Title: [GA] leak in condo ceiling, upstairs neighbor won't take responsibility

Question:
I live in a condo building and in 2015 I noticed there was staining on my bathroom ceiling.  I contacted the building manager who put me in touch with the upstairs neighbor who swore up and down it couldn't be her fault because she doesn't use that tub.  Over time the leak continued intermittently and I eventually had a plumber come look (and both of us had to be home for that which is why it took a while to arrange).  He couldn't find anything leaking at the time, because it was intermittent, but he had to put a hole in my ceiling to look.

Now, a week ago, water was streaming out of the hole and I again contacted my neighbor and the building manager.  I have it in writing that she was using the tub at the time and I have video of the water streaming out of my ceiling.  She and the building manager are both telling me that it's on me to hire a plumber, even though it seems pretty obvious to me that her tub has some kind of leak and I have no liability.

What are my options here?  If I tell her no, I'm afraid she just won't fix the problem.  I've already spent $400 and will have to spend quite a lot more to fix the drywall, but I can't do that until she fixes the leak.  I tried to file an insurance claim but the repair is probably less than my deductible and they won't do anything about the original plumbing problem anyways.

Answer:
 You need to find out who is responsible for the plumbing leak; your neighbor or the condo board.  It is likely your neighbor's issue, but I don't know what type of condo you live in or what is written in the condo documents.

You need to find out where the leak is coming from.  Get photos from a licensed plumber.  Based on the fact that you only have water issues when your neighbor is having a bath tells me that the leak is in her unit and not part of the building's supply lines.

If your neighbor doesn't help solve the problem I believe the next step would be to sue them in small claims court.


Title: Got arrested for shoplifting in another state, court appearance in 2 days

Question:
I got arrested for shoplifting $209 worth of merchandise from a department store in New Jersey. I live in upstate NY. My court date is in 2 days, and I have no clue what to expect.

I'm 33. I have no record, never been arrested or in trouble for anything before. I'm a mess with anxiety as my court date approaches. I've already booked a hotel room and taken off from work to ensure I'm there on time (it's about a 6hr drive).

Do I need an attorney? Am I looking at jail time? Will I get drug tested? (I smoke weed for fibro pain and sleep, but not legal in NY) Will I get put on probation, and how does that work if I live in a different state than I'm being charged? What kind of fines should I anticipate?

The arresting office was super cool and gave me some advice, but I don't know how sound it is. She said to plead not guilty then ask the judge if I can discuss this with the prosecutor to work something out. Does that sound right? What other options do I have?

Thanks so much in advance. I've definitely learned a lesson the hard way and plan on doing whatever necessary to get this expunged in a couple years.

Answer:
 Your best bet is to hire a criminal defense attorney. If you can't get one before your court date simply plead not guilty and the judge will set another date in the future for the trial.

Negotiating with the prosecutor is the right thing to do, but you're better off having a lawyer do it than trying to strike a deal yourself.Answer #2: First rule of criminal law: Don't accept advice from anyone other than your lawyer. Get a lawyer like yesterday.


Title: Boyfriend isn't on daughter's birth certificate, is she still next-of-kin?

Question:
My boyfriend has congestive heart failure. While we're not yet in the position to be married, we both agree I should have say over his medical and potential after life decisions if he cannot make them. We were thinking about filing for power of attorney for me. He's currently somewhat estranged from his daughter and she's out of state.

However, he is not listed on his daughter's birth certificate. She has his last name, though. There has never been a formal legal custody agreement or court ordered child support. Neither her mother nor him claim earning/paying child support on their taxes.

Is power-of-attorney necessary for me to bypass his daughter being next-of-kin? Or, because he's not in the system as her father, would next-of-kin go down the line to his father/aunt/cousins first? I can work with his family, but his daughter won't even speak to me or him.

We're in Indiana, and his daughter lives in and was born in Ohio.

Answer:
 If you want to be able to make decisions for him then you need to go to a lawyer and get them to draw up paperwork for you, it is not something you want to try on your own.

If your bf plans to leave any assets to either you or the daughter he also needs to get a will made up.


Title: Emotional Support Animals in No Pets Apt

Question:
So I have been living in my apartment for almost two years now. About a year ago I adopted two cats, as I was having serious mental health issues. However, my apartment is a no pets unit. Once I adopted my animals I had them registered as support as I do qualify for disability due to my medical history. I also got a letter from my therapist saying that they were necessary for my well-being, and they truly are. I know there’s a lot of conversation on the legitimacy of emotional support animals as a lot of people use that registration as a means purely to break the rules, but mine have eased a lot of my depression/anxiety, as well as helped me cope through significant traumas.

I just received an email from my landlord saying he saw one of the cats and asked I let him know what my plan was. Obviously I can move, however I am a full time student and about as broke as they come, so I didn’t foresee this although I should have planned ahead. This is also the most affordable place I could find in my city that has recently had a population boom so rent is high.

My question is concerning the actual facts pertaining to emotional support pets, as I know the registration said it would allow them in apartments that were no pets. But I feel like my landlord is pretty set on there being no animals. I have had a great relationship with him so I know this may tamper with that, but my mental health is a serious concern if I have to remove the two in order to still live here.

Is there legitimacy in my pets being registered, and what rights do I have as someone with a disability who desperately needs a home?

Answer: If you got a letter from your doctor prior to getting the cat, why did you not go to your landlord and be upfront?


Title: Who gets the dogs if we breakup?

Question:
Hi, so I’m in a relationship rn and we got into a heated argument and idk how things are looking but our dogs came up.

I purchased her a 1 and a half year old dog for service dog work and she never really got around to training her. Then I bought her another puppy more recently so she can train at a younger age. ( he does good ) I’ve bought these dogs all their toys for the most part. A good bit of food and I bought these dogs using PayPal so with the breeders confirmation I can even show the billing for the dogs.
Since I wanted her to be good and safe with her balance issues, which she doesn’t have much of. I got her dogs so she could use as service animals.

I also bought her a gaming laptop
And a good bit of other high priced items.

The dogs are under her registration but I have the billing and such. Anything I could legally do?

Answer: You say it yourself, you bought them *for her*. These were gifts you gave her and are now hers.


Title: [MN] Health insurance refusing to pay for a surgery I was told would be "100% covered"

Question:
I'm using a throwaway as this involves medical information about myself.

I recently had my Fallopian tubes removed in order to become sterile.  Before I ever met with a doctor for a consultation, I called my health insurance company to find out how much they would cover.  I was told that "female sterilization is 100% covered."  This is what I expected due to the [Affordable Care Act](https://www.healthcare.gov/coverage/birth-control-benefits/) which mandates that all female sterilization procedures that are FDA approved and prescribed by a doctor are 100% covered.

After my surgery, my insurance is refusing to cover the entire cost.  According to them, because I had my Fallopian tubes *removed* instead of *ligated*, they don't have to cover the whole cost.  My interpretation of the ACA requirements would suggest that that is bullshit, so my question is, is this something worth getting a lawyer involved in, and if so, what kind of lawyer?  I'm going to try to bully the insurance company into paying like they're supposed to one more time, but I'm not paying $2500 for a procedure I was told would be covered.
Topic:
Insurance

Answer: You may want to crosspost this over in /r/insurance as there are quite a few people there with quite a bit of knowledge on ACA.


Title: Married But Separated & "Wife" continues to accumulate debt and announced she is going back to school.

Question: Buddy is currently married but separated (6 Months) No legal action taken yet.  "Wife" keeps racking up debt and just announced she is going back to school.  School she announced she is attending is a really expensive private school.  She will have to take out loans.  My question is two parted: How responsible is he for new debts she has accumulated (credit cards, car, etc) and what is his responsibility for her new student loans?  A bonus question is what is his responsibility for debt she racked up before they were married and also debts she racked up while married (Credit Cards & Student Loans prior to marriage).  Thanks and sorry for the long question.  Location is New York.

Answer:
 No quotes needed, she is his wife and is racking up debts that he may be partially responsible for! It gets really interesting when this goes on for a few years, she introduces him to their child (that he is legally responsible for), and hooks him for child support.

Premarital debt obligations hinge on things like length of marriage and how the debt was treated. Buddy needs to file divorce.Answer #2: Separated or not, she’s still his wife, not his “wife.” As her husband, he shares responsibilities for her debts and no side understanding with her means a damn thing as far as the lender is concerned.

As for child support, if he’s the father, it’s his child and he pays. And rightly so.

Here’s where it gets interesting. Since he’s legally her husband, not just her “husband,” he’s presumptively the father if wife gets pregnant. Which means he owes child support for another man’s child.

Yes, all these things can be contested but it requires time, money and good lawyers. Easier to just divorce her now and avoid problems in first place.

Your friend is hoping that when the roof falls in, the world will see things from his perspective and not apply the law as written. Bad way to go through life.

Protect your friend from himself. Encourage him to get divorced.


Title: Very Strange Traffic Stop

Question:
Hi, everyone!

Long time lurker, first time poster.

TL;DR: Clean driving record. Pulled over. Cop wants me to recognize him, acts like we’re long lost friends. Clearly gets his feelings hurt when I tell him I don’t remember him. Gives me a ticket. Thinking about going to court on the small chance the judge thinks this cop was a weirdo too.

I (29F) had a perfectly clean driving record until today. I just haven’t been able to stop thinking about this weird tragic stop today.

I was heading west on Road 1, heading toward the perpendicular Road 2 . I had my window down, and as I was breaking to stop at the red light I noticed a cop sitting in the parking lot at the corner of those 2 streets maybe 100 feet from the intersection. I was breaking and had been by the time I approached the front of his car.

As I was about to turn onto the Road 2 the cop suddenly shows up behind me. I didn’t think much of it, except for that he got there pretty quickly because I was almost at the intersection when I saw him, but he looked to be planning on pulling out anyways.

So I turned onto the Road 2, and he turned behind me and then turned on his lights. I was honestly confused at this point, but of course I pulled over and waited for him to approach the car. Before he even got to my window I hear him ask me a question, but I couldn’t make it out. At this point he was at my window, could tell I was confused, and repeated his question: “Do you remember me?”

I thought, “well shit,” knowing I can’t lie on command and knowing this is going to cost me a ticket and my perfect driving record. I proceeded to just say “I don’t think so.”

Cop: “You really don’t remember me?”
Me: “No, I’m sorry.”
Cop: getting obviously offended at my lack of remembrance at this point “Come on. You don’t recognize me at all. Really?”
Me: sat there kind of just shaking my head not wanting to seem annoyed even though I was pretty sure I was getting a ticket. Then finally, “Did we go to high school together?”
Cop: “Nope.”
Me: “We’ll then, where would I recognize you from?”
Cop: “Just, you know, out.”
Me: ....
Cop: (sarcastically) “I guess it’s a good thing when you don’t remember the ‘POHlice’. Anyways, I clocked you going 42 in a 30. Do you have your license and insurance?”

It took him a good 2-4 minutes to even tell me why he had pulled me over. Does this seem weird to anyone else. I honestly think he pulled me over because he thought he recognized me, got pissed off and offended when I didn’t remember him, then decided he would give me a ticket.

After he brought back my ticket I said, “You know, I’ve never gotten a ticket before. You’re the first person to ever write one for me.” To which he bragged, “Yeah... I’ve been the one to give 80 year olds their first ticket.”

I didn’t even respond at that point as he was clearly needing to assert his dominance.

I don’t want to be an asshole that shows up and tries to fight this in traffic court, but the whole situation just really weirded me out. I’m also not completely opposing the idea that I was speeding, but I also think it’s unlikely that I was since he was sitting so incredibly close to the intersection and I was already breaking to come to a stop.

Is this worth going to court over, or should I just pay the ticket and be done.

Answer: All that will matter in court is the evidence of speeding.  That's it.  If you start talking about the weird cop, the judge will tune you out.Answer #2: You're not getting out of the ticket just because you thought the cop was strange. You'll have to provide some evidence that you were not speeding.


Title: [Ca] I bought a gram of ephedrine recently on the internet and now Im being monitored by the dea.

Question:
So the story started when I was looking into legal ways to get high after my adderall script ran out. I loved adderall (basically amphetamine)  but my doctor took me off it for high blood pressure.

Anyway, I decided to look into buying research chemicals and I found a body building website that sold it in bulk. However, now that I have bought it, I have noticed mutiple suspicious things:

* my mail hasn't been coming in the same quantities it did before my ephedrine purchase
* my internet provider has been unusually slow
* 'cable guys' working on breaker boxes on my block close to my house (this hasn't happened before now)

I figured it was paranoia, but I looked up ephedrine on the internet and it appears that the dea limits that quantity someone can buy in a month so they don't produce meth. believe I violated the limit.

Am I screwed? I have cleaned my house of illegal objects in preparation for any raids. Can I be arrested for just having ephedrine? Is it legal to use it recreationally.

I am looking into lawyer consultations but I want second opnions

Answer:
 >I am looking into lawyer consultations but I want second opnions

My opinion is that your substance abuse is making you paranoid. Seek professional help to treat your stimulant dependence.Answer #2: Are you trying to kill yourself?  Ephedrine is pretty much incompatible with high blood pressure, and your doctor was 100% right in taking you off adderal if you have high blood pressure.  Don't be an idiot.

As to the legality, it's fairly unlikely that they'll go after a small time user, but yes buying a significant volume is illegal.  You're restricted to a few grams every 30 days federally (and also by California law.)Answer #3: >I figured it was paranoia

You figured correctlyAnswer #4: Things you should not do whilst in the possession of ephedrine in California:

* Google how to manufacture meth

* Hang out with people who are involved in the drug trade

* Possess tools or equipment used in the manufacture of meth

* Have conversations with anyone regarding the sale or manufacture of meth

In California, lucky for you, there are no limits to how much ephedrine you can possess before it prima facie meets the burden of showing intent.

That means you can have ephedrine but by god you must make sure no one can prove you have intent to manufacture meth with it.


Title: Can HIPAA Rights Be Signed Away?

Question:
Hi there, thank you for taking the time to read this post. First, a bit of background...
I was an accepted medical student planning on attending school starting this fall. That was until I was referred by my school to my state's Physicians Health Program (PHP) due to my self-reporting (to the school) of an arrest that I had in the last year which involved alcohol. This arrest was for violation charges, that were dismissed following my compliance with a pretrial release program.
The way that PHP works is they handle any medical student or doctor with legal problems involving alcohol and ensure you comply with their regulations or treatment plan in order for you to be in good standing for licensing. After my initial contact and explanation of my situation to the PHP they recommended me to have a multiple-day, inpatient substance abuse evaluation done to determine what treatment I needed. The PHP only allows you to be evaluated by their pre-selected short list of 'trusted' evaluation and treatment facilities. You cannot see any provider that is not PHP-approved (there are not many).
The problem is this: You pay a couple thousand to get an evaluation done for PHP at one of these treatment facilities, and then you MUST comply with the evaluation recommendation or else you are non-compliant with the terms of PHP treatment/monitoring. So these facilities have a direct financial gain by evaluating an individual and recommending in/outpatient treatment or monitoring which they \*coincidentally\* just happen to provide!

I paid $3,000 for my evaluation done by company/provider which was on my list of facilities who claimed they did not offer treatment, only the evaluations. I signed a contract/RoI there which released my medical information to be released from the evaluators to the PHP. After my evaluation I decided that I would rather hear what the report said and my treatment plan was before they released it to the PHP because I did not want to risk having a PHP non-compliance blackmark on my record. I revoked my authorization to PHP until I could see a copy of my report myself and then would decide to re-authorize or not. When I did this, I was told that I had also signed away my right to see the report that I paid for, a medical record, and that only the referring body (PHP) would see this. In addition to this, the provider also told me they had not written the report yet or collected necessary collateral information to write the report and would no longer be doing any of that unless I signed the authorization again.

(TLDR) ***The short question is this*****: Can I sign away my HIPAA protected rights to see my own medical records which I, as the patient, paid for? And on top of this, I paid the provider the $3,000 to complete an evaluation and write a report which they stated they are no longer going to complete, so have they violated their end of the contract in**
**performing the task for which they were paid? I've included a redacted scan of the contract/RoI that I signed and then revoked.**
[**https://imgur.com/a/ABSkzIh**](https://imgur.com/a/ABSkzIh)

Any help is really appreciated, and I'm happy to clarify anything needed.

Answer: I've signed HIPAA waivers before (for govt med clearance) so I imagine it's possible as a general rule


Title: So my neighboor's gate is couple feet into my property.

Question:
My property line is about 3.5 feet beyond the edge of the house. As you can see [from this picture,](https://imgur.com/Y2F8we8) my neighboor's [gate](https://imgur.com/kgjtFZQ) is about half way into my property. There is also another one on the opposite side that infringes upon my property. There is no fence in the immediate vicinity, it is just that the gates are about half way into my property.

&#x200B;

The gates were already there when I bought I the house. I never thought much about it until I read something about adverse possession.

&#x200B;

Should I be concerned? This is in Illinois btw.

Answer: Your houses are honestly too close together for it to matter all that much. In order to adversely possess your property, your neighbor would have to go to court over it. Unless you make it an issue, I doubt they're going to do that. I assume you prefer that people can't just freely come and go in between that narrow space between your houses right, as in you'd prefer to keep the gates up?


Title: AZ: Speed camera caught me avoiding an accident

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Traffic and Parking

Answer:
 Likely the only thing you can do is show up for the ticket hearing and explain your side of the story. They might decide to give you a reduced fine or drop it, or they might make you pay in full.

The counterargument to you speeding up to avoid the truck is that you could have either slowed down to let him get in front, or honked your horn to alert him that you were there.

Knowing that the camera is there because you drive this road every day isn't a valid defense.


Title: Need advice asap

Question: Sorry in advance for run on sentences not a good typer. So my son is being bullied at school by a gym teacher and the Dean and principal. For the last three days the gym teacher has been calling my son pathetic and telling him he his going to be a loser. So my son finally spoke up and told the gym teacher that he was pathetic. ( take in the fact that my son is a senior in high school and well fit and the gym teacher is very overweight) so the teacher brought him down to the deans office and explained what happened and the Dean told my son he is pathetic. So my son left the dean's office and went to the principles office where he was told again by the principal that he was pathetic. So my son told all three of them he doesn't need to here this shit and stormed out. The principal called my wife and explained what happened and admitted they all said that. And now they want to punish my son for swearing at them what action can we take. And yes we have emailed the principal prior to this and he admitted that he thought there was no concern to answer back. I'm in Illinois northwest suburbs

Answer: How long have you been married? I ask because your post history is in gonewild or trying to meet random women for sex. Sad, sad family.


Title: Boss found out through customer that I have a medical marijuana card. (Oklahoma)

Question:
One of our clients has been trying to get me to go to work with their company. I had trouble coming up with a reason for not wanting to (big client and I didn't want to piss them off) and I let it slip that because I had a medical card, I probably couldn't get a job with them anyways. Well, for whatever reason, this client told my boss about me having a card. My boss told me the next day that we will be having a sit down next Wednesday about what happened. This could potentially involve my district manager, but I'm unsure.

How do I prepare? Our company has never drug tested me and I've been here for 7 years. I have never shown up to work high and I only do thc a few times a month for anxiety. I have never been written up and have never had a workplace accident of any kind. As far as I know, I am well liked in the company.
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 Oklahoma currently does not have a law protecting MMJ cardholders from adverse employment actions due to status as a cardholder. Your potential employer had no duty to keep the disclosure confidential either; telling your boss was legal.

You can be fired for this reason, but we have no way of knowing what your employer will do. The best way you can prepare is to think about how to make a case for the value you bring as an employee, and record of not allowing things you do outside of work to impact your performance.

However, if you are terminated, you will qualify for unemployment benefits while you look for new employment.


Title: Is there anything I can do legally about someone giving me fake checks and having me withdraw the money for them, only to have the checks bounce?

Question: So basically, this guy (Sam), who I've known only for a couple months, convinces me (I'm pretty naive about checks, and he seemed honest) that this other man (Wayne) owed him hundreds of dollars, and that Wayne agreed to pay him with checks. Well, he said he doesnt have his own bank account, so he asked if we could use mine to withdraw the funds. I, being naive about checks since I've never really used them (I'm 20) agreed, since he said he'd give me 20 bucks for it. Well, he withdrew as much as it would let him out of a total of around 700 dollars. I figured since it let us take money out it was legit. Well, a few days later, I check my bank account, and the checks had not gone through, leaving me with a negative balance of a little over 700 dollars on my bank account. I called chase bank, and they said the checks had evidence of identity theft, and that they were shutting down my account. It is currently the day after that, and I'm going to try to get ahold of Sam and Wayne after work. I know where he lives and I have his phone number. Any advice?

Answer:
 You could sue him. This is a classic scam and you fell for it. Anybody who doesn't have a checking account either doesn't want one or has been blacklisted by the banks.Answer #2: file a police report and sue whoever gave you the bad check in small claims court

you're not a bank, so next time someone asks you to act like a bank, tell them you're not a bank.

$700 is a relatively cheap lessonAnswer #3: Also for your future information, if someone doesn't have a bank account and they have a check that needs cashed they can take it to the bank that the check was written on to cash it.


Title: Utilities got shut off from non payment from landlord.

Question:
Gas, hot water, and electricity have all been disconnected. All of which is included in the lease.
The landlord claims the bill is too high and they can’t afford to cover it and have suggested finding somewhere else to stay.
What would be the best steps to take? This is in Ontario, Canada.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 What outcomes do you want? Ontario gives you a lot of options on this. Assuming you fall under the Residential Tenancies Act, there are processes for:

* terminating your tenancy immediately due to your landlord's unwillingness to provide habitable premises,
* paying the outstanding bills yourself and recovering them through a rent abatement,
* having the Board order your landlord to remedy the problem,

and probably other possible solutions. Having a specific goal in mind will help structure the advice.

Do not deduct from rent without either your landlord's written permission or an order from the Landlord and Tenant Board.

Beyond that, have you tried talking to the various utility providers to explain that you are a tenant and that you need vital utilities? I've been through this with Toronto Hydro, and they, at least, had a process in place for tenants. I had to fax (what year is this) them a copy of my lease, but they kept the power on for me.


Title: I got put in jail for 3 days for using a fake $10 at taco bells

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 >Cashier says " i can call the cops" I'm like " yes sure go ahead

Well that backfired.

You need to get a lawyer. If you can't afford one then request a public defender.Answer #2: If you can't afford a lawyer, apply for a public defender.


Title: Can they kick us out?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: If you don't want any slip-ups, don't allow your fiance to live on the premises, and don't bring the dog onto the premises if neither are permitted to be there.  Pretty simple.  Answer #2: What does your lease say about extra "roommates" and animals?


Title: Appropriate Thank You Gift

Question:
Good morning, all.  A lawyer recently helped me without charge with some legal work, as we've worked together in the past.  I'd like to thank him with a small token, to acknowledge that I appreciate him taking time out of his day to help me, even though it was some minor work.

What are some small gifts or tokens (under about $50 - $100 or so) that would be appropriate to say 'thank you'.  What would you like to receive if you were in that position?

Answer:
 Gift certificate to a restaurant, couple bottles of liquor/wine, donation to his favorite charity.  Quite frankly, a really nicely worded thank you letter showing your appreciation goes a really long way also.Answer #2: Post a positive review for the attorney on Yelp, Avvo, Google, etc. It will be worth far more to him and be greatly appreciated.Answer #3: Bourbon

-/u/ZapopaAnswer #4: IANAL, but I just wanted to say that this post made me happy! In a sub that is by nature full of problems and unhappiness, it's nice to see a question like this. So, thank you for being so considerate :D I'm sure that whatever you choose to do will brighten your lawyer's day. Answer #5: A photo of zapopa. Signed by zapopa. Delivered by sagittaria.Answer #6: I have a box of the handwritten thank you notes I've received. I really appreciate them.  Also, consider posting on Avvo, etc.  Remember not to waive your own attorney-client privilege when doing so, however.   As to the monetary gift---a gift card to a nice restaurant is always great.  Or a donation to charity.  Or, if you know what the lawyer drinks, something like that. Answer #7: Alcohol.


Title: [META] Didn't we say no to this?

Question:
http://imgur.com/lSGObm4

http://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/342nd2/meta_can_we_get_the_arrows_changed_to_upgavels/

When was the change made?

Answer:
 This is a reverse democracy. Whatever everyone wants, we do the opposite of. Answer #2: Can we get a down-subpoena? Then people can get served.

Edit: Dammit, I'm getting served.

Edit: Oh, gaveling back up-- hear, hear.Answer #3: It looks like within the past few minutes.  I thought we said no too.  Turning off the sub's style or theme loses the stars..

Have an up-gavel for posting this.Answer #4: Not gonna lie, I was against it at first, but seeing it now I'm coming around to it.  Answer #5: Seriously? This was overwhelmingly shot down.Answer #6: I kinda like it, although I'm not sure the little line is necessary.

Is the down vote going to be changed, too?Answer #7: The downvote icon should be handcuffs or jail bars.


Title: Planning on creating a "lottery"-like cryptocurrency website, with some key changes. Will this still be considered a lottery?

Question:
Hello everyone! First time posting around here.

I am a cryptocurrency (bitcoin, ethereum, etc.) enthusiast from Brazil, thinking of starting my own cryptocurrency "lottery" online. So my fellow crypto-loving lawyers would be of great help here! The reason for the use of quotes is due to some major changes I am planning on adding to the website:

- You don't have to pay to play. Anyone gets to retrieve one ticket number per day.
- The prize pool will be whatever people are willing to contribute, and the lucky winner gets 95% of the share, while 5% goes to the website's address.
- A provably fair system will be implemented: users will be aware at all times that the money they are sending is being distributed as expected. For this reason, all winning addresses will be made public.

So why contribute to the prize pool at all? There will definitely be some incentives. Everyone gets one free ticket, but sending the bitcoin equivalent of $1 to the prize pool allows the user to get more tickets. So by sending $5, you receive 5 ticket numbers plus the free one everyone gets. To keep things relatively fair, there will be a limit as to how many tickets each user can acquire. The amount of bitcoins to donate is unlimited, though.

So my big question is: does this end up being qualified as an actual lottery? Could this potentially cause legal troubles? I am a young guy trying to help others and myself, obviously (I plan on taking 5% of the prize pool after all), and the last thing I want is to be caught up in some criminal scheme.

This idea is primarily based on the /r/MillionaireMakers subreddit. Go check it out for further reference.

Thank you all!

EDIT: Found this on the MillionaireMakers subreddit, and thought it might be useful for this thread:

"Why is this not a lottery?

There is no money pool. A "winner" is chosen at random, but all donations are made directly to the "winner". Donations are voluntary and not required for entry into the drawing."

Answer: Nobody here can really comment on whether or not this is legal.


Title: My boss just asked me to write a book for him.

Question:
Throwaway for anonymity.

I work in a large city in Texas as a planner and writer, straight out of college. In the hiring process, my now-boss mentioned acting as a writer in addition to my planning duties, but said we'd discuss once I was brought on. Day 1, he introduces me as the 'in-house writer' meaning I have blogging duties as well as my planning. Writing is NOT included in my contract.

Fast forward a couple weeks and he asks me to write a book for him. As a ghost writer. No mention of my name inclusion, no mention of payment, or how I'll profit after writing this book for said boss once it begins selling. This is also in addition to my regular 40+ hour workweek. It's been six months and I have not touched the book because I feel like there needs to be some sort of contract or agreement in place, but my boss has begun pushing the idea because he wants it ready to publish by October.

I have a meeting with him next week and plan to bring this up... Do I need to get something in writing? Is it wrong to refuse to write this book without a proper contract, not to mention the fact that writing a book is a full-time job? Any advice will help. Thank you!

EDIT: Thank you all for the responses! Been busy at work (haha) so I'm getting back to everyone now. Seriously thank you all for your help thus far. To answer a common question, my boss is the CEO of the company. He opened it up himself and it's his. The book is meant to be from his perspective and is a memoir based on his life and experiences in our industry.

Answer:
 Your boss is free to request you to perform work. If you do not wish to perform the work absent certain reserved rights, you can negotiate. They are free to fire you for refusing, but they must pay you for whatever time you've worked (if you're hourly).Answer #2: If you're an employee, you do what your boss tells you.  If you're a contractor, you do what the contract tells you.  If you're not comfortable doing what your boss assigns you, tell him you won't author a book for him and find another job, or start negotiating about how you'll be compensated for the book.

Ghost-writing is not a very lucrative career.

A 10-month turn around type from start to finish for a book is absurd unless your boss has a history of being a fantastic editor and already has publishing contacts.Answer #3: You absolutely need a contract for the book. Here's one ghostwriter's review of what she thinks is necessary in a ghostwriting contract:

http://www.aboutfreelancewriting.com/2009/05/11/ghostwriting-elements-of-my-contracts-or-letters-of-agreement/


Title: [New Jersey] At what point in the divorce process am I legally able to get remarried to someone else?

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Custody Divorce and Family

Answer: You need a divorce attorney. If you are asking this you really need someone to represent you. You can't get married to someone new while you are married to someone else. You can get married after your divorce is finalized. Get a lawyer. And a counselor. Now.Answer #2: No. You only re-marry once the divorce is finalized and the final order is signed. Otherwise you're technically a bigamist, and the 2nd marriage is void. Good news though, there's no mandatory waiting period before you can apply for the new license once you have the final order, and the processing time only takes about 72hrs.


Title:
 My sister had a child with an incestuous sex
offender and may be unable to take care of it, how
do we keep the child away from him?

Question:
First, a little bit of my sisters history (we'll call her Jane).

Jane is in her 20's and has always been quite desperate for attention. She has bounced around from loser to loser, lowering her standards each time usually meeting these men through online dating sites. I've known since we were young that she had some learning disabilities (dyslexia and ADD) but didn't find out until recently that she is just barely above the threshold for mental retardation with an IQ of 73. I also recently found out (although I did kind of know already I suppose) that she has some severe personality disorders. We've learned to deal with her for the most part but things are getting out of hand.

Now for some of the boyfriends history, or at least what little I know(we'll call him John).

John is in his late 20's and just talking to him it is obvious that his cognitive function is below average although I really don't have any information about that. He is a convicted sex offender still on probation (statutory rape/carnal knowledge of a minor depending on the state you live in) and is also married to another woman. For the past year and a half that is all my family really knew about him until about a month ago. After a fairly dramatic event my mother looked in to his past some more and found out that he is married to his half sister (they share a biological mother) and it is the same girl he was convicted of statutory rape with. As if all of that isn't enough, he lives in a house with five other adults the majority of them with criminal records, an alcoholic (John's father) and another man that is a regular practitioner of domestic abuse. To top it all off John's brother is a violent sexual offender currently in prison but soon the be release and John has expressed interest in having contact with his brother after his released and openly admits that he believes he is innocent.

Now, the situation we have found ourselves in is getting rather messy.

Jane has recently had a baby with John (we'll call the baby Jenny). Jenny is 6 weeks old, perfectly healthy and until a few days ago was being taken care of almost exclusively by my mother and I. Jane has shown a complete inability to take care of Jenny by herself. Jane has however discovered that the best way to hurt us/get her way is to take Jenny and go to John's house nearly 3 hours away. This has been causing quite a bit of stress in our house because we know just how serious the situation is. Jane on the other hand does not have the ability to comprehend these situations.

My parents could at any time take guardianship of Jane (according to a lawyer) based on her previous mental evaluation. The problem is keeping the child safe. The lawyer doesn't specialize in these kinds of cases but he has told us that if my parents take guardianship over Jane, John could potentially take custody of Jenny. My question is, how do we stop this if my parents do decide to go through with it? There has to be a way to keep this child safe.

Answer: You need to go speak to an attorney specializing in family law TOMORROW. If this child is at John's house right now, you need to call child protective services in your jurisdiction tomorrow morning. That's really all anyone here can tell you because this is a pretty complicated case. Honestly, you might go ahead and talk to someone at child protective services regardless of whether the child is at John's house. There's not only there to take kids from abusive situations. They're there for this sort of thing too. They can, and will, point you in the right direction.


Title: Ammonia at Work

Answer:
 OP, I think you have anxiety. And I'm not saying that condescendingly. I have a severe anxiety disorder and you sound like me. Instead of complaining to your job, go to counseling.Answer #2: So, windex is bothering you? Find a new job. Ask your boss to reschedule the cleaning service.

Windex is an all surfaces cleaner.


Title: Lease just ended and landlady wants me to sign a new one at a higher rate. According to the first one, I should be able to keep paying the old rate month to month.

Question:
Here is my email to her:
"We received a notice today to renew our lease. The new rental rate listed is $850, however our rate now is $800. I just want to confirm that we do not in fact need to re-sign, as in the original lease that we signed, it says "in the event Lessee has not entered into a new lease agreement with Lessor, this lease shall continue as a month to month lease and all provisions of this lease shall remain in full force and effect."

We are enjoying our stay here but we were not ready to commit to another year, and this new rate is higher than our current one, in spite of the new agreement saying "the amount may not be offered this low again"... so I don't see any reason why we would.

Am I correct in assuming there is nothing that we need to do, and that our current rate of $800 will go unchanged?"

And her response :

"No, I’m sorry that is not the way it works. When you come to the end of a lease term you have a few things you can do.

1. Renew your lease at the rate that is being offered

2.  Give a 30 day notice that you are not going to stay where you are and that you will be moving at the end of the 30 days

3. You can go to a month to month lease which is the full market rate for the apartment you are living in + the month to month fee which is $100

Now, the normal rental rate for the style of apartment you are in rents for $1040. You and your roommates came in on a special, which was only for the term of the first 1 year lease. You are still getting a great deal for your home rent wise, because anyone that rents new will be paying the $1040 rental rate. If you and your roommates would like to keep the $190 a month savings and sign a short term lease I can offer you a 6 month lease for the same rental rate, but that is as short of a lease as I can go without you all going month to month and paying $1140. Would you all like to sign a 6 month lease or would you like to sign the lease you have and lock that savings in now or do you all want to go month to month.

Options:
=Sign lease as is and save $190 a month ($2,280 over the year lease)
=Sign a 6a month lease at the same great rental rate and your lease and rental rate will end in September.
=Go month to month and your rental rate will be $1,140 each month
=Give a 30 day notice that you all will be leaving at the end of your lease term

Please let me know asap on what you all would like to do.   "

That line that I quoted seems to make it pretty clear that I can continue paying the same rate, as the price seems to be a "provision" of the current lease. What can I do about this, if anything?

Answer:
 Nothing. She's right, if you want to stay you have to pay more.

Once you are on a month-to-month lease anything can change with 30 days notice. They could raise your rent. They could ask you to leave. You could tell them that you're leaving, and have no breaking-the-lease penalty as long as you gave the 30 days notice. (Note: I am assuming 30 days as that's what said in the email and it's pretty standard, an individual lease could state a different time period so long as it was permitted by law.)

So suppose your lease is up at the end of the month. That means they can raise your rent for April if you want to stay. If you decide to go month-to-month, heck, they could raise it AGAIN in May, as long as they gave you the 30 day notice. If you sign a 6- or 12-month lease, you are locked into that rate for the according length of time, but there is no implied promise to extend it afterward at the same rate.Answer #2: You have 30 days at your current rent. You've been given the option of either accepting the higher month-to-month rent, signing a lease with a smaller rent increase, or moving out. Answer #3: Your landlord is correct and you are wrong.


Title: (New Mexico) Father passed away and I need some lease advice.

Question: Hello, I'm 22 and I lived with my father and he just passed away a few days ago and He was on a HUD lease as head of household. we were supposed to re-certify our lease next month.. with him being dead I cant afford to live here without HUD. IS there anyway I can re-certify the lease as the new Head of Household and Keep HUD?

Answer:
 Sorry for your loss. You may receive other advice on here that will be helpful, but it's best if you just contact a local HUD counseling agency. They can give you all the advice/info you'll need.

http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/states/new_mexico/renting


Title: Dog stolen and then returned, lady claiming she found dog and we just didn't answer the phone when she called the tag?

Question:
My friend shares custody of her two teacup yorkies with her ex. They both are super friendly with each other and what not, no issues there. He lives in Washington and she lives in California. They do a 4 month on and off thing. They've been doing it since they were puppies and they are 8 now.

The guy had them and took them fishing like he always does. They were right by him and he continually was looking at them. The dog in question actually was sleeping just feet from him.

Then he caught a fish and said he looked away for what he said is 3 minutes at the most. He has no reason to lie, super honest nice guy. He said he walked probably a yard away too. We trust the dogs safety with him 100%.

When he looked back, the smallest and cutest dog was gone. He ran around for hours, no luck. He camped in that exact spot when it got dark over night unplanned. In the morning he called and told my friend.

Looked for a week for no luck, called people, the whole shebang. Nothing.

After a week he gets a call from a guy asking if he lost his dog! Yay! When he learns they had the dog for a week he asked the guy why he just now received the call.

So get this, the guy said his girlfriend found the dog  and said she had been calling but that the line was dead. He had a feeling she was lying about it so he snuck the collar to work and called it himself. He said he was tired of the dog because it bites their kids and pees everywhere...because guess what, that dog hates kids and pees when it's scared.

So ex goes to pick up dog and when he gets there the dog is wearing a dress, has a new collar with their address and number (same name though) and has a new bed and bowls!

He took the dog, all is fine. The woman found him on Facebook and tried friending him though, which he declined.

We doubt there is anything that can be done here legally right? She said she called, unless we get their call log there is no proof right? We just have to be angry at this woman and do nothing?

Thanks

Answer: Ask yourself this question, what are your damages?  Granted it is insane for a person to think a teacup Yorkie made it more then 100 yards away from the person it belongs to but the fact is you have the dog and it's not hurt so what exactly are you looking for here?


Title: We bought a house in Tampa, FL and there is a serious bee infestation that the seller knew about and did not disclose. Is there any action we can take to get it resolved?

Question:
As the title says, we bought a house in Tampa last year in the beginning of July.

We moved in mid-August, and up to that point, had not been here during the day for any extended period of time where it wasn't raining. After moving in, we learned that we have a bee hive somewhere in the wall in the front of the house. When it's warm and sunny they swarm.

We talked to our new neighbors, and apparently they had been complaining to the previous home owner for months about handling the problem. The issue was so severe, that our neighbor directly to the left of us (we're in town houses) stopped using her front door to get into her home for fear of getting stung.

We called in a company that does bee removals and had them assess the damage. Because of where the hive is, they said they would have to demo our walls to remove it, and then do the repairs.

Unfortunately, having just purchased a house and all of the expenses that go with it, we were unable to go that route due to the expense and had to band-aid the problem by having them exterminated.

Now, it's warming up and they are swarming again. We've complained about this in our circle since learning of the problem, and a few people told us that this issue should have been noted in the disclosure form from the seller when we were purchasing the house. We don't even know where to begin with finding out if there is any recourse for this.

So, my question for Reddit: Is there recourse for us with the seller due to the fact that he didn't disclose this issue during purchase?

We don't want much. We want to be able to pay for the removal and repairs to our home because of these bees.

Thanks for any insight you all can provide.

edit: Thanks for all of the helpful information! We're looking at all of the links you guys shared and making a decision on the next step from there. We're so pleased that we can ask questions like this, and have so much feedback from good Samaritan strangers! :)

Answer:
 What did your inspector have to say about this? They should have disclosed if as you say it was bad enough to make the front door unusable, but you also have a responsibility to thoroughly inspect a house before purchasing it. This is a pretty interesting case. I expect your agents won't give a shit since they've already gotten paid and moved on, but the first thing to do would be get in touch with him or her and consult with an attorney to see what your options are. Answer #2: There are a few ways you could try to fight the contract. It seems like the one you're asking about is fraudulent concealment.

The rule is if the seller conceals or suppresses a material fact which he is in good faith bound to disclose then his silence is fraudulent and the contract is invalid. You'd more or less need to prove three things: 1) The bee infestation was material to the transaction, 2) the seller knew of the bee infestation and purposely failed to disclose it, 3) the bee infestation was not something you would have come across without the seller's disclosure, and 4) the seller concealed the infestation with the purpose of misleading you into buying the house. You can also look into negligent/fraudulent misrepresentation, which you can read a little more about [here](http://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/article/negligent-misrepresentation.html). Also, [here](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0000-0099/0095/0095.html) are the FL statutes governing limitations on real property actions.


Title: [USA NY] Auto Accident Legal Advice - Airbags Didn't Deploy

Question:
I involved in a roll over accident where another car hit me and ran me off the road (and of course didn't stop). My 2014 Ram 1500 rolled over and non of the airbags deployed. Luckily I had my seatbelt on since we were traveling at highway speeds.

But I had my window down and actually partially got thrown from the truck, I'm a big guy at 6'7. I had light lacerations to my face which thankfully have healed up pretty good without stitches but I have some serious damage to the muscles and nerve in my arm from where my shoulder impacted the ground with no airbag to protect it.

I called Chrysler after the accident to inquire why the airbags didn't deploy, I was quickly asked for the accident information and where the truck was currently so they could send someone to inspect it.

A week after I made that phone call I get a lovely recall notice from them saying pretty much that the airbags might not deploy in a roll over accident.

I am a small business owner and I've been unable to work since my jobs require me to lift my hands over my head and work on a ladder.

What should I do? Would a lawyer be able to get me anything from Chrysler? I don't want 20 million dollars but this is a truck I just brought from them a few months ago CPO

Answer: You would be better off claiming against your uninsured driver coverage.


Title: Employer TeamViewer License - NJ, USA

Question:
Having an issue with my employer at the moment.

We do a lot of remote assistance (talking a few hundred remote calls a month) via Teamviewer. We are using the Free version (which is NOT for commercial use) and the boss refuses to purchase us a license.

I have tried explaining that we are making a profit off it, and we need to purchase the software, but he says that nothing will happen and that I had better just do my job and shut up, or I am going to get myself fired.

The license is a pittance compared to the amount the company is making off it, and I can't work like this anymore. I feel unethical, and have outright refused - but as I said, my boss just threatens to fire me if I bring it up.

He just says , "load another Virtual Machine and the license will refresh".

Is there anything I can do in this regard (that doesn't lead to me being jobless)?

Answer:
 If TeamViewer is a part of the Business Software Alliance, then the BSA offers a [bounty for reporting piracy](https://reporting.bsa.org/r/report/usa/rewardsconditions.aspx) where you get a percentage of whatever fees they collect.

That might help offset your losses after you get fired for reporting it; at least until you find a new job. But if the license in question really is such a low dollar amount, then your reward would be low too. The bounty is really best for huge widespread unlicensed installations of Windows, Adobe, or CAD software.


Title: Divorce Finalized on January 13th, Believe I was screwed(INDIANA)

Question:
Exhusband and I have 3 children all under the age of 8.  I left him back in May for a month and a half and then tried to work it out with him, he was abusive and we finally separated in July.  He moved over an hour away out of state.  We decided we would do things fairly and allow the court to determine child support/etc and we would split everything 50/50.

He skipped all court hearings, besides the final one where he brought a lawyer.  We spent about an hour in a room with a new divorce decree the lawyer had brought up.  He said he was on both our sides and this was fair and if I didn't sign it this would be drug on for 5+ years.  He said even split and made me agree to $800 a month in child support because he claimed the calculator Indiana uses would give me less.  In return, My ex husband got to claim 2 of the children every other year, and 1 child every other year on the taxes.  He also said, WE MUST FILE JOINTLY this year.  He said we had to, and what do I know about law.  I agreed - IF ONLY I GET ALL THE TAX RETURN, they said ok.
They also put in the papers that it's my obligation to drive and drop the kids off 45 minutes away to visit their dad.  I think since he moved away he should come get them.  With this being said, they also said he gets them every weekend which is fine - but he doesn't show up every weekend.  He shows up EVERY other weekend, sometimes.  Currently in the past 6 months he's seen them for less than 25 nights.

I made $17000 this year part time, taking care of the children.  My ex husband in 2015 made $170,000.  2016 he made $95,000(he didn't work 4months)

He's required to pay me $800 a month for our THREE children.  The apartment is in both our names and he won't help pay for it, I lost my van because I couldn't pay for it.  I'm bringing home not enough to support 4 people, including his $800.  Child support calculator shows him paying me much more.

My questions are :

What happens if I don't file jointly with him since we were separated most of 2016?
~Filing alone, I get EIC credit and will be receiving about $10,000 back.  He claimed 4 dependents and didn't pay state tax.  Filing jointly we owe $1,000 in state tax and get back only $2500.
How do I go about claiming my children every year on taxes?
~He won't have them for half the year ever.  He doesn't take the responsibility to see them.  He has 3 other kids with other women, that he didn't see half the year, so I don't expect him to change.
How do I make him come get the kids when he decides he wants them?
~Driving and dropping them off shouldn't be on me.  I shouldn't have to pick them up and worry about being late for work.
He agreed to split everything evenly and now I have about $150,000 in debt.  They changed the everything to the DEBT.  I got ZERO savings and ZERO 401k from this.  He closed our bank account down.  He gave me all his tax info, he pulled 15k from 401k last year for whatever reason when we split up and now has about 10k in there.  He left me with NO money.
They said that it was impossible to make him pay back child support.  Like..we have been separated for 7 months this last year and I filed for child support and I filed for divorce and he doesn't have to pay for the 7 months I was high and dry and asking for help.

Main Question though is, is it true I can file taxes just for myself and go against the decree because the IRS is a federal law which supersedes the state law of a divorce decree?  If I do this, what can happen to me?

Answer:
 NAL

You never take legal advice from opposing counsel. You need the services of your own family law attorney to help you redress the imbalance you unwittingly agreed to.

See if you qualify for [free, low cost or sliding scale legal help](http://www.in.gov/judiciary/selfservice/2332.htm) if necessary or call your [State Bar Agency](http://www.inbar.org/?page=local_bars) for a referral


Title: Bought Tickets to Disney on Ice for Nieces and way overspent. Can I get my money back?

Question: For Christmas I wanted to get my nieces tickets to Disney on Ice in February in PA.  I live in Virginia.  I googled the tickets clicked on the link and bought them.  I didn't realize the website is a third party seller and I overpaid by a lot.  The website's I order them from has a no return, sales are final.  Does the cooling off law apply to ticket sales? can I get my money back?

Answer:
 No. You paid for the tickets at an agreed price. Answer #2: You said it yourself. All sales final.

So no, nothing you can do about it this time. Might a suggest a class on internet use or research into common internet mistakes?


Title: (Florida) Unwed mother's right to relocate when father is in picture but no custody agreement signed.

Question: Are there any limitations or repercussions for a single mother (never married to the father) to move to a different county (around 60ish miles away as the crow flies) with her child? The father IS in the picture and they share agreed upon (but never legally documented) custody (pretty evenly split). The father IS on the birth certificate. The father does NOT pay any child support.

Answer: If there's no court-mandated custody agreement, then either one of you can move with the child.  But keep in mind that the father has the right to petition for custody if you do.  If he does, the parent moving away without consulting the other typically doesn't look so hot in front of a judge.


Title: Tenant notice to leave at end of lease -- NYC

Question:
Hey all. I'm currently living in an apartment in NYC and my lease ends on January 31st of this year. After a week of trying to get in touch with my landlord to talk about renewal, he finally got back to me yesterday and is raising the rent 10%. Do I have a legal requirement to give him any number of days notice that I will not be renewing the lease? He essentially said I had to give him 30 days written notice but there is absolutely nothing in my lease about that. NYC apartment flip quickly so I'm confident I can find a new place by the end of the month. I just want to make sure I don't legally owe him anything and that he can't fuck with my security deposit.

Thanks!
Topic:
Real Estate law

Answer: Your landlord's obligation to give notice of rent increases is at least as long as your obligation to give notice to vacate. You might have to stay an extra month (because yes you would have to give 30 days at least), but it would be at your current rate.


Title: I am pregnant and my grad school did not accommodate me given my condition. Do I have a case?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Title IX offers a lot of protections for pregnant students, if this school accepts federal funds.

That said, "I'm a few months pregnant and school is hard/stressful" is hardly going to fall under reasonable accommodations.


Title: Suspected debt collector making frequent home visits. I don't know my rights or how to make him go away.

Question:
(Oregon)

I have some credit card debt that was charged off a couple years ago when I went back to school. In the last couple of weeks, I have had several visits from an unknown person that I highly suspect is some agent of a debt collector. Thus far, I have neglected to answer the door because I don't know what to say (I don't have any money), and I don't want to say the wrong thing. Additionally, I don't know how to make him go away. What are my rights here? If my girlfriend answers the door and tells him to leave and never come back, can he keep coming back and harassing us? I am graduating sooner or later and plan to take care of the debt, but I can't do anything about it at the moment. I know there are certain guidelines that these people must follow, and I feel he is adept at walking the line and being annoying without being illegal. How can we make this person go away? Please save the "pay him" joke :)
Topic:
Credit Debt Bankruptcy

Answer: I doubt it is a debt collector. You're probably being served with a lawsuit or something. Answer the door and accept the service. Ignoring it won't make it go away.


Title: Can anyone shine some light on how OJ was found not guilty of murder, but in the civil suit was held accountable for wrongful death?

Answer:
 Sure. The two have different standards. Conviction in a criminal case requires evidence beyond a reasonable doubt. A civil suit only require a preponderance of evidence, which is much easier to achieve. Answer #2: Sure.

In a criminal proceeding to be found guilty, you must prove the elements of the crime *beyond a reasonable doubt*.  The prosecutors did not.

In a civil suit, the standard is much lower.  Essentially 51 to 49 that he did it.  In that case, the plaintiff did so.Answer #3: The prosecution fucked up badly. There's a book by the guy who litigated the civil trial that's a great read.Answer #4: The standard for proving wrongful death is a preponderance of the evidence -- just over 50%.

The standard for proving a crime is beyond a reasonable doubt, which is much, much higher than 50%.Answer #5: "If the gloves don't fit, you must acquit."

This was the very worst prosecution of a criminal trial ever on television. EVER. The prosecution sucked. The judge sucked too.

EDIT: brilliant use of the state's evidence against the state by Johnny Cochran


Title: [NJ] Upside-down license plate

Question:
This is just a curiosity as I can't find anything on my own. A friend saw a car with their rear license plate mounted upside-down, and while I can't imagine this is legal I can't find anything explicitly stating that it's not.

The only thing I can find about plates is from the [NJMVC website](http://www.state.nj.us/mvc/Vehicle/StandardIssue.htm)

> When you title and register a vehicle, you will receive two license plates – one for the front and one for the rear of the car. Trailers, motorized bicycles and motorcycles only receive one.

>They must be clean and visible at all times. Even though the rear plate is reflectorized, it must be illuminated to make it visible from 50 feet away at night. If your license plate holders obscure or conceal any lettering on the license plate, you are subject to a fine.

I imagine one could argue that the plate *is* visible and this stipulates nothing about it being *legible* but I also imagine that argument would get laughed out of court. I suppose more than anything I'm curious as to whether there is anything specific prohibiting this. I realize even if not you'd still get a ticket and the judge wouldn't side with you in court.

Thanks!

Answer:
 >I also imagine that argument would get laughed out of court.

An upside-down plate is not visible at all times. While there may be no specific statute that says "No upside down plates" think of all the letters and numbers which reversed are entirely identical. I'm looking at you M and W.

Edit: Here's the [statute](http://njlawman.com/Legal%20Research/MV.htm#39:3-33._Markers;_requirements_concerning;_display_of_fictitious_or_wrong_numbers,_etc.;_punishment_). The standard is clear and distinct.


Title: Ethics/Legality question to lawyers... Read this in the Chicago sub. Curious about legality of this?

Question:
Just curious and wanted to have a discussion about this post I read. Obviously it seems pretty slimy. Is this something that is illegal though?

Link to comment thread:
https://np.reddit.com/r/chicago/comments/4eejlr/estate_firm_lies_about_donation_to_local_animal/

I didn't link directly to the post that this other thread links to only because there is a gathering of pitchforks starting. Obviously it's not hard to gather any of this information, but I figured the mods might be a little miffed if I posted direct. Let me know if this is wrong.

Answer:
 My guess is that it doesn't rise to the level of criminal, but I'd encourage the poster to report the behavior to the state bar as it may violate the Illinois Rules of Professional Conduct, specifically [Rule 8.4](https://www.iardc.org/newrules2010.htm#RULE_8.4:_MISCONDUCT) which says it is misconduct to "(c)engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation." and [Rule 7.1](https://www.iardc.org/newrules2010.htm#RULE_7.1:_COMMUNICATIONS_CONCERNING_A_LAWYER%E2%80%99S_SERVICES) which forbids "false or misleading communication about the lawyer or the lawyer’s services."  It may also run afoul of [Rule 7.2](https://www.iardc.org/newrules2010.htm#RULE_7.2:_ADVERTISING) depending on the nature of the offer and how the payment was structured.

If the OP reports it, the bar can investigate and determine if any lines were crossed - one hopes that even if lines weren't crossed such an instigation could dissuade the firm from that sort of behavior in the future.


Title: Company says it's illegal to refund to a different card.

Question: I worked for a company taking billing calls. When refunding to a card, we were told to tell the callers that it's illegal to refund to a different card. This company is based out of North Carolina. I can't seem to find proof of this though. Was the company making us lie so they could save money on fees?

Answer:
 I don't believe this is **illegal** - I believe this is a vioolation of the agreements with the credit card companies.  Civil, not criminal.

As is, they certainly don't *have* to do this and there are some excellent reasons why they don't.  Answer #2: This is a very common rule in retail . It’s to prevent fraud.


Title: [PA] Child dog bite, don’t want to make a big stink but it’s in the face. Are we following the best course of action?

Question:
My 8-year-old daughter was at her best friend’s house. She apparently was cuddling or playing with this 9-year-old dog and got bit in the face.

The family first said she was playing rough with it (which is absolutely not like her at all, she’s way too cuddly with everything), but it’s possible that she couldn’t pick up on signals the dog wanted to get away or something. We aren’t pet owners.

ER visit, with stitches. The dog’s family said so send them any medical bills and they’d pay.

Now the site is infected (common with dogs; tricky with face wounds). Took her back last night and they admitted her. She’ll maybe be discharged tomorrow, but the swelling and bruising and infection hasn’t changed most of today.

My wife thinks our medical insurance will take it up with their homeowners insurance and we’ll be okay. I don’t want to taint the kids’ relationship, and we definitely don’t want to sue for the sake of it. We don’t believe the dog to be a menace. The dad was forthcoming with the dog’s medical information. Everything’s up to date.

Is there something more we should do? Or are we naive about something here? Or it should all work out like we’re expecting?

Answer:
 It sounds like you have the best of a bad situation. Document your stuff and keep in touch with your insurance. As long as the dog owners don't backtrack and refuse to pay any of your deductible stuff you shouldn't need it but better safe then sorry.Answer #2: This is going to be a very long process for you.

Health insurance companies have a clause that if an injury was caused by someone else's fault, the health insurance company has the right to get reimbursed for the medical expenses from said injury. If you don't want to be on the hook for the medical costs, the likely outcome is that you are going to have to recover the expenses from the friend's parents homeowners insurance, umbrella policy, or themselves (depending on if their homeowners insurance policy allows dogs, and if it allows dogs, if the dog is of a breed that is allowed).

If you want things to go more quickly, I would call your health insurance company and explain what happened. See if they can explain the process to you and give you the documents - you need the documents - that explain what is owed.

By no means accept any cash payment from the friend's parents, or sign anything the friend's parents or their insurance policy asks you to sign until you know how much your health insurance company expects to be reimbursed.

When something similar happened to me, my medical insurance company made ME be the middle man. They did not directly contact the insurance of the person who caused my injury. It was a terrible hassle, and took a very long time to resolve.

I hope your daughter feels better soon.


Title: Ex threatening to sue me...(MA)

Question: I recently broke up with my boyfriend, and now he is demanding that I pay him a total of $5800 by this time next year, or he will sue me. $1800 is an amount he decided was adequate for the vacation he took to come visit me. The other $4000 is for the car we bought together. Both of our names are on the title of the vehicle (mine is first) but there is an OR between our two names. Nothing from the vacation is linked to me- everything is in his name. So my question is whether or not he can actually sue me to get this money? Thanks in advance.

Answer:
 He can sue you for whatever he wants, and I'm sure that the judge will have a good laugh at his expense.

The vacation, no. I can't imagine how he would get anywhere with that.

As far as the car, who actually paid the money for the car, and who currently is the primary driver of the car?


Title: [California] How to determine custody of the pet in a divorce?

Question:
I am making plans to leave my wife of 4 years. There are a myriad of reasons why, but suffice to say, I'm just not happy in this relationship anymore.

I don't anticipate it getting very messy. We have very little money and hardly any assets. We rent a home from her parents, which she will be staying in obviously. The ONLY thing I've been apprehensive about is our 1 1/2 year old cat. Getting him was her idea - I never liked cats. She is the one who brought him home and "tamed" him, but I've fallen head over heels for him, as he has for me. He is very attached to me and I'm the one who typically always feeds him, cleans after him and plays with him.

He is honestly the reason I've stayed as long as I did. My first inclination was to let her keep him, because I know she's going to be blindsided and heartbroken by the divorce, and I DO care for her and feel bad about that. But on the other hand, he has really become MY cat in so many ways and I can hardly stand the thought of having to move out and never see him again.

Here are some basics on the cat:

- He is registered in her name at the vet, although I have taken him for the majority of his appointments. I took him to get chipped and neutered. Most of the invoices at the vet were signed by me.

- His microchip registration is registered in my name.

- Aside from any actual documentation, I would say I do 90% of his feeding/cleaning/playing.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Answer: Cats are property the same as everything else to deal with in the divorce. Bring it up in court


Title: Animal Problem and Lease (Philadelphia, PA)

Question:
Currently in month 7 of a year long lease. We're on the top floor of a 3-story house divided into apartments.

The issue is that animals have gotten into the crawlspace due to a hole in the outside of the house, where the roof meets the outer wall. I've only seen squirrels but I can't say for sure that those are the only things getting in there.

The landlord has been lagging on repairing the hole on the exterior of the house, and now the animals have chewed through the ceiling of the bedroom, so that there is about a 2-inch hole. In the meantime we've taped a piece of cardboard over the hole to keep the animals out.

To fix this, the only thing that the landlord has done is put a small animal trap on the fire escape, about 8 feet away from the hole. The landlord has known about the hole on the exterior of the house for about 2 months, and the hole in the bedroom since it happened about 3 weeks ago.

I guess at this point I'm asking what my options are? Is there a health or code issue with animals able to forcibly enter the house? Is there an amount of time that's reasonable to expect this to be fixed?

Let me know if there's any more info needed.

Answer: I would contact him one last time and let him know you'll be calling the Health Inspector if he doesn't fix it immediately. You shouldn't be forced to live with rodents. Squirrels can be cute and furry and all but they're still a rodent.


Title: What to do in court

Question: I'm in pa, I'm going to fight a traffic ticket.  I've never had to go to court before what should I expect to happen what all do I need to say or am I asked when to talk?

Answer: Show up the previous day when nothing's expected of you and you won't be nervous. Watch what other people do and see what things the judge gives them a hard time for doing.Answer #2: Showing up the day before as others have said is helpful. Let's you see how things happen and the full process of it. Dress nice, you don't need a suit but a business casual with something like a polo shirt. Allow the judge to speak, don't interrupt and wait for your turn.


Title: Proving discrimination at work using statistics

Question: I am employed at a major tech company in the US. As far as I can tell, there is a drastic difference in promotions between my ethnic group and people from other major ethnic groups. While management is too smart to be overtly racist, I am pretty sure a statistical analysis would show a significant effect towards discrimination. Has statistical evidence been used in court in WA and/or CA to prove discrimination? If so, does it only work on class actions or can a single person sue?

Answer: *McClesky v. Kemp* holds that statistics alone are generally not enough to show intent in discrimination if there are multiple variables. You'll need at least something more than raw statistical analysis.


Title: Can I leave my apartment without being sued?

Question: So I moved into an apartment in California with 3 other girls. I had signed the lease, but after talking to the leasing office earlier I learned there was a mixup with the paperwork and I wasn't on it. I really want to move, because of bad roommate situations. Is it possible that they could sue me if I don't find someone to take over my spot?

Answer: It's not possible to have signed the lease and not signed the lease. Did you or did you not sign the lease?


Title: How do I go about reporting someone who wrote my business a bad check?

Question:
Hello! So I had a customer who purposefully wrote me a bad check for over $2000. I have been trying to collect from her, but she is not answering my calls, says she will call back, etc. From further googling, it seems she has had at least 6 court cases against her for non-payment, as well as an arrest for shoplifting. How this woman is not in jail is beyond me. From what I understand, what she has done is a felony.

However, I am in GA, she is in OH. I am not interested in pursuing a court case as I am sure the fees to fight it won't be worth it. I do want to threaten her with police action, but I am not sure who I report to. Her local police department?

Any other ideas of how I can scare her into paying? At this point, she has had my items in her store for a month, I am sure she has sold some and made a profit.

Any help would be appreciated!!

Answer: Call the non-emergency number for her local cops and make a report.


Title: If someone is intentionally killed but revived and brought back to life, can the attacker be charged with first degree murder?

Question:
If someone intentionally attacks another person to kill them and the victim clinically dies but is brought back to life and ultimately survives; can the attacker be charged with first degree murder? In every instance I've seen of this the attacker is charged with attempted murder though they technically succeeded in murdering the person (albeit their death was temporary). If the same victim clinically died twice stemming from the attack, is each death a separate charge of first degree murder? Does the law state for it to be a murder, the victim had to remain dead? Why or why not?

Edit: I must provide a location specific to my question, so any state in the USA, cause I think the state laws on first degree murder are all pretty identical as far as I know.

Answer: Death is permanent, legally speaking. No dead person means no murder


Title: The TSA touches my girlfriend (today between her legs) every time she goes through security. Is this legal? Details below

Question:
So she texted me this morning after she went through security and was upset saying that she set off the metal detector, so they pulled her aside, told her to spread her legs because whatever they detected was “in her lady area”.  The agent was a woman, used the back of her hand, and rubbed it from front to back.  Of course found nothing and let her go.
So I was blown away because I feel like this is assault.  They have the technology to detect if she’s hiding something that works way better than using their hands.
Furthermore, my girlfriend told me that she is touched “every single time” she passes through security (and she travels a lot- prob 2x a month).  They have run their hands up the back of her neck under her hair, patted down her sides, and rubbed her lady area more than once.
I should note that she is a beautiful young woman.  Me, however, am bigger and a man, and TSA has never come within 10 feet of me.  Even when I set off the alarm.  They just tell me to walk back through the machine again.
Can someone tell me if this is legal?   I feel like she’s been violated.   According to the website they will pat you down “if you refuse electronic security measures”.  She has never refused anything.

Answer:
 Yes, it's legal, and within policy if a female agent does the patdown.  If an alarm shows up on the detector, regardless of which type they're using, they have to clear it.

She can sign up for Global Entry or PreCheck and see if that improves things, because she'll mostly be required to use the metal detector instead of the full body scanners, and if she's careful, that shouldn't alarm.Answer #2: > They have the technology to detect if she’s hiding something that works way better than using their hands.

Actually no, technology cannot replace everything. What technology do you believe exists that would replace this?  Because if it did I'm sure whatever company invented it would be proud to boast of their accomplishment.


Title: Accidentally trespassed on private property. Can I be prosecuted?

Question:
The small city where I am currently living (in Northern Ontario, Canada) has an extensive trail system that I often walk/run/bike along. Today while walking on a public trail, I came across a path that appeared to offer me a shortcut to the road I wanted to get to. It eventually did get me to that road, but at the end of the trail, there was a sign facing the road saying "Private Property, No trespassing or hunting, Violators will be prosecuted". Upon seeing this, I got my ass away from that area as fast as I could and thankfully, didn't get confronted by landowners or anybody else.

I have heard that the laws on trespassing are fairly lax in my province and you generally cannot be fined IF there is no sign or barrier indicating private property. However, my concern is that there was a sign on the other end of the trail, where it intersected with the road. I did not do any damage and I have a clean criminal record, and I am also a university student who performs well academically. If the landowners find out I was there, is there any chance that they could charge me with anything? Thanks.

Answer: Lol you're fine. I doubt anyone knew you were even there nor will they care.


Title: Will a life insurance policy pay out if the insured commits suicide?

Answer:
 National Suicide Prevention Lifeline
Call 1-800-273-8255

Available 24 hours everydayAnswer #2: Depends on the terms of the policy itself, but most do not.


Title: Middle School Incident Involving my Niece, U.S.A Kentucky

Question: I just found out today that some (I assume another girl) used their phone to record my Niece changing in the locker room and posted it on Snapchat. My family seems to be in to much of a shock to know what to do. I'm looking for some advice as to what our steps should be in the matter.

Answer: Police.


Title: Tricked with counterfeit money at my work

Question:
Hello, I was hoping could offer some advice with a recent fuckup I made at work (I'm in PA). I was covering someone else's department - I usually work in the tech department, but I was mostly working at the register because my coworker called off... I didn't have much training in that area apart from a few powerpoints I vaguely recall looking over when I first took the job.

So while I was helping a customer in the tech section, I noticed a (black) guy calling me over to help ring him out at the counter. So I helped the lady I was with, and when I finished, I went over to help the guy at the cashier. All I remember him buying is two headsets. He bought them in separate transactions because he told me the other headset was for his wife that would be there soon. So I rung out the first headset, and he said he was paying in cash. He gave me a $100 bill to pay for it, and it looked real to me (my coworker thought so too). After doing some research, I realise that most places have a pen/marker to check for counterfeit bills - I was not made aware of this or that we even had something like that at the register (I'll ask today when I go to work if we do). I'd also not seen any of my coworkers at the register when they check for these bills, so I didn't know the process.

I rung him out and then he asked me to price check the other headset. When I told him the price, he said he'd just go ahead and pay for it without waiting for his wife. So he paid in cash again.

Later that night I was called up to the register by my manager and she told me they were fake bills. She asked me how I couldn't have realised they were fake simply by the texture of the paper. After that, she showed me that they have black strips through them when held up to the light. And aside from all that, she told me that whenever cash is paid in that amount ($300 or more) I am supposed to call a manager over, but none of the transactions were over that amount. There is usually a pop-up on the register when a manager is required, and I didn't see any on there when ringing him out.

Needless to say, I felt like shit the rest of the night... Before closing, I was called to the front office where she made me sign a "cashier infraction" for $850. When I asked her what it meant, all she said is that it was something she was required to fill out when that sort of thing happens.

I don't know what is going to happen now, whether I'm going to be required to pay it back or if they're going to fire me. Is there anything I should do on my part or anything I should be made aware of so I'm not caught off guard by something else they try and get me to sign?

Answer:
 You can't be made to pay it back but you can be fired for it.

The document you signed is likely just internal documentation for your employer. It's not a legal document.


Title: My apartment is 85 degrees and the AC doesn’t work. I have submitted over 7 maintenance requests over the past 2 months with no response. Do I have a right to take legal action?

Question: The title says it all. I live in Oklahoma. I have documentation of requests submitted and phone calls made. I’m not all that familiar with legal matters here and the lease is a bunch of legal jargon I can’t interpret. 85 degrees is outrageous.

Answer: From the tenant haAnswer #2: Does it specify in the lease that you are entitled to a working Ac ?Answer #3: Although I'm not speaking about your state in particular, I had this issue resolved by going over the leasing office's head and submitting work orders directly to corporate. That is, if you find out you have legal standing in your state. Management might not be too clever, but corporate is quick to recognize a potential lawsuit (if one exists). And send notices by certified mail, for documentation purposes.


Title: Assault for campaign signs

Question: I removed campaign signs from public property. A man involved in the protest tracked me down in a car and attacked me, tackling me to the ground resulting in injuries (for which I have pictures and medical records). I considered these signs litter as they were not close to the protest, but this may not be the most viable defense. My question is, do I have a case for assault. I do not think a middle aged man tackling a woman to the point where her boyfriend had to pull him off her was justified in this case. Thank you.

Answer: What did the police say when you called them?


Title: [Canada] 12 y/o sister stole my credit card info and used about $700. Will reporting it as fraudulent cause a criminal investigation?

Question:
It's a Mastercard, Scotiabank.

I want to report it as fraudulent because I do not want to pay those charges. However I don't want her to be charged for something. While a visit from a lawyer or police officer might scare her good I don't want it to actually pan out. It would cause family drama that I am just not interested in, stolen info or not.

If I wanted someone to come talk to her, do you think that could happen without it becoming a legal issue? Or will I have to eat the charges?

Answer: You can't eat your cake and have it to. If you don't want your sister to face consequences outside of your family circle, don't tell anybody. You can't expect both to shield your sister and get your money back; choose which is more important. Answer #2: This seems really more like something that should be handled within the family. Are the charges for digital goods, or something easily returnable? In either event, have your mother pay the charges, and your mom determine the appropriate punishment or repayment. Answer #3: I've read your post on /r/relationships and I think even if you did report it to the bank, the chances of you getting your money back is not very high. For starters, all the items that were purchased (Netflix, Amazon, etc.) are things that you could've brought. All the items that were shipped also went straight to where you lived too. It would appear to the bank that you brought those items and just want to pin it on someone else to avoid paying. It would not be a fun investigation.Answer #4: If you declare the charges fraudulent and the bank reverses them then the bank or possibly the merchant becomes the victim. If they want a criminal investigation then you do not have any say.  The bank will conduct it's own fraud investigation at any rate before deciding whether to reverse the charges.


Title: My apartment's office left their doors unlocked overnight and several packages, including mine, were stolen

Question:
Last Friday, I had a package, a $65 hard drive, delivered to my apartment's office (I assume the receptionist signed for it), and due to my work schedule preventing me from picking it up during office hours, I had to wait until yesterday (Monday) before I could pick it up. When I did finally get there to pick it up, I was told they had a "break-in" the night before (Sunday), and that several packages had been ripped open and their contents stolen. When the receptionists went to go look for it, lo and behold, mine was among the stolen packages, and she gave me the torn box and told me to take it up with the shipping company (USPS). She also mentioned they were filing a police report and they had cameras showing the incident (to be clear I personally have not talked to the police at all).

Maybe an hour after that, I went back to use their tanning bed, and while getting that set up, I innocently asked a few questions, the most important being if they had literally broken in by breaking the locks or whatever, and she told me no, that someone had left both the door to the reception area and the door to the back room where they keep the packages unlocked overnight. So, the guy presumably just walked straight in without any issue and reenacted Christmas morning with everyone's packages.

Afterwards, I followed her advice, and contacted Outlet PC and USPS. Outlet PC, which I'll never be buying from again, was rather rude and outright refused responsibility, and told me the only way I'm getting refunded for my loss was through my apartment office, and not them. I haven't heard back from the online USPS form thing I sent yet, but I don't have high hopes for that either. I thought about doing a chargeback through my card company, but I've never done anything like that before and honestly Outlet PC is probably right, if it's anyone's fault besides the thief, it's the apartment office.

&#x200B;

At this point in time, it seems like my only real option is to go talk to the office tomorrow about them reimbursing me, but I know many apartment complexes have a clause in their lease agreements stating that they aren't responsible for any lost packages, or something to that effect. I don't know if my apartment has such a clause, I'm not sure where to find it online at least, but I have a strong feeling they will not willingly reimburse everyone who lost packages. I'm thinking though, that even if they do have such a clause, it wouldn't cover a case of gross negligence like this. I don't have any proof that they left their doors unlocked, but the police do, as they have the recordings of the crime.

I also live in a state where it's completely legal to record conversations, and I was thinking about having my phone in my front shirt pocket video recording everything when I go up there tomorrow, and hopefully since the receptionist openly admitted they left the doors unlocked before, they'd do so again. So, I guess what I'm asking here is, if everyone refuses to refund me in this situation, and I successfully collect evidence they negligently failed to secure everyone's packages, would I have any sort of case? I understand that $65 isn't a lot of money to most people, and to be honest it's not exactly the end of the world to me either, but I'm a man of principle, and even if this was only over $5 I'd still feel compelled to seek justice. So, I don't really care to hear that the effort and trouble of potentially going to court over this is not worth it, I am chiefly concerned with how a judge might view this case. I would also like advice on what to actually do/say when I go to the office tomorrow, and other things I may need to do before filing a claim in small claims court.

Thank you all for your time and help in advance.

Answer:
 The seller did their part by sending the item.  The package was delivered by the shipping company.

The office accepted delivery of the item then left the item unsecured due to their own negligence.  Take your receipt detailing the description of the item as well as payment information to the office.  Let them know that based on the facts of the incident you need reimbursement from them or you would like to submit a claim to their insurance carrier.

If they refuse take them to small claims court.Answer #2: Do you know for sure that they called the cops?

Leaving doors unlocked at night and sending a friend to "rob" the place sounds like a feasible inside job.


Title: Wife and me co-tenants, has her affair staying at house

Question:
Hello, I'm in a bad way right now and need to know my legal rights. Me and my wife, soon to be ex wife I believe, are co tenants of a property. She has a guy who was homeless and needed a place to stay currently at our house, this was framed to me to be only for a month and turns out she's trying to add him to lease and remove me. He isn't on the lease, I want him out, can I have the police escort him off the property?

Another facet of this nightmare is she has threatened to take our daughter out of state if I pursue making the scimbag leave the house, can she legally take our daughter out of state to live?

Thanks so much for any advice, this sucks.

Answer: The problem is he wont leave she refuses to have him leave, so I think I'm only left with having the police remove him.


Title: Asked to take hijab off at work and no breaks (USA, IL)

Question:
The title says the bulk of it but I can give more details.

So basically I began working at a somewhat upscale chain restaraunt in Illinois in July. When I interviewed, I wore my headscarf, and the manager seemed to have no problem with this. The dress code only states that "all headwear be a plain black color."
I understood and went and bought a new black hijab. When I got to work the first day, my manager gave me a weird look and asked me about it. I told her it was a religious garment and she seemed perplexed but didn't say anything else. The next day when I came in with it again, she asked me to remove it. I reiterated again that it was for religious purposes and that according to the handbook, I hadn't technically violated any rules. This made her kind of angry so I eventually just obliged. I was really broke at the time and needed the job. The time I've been there since has been absolute hell. They have written me up for everything they could and let others get away with mistakes that I would've been written up or fired for doing. Many servers come in with various colorful bows and hair decor that is not technically allowed. On top of that, many of us often work up to 12 hours with little to no break in between. I get it's a restaraunt and these jobs are known for being unfair and tough, but this has taken it to a whole new level.

Basically, from a legal standpoint I'd like to know if this is even worth fighting for in court. I know major companies tend to have a lot of very powerful lawyers, so I don't know if it's even worth pursuing or where to begin.

Thank you all in advance.

Answer:
 You're supposed to be getting a meal break at least.

https://www.illinois.gov/idol/FAQs/Pages/meals-breaks-faq.aspx

Do other people get this break? If so that is evidence, although not proof, you are being discriminated against. But as mentioned you have to decide how important this is to you.Answer #2: I hope you are in better position now. Is time for you to find another new job, this is a battle not worth pursuing.

At best, you spend weeks attending court with no gain for yourself and a slap on the wrist for the restaurant. At worse, your future employer took this as sign of troublesome employee and you will have difficulty in finding new job. Either way, you are going to lose this job.Answer #3: Legally you are entitled to meal breaks.

How many employees does the company have? Answer #4: Because it's a large company could you maybe go higher in the chain of command.  As others have mentioned you are entitled to a reasonable accommodation for your religious needs/beliefs. Perhaps the manager is unfamiliar with this/a jerk. Large corps. most likely won't want the bad press/negativity associated with discrimination and a  higher up could send out a companywide memo addressing the various accommodations.