I am a freelance web designer, 3 years ago, i wrote a simple contract binding me to program a website and an updatable admin menu for a customer. I finished the site, but never the admin menu, and lost contact with my customer.
They have come back now 3 years later, requesting i finish the job. I of course agreed immediately. The thing is they have hired other developers to modify my files, and completely cleared out the FTP, i no longer have the files from the old site due to a hard drive failure. I still owe them an admin menu, but the only way i can make that for them is to program them ANOTHER site. Their other developer is far to amateur to understand any of the advanced programming languages for dynamic sites and is only capable of html. So my only real option is to build both the site, and the admin menu from scratch now.

I've offered them a reasonable set of alternatives, and they still keep dodging the point and wont say anything but get it done. Now they are constantly mentioning a lawyer in emails, likely as an intimidation attempt. I do not have a lawyer, or money for a lawyer, or any legal expertise. So please, can i get some advice on this?

fact summary:

• I did not complete the original contract
• they modified the files, none of which is in the original agreement, but should have been
• i do not owe them a second website
• i have offered them 3 options:
  • A: they replace the site, i honor the contract and devise a menu for their old site
  • B: they can have someone else do it entirely, and i will offer them a 60% original cost credit in graphic design work usable over the next 24 months
  • C: they can recontract, voiding the old one, stating that owe them another site and admin menu for no cost, under the conditions that once it is complete, they sign a consent form preventing my requirement to work on the site further except bug fixes, they do not hire or bring to meetings any other web developers, even if they are sitting in, and if they breech any of these contract obligations that i retract this current build of the site, and they default to the design credit option.

What im seeking to find out is:

Am i being unreasonable?
What should i tell them?

Have you browsed through the information in LawInfo's Free Legal Resource Center to learn more about your issue yet? See: http://www.lawinfo.com/consumer.html and http://resources.lawinfo.com/en/index.html. You can certainly try to speak to a lawyer to determine what legal options may be available. In the meantime, you may be able to learn more on your own. Search the "Free Legal Resources" tab, or browse the Consumer Resources. Good luck.

To Zero12785,

I understand the options you have given them. In business you must be firm with 'your' solution. If they have a better-one then they will suggest it.
It sounds like you are being nice by allowing them the 3-options. If it was another small business, which was not quite as professional, one might use the source-code that the previous designer used and create an admin menu with these in mind. Of course their is always the opportunity for them to say it was not up to standard, then you would have to re-consult with them to decide what else was required on the web-admin menu. From that you could do basic updates.
Remember, I said a less professional company would choose to do this. Your solution of 3-options sounds like take-it or leave it.
If you still have issues, take a free consultation with a lawyer in this field (without naming the company name) and see what they say.

-It's the basic idea of "do you want it or not", you just have to prove that what you are saying, regarding the contract being 3-years old, and them hiring another web-designer to upgrade the site.

Remember you do this, and they may have another contract for you in the future.

__________________
---
Rashaad
Manitoba Cdn
Area code: 204
rashaad@safe-mail.net
---