Part 4: The Agreement I Asked to See

 

In Part 3, I explained that the claim against me was based on six clients and a written employment agreement.

That agreement did not stand alone.

In the version attached to the complaint, the employment agreement states that compensation was set forth in a separate Compensation Agreement. It also states that the agreement, including its exhibits and the Compensation Agreement referenced within it, was the “complete and total integration” of the understanding between us.

This was not the first time I had raised the issue of the Compensation Agreement, but it was the first time I formally invoked my right to inspect the complete agreement the case was based on.

So I asked to inspect the original instrument.

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On September 21, 2016, I filed a formal request to inspect the original instrument under Indiana Trial Rule 9.2.

In that filing, I specifically requested inspection of the “Entire Agreement” as defined in the employment agreement itself, including the Compensation Agreement.

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This was not a vague request.

It was a formal request to inspect the complete agreement that the complaint relied on.

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Weeks later, I was told that documents would be made available for inspection in Indianapolis.

Before making that trip, I asked a direct question:

Did the document available for inspection include the entire agreement, including an executed Compensation Agreement?

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I asked that question more than once.

On November 3, 2016, I asked again whether the document available for inspection included the “Entire Agreement” as defined in the employment agreement, which would include the Compensation Agreement and all exhibits.

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The response was not “yes.” It was not “no.”

I was told only that the documents were available for inspection during normal business hours.

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So I asked again.

And again.

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I did not receive a direct answer to that question.

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This was the issue:

• The former employer claimed the lawsuit was based on a written agreement.

• The written agreement stated that compensation was defined in a separate Compensation Agreement.

• I formally requested to inspect the complete agreement.

• Then I repeatedly asked whether the document being offered for inspection actually included that Compensation Agreement.

I did not receive a direct answer. 

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In Part 5, I’ll walk through what was ultimately said about the Compensation Agreement when that question could no longer be avoided.