How does working remotely..work exactly? I know there is a contract but assuming you are from the other part of the world, aren't you at risk of not getting pai

How does working remotely..work exactly? I know there is a contract but assuming you are from the other part of the world, aren't you at risk of not getting paid if something happens to the company or they start acting unethically? Lawyers can get involved but at that point lawyers might cost more than what you need to recover. Example: US company and European programmer.