[bruce511]

Since whether you have a case or not depends entirely on the specifics of your options (or shares or whatever), it's impossible to give you legal advice beyond "get a lawyer".

Presumably when you were an employee you understood that these equity-pay structures were basically a lottery. And no, it would seem you didn't hit it. Like any lottery there's an element of unfairness built in.

Personally I wouldn't bother. I think if you do the math in time, money for lawyer, likelihood of success, you'll find that walking away is your simplest, cheapest, outcome.

You made your first mistake working for valueless equity. Learn from that - write it off as education. And hey, who knows, maybe they will IPO sometime...