Should I stay or should I go now?

Dec. 18 the Texas Supreme Court issued its opinion in Vanegas, et al. v. American Energy Services, et al. It was 9-0 and a pro-employee opinion, reversing Eastland's 11th Court of Appeals. As the court took pains to point out, it's a good opinion for us all. Here are the allegations as recited in the court's opinion: An employer is on shaky financial ground. Several employees talk to management, which supposedly says that if the employees don't bolt and stick around until a sale or a merger, they will get 5 percent of the sales price. They do so. The triggering event occurs, but they don't get their money. A suit follows. The appeals court said that the the at-will doctrine barred the claim; all the plaintiffs were at-will employees and could be terminated at any time prior to the triggering event. Thus, there was no enforceable contract, just a unilateral promise. The Supreme Court said no: There was an enforceable contract because the employees fulfilled their part of the bargain by staying around until a sale, and thus their conduct created an enforceable agreement. The court noted that if this was not the case, then all wages, salaries, pension payments, etc. could be avoided by the invoking of the at-will doctrine. The court provides a interesting and detailed discussion of contract law (took me back to first-year contract law at Tulane University Law School). The court sent the case back to the trial court to sort out what was said and by whom.