02x67 - Business Is Only Skin Deep

[bunniefuu]

- She worked for you as an esthetician?
- Yes.

You can't open up a store next door
and steal the clients.

It's a very intimate service.

So, you start to gain, um,
a relationship with these clients.

That's not an intimate relationship.
That's just stealing clients.

[narrator]
This is Judy Justice.

[theme music playing]

[narrator] Angela Landy is suing
her former employee, Aleshanee Wyatt,

for stealing clients and
breaching their employment agreement.

[bailiff]
Court, come to order, all rise.

Have a seat, please.

Hello, Judge.
Case #2112, Landy versus Wyatt.

- Thank you.
- [bailiff] You're welcome.

Miss Wyatt,
when did you become an esthetician?

I was licensed as an esthetician
in March of 2021.

Okay, Miss Landy,
this is what your case is about.

You hired Miss Wyatt for your business.
You have a spa business.

- Is that what it is?
- Yes, Your Honor.

How long have you had the business?

I've been in operations
as an S Corp. since 2016.

I worked for myself
as a sole proprietor since 2009.

How many employees did you have
in 2020 and 2021?

In 2020, it was during the pandemic.
We were shut down most of the time.

In 2021, there was up to five employees.
Not including myself, Your Honor.

It was six of us, total.

- Does that include Miss Wyatt?
- [Angela] It does, your Honor.

[Judy]
When did she start working for you?

She started working for me
in February of 2021 as a receptionist.

I hired her as a receptionist.

- Okay, not an esthetician?
- No, Your Honor.

Okay, were you going to school
at the time?

I was not hired in February.

I didn't get my license
until March of 2021.

What the Plaintiff says
is you were hired in February,

she probably has documents,
to work as a receptionist?

I was not hired...
I didn't even have my license then.

Did you have any proof
that she started in February?

Your Honor, I have proof that she...

- [Judy] Was she on your payroll?
- She was on my payroll.

- Okay, so that should be...
- What we have document of in that

is that she started brand new
as a receptionist.

- Maybe it was in March of '21.
- [Judy] Okay.

- I have my first paycheck stub.
- [Judy] I'd like to see it.

- This is a pay stub from April?
- [Aleshanee] Yes.

Oh, okay.

[Judy]
Okay. This is your claim.

Your claim is that
when Miss Wyatt came to work for you

subsequently as an esthetician,
which she was,

because she... You counted her
among your six employees in 2021,

that she had signed a contract
which provided for certain restrictions

should she leave.

You don't have that contract?

I cannot find it.
It was supposed to...

- [Judy] You don't have that contract.
- No.

- Miss Wyatt,
when you went to work for the Plaintiff,

do you recall signing a document?

I do recall signing documents stating,
like, what my job title was.

And, like, the documents
that would go towards what we went over

and things like that
for training purposes.

- Okay.
- Your Honor, I have non solicitation,

non-disclosure agreement documents
of employees.

- There's four of them...
- Okay, is this an employee of yours?

- No, it is not, Your Honor.

- Ever, was ever?
- Never been an employee.

- Were either one of those two people
employees, former employees.

- Yes, Tabitha Brown was.

- Was this a former employee of yours?
- Tabitha Brown was a former employee.

[Judy]
At approximately the same time?

She was an employee of mine
for five years

up until April 17th, Your Honor.

[Judy]
Did she voluntarily leave or did you...

[Angela]
She voluntarily left.

Okay, did she voluntarily leave
to go to work with the Defendant?

I did not know that
until the Defendant left.

[Judy] But ultimately determined
that she did.

- Sure did.
- [Judy] Okay.

- She was with you for five years?
- [Angela] Yes.

[Judy] I assume that if you have a
business and you don't have this contract,

which you allege, if you could produce,
had a specific non-compete clause in it,

but you don't have it.

She remembers signing something,

but she doesn't remember
exactly what it was.

Can you stand up?
Tell me your name.

Tabitha Brown.

Miss Brown, did you sign a contract
when you went to work for the Plaintiff?

- Yes, I didn't remember that I did.
- You did?

- Yes. Yes.
- [Judy] But you did?

[Judy]
Okay. Do you have a copy of her...

I sure do.
And Your Honor...

- [Judy] Just a second.
- Okay.

- [Judy] Do you have a copy of it?
- I don't.

[Judy]
But you have a copy of what she signed?

- Yes.
- I'd like to see it.

- Your Honor, if I may say...
- [Judy] No-no-no. No.

Just let me see the copy.
I'm trying to reconstruct something

just to get some general parameters
of this case.

Tabitha Brown, March 22nd, 2022?

-Yes. Oh.
- [Angela] Different.

That is not the non-solicitation
non-disclosure agreement.

That's a different agreement.
Those are contracts she has signed.

Oh, well, you gave me two things.
What is this?

One is her non-disclosure,
non-solicitation.

And also the second one
is the role definition

of an esthetician working for me.

Looking at the non compete.

Okay, this is pretty standard.
Kevin, would you show this to Miss Brown?

And I also want you to show it
to Miss Wyatt.

- That clearly your signature?
- Yes, ma'am.

Yes, and so that says,

within one year of your leaving,
Miss Landy's employment,

you will not work in a related field

within seven miles
from her current place of business.

Yes.

When you left her employment,
did you go to work with Miss Wyatt?

[Tabitha]
We left after... Yes.

- [Judy] The answer is either yes or no.
- Yes.

- So you did?
- Yes.

You went to work with Miss Wyatt?

And when you went with Miss Wyatt,
that was sometime in 2022?

[Tabiitha]
Yes, ma'am.

[Judy]
What month?

May of 2022.

Your Honor, that's incorrect.

[Judy] Shh.
I'm not needing your help.

Okay.

In this case,
you don't have a physical signed contract.

So I don't see why you think
that you have all documentation.

I don't have documentation.

That's what I'm saying.

Due to the fact that I believe
she stole the information

out of my filing cabinet.

[theme music playing]

[narrator] Angela Landy,
claims her former employee,

Aleshanee Wyatt, stole clients
and breached their employment agreement.

Now, does Miss Wyatt have a location,

a shop, a store, a place of business
or does she operate out of her residence?

We share a space.

You share a space where?

At a salon studios in Valencia.

Have you calculated the distance between
that space and Miss Landy's office?

I have, ma'am.

- And how far is it?
- 3.4 miles.

- Well, you're not allowed to do that
pursuant to the terms of your agreement.

Correct, I don't have a copy
of that agreement, ma'am.

- [Judy] Well, I'm...
- I have now, but at the time I didn't.

It's from five years ago,
and I never received a copy of that.

So, it was...

I don't know whether
you received a copy or not.

It's your signature
and it's pretty standard fair.

It's not that it's not standard fair.

So, Miss Wyatt,
what I have to do is sort of

put together whether or not
I believe that you, in fact,

- had the same document that you signed.
- Correct.

And I believe that you did,
by the fact she says,

that you probably took it when you left.
I can't describe that conduct to her,

but this is pretty standard fair
that within one year it's not too onerous.

It's not within a 50 mile radius.
It's a seven mile radius.

Three and a half miles
is certainly well within that.

You could have found some place
that was eight miles away.

And then we wouldn't be
in this difficulty, but you didn't.

Anyway, so you were
in violation of your contract

when you left and went to work
and share space with Miss Wyatt.

Okay, but you're not suing her?

- No, ma'am.
- Why?

Because I know the case would be dismissed
because of the lack of solicitation

between clients and of a former employee.

Well, not necessarily,
those two stand alone.

Your Honor, if I may say,

there was a small claims action
against Tabitha,

but because there was no evidence...

- What do you mean, there was no evidence?
- I had no evidence,

the way I have evidence today
with Aleshanee,

that Tabitha solicited clientele.

- Okay, now you can sit down.
- Thank you.

So, that small claims case was dismissed?

Yeah, there's...
I have nothing there, which I learned.

I have nothing to stand on,
the way, what I have to stand on today.

Well, what you had to stand on misled you,
which I don't understand.

You had a non-compete agreement with her.
She's in violation of that agreement.

That's all you need.
And she violated this agreement.

- She went to work within seven miles...
- That is correct, Your Honor.

of your place of business.

So, I don't understand that.

In this case,
you don't have a physical signed contract.

I have to reconstruct whether
I believe that there was one.

So, I don't see why you think
that you have all documentation.

I don't have documentation because...

That's what I'm saying.

Due to the fact that I believe
she stole the information

out of my filing cabinet.

I don't know whether she did or not.

Right now, you say it's a lost document,
you can't find it.

- Correct.
- [Judy] Okay.

And the defendant acknowledges,

and it's usually custom and practice
in the business

to sign a non-compete when you have
that kind of service industry.

And I'm prepared to accept
judicial notice of the fact

that when you go to work
for a beauty salon

or a hair salon or a spa,

you develop a clientele within the spa,
you can't open up a store next door.

and steal the clients.

Most people have people sign this,
and you did,

And you had it done five years ago.

So, Miss Brown is in violation
of this contract.

That is correct.

Why somebody dismissed that,
I don't know, I have no idea.

Okay. So, now
you're going to demonstrate to me

that Miss Wyatt solicited clients
of yours.

- [Angela] Yes.
- Show me.

In July of 2021, Aleshanee was trained
to be an esthetician.

Let's not go back to ground zero,
I'm not interested.

I am assuming,
for the purposes of this hearing,

that she signed a non-compete clause,
just as Miss Brown did.

So, let's start from there
and I asked you a very simple question.

I said, what proof do you have
that she solicited clients when she left?

Your Honor, my solicitation is here.

Fine, I'd like to take a look at it.

And my witness, Kennedy,
is here as well.

Well, let's go to Miss Kennedy.
Was Miss Kennedy a client of yours?

Yes, your Honor.

Would you stand up, please?

Your first name?

Kennedy. Kennedy.

- [Judy] Last name?
- Johnson.

Miss Johnson, how long had you been client
of Miss Landy's spa?

I want to say about 2019, Your Honor.
I was there before the pandemic

and was there for a while,
before it shut down due to COVID.

[Judy] Were you there
after it reopened after COVID?

What kind of work do you have done there?

I get sugared, which is using sugar lemon,

- and I believe it's honey and...
- Water.

Water

And you mix it together
and it takes hair off of you.

[Judy]
And who did that for you?

I went through many of the clientele
and the employees

at Angela's shop at the time.

So, there were several people,
Aleshanee was one of them,

as well as Tabitha.

How many times did the Defendant
do the waxing?

- Sugaring.
- Sugaring.

I want to say at least five times.

[Judy]
Do you recall when she left Miss Landy's?

I do not remember the date.

However, I do remember getting a call
from her company.

I got a call saying...

[Judy]
From Miss Landry's company?

- Yes.
- Your Honor, it's Landy.

- Landy?
- Yes, from Miss Landy's company.

They had called me on my cell phone
and told me that she was no longer there.

[Judy] You can't tell me what somebody
from her shop told you, that's hearsay.

I want to know about the solicitation,
if there was.

Yes, so at one point,
while the Defendant was there.

- [Judy] Don't...
- Sorry.

- Do you understand?
- [Angela] Yes.

While the Defendant was there,
I had gotten sugared on my face.

It was a small patch text, or test,
excuse me.

And after she had texted me,
gave me her personal number,

and told me if I had any reaction
to text her and let her know.

After I texted her, I had...

And this was while
she was working for the Plaintiff?

- Yes, that is correct.
- Go ahead.

And as well, I started having
a small reaction

and I had texted her
and sent her a picture of my face

and told her that I was starting
to have a small reaction.

I did not receive anything back
for a little bit.

And then, I want to say around
April, late March...

Well, when did you text her?

- On this text for the face patch?
- Yes.

Was earlier, I want to say early March,
maybe February.

Do you have the text?

- I believe she gave it to you.
- The third one, Your Honor.

What date did Miss Wyatt
leave your employ?

April 22nd,
is when I got her immediate resignation.

- April 22nd, 20...
- [Angela] Twenty-two.

And is this what you're referring to?
"Hey, Kennedy, I forgot to tell you,

if you wanted to book with me again,
I could put you in my books.

- I'll be in Valencia"?
- That's correct.

And is Valencia where your shop is?

- Three point two miles away, Your Honor.
- No, the answer my question.

I have a question.
Is Valencia where your shop is?

- No.
- [Judy] That's my question.

- Why don't you just answer my question.
- Okay.

Tell me what she told your attorney.
Do you understand?

Even if I have an affidavit?

Is your attorney in the military?

No, I just have a notarized affidavit.

- From whom? From her?
- [Angela] My attorney.

No, I don't take affidavits
from attorneys.

- Okay.
- It's ridiculous.

[theme music playing]

[narrator] Business owner Angela Landy
has accused her former employee,

Aleshanee Wyatt, of taking her clients
and breaking their agreement.

So, Valencia is not where your shop is.

Valencia is where
your place of business is.

- Yes, Your Honor.
- [Judy] Okay.

So, you left on the 22nd,
is that correct?

That's correct.

On the 20th, two days before,
you tell Miss Kennedy,

'cause I assume that this
was a planned move of yours,

that she could reach you again
at your new place of business in Valencia?

- Yes, Your Honor.

Okay. Well, you're not allowed to do that.

Um, during the services,
it's a very intimate service.

So, you start to gain a relationship
with these clients.

And through that time,
I felt like I had gained a relationship.

It wasn't just a client with Kennedy.

- So, I...
- [Judy] You met her...

- Yes.
- ...through the Plaintiff?

- Yes, Your Honor.
- You started to work on her

- through the Plaintiff?
- Yes, Your Honor.

She had other people work on her
other than you.

- Yes.
- She may have liked you

better than the other people.

That doesn't diminish the fact
that you knew

that you weren't supposed
to solicit clients. You knew that.

- I believe that you knew that.
- Yes.

Because that's standard fair.
So your excuse is,

you thought you developed
a personal relationship with her?

- Correct, Your Honor.
- How many other people

did you develop
a personal relationship with?

Majority of the clients that I had
who were returning clients of mine,

I felt like I had built
personal relationships with.

If you're patching around
with somebody's face,

or scrubbing their body

or giving them a scrub to get hair off
on every part of the body,

then you develop
an intimate relationship with somebody.

- Now, your first name is Kennedy?
- Yes.

Kennedy, did you ever go out to dinner
with Miss Wyatt?

- No, I did not.
- She ever invite you to her house?

No, she did not.

Was the only time
you ever saw Miss Wyatt

- while you were having a service?
- That is correct.

You see,
that's not an intimate relationship.

That's just stealing clients, Miss Wyatt.

Okay.

So, my question to you is,
you're seeking damages, okay?

Did you seek injunctive relief?

- No, Your Honor.
- Why not?

I didn't know about injunctive relief.

In addition,
because of the staff leaving,

because it's solicitation,
of admitted solicitation

by Aleshanee to my attorney
and I have a sworn affidavit for that.

Because of that,
I ordered them a cease and desist,

and they ignored the cease and desist.

Aleshanee told my attorney
that she did not solicit...

[Judy]
No, you can't...

- Hearsay.
- You can't tell me

what she told your attorney.

- Do you understand?
- Even if I have an affidavit?

- Is your attorney in the military?

- No, I just have a notarized affidavit.
- From whom? From her?

My attorney.

No, I don't take affidavits
from attorneys.

- Okay.
- It's ridiculous.

Are you still in operation, Miss Wyatt?

Yes, Your Honor.

[Judy]
How many people work for, with or to you?

It's just me.
I have my own personal LLC.

And she has her own personal LLC,
so none of our money is combined.

[Judy] Miss Wyatt, how many
of your former clients

from Miss Landy's business followed you?

I would say a good portion.
I don't have an exact number.

- Yes.
- [Angela] Here you go.

- No, just tell me.
- I would say, at least...

- [Judy] No-no-no.
- No, I'm sorry.

I don't want you to say,
"I would say, at least,"

I assume you have names, people.

I have names and people here, Your Honor.

[Judy] How many of your clients
went to Miss Wyatt?

Twenty.

Not was solicited.
Follow me very carefully.

Not solicited by her, but actually
left your business to go with her.

Actually left my business to go with her.

- [Judy] Twenty?
- Yes, Your Honor.

I'd like to see.
Does that sound right, Miss Wyatt?

Yes, Your Honor.

Then I don't have to see.
She says that that's about right.

Your Honor, I would also like to add
that after I left,

she did send out a mass text

allowing all of the clients
who had ever seen me

to be aware that I was no longer there.

So, that also allowed more clients
to reach out to me in different aspects.

- No, you made the mistake.
- Okay.

You made the mistake
by opening up an office

within a seven mile radius,
which you can't do.

- Okay.
- You solicited her clients.

I thought maybe just one or two,
but 20, that's a lot of clients.

Twenty recurring clients
is a lot of clients.

Miss Landy's request
in her small claims case

is the maximum of the jurisdiction,
which is $10,000.

And I think that she deserves
every penny of that.

- Okay.
- 'Cause what you did was wrong

and a breach of your contract with her.

Judgment for the Plaintiff
in the amount of $10,000.

- We're finished.
- [Angela] Thank you.

This court is adjourned.

And I have to tell you something,
that's ongoing.

- Okay.
- Just so that you're aware.

[laughs]

I felt like the work environment
was very unstable.

I have so many people to testify,
including employees,

that it's not a hostile work environment.

And, um, I was constantly anxious there.

I was doing so much
to improve the quality of the business

by changing policies and procedures.

I had to do what was best
for me and my family.

I'm a single mom, so.

Hiring a business coach,
working with an HR team.

Let the better business win, I guess.

The better business has won. [laughs]

I was a little bit confused, maybe
you can shed some light on it for me.

Why the Plaintiff wouldn't sue
for injunctive relief.

Because injunctive relief
is suing not so much for damages,

but to get someone
to stop doing something.

So, in this case, it seemed to me
that the proper ask, per se,

would be injunctive relief
to stop the Defendant

from operating her business
in violation of her contract.

But she didn't do that.
She sued for damages instead.

And I just think that this same problem
could keep happening.

That I think it's a good lesson for people
to educate themselves or hire a lawyer

to find the proper relief.

Because what's to say
that this is going to stop today?

I'm sure she'll keep seeing
the 20 clients.

Well, she's going to keep seeing
the 20 clients.

This judgment today was more compensatory
than punitive.

Because if she had taken
one client with her,

well, she's in violation of the contract

and some token violation
would have been appropriate.

But she took 20 clients with her.

I got the feeling from you
that you weren't exactly in line

with the $10,000 number
until you heard about 20 clients.

- I mean, that's really...
- That's a whole business.

...some sort of chutzpah to knowing.

And I believe she absolutely knew.
She was smart cookie.

Knowing that you have a non-compete

because her friend,
who she also took with her,

had the same documents signed in 2017.

So, and she's clearly a businesswoman.

So that would be
a consistent practice of hers.

I don't know who took the contract
out of the file cabinet.

It's for another day.
I reconstructed it.

I actually don't know why she wouldn't sue
for injunctive relief

as well as punitive damages.

- It would have been an option for her.
- Yeah.

[narrator] Want justice?