Thanks all. Not what I was hoping to hear, but thanks nonetheless.
Just one more scenario (I think). I'm a little more than halfway to the year mark, but as jack suggested, I've absolutely been looking elsewhere to make sure I have a chair when the music stops. Say I get an offer and the offerer is (understandably) unwilling to wait until mid-Sept to let me start. If I go to my people and say "Look, this hasn't worked out the way any of us expected, and given that you dont know whether you have a place in our new company, let alone whether I will (or whether you'll have any say in the matter), I've found a new job and would like to released from our agreement without penalty." If they say no and I have to decline an offer, and then later (when the offer is no longer on the table) I'm laid off, would I have any recourse? (I.e., could I go after damages and what would the likelihood of success be?)

