Q: Is it legal for a company to charge me for a large sum of liquidated damages for quitting a job.
I quit a company and in the contract I signed it says that I could be charged $36,000 if I quit before my two year contract ended. The company works by training you for 12 weeks and then contracting you out to tech companies. I left halfway through the training and have seen multiple posts saying that this clause is considered a "penalty clause" for leaving before the contract ends. Is this true and would I have to pay them the sum for leaving.
A: You should hire an attorney to review the entire contract. Under Missouri law, penalties are not enforceable but liquidated damages are. Whether the contract deems the fee "liquidated damages" is not necessarily dispositive, but liquidated damages provisions are commonly enforced.
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