Legal Question in Employment Law in Maryland

contract law question

In October, I signed an open ended employment contract which stated the contract was between Company X and myself. The contract stated that it is required that I provide my employer 4 months notice before I terminate my employment. I can only provide 2 months notice. The contract does not list any penalties for early termination. Company X is a corporation owned by a parent company, Company Y. I have never worked for company X. They don't have a physical location. It exists in name only. Company Y, which owns company X of course signs my reimbursement checks. The company at whose physical location I actually work, Company Z (also owned by Company Y), is the name on my paycheck. Also, my contract stipulated that I make Q amount of dollars per year plus bonuses based on performance. After I began working for Company Y (which was at the time another for another company, Company T), my boss changed my salary and bonus structure and I never signed a new contract. After moving to Company Z, which is where I currently work, my bonus schedule was altered and not for my benefit. Is 4 months too long to be legally binding? Was the contract valid to begin with since I never worked for Company X. Does changing my salary void the contract?


Asked on 7/19/04, 10:28 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Lawrence Holzman Holzman Law Firm, LLC

Re: contract law question

Here are some quick observations:

First, because you are referring to a written contract, it will be impossible for you to obtain truly reliable advice without spending a few minutes in an atty's office (so the atty can read the contract).

Second, you can't be forced to work on a personal services contract any longer than you want. The only question is whether there is any financial penalty for early termination.

Third, it is possible that the actions of your employer in changing seemingly all of the terms of your employment (the name of the employer, the wages, bonus, etc) worked to create a new oral agreement that supercedes the old contract.

From you posting, it seems that all of these issues may already have come to your mind and thinking. Unfortunately, a reliable answer will not be possible without additional factual discussion, as well as a review of the written contract.

Please feel free to give me a call if you would like to chat about your circumstances.

awrence R. Holzman, Esquire

Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A.

6404 Ivy Lane, Suite 400

Greenbelt, MD 20770

(301) 220-2200

fax (301) 220-1214

Disclaimer: Please note that the posting of this response is not intended to constitute legal advice. You should contact an attorney to obtain information applicable to your situation. This posting is not confidential or privileged and does not create an attorney/client relationship.

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Answered on 7/20/04, 10:54 am


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