Our Queensland client is an independent consultant. A training provider hired her to update its course documentation and build online learning content.
She was paid at an hourly rate under a written agreement, with fortnightly invoices.
After a few months, the business ended the arrangement without the notice the contract required, and refused to pay her last invoices. When she sued, it filed a defence and a counterclaim against her. ezylegal answered every point, and she was paid.
At a glance
- Problem: A business ended a consultant’s contract without the required notice, refused to pay her final invoices, and counterclaimed against her.
- Claim against: The training provider that engaged her.
- Legal basis: Breach of contract, for unpaid fees and for ending the agreement without the required one month’s written notice.
- Result: A negotiated settlement paid to our client, with the business’s counterclaim dropped. No hearing needed.
The work was done, then the contract was cut short
The agreement set an hourly rate, required fortnightly invoices payable within two weeks, and said either side could end it with one month’s written notice.
The business paid a deposit and the first invoices. Then, soon after our client delivered the final pieces of work, it ended the arrangement without notice and stopped paying.
Taking it to court
ezylegal filed a claim in the Queensland Magistrates Court for the unpaid invoices and for the loss caused by ending the contract without notice.
The business filed a defence and a counterclaim. It argued that some of the hours weren’t worked, that GST had been charged wrongly, and that it didn’t have to pay for the notice period.
ezylegal answered each point:
- The GST: our client was registered for GST for the whole time she was invoicing, so the GST charges were correct.
- The hours: she had records of the work done and delivered, including long hours worked to meet the business’s own deadlines.
- The notice: the notice clause set out how the contract could be ended. It didn’t let the business avoid paying for work already done, or for ending the agreement without notice.
The outcome
With its arguments answered, the business agreed to settle. It paid our client, dropped its counterclaim, and the court case was discontinued without a hearing.
What can I do if a client ends my contract early and won’t pay?
You can claim your unpaid invoices. If your contract required notice and your client didn’t give it, you may also be able to claim for the notice period.
Read your contract’s termination clause carefully. A notice period usually protects both sides. If a client walks away without giving notice, it doesn’t erase what they owe for work already done, and it may leave them liable for more. Good records of your hours, deliverables and GST registration make it hard for a client to argue its way out of paying.
If you’re facing something similar
If a client has ended your contract and won’t pay:
- find your signed agreement, and check the payment and termination clauses
- keep timesheets and copies of everything you delivered
- keep proof of your GST registration, if you charged GST
- don’t accept a lowball offer without getting advice
- ask for payment in writing, with a clear deadline
Get advice early, because time limits apply. Read more about debt and contract disputes.
ezylegal operates on a no-win, no-fee* basis across consumer, commercial and insurance disputes, so you’re not weighing the cost of a lawyer against the cost of walking away.