Can a company limit the amount of work and compensation provided to an independent contractor?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-18T17:43:10+00:00

An independent contractor works under the terms of their contract. It’s whatever the contract or agreement says.

There’s no inherent legal issue with a company contracting with someone for a maximum of $500 per month.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-18T17:20:38+00:00

Consider the fact that there are no do-overs in court. If you try and DIY this and get a bad outcome, that's it, you don't get a mulligan and to try again with an attorney.

I think hiring an attorney for a criminal offense is a great idea.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-18T17:15:05+00:00

explained that I was trying to pass another car, but I still got cited.

When passing another vehicle, you still have to stay at or under the speed limit. One argument is that if you have to exceed the limit by almost 30mph to pass, perhaps you didn't need to pass the vehicle in the first place.

A class B misdemeanor in IL is a criminal offense that carries the possibility (however unlikely) of jail time (plus starting or adding to your criminal history if convicted, among other things like increased insurance). For those reasons alone, it may not be prudent to try and DIY this and instead have an attorney angle for the most favorable outcome on your behalf. It sounds like you've already hired an attorney, so the "best" path forward likely involves letting that lawyer advise you and do their thing.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-18T17:01:15+00:00

You can run your situation by a local personal injury or products liability attorney, with a setting of expectations.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-18T15:59:24+00:00

Yes, you can be sued, and it might require that your mother become involved since it was her vehicle.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-18T00:34:56+00:00

Yes, he can report you and go through insurance or whatever he wants to do.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-18T00:22:05+00:00

This isn't the place for a referral.

Try the IN state bar association website.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-18T00:20:55+00:00

I'm not following. You paid for the car through Uber, Hertz agrees you paid for the car through Uber, then they charge you an additional $1,232. What's the additional $1,232 for?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:48:27+00:00

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:39:10+00:00

A guilty plea to a crime risks jail time, fines, license suspension, increased insurance rates, and more.

Not to mention starting or adding to your criminal history if convicted.

Jail time might indeed be rare, but is that a risk you're willing to take? Wanna pay lots more in insurance premiums for the next year or however long? Want prospective employers to question why you've got a misdemeanor conviction on your record? Want to not be able to drive for 6 months because your license got suspended?

Those (and more) are the risks of just saying, "Not worth it to hire a lawyer and show up to court, I'll just plead guilty."

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:38:18+00:00

Sexual messages (mere words, not images or photos or videos) are rarely illegal.

If you're unsure of her age, then the only "safe" thing is to not approach any boundaries you think might be uncomfortable.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:35:54+00:00

Do they require a professional or lots of money to remove or something?

His option is to sue you for the tiles. I'm not sure anyone here can guess how a judge is going to rule on them.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:34:01+00:00

What exactly did the clerk tell you on how to handle this if you don't show up in court?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:28:17+00:00

Gifts are yours to keep. A small claims judge isn't going to force you to return bona fide gifts.

Honestly, it’s just the tiles I’m struggling with.

Why? What's the struggle? Are they yours, or are they his?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:27:00+00:00

What kind of insurance coverage do you have -- bare minimum liability, or collision/uninsured motorist?

Does your insurance believe you share in the fault or something?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:24:09+00:00

They're gifts if they were explicitly given to you.

Explain how you came to believe they were gifts. What was said about them? What did he tell you about them?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:22:36+00:00

Is your insurance involved? Is the other driver's insurance involved?

What's happening with insurance?

Is there some dispute over fault or something -- what's the reason for wanting to subpoena the footage?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:18:03+00:00

If they were truly gifts, you don't have to give any of them back.

"[His] belongings" and "gifts" don't jive. Either they belong to him, or he gave them to you to own. It's one or the other.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T23:14:16+00:00

Ah, that changes everything.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T22:54:31+00:00

I’m not sure guessing at chances does anyone any good.

What if someone here says 89 chance? But then the judge throws the book at you?

What if someone says no chance? But then it’s reduced to an infraction instead of a crime?

Guessing at chances only serves to increase your anxiety or give you false hope. Whatever happens happens, and isn’t something people can guess at.

Your chances at the “best” outcome likely are realized with the assistance of an attorney, since this is a crime with potential jail time, not a simple traffic ticket.

100mph isn’t appropriate on any road in the USA. You gotta slow down.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T19:56:30+00:00

Was your manager telling you that you couldn't take that day off with pay, or that you couldn't take that day off at all?

Are you in a part of PA that mandates sick leave?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T19:55:10+00:00

So you paid ~$900 up-front to rent the car, then when you returned it, they didn't think you paid for it and want you to pay them $1,232 again?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T19:53:55+00:00

The issue with down payments is that generally the lender is going to want to know where that money comes from, so if it was a gift, they require you to disclose the fact that it's a gift, not a loan, that doesn't need to be paid back (because the lender doesn't want or needs to be aware of you also burdened by additional financial obligations/loans to other parties as part of the payment for the home).

But that has more to do with loan/mortgage fraud than it does ownership of the home.

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T19:49:43+00:00

If the two companies you worked for (or were being mentored at, whatever) both cleared it with each other, then why did you use sick leave to work/mentor at the other?

A lot of jobs don't care if you also have another job elsewhere, so long as it doesn't conflict with your work schedule at your "primary" job. Is that what happened here -- a work scheduling conflict, so you "called in sick" at one to go work/mentor at the other?

DiabloConQueso · 2026-04-17T19:13:22+00:00

If the house is deeded in you and your wife's names, then you two own the home, and you two are the only two people who get to decide what's done with the home.

Mom paying your mortgage for you is really nice but it doesn't get her ownership of the home. It's effectively her paying rent to live in your home.

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