IStyle Magazine update - still no payment for almost two years.

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=42602411

i thought about leaving a comment of myspace, but you have to be accepted as a friend to do so, and i am sure she would not accept me.

also, i forgot to mention that she requested and we negotiated a fee (at a rediculous discount cause i supported their cause) the use of 6 images – which she needed right away as she was on deadline. then she told me they only published two, and thus will only pay me for those (if she ever sends a check), even tho she won’t send me a copy of the magazine to prove it.

I really sympathize with your dilemma.

I am embroiled in a dispute with a magazine over the loss of some of my original negatives from my work last summer in Lebanon.

As there based in NY that should be easier for you to chase them, although I see you are currently in Lebanon.

I presume the fee you have agreed is quite low which would mean filing a lawsuit against them would be unappealing to a media lawyer.

I am in Convent garden at this moment having a coffee and right next to me is a huge magazine store that may stock that magazine.

I will ask if it’s possible to get a backdated copy.

Let me know when the publication date was and I will give it a shot.

At least you will know if she has published 2 or 6 images.

I totally agree that you should not let this fade away as this editor seems to think you will just give up.

Anyway if you can let me know the date of publication and I will take a look. Nothing better to do as I am waiting for some film to be processed.

Mark

Thanks but she never mentioned which issue the images were published in, just that only two had run.

Steph

Ah thats a shame. What a shitty bunch of thiefs.

Michael I agree unless after the 2nd pancake you found a hair
imbedded in the 3rd. Send it back and refuse to pay.

Love Mark

Its definately worth the fight, not for the money but the principle and for the future of our profession.

I recently had success when dealing with a rogue stock agency after CC’ing the C.E.O with my demands. Quite suprisingly the contact I was dealing with – who had previously been ignoring my emails – responded within 15 minutes in my favour. A little pissed off mind you, but she sprang into action.

N.

Listen up. Copyright infringment is a serious legal issue. Get a lawyer on it and he will take a 50-50 split, at least. It took me six months in Mexico to dispute a local website that used my pics illegaly to promote an upcoming site. We made $15,000 for four pics! I will be most glad to pass my lawyer in Mexico to anyone who is interested in hitting these or any other “asses”. NAFTA I believe applies here. If your pics were published and it’s been over a year Stephanie, you are entitled not only to payment but to damages. If you have the emails she has sent you then you are in the game.

Please pass along the lawyer’s info. Yes, I do have every email sent in this drama.

Thanks,
Steph

You should have sent this to a collection agency eight months ago. Principles and a desire to be flexible etc. etc are fine but, if you’re running a for profit business, you need to be much more practical and less emotional about these things. I’m sure they would not keep sending you the magazine if you did’nt pay the subscription invoice.

I know the ship has sailed now so, I don’t want to rub it in or state the obvious but, after 4 months of non payment, you can pretty much bet they will not pay without some significant incentive. If your invoice said something to the effect that they get no usage rights until payment is received then, at about 3 months, send them a letter reminding them of this and perhaps enclosing a couple of copies of past judgments against copyright infringers. If you don’t get paid in two weeks, get a lawyer on contingency and pursue the copyright infringement angle. If you want to be nice, after four months, send it to a collection agency and let them collect it and move on. The time you’ve wasted on this unfortunate episode could have been spent finding new clients that actually pay on time.

Good Luck

If your really going for it and intend to file a claim against them in NY then there are possibilities
regarding the legal issues. The fees for getting legal representation are high unless you can ask a lawyer to
act on a CFAor more commonly referred to as a “NO WIN NO FEE” They are lucrative for lawyers as they get higher fees for taking a risk. Not sure if you have these kind of arrangements in the US.

A stiff letter from a legal representative may get them to pay up. I would also suggest finding out what kind of damages you may be entitled to for late payment or infringement of copyright.

I would add that getting involved with this kind of thing is bloody complex and can be stressful.

A publication has lost 147 6×6 negs I shot last summer in Lebanon. Apart from the emotional aspect of losing something like that, it only compounded the misery when I realised to what lengths some will go to try and get away with it.

I wish you the very best of luck. Hopefully a settlement will enable you to reinvest in something worthy. Pictures.

Regards

Mark

PS Yes Michael what a team performance. I was nervous hell last 15 mins. Should of been all over at half time.

there must be a lot of nuisance (and embrassement) value in collection agencies…by definition, they’re persistent and presumably nasty. so find one or two…and see what the deal with them is. but perhaps do so before you contact the editor so you’re armed with real facts beforehand. i presume the collectors will want to see copies of the emails etc.

and, as has been suggested earlier, publicising (and increasing the nuisance factor) this problem here will reduce their future access to photographers (hopefully).

best of luck!

CC Stephanie

I think getting a letter sent by a lawyer stating the same as what Dan has suggested would be better than writing an email to the publication directly with the threat of instructing a Debt agency to collect as this is likely to be ignored.

The magazine editor has continually ignored Stephanie regarding payment and it may be better getting a letter sent from a lawyer. It implies that you are no longer taking any shit and will proceed in getting any monies due.

With this and a calculation of a late payment added then reduced as a goodwill gesture(that may seem silly in light of the way the publication has acted) but it shows you are prepared to compromise and put closure on the matter if you get paid.

I think this may be a good way of sorting it out.

i don’t disagree with you at all…that is the ideal way to go. hopefully for Stephanie, a lawyer will be willing to accept the ‘case’ on a contingency basis or on a no win no fee, as you put it…it may well be that a lawyer will write such a letter(s) for a nominal fee…although new york lawyers generally do not know what nominal means…and get immediate results.

sure, a lawyer is a must. but if the no win no fee doesn’t work and the potential legal expenses surpass the payment due, a commercial decision will need to be made…and the lawyer vs collection agency choice pops up. what i’m trying to say is that if Stephanie has the financial stamina to pursue this legally (which could take time), then more power to her. if she hasn’t or doesn’t want to, then she has other choices to make.

I am well thanks.

Yeah I agree. Thats what it comes down to. If you have the financial capacity to fight them.

Large publications or small ones with nothing to lose out there are able to Fu*K photographers over knowing that photographers have limited resources in pursuing unpaid invoices.

I am not sure how a debt collection agency works in the US. I know how they work in the UK. If that is the course of action why not get a photographer friend in NY to get suited and booted and go to their offices demanding payment.

Either way I hope it all works out.

Wow, I can’t belive I found this site. I too have had TERRIBLE dealings with iStyle Magazine and the IDIOT Harjot (in my personal opinion). FYI, she and the crap mag are located out of Vancouver, Canada. She hired my company for her Toronto launch a few years ago. From not being able to get back to me to taking close to a year to pay a measly balance of $300, she is quite possiblt the worst person you could ever want to do business with. To this day I hope and prtay her crappy ass mag has folded. If there is ANYTHING I can do to assist anybody who has had problems with her, please do let me know.

I would have continued to follow it up, I was simply too busy to bother with it anymore.

Good luck everyone.

I’m a little confused by your last post. Did you receive your $250? I’ll be moving back to Vancouver in the next few months and would be more than happy to help you follow up with this. I know more than a few lawyers and have some very large ice hockey mates.

Tim

Also, while the magazine is technically based in Vancouver, I have been told they work out of NY (the phone number I have for the editor is a NY number).

I’m curious what you mean by “I was never paid. Even after following up with a collection agency.” I’ve used this route a few times with success.

Second, it sounds like you negotiated down your originally agreed invoice is that correct?

Either way, you don’t need a lawyer (or hockey players for that matter) if their offices are are registered in Vancouver, I would suggest the following:

1. Go on the website and order some back issues to find the one your images appeared in (if possible. If not, hit a local library and see if thy have back issues).

2. Educate yourself on your local small claims court process.

3. Draft and send a letter to this person and copy any named shareholders outlining that you have a copy of the magzine containing your images, state the rules of copyright and included examples from recent court cases similar to yours where damages were awarded (this is all available online depending on where you live). Let them know they have violated your copyright and you will be filing a small claims case seeking payment and damages. In addition, let them know you will be forwarding copies of all correspondence to each advertiser of the magazine because, fashion designers are very sensitive to copyright infringement issues and you feel it is important that the advertisers of the magazine know they are advertising their product with a magazine that has no regard for creators copyright. Give them 15 days to send you the monies and if they don’t, file a claim on day 16.

4. Go on the British Columbia Provincial Courts webpage and download the small claims forms. Call the clerk of the court and find out the details of filing from out of province and requirements for appearance. If you have to be physically present, file a small claims suit in the area you live in naming the company and the individual. If not, file one with BC as well as your local jurisdiction.

5. Follow through with the small claims case using past emails, invoices and copies of the magazine to bolster your claim. In the end, you should be eligible for the original invoice, court costs and punitive damages related to the copyright infringement.

In Canada, copyright automatically becomes property of the person who paid for the work unless there is an agreement to the contrary or the author was not paid for the work. So, if they are a Cdn company, they have violated your rights as the copyright holder. Small claims is a perfectly acceptable way to litigate this type of stuff (I’m actually involved in a similar dispute right now) and the Copyright Act in Canada allows for punitive damages of up to $20,000 per infringement so, when you file the claim, be sure to file claim for the total amount including $20,0000 and make sure you let them know this is what you are doing.

Lastly, be aware that in most Cdn jurisdictions, $25,000 is the maximum amount you can sue for in small claims.

If you’re American and the company’s American and you have registered your image with the US copyright office (or whatever it is called) you’ve hit a jackpot. For the skinny on how this works, Google Dan Heller’s blog and read it.

The bottom line is, if they agreed to license the images and you held up your part of the bargain and they published the images and then blew off payment, forget about Hockey players or dropping by for tea and a nice chat and take advantage of the legal mechanisms that are in place for your protection. It might only be $250 but the self respect, knowledge and confidence you’ll gain by going through this process will be priceless.

And besides, there’s likely a pot of gold at the end o’ the rainbow for ya.

Good Luck

Thanks for the detailed information. This is a good idea, but I live in Lebanon, so I cannot pursue anything in small claims court, be it in the US or in Canada, as it would require my being able to go to court when necessary.

I also wonder if it would be worth it at all. If a $250 invoice is uncollectable – yes I did use a collection agency and they termed it this – I can’t imagine that she could pay a much higher judgement against the magazine. But at any rate, I don’t want to take any more of my time and energy out from producing important stories to follow this up on this further. I followed this up for a long time and it was quite distracting. This is probably not setting a good example for the other photographers, and if I lived in the US, I would be more vigilant, but for now, I think I need to just cut my losses.

Just wanted to post this here so other photographers were aware of what can happen if you work with this magazine.

Thanks.

Might get her thinking.

Or at the least get her parents to convince her she shouldn’t be a crook.

suggest you use the typical asian way….ask her to pay first in full amount and demand for interest on losses. tell her that not until you see the £££ being transmitted into your account, you will then remove all the posts. if not post will be remain publicize.

you worked so hard for your copyright, your images, contribution, you deserved every single penny to be rewarded. by posting onto LS does not means you are going against this low handed magazine, you are merely helping other LSrs to be alerted.

in asian country, some ppl may have been asking the “debt collector” to collect the money from magazine agency, if they have not pay, the “debt collector” will often be very creative to write some “complimentary notes” as ‘O$P$’ on their wall, or maybe spray paint drawing some ‘picasso artwork’ on the door bench.

believe this does not happens in western country as western country are more civilized.

just my 2 cents worth comments.

ian

I totally sympathize. I was a commercial photographer for over 25 years and certainly have my share of stories about collection, or lack of. The last one, and the one that ultimately led to my closing the studio was over a $23,000 assignment. (Before you go off on how much money commercial photographers make compared to journalists, I did about $10/hour on that one, if memory serves.)

The responses and schemes posted here are, for the most part, adolescent at best. Be professional.

Collection is not a game. Look at what your collection agency said, basically, it’s too small an amount to collect. Take your lumps, and, above all, learn your lessons, and move on.

I used to use Dun and Bradstreet, but I’m not sure they do that any more, but when you advise a client that they are going to be reported to D&B, and their account will be turned over to D&B for collection, suddenly the checks come in. I actually had a guy write me a note (with the check) complaining that this tactic was “bad form”. heh. whatever. As if not paying for services was good form.

A little story. I had a copyright infringement issue that was pretty much open and shut. I contacted a lawyer and he explained a couple of strategies to me, and we went from there. I wrote a letter to the client essentially saying that they violated my copyright, the statutory damages were starting at $10,000 per image (which, by the way, are what any image with a registered copyright would start at… that is the difference between a non-registered copyright and registered), and that we could both save a lot of time and money if they would settle for $6000. I suggested they consult their attorney. They sent a check, ultimately for what we agreed on, $5000, within 30 days. I would not have even gotten into court in that short time.

Small claims court, by the way, in spite of winning a judgement in your favor, has no ability to actually collect the funds. Typically what happens is the case is heard, the defendant blows it off, loses the judgment, and then ignores the finding. You are right back where you started, with no money and having spent a great deal of time.

Get contracts, get advance payment. Understand your rights. Behave professionally, and understand that you will lose money to bad debts, every business does. Use professional and legal methods to attempt collection of those debts. Put your energy into attracting new, good clients and forget about the people like this one, beyond warning others about them (thank you, by the way, for that).

My favorite saying from a really good (photographer) friend was always, “If you do business with assholes, you’re going to start looking like an asshole.” My second favorite saying by him, and also apropos of this discussion is, “You’re not selling yourself, man, you’re selling pictures.”

The only reason I post this is that I have seen this over and over again… we are artists, but we are also professionals and business people, and we really have to act like professionals or we will continue to get played and cheated and used. See the thread on the photographers union ideas for more on that… And the thread with Ellison’s rant on getting paid and professionalism.

OK, end of rant, again, I only post this because I care about our profession, not out of criticism or anger… it sucks getting played like this, and I’m sorry you did, but you have to deal with it like any small business owner which is what you are, and not resort to vandalism and threats, whether real, tangible or “virtual”.

here’s a summary of that post, but you should really see Ed’s page and take his advice to heart.

Ed Greenberg’s Top 10 List

My Top 10 list of things experienced photographers insist upon doing (or not), despite logic, law, money, advice and screaming:

1. Finding preposterous excuses not to obtain a model release and following through on their specious notions only to later say, "oops! I thought that..." ;
2. Use of abysmal paperwork or none at all;
3. Failure to register work;
4. Treating clients and prospective clients as if they are buddies and pals who share your self interest;
5. Waiting, waiting, waiting and letting clients stall you about why they are not paying you;
6. Assuming that a client's filing seeking protection from creditors via a bankruptcy court means that you are without remedy and S O L;
7. Assuming and accepting that if you are told something is "standard", it is, and can not be negotiated or changed;
8. Starting any sentence by saying, "I never thought this could happen. I have been in the business _ years and nothing like this has ever...";
9. Failing to read the copyright stuff on EP because it might serve to educate. After all its a waste of time even though its FREE!. The time you take reading could be better used watching "E" Showbiz Tonight!;
10. Taking all definitive professional advice from government employees, photographers or reps - never from lawyers or accountants.

The list will be the same next year. I know this because it is the same every year. Forgive me, but it is enormously frustrating to have prospective clients fail to follow the above rules which means that I can’t sue people, make money and keep my wife happy by buying her stuff. Oh yeah, neither can the photographers.

I have over the years threatened some of my clients with telling their spouse the details of their business screw ups. Confidentiality prevents me, but the temptation is great. Threat of spousal knowledge and reprisal is the only effective teaching technique.

Frustrated I remain,
Edward Greenberg, PC

(Edward Greenberg is an attorney specializing in Intellectual Property based in New York City. He is a regular contributor on the EP Forums.)

As I wrote in my last post, “I don’t want to take any more of my time and energy out from producing important stories to follow this up on this further. I followed this up for a long time and it was quite distracting. ” So I am taking my lumps. I have made no threats whatsoever and cannot control what other people put on this site. But I don’t want to delete the thread as it is good for professional photographers to learn from each other on how to deal (or not deal) with events like this, as it happens to everyone.

Thanks,
Stephanie

Stephanie, sorry to hear you never did get paid, but moving on is probably the best thing to do, for the sake of $250 anyway.
Fortunately the only 2 disputes I’ve been involved in were settled. One very quickly and the other took nearly a year. During the latter dispute I was an emotional wreck and could not get on with what we photographers should all be doing..making pictures!

Regards

...sitting down and shutting up now. :)