Q: US company refuses to Pay or give ownership. They are blackmailing me now.
In 2018, I went into an oral agreement with a person in the United States to build an online platform. I was responsible for all the tech from designs to coding etc. I live in Pakistan, we had this agreement orally over zoom.
He promised equity and delayed payment for my work. We agreed that all the code would stay as my IP.
by Q1 2020 he did not make any payments. On my protest, he agreed to give me half of our agreed monthly salary from Q2 2020 to Q1 2021 and he will settle and past dues from Q4 2018 to Q1 2021 on 1st April 2021.
Now he refused to pay or give equity. He changed the passwords of all the accounts associated with the platform.
I have already sent this company a legal notice. They do not have IP Rights. He’s now threatening to report me for cybercrime for not sharing IP and source code.
What actions can I take against this person and what actions can he take against me since there's no written agreement and we live across the world.
A:
You can sue him but it will be complicated and expensive
You may be able to sue in your country or in the USA
You should consult with an attorney to determine your options
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