A handshake ain't worth carp in this day and age. All about the money and more money. Sorry for the misfortune dude.

Think small claims filing is in the $50 to $75 buck range so I am sure that pales in comparison to the amount of hours/materials/mileage that you are out.

As above, I would calculate all time/material/mileage, etc that you have (at this point) contributed to this individual, based on legitimate going rates/fees and send him an invoice, certified, return receipt, along w/a very polite request letter for payment within 30 days of receipt. At the end of the 30 days, I would send an intent to file letter certified/return receipt, within 2 weeks of receipt and if no reply again, I would then go to small claims court and file. The fact that you have attempted to resolve the conflict, prior to involving the courts, will weigh in your favor. But if you have the money to invest in an attorney, that would definitely be the best route probably.

I usually side with the landowners in these type of threads, but if things really played out as you described, that is a totally cowardly move and the landowner should absolutely make you whole.

Good luck.

That really is the most important info to be able to figure out who their circle of friends includes.

Talk to your co- worker, tell him what happened, if he just shrugs and doesn't offer to help in some way, then tell him you are going to send a bill for the work done. Give that a few days to see if the message gets through, then send that bill registered mail.
At least you can feel better about the lesson you just learned. Hell, even the illegal ranch workers make at least 50 dollars a day.

Depending on the type of work you did, you may be able to file a mechanics lien against his property.

It may not stick, but it will get his attention.

Rotten deal. Sorry it happened to you.

I would be willing to guess he owns a saw mill on 59s? lick your wounds and go own. If its who I think it is with the initials LG. He had you from the start and he plays cards with the DA and Judges once a week. Sorry but he does this all the time.

Man that blows! That's one reason I didn't mind leaving E.Tx...for all the good people around there, there's almost as much "brother-in-lawing" going on, which means good people get screwed over. I agree with everyone else; you at least owe it to yourself to speak with an attorney to find out what you can do to right the situation. Good luck!

Man hope you get something out of this

Sorry guys can't give out the name right now. Luckily my girl's uncle is a lawyer and I talked with him this evening. He's helping me get all the info inline I need but he said not to put the name out there. I told him I just had to vent because I was pissed.

My dad and I got drawn for a tpwd hunt next month so maybe thats karma helping me out.

And the co-worker is a girl so I can't beat her up, but did let me know and unfortunately her reaction made it seem like common place for him to act like this. Said he's a "have and have-nots kinda guy and takes advantage of the have-nots"

Do whatever....lawyer, small claims court, cert letter....just whatever to become a major PITA to this LO. With me it would be a matter of principle.

Hate to hear this Hooligan...but a tip of the hat to you for not outing him here.

That being said, once the case is over and done, I personally would let people around the area know as a warning to not do business with the fellow. And I must say that this is the reason to never do business without a binding contract, no matter who the individual is. The number of folks I trust to keep their word are very few...sadly

Cant add to what the others have already said, but using the family lawyer is the right way to go, if for no other reason than what I highlighted in red.

I also think the best point to everyone, is "GET A CONTRACT", I commend you for having the courage to tell your story knowing you will likely take some "abuse", but these kind of shenanigans need to be put in the light.

If he's as rich as you say he probably lawyered-up so be prepared, well documented, have witnesses if possible and get a good lawyer.
Probably can't count on Jr. as a witness, tho!

Put a labor lien on his property

Lien will stick long enough to cause him a little trouble if he tries to sell

there's a cpl attorneys around there I'd be concerned about if he does lawyer up.

Sorry to hear that! I do believe in, "What goes around, comes around!!" Just do everything above board, & know that no matter what, you'll always be a better man than he ever will!!

I do the predator control for the big landowners here. There is 3-4 I wouldn't touch with A 10' pole. I be willing to bet its one of them. The one thing I learned early on is get a contract before anything is done. If they won't sign walk away!!! The ones you don't take can't bite you. Remember if you act like a begger to them you will be treated like a begger. Words to remember

Send him a detailed bill, give him 30 days to pay. When he doesn't pay, go to the county clerk and place a lien on his property for the amount of the bill, plus a reasonable service charge. My day job is at a title company. That will be a real problem for him when he sells the place, and he will then offer to pay you to release the lien.

Probably oughta talk with the co-worker first if he is a buddy, otherwise I wouldn't as he coulda been in on it.

Guys it's all good advice on what to do and what a sorry pos he is dealing with. Now I'm gonna tell you how things work in Nacogdoches. You gonna go file a lein on him and pay a lawyer bout $1000 to do it cause the court house ain't gonna even talk to you about it. A lawyer gonna do 1 of 2 things he gonna tell you yes and take your money and in bout 6mo he gonna call you up and ask where is your contract and if you don't have one he gonna say nothing I can do. Or he will get it for you and you gotta pay $300 every 30 days to keep it going. That court house is nothing but a den of theives. Like I said before lick your wounds and don't forget this lesson in life. Dealing with rich folks is tuff cause most didn't get rich by working hard, they got that way by dead beating some poor shmuck that was in a bad way. Sorry this happend but let me save you time and money by giving you this advice from my Experiance with Leans in nacogdoches co.

It took a few long breathes to read those sentences, sorry to the OP. terrible thing to hear, hope everything works out in your favor

Go the legal route and you'll likely be spending good money to chase dead money. Sucks that it happend, but the sooner you take it as a lesson learned, the sooner you can put it behind you and move on to bigger and better things. You did what's right and he did what's wrong - let karma take over from here. You'll ultimately be rewarded for doing what's right and he'll get his in the end......just my 2 cents.

This would have been great information if she would have said something before you made a deal with this jack-hole!!!