Here are two pieces of information in one. One: always check your information. Two: Erik Sherman of the ASJA Contracts Committee read this post and had a comment for us:

You say, "Unless you have a contract giving the now-defunct all rights, and unless they pay you the full amount under that contract, you own the story, so you can re-sell it." That isn't necessarily true. Although I'm not a lawyer, here's my take. The answer will all depend on the exact wording of the contract. If the publication has folded, has the firm that published it? If so, then the writer might have an argument that without pay and without the company, there is no business transaction and, therefore, no viable contract. But what if the publisher still exists? Then the contract is with the publisher, not the publication, and it may retain the rights provided by the contract. Then the issue would be either to get the publisher to agree in writing that the contract was void and that the rights reverted to the writer, or to consider suing for the rights.

The issue of what rights are conferred is also more nuanced that whether it is an all rights contract. If a writer provides first serial rights in a geographic region - like First North American Serial Rights (FNASR) - then the writer may not allow someone else to publish the article in any form in that area before the publisher does. And if payment is tied to publication, that writer could legally be required to wait for a loooong time before seeing a check.

If possible, it is smart to try negotiating for a time-out clause under which rights revert to the writer after some period of time elapses (like 12 or 18 months). That would not remove the publication's obligation to pay because it is essentially offering money for the chance to exercise these rights within the stated time period. But even if the publisher becomes a pain, at least the writer can do something else with the piece.

In short, when you sign a contract, be sure to read it and consider what might happen in the future and protect your interests.