The meeting turned out to be surprisingly anticlimactic. It was clear from the start that they were desperate to avoid court at all costs. No surprises there; they would be in deep shit if the case went to trial. So, we held the upper hand.
They tried playing the emotional as well as the 'they are just kids' cards, attempting to negotiate down the compensation.
My father seemed almost convinced, ready to agree to their terms, but Mr. Reynolds intervened wisely. He knew their game and insisted we wouldn't budge.
Eventually, they relented. They agreed to pay the entire sum of $36,000 in compensation within a week's time.
Before we left, as a gesture of gratitude, we wrote Mr. Reynolds a check for $500 for his assistance, despite his initial refusal to accept any payment. He simply requested that I keep him in mind if I ever needed legal help in the future.
However, I declined; I didn't want to have a history of not compensating those who had worked for me. That could come back to bite me in the ass.
As we drove back home, I caught a glimpse of relief on my dad's lips. I knew that to him, the money we'd secured would ease the burden of paying for my education.
This was some serious coin for the day.
Until now, he probably hadn't planned on allocating more than a few hundred bucks for my incidental expenses.
It was clear I needed to have a serious conversation with him.
I needed to convince him that I would put that money to good use.
...
Dad never said anything to me, but it could well have been more than his annual paycheck.
It could certainly pay for a good chunk of my university expanses, and that was the plan immediately announced.
Mom decided to put it in their savings account.
"I think I'd rather put it in a brokerage account and have it work for me," I announced.
"Don't be silly. We certainly aren't going to let you have it. It's for your future," she replied.
"According to the check, it's my name on there and I can do what I wish with it."
"Well, I mean..." She looked at my father irately. "Are you going to just sit there? He can't keep this money; he'll just spend it!"
Dad didn't agree with her out of the gate. Instead, he turned to look at me and asked, "What did you have in mind?"
This caused my mother to issue an outraged cry.
I ignored her and answered, "Well, as you know, I've been interested in the economy and the markets for a while now. I know I can get a much better rate of return at a brokerage. If we're going to use this money for my university costs, then we should at least take a part of it and make it work for me for the next year or two."
Mom kept ranting while Dad sat back and appraised at me.
Finally, Dad said, "Jess, settle down. He's making sense."
Mom quieted down, not too graciously, and Dad then asked, "Do you have anything particular in mind?"
I did have some thoughts, but simply said, "Well, theoretically we could put that money in a general stock fund, but I think that's a massive waste of an opportunity. I've been looking at how the economy is recovering from the dot-com bubble burst and I believe things are starting to turn around."
That stumped him, but he looked at me with a thoughtful face. "Hmm. I've heard about it, but isn't it risky to invest in tech again after what happened?"
My dad wasn't clueless about the economy. He was the one who first got me interested in it and encouraged me to study economics at Florida University.
But he was more interested in international economics.
"Dad, remember how tech companies were booming in the late 90s? It was crazy, but many of those companies are still around and have learned from their mistakes. They're becoming more efficient and focused on real profitability now."
"But how can you be so sure that the markets will recover?"
"Dad, the Federal Reserve is keeping interest rates low to stimulate growth. That means borrowing costs are low for businesses, which should help the economy recover faster."
"Yes, that makes sense." Dad said, but he still looked sceptical, "But aren't we going through a recession? These days, that is all they talk about on TV."
"Have you looked at the Bond Market, dad? The yield curve has been positive for quite a while now. The Government bond yields has remained low and the demand for them has been declining. Instead, investors are scrambling to buy corporate bonds. Consumer spending will go through the roof soon. You will see." *
My mom was sitting there on the couch, speechless at that point. Even my dad was shocked for a second, but he clearly knew what I was talking about.
"Hmm, okay. But how do we know which companies are good investments?"
"We don't necessarily need to put it all in one basket. Industries like healthcare and consumer staples are showing resilience even during slower times. People always need healthcare and everyday essentials, right?"
I continued, "Another area we should consider is the Internet and technology sector. All the kids are crazy for it and computers are getting better and better. You know how addicted people are to games, and they're not cheap. I will have to do more research, look at the financial health, leadership, and growth potential, but I've been following some promising companies."
Dad looked at me seriously, and I saw that there was a lot going through his mind. "Alright, let's not rush into anything. But I'm impressed, son. You really know your stuff."
"Thanks, Dad. All I'm saying is that if I put the money in the stock market rather than just a bank, I'll have a way to do better than whatever they pay on a savings account."
Dad faced me. "All right, I can see the idea of investing in the market, but you're not an adult yet. You're too young to do that."
"My birthday is in a month; I don't see a reason why we can't wait until then."
My dad paused for a second, "You know what, son? I can see how passionate and knowledgeable you are about this. Let's not wait. We'll create an investment account in my name, and I'll let you take care of the trading."
"Really?" I asked.
"Really, hubby? You're going to give him the money?" Mom started squawking again when Dad said that.
"Jess, for the love of God, shut up!" Dad rarely, if ever, yelled at Mom, and the sheer shock of it made her speechless.
"It's his money, Jess!" Dad said decisively. "But there will be conditions, Jack. I'll put $15,000 into the account for you to manage. However, if you make risky decisions and lose more than 30% of the money, I will take control and pull the funds."
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* - From now on, whenever there is a star, I will add additional explanation in the comment section.