Comment by roel_v | Hacker News Reader

Comment by roel_v | Hacker News Reader

Too much work to do real flowchart in ascii, alternative version:

  Are they incorporated? 
   -> No: sue founders personally
   -> Yes:
      -> Will they go under in < 6 months?
        -> Yes: your money is lost
        -> No:
          -> Do they have assets?
            -> No: Your money is lost
            -> Yes: sue asap

Alternative: some companies buy debt at a discount. Some collections agencies do it, since they're in the business of chasing debtors already anyway. Not sure in US who would do that.

Do not do anything to website or whatever else you still have access to.

Those are pretty much your options. You seem to have some ideas of yourself (judging from you mentioning 'YC', 'access to code', etc.). Those are all bad, ineffective, stupid - or all three courses of action.

I think the reason "access to code" and whatnot are mentioned is that it would be indicative that he wasn't fired but not told he was fired. If your client stops communicating all of a sudden it's often the case that you're not hired anymore and nobody there wants to tell you because that's never good news. And ultimately not telling someone and not paying them and not returning their calls will eventually let them figure out that they're fired. But in that case you'd definitely lose any kind of access that you once had. Passwords would be changed, your git privileges would be revoked, etc.

Prior to assuming that this person wants to blackmail them, think perhaps if there might be another reason it's mentioned.

I actually included it to show how I'm pretty positive they're going under and have no assets remaining. Added an EDIT to my original post.

I can imagine they went silent because it's an awkward issue and they are trying to avoid it. I know I am more likely to respond to the problem emails I can solve quickly than those that are more difficult.

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