No good deed goes unpunished

So in July off goes Dr. X to Europe.

Before he leaves and before I had resigned my contract with him, I had provided for him additional doctors to see his patients during his absence, hired a new bookkeeper for him, as well as arranged all of his automatic bank payments, including the payments he had agreed to pay to me for the loan (which was in default) I had made to him and for the balance owed by him to me for products he purchased through my buying group for his practice. 

However during his absence he ordered his bank to stop all the auto payments to me and then on his return begins to tell everyone that I had written checks and withdrawn funds from his account without his knowledge or approval.  So much for truth and honoring ones financial agreements.  Funny thing is that when he was later confronted about these statements at my attorney's office he admitted that he had authorized me to set-up these automatic payments but that he stopped the payments because he knew there wasn't enough money to cover the checks.  I guess that was true because he pulled $20,000 out of his business checking account for his personal use during the month while he was in Europe. How do I know this, his girlfriend and bookkeeper told me.  Obliviously he was more concerned with his month long vacation than for paying his bills.

Unfortunately he hasn't done this just to me. I know of another three vendors to whom he still owes around $20,000 each.  Unfortunately they have not gone after him legally.

Morals vs Business

Just a link to an article or comments made on BYU's management linkedin site.  http://www.linkedin.com/groupAnswers?viewQuestionAndAnswers=&gid=70114&discussionID=8001566&goback=.anh_70114

Religion provides a moral compass and pretty much has always guided my decision making.  It is in fact why I am in the situation I now find myself in.  That is I believe the Golden Rule - "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

So after having eliminated my business relationship with Dr. X, I simply boxed up everything for him and; sent int over to his office, including several dozen signed blank checks that I was to use to pay bills while he was in Europe.  I even had all of his accounting up to date and dropped off an electronic copy for his bookkeeper.

On looking back it was the wrong business choice but I believe it was the right choice if you want to keep your principles.  The Machiavelli choice would have been to withhold everything, not resign (because I had full access to all of his banking) and just write checks to pay off the debt owed to me while he was gone.  I couldn't do that.  If for no other reason than to protect his employees who would have been greatly injured financially.

In my next blog the results of my decision.