somewhere associated with the company and that's why I'm included.

AIBU to be upset that I wasn't told about this sooner and there should have been more information given?

OP posts:
TeeBee · 09/04/2023 05:21

I wouldn't be signing anything until I'd had a further discussion about how I was involved. And I certainly wouldn't have someone else's solicitor represent my interests without knowing more. Can you just ignore it and say you haven't seen the email?

yoyo1234 · 09/04/2023 05:22

Seek legal advice, I would not sign. You do not know the company or their solicitor are going to act on your behalf. Cannot think why you need to sign so quickly, this has been going on since February.

Fiftysoon · 09/04/2023 05:26

Are you a ltd company yourself?

Clymene · 09/04/2023 05:40

Absolutely do not sign anything. Do you have liability insurance?

AppallinglyReheated · 09/04/2023 05:43

I would not sign anything until I'd looked very closely at my contract and sought legal advice!

BitOutOfPractice · 09/04/2023 05:45

Are you a limited company? Do you have liability insurance? Are you a member of FSB?

Original poster
Whulfc86 · 09/04/2023 05:52

I'm an Ltd company with insurance.

I should mention I've worked with the company for two years and the owners have always been trustworthy and transparent up until this point.

The clients name was said in the email so I checked if I had dealt with them which I hadn't. But I did find internal slack notes that the client in November refused to sign our contract for services so the services were canceled.

In the email it said I "wouldn't be on the hook" for anything and I would be covered under the company. That they intended to settle before trial.

The client mentioned in communications that he is a lawyer himself so I'm guessing representing himself.

I don't even know exactly what the lawsuit is about, I wasn't served I'm guessing only the company was.

OP posts:
FinanceLPlates · 09/04/2023 05:53

Could this be a scam of some kind? I would not be signing anything just on the basis of an email, especially one sent over Easter and without prior warning and discussion!

Original poster
Whulfc86 · 09/04/2023 05:55

FinanceLPlates · 09/04/2023 05:53

Could this be a scam of some kind? I would not be signing anything just on the basis of an email, especially one sent over Easter and without prior warning and discussion!

No, not a scam. The email was definitely from the two owners

OP posts:
CPandme · 09/04/2023 05:58

Definitely legal advice to find out whether the other party has acted properly in relation to serving you notice. Alternatively rather than you investigating start with call to insurers to use their legal cover. Ask insurance how/whether your company should respond to the email or what to say.

Forgooodnesssakenow · 09/04/2023 05:59

DO NOT SIGN ANYTHING the lawyer will be there for the company not for you, speak to whoever provides your liability insurance or if you have a professional body seek advice from them. If not an independent lawyer is necessary.

Original poster
Whulfc86 · 09/04/2023 05:59

I don't want to be too outing but the industry is hospitality so not unusual to receive emails outside of normal working hours although it's understood that I do not typically work weekends unless it's an emergency

OP posts:
Original poster
Whulfc86 · 09/04/2023 06:04

I will be contacting my liability insurance on Monday or Tuesday. I'm so stressed having this dropped on me on a holiday weekend with little to no details and they haven't responded to my email asking for more details yet

OP posts:
Clymene · 09/04/2023 06:06

Whulfc86 · 09/04/2023 06:04

I will be contacting my liability insurance on Monday or Tuesday. I'm so stressed having this dropped on me on a holiday weekend with little to no details and they haven't responded to my email asking for more details yet

I'm not surprised. It's a horrible and stressful thing to happen over Easter. Have you worked with them/spoken to them since February?

CheshireSplat · 09/04/2023 06:07

Just reiterating the advice not to do anything until Tuesday. Contact your insurers/broker then. They'll run the claim, including appointing lawyers. If they don't get to do this, you may invalidate the insurance.

They'll want lots more information, eg have claim proceedings been issued yet, or is it just a threat of one. If they have been issued they should have been served on you. Things will probably move very slowly, don't be pressured into doing anything in a hurry. Forget about it until Tuesday.

ZirihePevzig · 09/04/2023 06:08

Don't sign anything yet.

Do you personally hold any kind of professional liability insurance?

I work for a small company that sometimes retains freelance contractors. Our company professional liability insurance covers the actions of our freelancers contractors, though I have no idea whether this kind of situation would be covered.

Solicitors fees will rack up to the thousands very quickly. Be very cautious about signing unless it is clear that any fees are covered by an existing insurance policy or if the legal services are being offered on a no-win-no-fee basis.

Babsexxx · 09/04/2023 06:09

Pffffft I wouldn’t be signing anything you are technically self employed so on that basis I’d say thanks but “I’m out!”.

Itslookinggood · 09/04/2023 06:14

Repost this in legal. You will get good advice there.

Juat to reiterate: do not sign anything. You have had no contact with this client, therefore should have no involvement in any lawsuit.

tell the owners that you need to seek advice before signing anything. This is perfectly reasonable and sensible. It would be foolish to do anything else.

Forgooodnesssakenow · 09/04/2023 06:16

They are professionals who KNOW you can't seek legal advice on a holiday weekend hence why they're asking you to sign within 24 hours. They are planning to scapegoat you.

Original poster
Whulfc86 · 09/04/2023 06:19

Clymene · 09/04/2023 06:06

I'm not surprised. It's a horrible and stressful thing to happen over Easter. Have you worked with them/spoken to them since February?

Show quote history

Yes, I work for them on a mostly daily basis although as I'm freelance could be 30 mins a day or 4 hours just depends. But definitely I don't see any reason why this wasn't brought up when they must have been given notice of the lawsuit and I was individually named.

OP posts:
Speedweed · 09/04/2023 06:21

Don't sign. Contact your insurers and let them know, tell them that as you haven't had any contact with the client you believe your inclusion in the lawsuit is an error.
They'll tell you to get copies of the claim documents, which is what the company owners need to provide to you on asap (this would be pre-action correspondence, including the letter of claim, and particulars of claim - use those terms).

If you haven't been involved and aren't an employee, an application can be made to the court to sever you from proceedings as it sounds as if the claimant thinks you are part of the company so is just naming everyone, but you need to get the claim documents and see what is said.

Once you've read the documents, tell your insurers that you think you've been sued in error (if that's the case).

The fact that the business owners didn't include you before suggests that they didn't think you'd get sued because you're not part of the company, so don't necessarily be cross at them that they didn't involve you before, but equally it sounds as if they're happy to have you included, when it doesn't sound as if that should be the case.

Emotionalsupportviper · 09/04/2023 06:23

Forgooodnesssakenow · 09/04/2023 06:16

They are professionals who KNOW you can't seek legal advice on a holiday weekend hence why they're asking you to sign within 24 hours. They are planning to scapegoat you.

I agree with this.

I can think of no other reason why you were not informed sooner and then suddenly everything is urgent.

You have your own liability insurance - use it.

Original poster
Whulfc86 · 09/04/2023 06:26

Speedweed · 09/04/2023 06:21

Don't sign. Contact your insurers and let them know, tell them that as you haven't had any contact with the client you believe your inclusion in the lawsuit is an error.
They'll tell you to get copies of the claim documents, which is what the company owners need to provide to you on asap (this would be pre-action correspondence, including the letter of claim, and particulars of claim - use those terms).

If you haven't been involved and aren't an employee, an application can be made to the court to sever you from proceedings as it sounds as if the claimant thinks you are part of the company so is just naming everyone, but you need to get the claim documents and see what is said.

Once you've read the documents, tell your insurers that you think you've been sued in error (if that's the case).

The fact that the business owners didn't include you before suggests that they didn't think you'd get sued because you're not part of the company, so don't necessarily be cross at them that they didn't involve you before, but equally it sounds as if they're happy to have you included, when it doesn't sound as if that should be the case.

Thank you this is very helpful I was trying to look up how to get my name removed from this as I have no involvement. Even if the company settles I don't want this associated with me and could be found on a background check.

OP posts:
Greentree1 · 09/04/2023 06:29

Do you have home phone numbers for the people involved? Can you ring someone up to discuss today? It all sounds very vague, surely nothing is going to happen over the Easter holidays, so I can't understand the 24 hrs bit, unless there is a hearing on Tuesday and they need your consent for the solicitor to act for you as well as them. Perhaps they didn't realise until it was pointed out that they needed your specific agreement and were just intending to handle it all themselves and not get you involved, it sounds as though you are peripheral to the case.

Original poster
Whulfc86 · 09/04/2023 06:37

Greentree1 · 09/04/2023 06:29

Do you have home phone numbers for the people involved? Can you ring someone up to discuss today? It all sounds very vague, surely nothing is going to happen over the Easter holidays, so I can't understand the 24 hrs bit, unless there is a hearing on Tuesday and they need your consent for the solicitor to act for you as well as them. Perhaps they didn't realise until it was pointed out that they needed your specific agreement and were just intending to handle it all themselves and not get you involved, it sounds as though you are peripheral to the case.

Yes, basically seems like for the company and two owners to be able to retain the lawyers they hired they had to have my signature too as I was also named. Yes I can call the owners anytime it was just late last night when I saw the email

OP posts: