Originally Posted by Ben Kenobi

I'll throw in my two cents on this over debated subject. For the record, JBurke is spot on with his analysis, IMHO. But one more point on "contract disputes." The legal system has developed, over centuries, via common law and statutory remedies, the general prohibition against 'self-help' in a legitimate contract dispute. If there is an alleged breach of the agreement, the parties, at a minimum, are obligated to abide by the dispute clauses (along with the remainder of the terms) in the agreement. Today, that generally requires arbitration or mediation. While the dispute is being settled, however, neither party should compound the problem, (or possibly breach the agreement themselves) by resorting to 'self-help.' In this discussion, self-help would have been leaving employment prior to the agreed upon time. If, then, during the arbitration/mediation it is found that one of the parties did indeed breach the agreement, an awarded remedy (generally damages) would seek to make the non-breaching party whole. This idea that "I don't like how the terms of a contract is working out for me so I'll fix it myself" defeats the rule of law (in this case, contract law) and is, metaphorically speaking, a form of vigilantism. :)