Title: Sold car and buying now want's refund and threatening to take me to court? [Canada, Ontario]

Question:
So I had a fairly old vehicle, 2005 with around 250xxx. I sold it for about $2000 CAD. The car was in good, running condition. Came e-tested and safety was expired, but was done a month or two ago and had no problems.

When I sold it to the buyer who lives a few hundred KM away,  called me a few hours after and said he had issues with the car not running past 100 KM/H. I didn't know because it was never driven past that speed before.

He decided to take it to a mechanic and keep it in storage for a few days. Later he called me back claiming he spent around $400 on the car just for the mechanic to look at it and $500 for the storage.
He is now asking for a refund and want's me to pay the additional $900 for the additional fee's.

He said he would take me to small claims court, does he have a solid case? On my Kijiji ad I wrote the car was in running condition, runs well, safety just done a few months ago and expired, and e-tested.

Does it look like he is bluffing to take me to court? If not, does it look like I have a solid defence in winning?

Thanks

Answer:
 He doesn't have a case.

If you actually get papers from a court you should respond, but short of that just ignore him.Answer #2: This sounds to me like a scam. The numbers are nonsense. (So is the legal claim but that is less obviously a scam.)

Answer #3: Tell him he need's to go pee in a lake. Just because he want's you to pay him his fee's doesn't mean you have to.

You did the safety check's  and the car run's under normal operating condition's, so he's out of luck if he really want's to sue you.

As other's have said, if you actually do get served you will want to respond, but short of that, you're in the clear.


Title: [UK] Recorded video of fight outside a pub. Media want to buy it.

Question:
 I recorded a fight on my phone outside a pub

The police asked for the video and I emailed it to an officer.

I got a call from media who would like the video and are offering me money.

Would I be doing anything illegal if I sold the video to the media?

Answer: Try r/legaladviceuk.  This is primarily a US/Canadian subreddit. We think Solicitors sell things door to door, for example. Good luck.


Title: Burned my hand on my stove -landlord just laughed at me

Question: Question because I'm clueless: my landlord told us to ask for a new oven a few months down the road from moving in because she knew it was a bad oven. Well it's an electric from 1985 and only has dials, no alarms to alert you it's on. I've left it on a few times by accident for this reason but now I'm diligent. This morning I was baking cookies and I have a first degree burn because I turned on the oven to 375 and needed to get my cookie sheet ready. Well, as I was oiling my sheet (located on the top of the oven), my hand slipped on to the back burner which was turned off but my hand got stuck and was burned because the coil was burning hot, enough to boil water but it was shut off! I called my landlord and all she could do was scoff at me and tell me that all electric ovens do that because of a vent and she never mentioned it because it's common sense. She has a history of doing this kind of crap, does anyone know what I can do to get out of this lease??

Answer:
 Uh...no.

Electric ovens have a vent under one of the back burners. If the oven is hot that area will also be. The coils can also get hot as well.

There's no way you can get out of your lease for an accident.


Title: Child support and custody

Question: Just curious I am a step parent and father has already refused to give up parental rights.  How do I go about gaining legal rights for my daughter without adoption since he refuses to give up his rights? Dad has not been in her life at all and I have had custody the last 5 years. He lives in another state and was abusive towards the mother even though there is no legal evidence of the abuse.  We are also looking into child support but me being a step parent I support and pay for everything including insurance. Is my income and my support taken into account in court? Or just the biological parent? I am located in colorado sorry I forgot to put that. And I'm just looking for legal guardian rights. As far as medical and schooling goes right now I have no decision making rights. I cannot adopt because in order for legal adoption the father has to give his rights up willingly which he had already refused.

Answer: Your wife (I assume) will need a family law attorney to do this for you. Getting a custody order will outline who gets to do what and delineate child support. Being a stepparent, you have no legal standing to do anything personally without the mother.


Title: Hopefully my last post about my dispute with my former landlord. [OK]

Question: In November my landlord demanded that I vacate my home without just cause or adequate notice.  I agreed to allow him to terminate the lease agreement with the understanding that I would receive my deposit back with only legal applicable deductions as if the lease ended normally.  I moved out on Dec 3, 2014.  Approximately 27 days later I contacted them to get the status on my deposit.  I was told the house was undergoing repairs and I would have to wait.  Last week, I sent him a letter requesting my deposit in full because he had exceeded Oklahoma's 30 day allowance.  He finally contacted me today with a list of charges, some I can prove I did not cause, some I cannot prove, and some I did cause.  He claims that I owe him in excess of the deposit and if I try to take him to court over the deposit he will sue me for two months lost rent as well as the amount of damages. Can he sue me for lost rent if he terminated the lease early?  I know I can prove enough of the damages are not mine that it would not consume my deposit.  If he cannot come after me for the rent then I am certain I will take this to court.  Should I get a lawyer?  Would one be willing to represent me for a percentage of a settlement?

Answer: All you should need to prove is that he took longer than allowed by law. Sue him in small claims court for your entire deposit. The rest is irrelevant. Since he demanded that you vacate, he cannot come after you for rent unless there was some weird circumstances relating to your tenancy (like you were cooking meth in there or something).


Title: Fire department broke my lock and door. I rent and I paid for repair. Landlord doesnt want to pay. Who is liable? Advice needed

Question:
Hi r/legaladvise,

So I rent an apartment in NYC. The fire department forced entry to my apartment as another tennant smelled gas.

Apparently the right gas valve was on. I've never used my stove and couldn't have left it on but I have no evidence of this.

I had to pay an emergency locksmith at 2am to fix the lock ($800) and the door will require fixing.

We couldn't have left the stove on. It requires a lot to turn on the gas. But I have no proof of this.

Do you know who is liable for the damages? What can I do here? I'm nervous I will have to cover ($1500+ potentially). I can't really afford this right now and regardless don't think it's my fault.

Understand the FD do what they have to do but this has really left me in a pickle.

Please help..... much love

Answer:
 >Do you know who is liable for the damages?

You are.

>What can I do here?

Call your renters insurance


Title: Wal-Mart and Top Secret Security Clearance

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Probably not. But if she is asked she needs to answer truthfully. Lying trying to get a clearance because you "think it's no big deal" is a huge red flag because the government wants honest people not perfect people.


Title: Told to wait for other vacancies since I'm female

Question:
Hi, so I was registering for a job yesterday (England, UK), got the job but after the recruiter saw my paperwork and checked everything through, she told me she'd have to wait to contact me for a start date as the remaining positions were only suitable for male applicants (due to heavy lifting required and that mostly men work there). For more context the job is at a warehouse and I have had experience with warehouse/ manual labour jobs before. I am a transgender man taking hormones but sadly my official paperwork still has my gender marker down as being female. I understand why she would be hesitant but I explained I was transgender and despite that she still said, that doesn't matter, we'll contact you when female suitable roles become available.

I'm not sure if there's anything I can do about this, but I am more than physically capable for this role and while understanding it maybe, I'm still not sure it's entirely legal, so was wondering if someone could help me out in this situation.

Thanks

Answer: /r/LegalAdviceUK will have better advice for how you should proceed


Title: (NC) My GF is being stalked, the man moved from out of state to our city, so he could be closer to her. She is now terrified to be home alone. What are my options here?

Answer:
 You need to provide some useful information. Have the police been notified? What is he doing that you consider stalking? What history do the two of them have? Have you looked into restraining orders?

Generally, the thing to do with a stalker is to call the police and seek a restraining order.


Title: Friend is worried he might get sued for rape?

Question:
He's a guy from New York, USA.

My friend had drunken sex with a friend of his after a party, and the friend was also drunk. I drove them home after the party being the designated driver, and it was her idea for them to have sex, as she was instigating everything in the back of my car when I was driving them.

Cut to a year later, and them hooking up (sober) several more times, he's moved on and doesn't want to see her any more. During their last talk, she brought up the "rape card," in her words, and threatened to use it against him. He's a young guy, just in college and trying to make a name for himself professionally, and doesn't want something like this following him around.

Should he be worried? From what he's told me, she claims that the he raped her that night, even though they were both stumbling drunk at the time. Is there anything he can do to prepare for the worst?
Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer:
 >Should he be worried?

Hard to say.

>From what he's told me, she claims that the he raped her that night, even though they were both stumbling drunk at the time. Is there anything he can do to prepare for the worst?

Don't talk to her, and if the police arrest him or ask him questions, he should respond only with "I assert my right to remain silent, and I want a lawyer."


Title: Meaning of the word "Unit" in HOA regulations, regarding Airbnb

Question:
Location: California

Super bowl was in my city this year, and we listed the top floor of our condo on AirBnB hoping to make some money, but unfortunately it didn't work out. Our condo is still registered on Airbnb, but it isn't an active listing and doesn't show up on a search.

Our neighborhood was sent out a friendly reminder by the HOA that we are not allowed to rent out our unit via Airbnb or any similar services.

Now, many, many, many months later, we received a letter about us failing to remove our listing and calling us to a hearing with the HOA.

This is the specific rule they accused us of breaking:

>Section 3.2 Rental of Units. Any Person Leasing (or who wishes to Lease) a Unit must comply with all of the provisions of this Section 3.2 (and all Association Rules and other Governing Document Provisions).

>No Person shall be permitted to Lease or sublease a Unit for transient or hotel purposes (i.e., a Rental for any period less than sixty (60) days and/or a Rental that provides the Tenant with customary hotel service such as room service for food and beverage, maid service, laundry and linen service, or bellboy service).

From the way I read it, it specifically forbids renting of the UNIT on Airbnb or any similar sites, but we were never renting out the unit, just one part of our unit.

From my perspective, it wouldn't make sense due to the wording if this was also applied to rooms within the unit, as the wording very specifically states "lease or sublease a unit" or something similar several times.

I have written up an email draft pointing this out, along with the fact that we've never actually rented our rooms out and the listing isn't active, but I'd like some feedback before I send the email.

Does the HOA actually have any grounds to stand on here? Legally, does "unit" refer to the entire condo?

Thanks.

Answer:
 If you think you are going to get over because you attempted to rented out part of a unit, thinking you found some clever loop hole, you are oh so mistaken.

That would be similar to a sign saying "no drinking alcohol on this property".  I then take only a sip, and not a drink, and then try to defend my actions by saying I took a sip, so I was not drinking on the property.

Answer #2: > Does the HOA actually have any grounds to stand on here? Legally, does "unit" refer to the entire condo?

Yes, they have lots of grounds to stand on.  You, on the other hand, have no ground to stand on.  They clearly intended to ban all AirBnB rentals, not just a portion of them.  You are extremely unlikely to convince a judge otherwise.


Title: [Missouri] Advice on a desperate child abuse case?

Question:
A friend of mine is having some trouble with a child abuse/custody case. She left an abusive relationship with their daughter. Both mother and daughter have been in trauma therapy since then. Friend has been spending more money than they have on legal services, with no safe decision from the court, in sight.
The father had one charge of sexually and physically abusing the child last year. But by the time child services finished with the investigation, they decided that the claims were unsubstantiated. They said that testimonies by the father and his relatives, combined with the daughter not admitting too much, was enough to rule the charges false. It was noted that the child's use of the word "inappropriate" was too advanced for her 10 year old age? Perhaps the child didn't want to talk too much about it?
Last year the daughter was "I miss daddy, I wish things would get back to the way it used to be". She admitted to him "thumping her on the forehead and pushing her down" but also "when he gets angry, he would explain to her what she did wrong."
For the second abuse incident, it was during the father and child unsupervised visitation. Upon picking her up, the child cried and asked if she could not see him again. She was taken to the hospital for minor signs for physical abuse. Finger was mildly bruised and daughter reported sexual abuse, to which the father denied saying that he's been bathing her since she was young. The child is 10 and have told him to stop. No police was informed, the mother contacted the social worker instead. The child documented sexual abuse but was again ruled false, per denial and testimonies from the father's side.
Some of the notes from the case seems to imply that the mother is telling the child what to say and do. I know that this is definitely not the case.
On the last trial date, which was supposed to be the final decision date. The father knew that the judge would rule against him and asked for a new judge and a new court date, a couple of weeks from now. The judge yelled at him but complied.
He somehow got an order for another unsupervised visitation in this coming week. We are deathly afraid for the kid. Any help at all would be great, thanks!

Is there anyway to overturn the social services decision? Or work with it/around it?
Is there another type of evidence or testimony we can bring in?

Answer:
 Thumping your kid on the head is not generally abuse. Physical discipline is not illegal. Bathing your kid who is too old for it is not sexual abuse. Bad parenting. But legally, by it self, not sexual abuse.

So that said, some states/counties have appeal processes and some do not. You can contact the social worker and ask or contact the civil rights/ombudsman office and ask.

Based only in what you say, it is very unlikely you could force them to substantiate anything.


Title: My sublease tenant failed to pay rent and moved out already, I can’t get in touch with him but the leasing office is asking me to pay on his behalf, what can I do in this situation? There’s legal contract between us!

Answer: You can sue the sub tenant.  But you still have to abide by your lease with the landlord


Title: Got run off the road on the ramp to the 56. Car wrecked and the guy who did it drove off. Police told me I'm SOL. Advice?

Question:
In San Diego, on the 5 off ramp to the 56, I was driving home in the far right lane when a car to my left began to merge into me. He didnt see me and didn't signal. I honked and swerved right into the shoulder to avoid when I lost control of my car, it spun and crashed into the center divide. I'm fine, was wearing my seatbelt, but the car is wrecked and the guy drove off.

The police took my statement but basically said since I didn't get his licence plate and since there was not contact between cars, that I'm SOL. They even suggested that I may have made the whole thing up.

Will my insurance cover this? What can I do to help my situation, what things should I tell the insurance when I contact them?

And, to the old, tan, 4 door Nissan sedan that totaled my car, please call the police and tell them what happened. Then our insurances can sort this whole thing out and I won't be screwed. I'm going to school and can't get there without my car or pay for a new one.

Answer:
 Your insurance will cover it if you had collision coverage, but IME, will assume the "non-contact hit and run" is your fault and hike your premiums.Answer #2: Sounds like you're at fault here.

Call your insurance company and let them handle it if you've got full coverage. Answer #3: I lost control of a car trying to avoid someone next to me coming over into my lane. Our mirrors almost touched but there was no collision.

Car was totaled and paid out fine, my premium did not do up. There were witness reports from those who stopped to help me after I went off the road. I don't know if that made any difference.Answer #4: First of all, Don't swerve hard. Brake and move onto the shoulder. You can go on YouTube and see how dangerous thid over reacting behavior can be. Second, this why I tell everyone I know when they get a car atleast buy a forward dash cam. Spending 100 or so now can save you a thousand or much more later. Third, yes, you are sol here. Unless someone else called the police and got the license plate and gives the same story you did, the police have no evidence to go off of. If there was no collision the other drive may have not even known you crash or that they caused it. Answer #5: > They even suggested that I may have made the whole thing up.

Get a dashcam.


Title: What is the legality of sex in a car in a state where one's car is an extention of one's home?

Answer:
 It might also be interesting to ask about the legality of sex in your front yard.  Because, if sex in a car is considered sex in your home, is not sex in your front yard also considered sex in your home?Answer #2: My college roommate was getting down and dirty with her boyfriend in their car in a parking lot once. A cop knocked on the window because he noticed the boyfriend's shoes outside of the car (they were super smelly). The cop first asked if it was consensual, then asked them to move the party elsewhere.

I think it really depends on the cop.Answer #3: Having been a teenager in such a state, the cops will move you along. Typically won't arrest you.

Also, public nudity/indency laws can still apply as ppl can see into your car. Now, maybe if you're in the back of a truck/van/rv where ppl can't see . . .

I mean, ppl get laid in RV's and tents all the time w/o too much negative shit happening.Answer #4: Well considering people have been arrested for walking around naked in their own homes, what do you think?


Title: [Toronto, Ontario] Tenant threatening legal action. Do they have a case? Advice would be much appreciated!

Question:
They're asking for 25% of their entire rent back!

The most recent dispute has been over the internet being down (it was out for 3 days, we eventually replaced the modem and router). It is in the lease that we provide them internet, but there's no guarantee about 100% uptime.

Other things they are intending to file are

Us not responding to a gate being frozen at 1 am (The gate has a keypad, landlord was asleep). In response we've now kept the gate open with a brick. They still have 2 locked doors between them and their unit.

Us locking the door to the laundry room. This was because they were placing their garbage and using the room as storage. Once we communicated that they were not to do so and not to leave garbage in the common areas, the door has not been locked.

Us not providing them with a parking space. The lease stipulates that they get a parking space, however we've discovered that the driveway isn't wide enough. We asked them to seek alternative parking, when they were unable to do so...we let them park in the space - we never prevented them from doing so...we just asked to look for alternatives (and would accept the extra cost for such).

Mold/mildew in the unit. We've never had a problem with other tenants over the previous 2-3 years. However we provided them with a humidity meter, dehydrating crystals, and a dehydrating unit. We also treated the walls and repainted (as the mold growth was minimal). Afterwards when we requested a time to re-enter the unit to re-evaluate - we received no response.

Complaining about visitors. I've let the landlord know that they are allowed to have visitors. Their main concern is that people are entering and leaving the unit late at night (1 am-5am) and they is concerned for their safety.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 I am an Ontario landlord.

First question: are they threatening to file something, or have they actually filed? Because I get lots of tenants who say "I'm filing with the Board" and then I say "go ahead" and a good 99% of them don't file.

If they have filed, it will depend on how the Adjudicator sees it. Some are more tenant friendly and some are more landlord friendly. 25% seems unreasonable.

In Ontario, the landlord's duty is to fix problems promptly, and also prevent any foreseeable issues. It appears you have mostly done that, so it will come down to a judgement call over what was and wasn't a reasonable action on your part. Not sure if locking the laundry room would be seen as reasonable, but I assume it is unlocked now.

For the mould growth, asking the tenant for a time and say well, I got no response, is not reasonable. Give a 24 hour written notice and inspect. Take photos.

If they have not gone to the Board, you could play it two ways. The soft approach is to offer a small amount of compensation, which they may reject, but should it then go to the Board, you look like a good guy for trying. Or, offer nothing, keep addressing problems promptly as they come, and see if they file. If they do, you can always mediate a solution at the Board. (The mediators are great.) Personally, I would go for the latter.

Your best bet is to get the tenant to go away. Perhaps offer them a token amount and the ability to leave on 30 days notice instead of 60. You are in Toronto, rerenting will be no problem.


Title: Cruise Ship Injury

Question:
My wife is a singer on AIDA cruises lines. She injured her right knee in the course of fulfilling her contract, and she is currently planned to be returning from her next port (somewhere in Turkey that I can't remember the name of).

We live in NY, NY. She is a US Citizen working for AIDA. AIDA is a German company, owned by the Italian company Costa Cruises, which is in turn by the British-American company Carnival. Her primary (mine through work) and her secondary (through her parents) will not be responsible for her medical bills. Per individuals who have left on medical disembarkation before, we forward her medical bills to AIDA and AIDA takes care of them. We (I) have received no information about what is happening, and her agent is being relatively useless.

Legally, this doesn't seem sound. What information do I need to extract from the company? I spoke with a medical representative at UCONN while scheduling her to meet with a specialist, who mentioned basic things like claim number, adjuster, and date of accident.

Additionally, as it may be relevant, she has a host of pre-existing medical conditions. She has a metal rod in her left leg, and she has anchors in her right hip as well as a stress fracture in her spine and a history of arthritis and mental health issues. AIDA is aware of this, but in the week she will have spent on board since receiving initial medical attention she has not received an x-ray or an MRI. All of her medication - Aleve to Xanax - was removed from her cabin.

tl;dr - I know my wife - she has an exceptional tolerance for pain. When she says something is wrong, something is ***wrong***. I don't want her to get off the ship if we are missing information we will need to ensure her medical expenses are covered, and I feel that she has not received adequate or appropriate medical attention while onboard.

Answer: I don't see an issue yet.  The company says it will reimburse for all expenses, and hasn't failed to do anything yet.  Are you concerned that they won't do that?


Title: Progressive Doctored Receipt and Sent to Me as Proof (TX)

Question:
I'm having a dispute with Progressive. They say I owe them ~$180 and I think I only owe them ~$24.

I signed up for optional insurance when Progressive gave me a rental. I checked next to $3/day option but Progressive says I chose the $19.99/day option. They then doctored the receipt, sent it to me as proof, and said "total per day had been circled to show with tax that $22.99 is due for each day of the coverage." The thing is, my copy doesn't show this. They wrote this on the receipt after I signed it.

I'm willing to pay what I thought I was signing for. Can I mail them a certified letter with a check for the amount I thought I agreed and list terms of agreement saying "if you cash this check then you agree my account is paid in full and this matter is closed."?

*EDIT* I got this resolved! Progressive finally agreed to work with me. I had to escalate but I managed to get someone to listen to me. Everybody else refused to acknowledge my issues.

Answer:
 Assume it was the peon at the front desk not the organization itself.

Send them a certified letter with a photocopy of your receipt, indicating that your agreement was for the $3/day option.  Ask them to validate the original agreement and send you an updated invoice.Answer #2: you have proof they doctored a receipt?  wow.  send that in and get whoever did that fired.Answer #3: Seems like a lot of work they did to rip off $180.


Title: I hit a deer last night in my Uncle's car because I took a new road after my main county highway was not plowed for more than 24 hours. Please help. -Wisconsin

Question:
Hi there, my name is Kevin, aged 21, and I'm posting from my house in a small town in south-central Wisconsin, about 20 miles north of Madison.

To explain my situation, I moved in with my Uncle and he allows me to live in his house and use one of his cars, the latter of which can be rescinded provided I get into an accident, by my fault or theirs.

Now, as the title says, we had a bit of snow this weekend, about 3 inches, the only amount we've had in weeks. Unfortunately, my county Highway was not plowed even though the last snow we actually had on the ground was early Saturday. The incident in question was approximately midnight last night.

Now, since I didn't want to deal with the whole going 15 miles-an-hour-because-I-drive-a-1995-Pontiac-Sunfire routine, I decided to take the slightly longer route home, the one that passes by the lake and a lot of steep banks.

Once I got to these banks, I immediately dropped to 25 miles an hour. This did not save me from the deer though. What immediately jumped across the steep bank, which is a massive blindspot, and onto the road was a massive Buck. Antlers and all. Of course the moment he hit the road I hit him and he flew across the top of the car. I feel lucky that he didn't go Antler first, or that he ran off and didn't charge the car because I'd be most likely dead.

So what I need legal advice on is if my township can accept liability for this situation. I face the possibility of being without a car (cannot afford one, I pay for UW Madison out of Pocket). The reason I took the road that had these blind spots and lack of railings was due to my town not plowing a major road.

Any advice is appreciated, thanks.

Answer:
 >So what I need legal advice on is if my township can accept liability for this situation

Nope


Title: Neighbor Accuses Me of Hitting his Car. I'm innocent.

Question:
Location: Los Angeles, CA

I went to my car this morning (1/12/2017), and found an anonymous note from my neighbor on my windshield.

The note was dated 1/11/2017, and said that my vehicle collided with my neighbor's vehicle "the other day" and that I had until 12:00 noon today to contact him before he involved the police.

The note left a phone number, but no name. I don't actually know who left this note.

Since I did not have a collision with any other car, this note was obviously a surprise.

I texted the number on the note and denied any involvement. The person texted back saying he didn't want to play games and would just file a police report if I'm maintaining my innocence.

I'm not sure what my neighbor's angle is here. Either he's made an innocent mistake and did some bad detective work to solve this crime and blamed me, or he's trying to pull some kind of scam.

What, if anything, should I do to protect myself?

Answer:
 > What, if anything, should I do to protect myself?

Photograph your vehicle showing that it is not damaged and has not been in a collision. If his vehicle is in a public area (the street, a lot, *not* his driveway) photograph the damage on it as well.

Then simply respond to any police inquiries by denying responsibility. If he takes legal action contact your auto insurance provider.Answer #2: Let them file a police report.  You can ignore all communications with this person.  If you are served papers for a lawsuit, respond and defend yourself.  If you have auto insurance, you can notify them and they should provide a lawyer for your defense since you should at a minimum have liability insurance.Answer #3: Don't do anything. If you get served with a court order, respond then, but I doubt that happens.

If the cops get involved, just be honest


Title: [Update] Probate - Willis TX Family Friend Died left everything to my family, estranged son suing.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Talk to your lawyer about this.  While we appreciate the follow up this is too complex for the internet and talking about ongoing litigation is generally not a good idea in case said son becomes aware of it.


Title: If the police get to search my car because I refused consent to search (leading to suspicion for probable cause), then in reality I do not actually have a Fourth Amendment right to refuse searches.

Question: Title says all

Answer:
 > a persons refusal to consent to a police request during a noncoercive police encounter can not, by itself, provide the basis for a stop or search — including a terry stop

https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4882&context=uclrev

https://www.flexyourrights.org/faqs/when-can-police-search-your-car/


Title: Judges visitation order is logistically impossible

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Find someone to drive. Pay a coworker to drive you out and back. Answer #2: You're in Santa Cruze. I'm pretty sure uber, lyft, yellow cab, white can, black cab, old joe's station wagon, and many other transportation services would be more than willing to help you comply with a court order. Sometimes being a parent has unintended expenses.


Title: My debt. My life is constantly full of stress and anxiety. Collectors telling me things that seem true but not?

Question: 19 years old my wife and I took custody of 7 kids. We had our own. She was pregnant with another. I got into a lot of debt trying to provide. Made lots of mistakes. Found home for little sibs and kept the two older sibs and raised them for 7 years. In that time my wife and I completed schooling. We are in debt with this. I know we can't bankrupt that but now I'm getting hospital collectors calling me. $35,000 in debt there from last years gallbladder removal with no insurance. I'm feeling like I'm in the quick sand now. The collector said that I'm commiting fraud because I'm not willing to pay this back. I CANT! there's no way. So now I'm just a big baby panicking and wishing life weren't so hard. Is this lady telling the truth? She also says she knows how much debt I'm in and that I can't file bankruptcy..

Answer:
 Ignore anything the collector says.  [There are ways to stop many of the calls.](http://credit.about.com/od/debtcollection/a/stopcollectors.htm)

Bankruptcy may be an option.  Talk with an attorney who does bankruptcies.  Find a friend who's had a good experience with one, or contact the state bar for referrals.


Title: Can I get in legal trouble for recovering my Runescape account from a company I sold it to?

Question: Jagex owns all accounts according to their ToS and so technically neither I nor the company I sold it to own the account. After I recovered it they are now threatening me with reporting my IP address, ID and address to authorities in my area. Stating that I’ve committed online fraud. All advice welcome!

Answer:
 You defrauded someone by offering to sell them a thing you knew you couldn't sell them, taking their money, and then failing to provide the thing you said you'd sell. Yes, you can get in trouble for that: civilly, the buyer can sue you for their damages (which will largely amount to getting their money back); criminally, it's possible, though unlikely in the extreme, that you could face charges.

Give them their money back and put this behind you.


Title: Update. Question regarding Canada law. "Employer" said I got the job but then took it away because I'm pregnant.

Question: [removed]

Answer: I was so excited for your update and am sad you deleted itAnswer #2: Follow the advice given in the other thread.


Title: My fiance backed her car up into our mailman. Now a year later, she is being sued.

Question:
I will try to provide as much info as possible.

Approx a year ago, my fiance was backing out of our driveway where the view is obstructed by bushes. It was raining out so visibility was low, and she backed up and struck our mailman with her car. He was walking across our driveway with headphones in and his head down so he was caught unaware. She just didn't see him when backing out.

She didn't fully run him over but he is an older gentlemen and did suffer some minor injuries. He was in the hospital but released the same day, and was out of work for approx 1 month. She was hysterical about it, even at the scene, and she then sent him an apology letter afterwards. Once he finally came back to work she saw him outside, gave him a big hug, and apologized.

We figured at some point there would be a lawsuit but we were surprised when the papers she received said they were looking for punitive damages, and essentially are claiming she was malicious and did it on purpose. This couldn't be further from the truth. The whole accident had her depressed for weeks and she went out of her way to apologize to him. She has no criminal record and has never so much as been in a car accident before this.

It is still early in the process and we just received papers stating that lawyer was suing her and her insurance company a few days ago.

She is very upset about this whole thing and we really can't afford to get a lawyer. She has been in contact with her insurance company and they assured her that their lawyers will be fighting it. They have also offered money to try and settle but it has been turned down twice.

I figured I would reach out because I wanted to get my fiance some peace of mind. It is really bumming her out and she is very nervous about what impact this could potentially have.

Thanks for any info you guys might be able to provide.

EDIT: Forgot to include location. We are located in Connecticut.

Answer:
 > I figured I would reach out because I wanted to get my fiance some peace of mind. It is really bumming her out and she is very nervous about what impact this could potentially have.

She really shouldn't worry too much. Her insurance company is handling it, which is exactly what she pays them for. And don't be too bummed about the plaintiff seeking punitive damages. Pretty much every lawsuit starts with "The respondent is the literal biblical Satan, source of all evil, and that's why I deserve an award equal to the GDP of a small European nation" and then works down to something reasonable from there.Answer #2: This isn't uncommon. Sometimes it takes a while for injuries to popup and get resolved to the point that they have a number to sue for. As for punitive damages, he's your mail carrier, not best friend. Hugs and tears doesn't really change much. Call your car insurance company, this is **exactly** why you pay them. If you've done that, let them handle it. They're the best at it. This is literally all they deal with on a daily basis.


Title: My parent's contractor hasn't paid a subcontractor and now the subcontractor is going after my parents.

Question:
EDIT:This is in VT

My parents got entangled with a contractor who became incredibly unresponsive and eventually stopped showing up to work on their home. They weren’t as diligent as they should have been in researching him, etc. And ended up paying him about 70k as part of a contract to do a laundry list of things. One of these items included in that 70k fee (This was labor AND hard costs) was to install a stairwell and convert all the main floor into hard wood flooring.

Right around when the flooring appeared, he disappeared. So my parents worked directly with the floor vendor to install it. The floor vendor also mentioned that they had not received payment from their contractor on the stairwell even though he had ordered it. And the floor vendor asked my parents if they had heard from him about that. My mom replied that she had not. And the floor vendor said something implying that they would have to sue him to go after the money.

This made my mother feel confident that they would at least get their stairwell since it had been ordered and my parents had already paid for it.

Fast forward to a week ago when the floor people delivered the stairwell (without asking my parents) and included the invoice indicating that my parent’s contractor had ordered it. It was NOT a bill for the stairwell. Just an invoice with the contractor’s name clearly on it.

 But I’m worried that the floor vendor will be coming after my parents to pay for this stairwell. After how much they’ve already lost with the disappearing contractor, I need advice on what their rights are with this floor vendor. I think they should maintain that they’ve already paid for the stairwell and that they should be approaching the contractor.

What are their options here?

Answer:
 >What are their options here?

That is a great question they should ask their lawyer. Yeah they need one they've spend 70k and hiring a lawyer to do some basic research and know exactly how they legally stand right now can safe them some money later on.Answer #2: The location is very important here. In some states, a subcontractor can put a lien on a property where they did work, but was never paid. If that happens, your parents would need to pay the sub and go after the primary contractor.


Title: Home Depot price matching policy legal review

Question:
Recently in New Hampshire(where I live), and apparently nationwide, Home Depot no longer price matches Lowes 5% off(when using lowes credit card).  The price matching claim on their website remains the same, so this policy change must have been issued as an internal memo and is unavailable to the public.  The Home Depot price matching statement is so vague that it provides managers with poor guidance from corporate, making this explicit guarantee more of a discretionary decision based on what person you deal with in store.  In the same manner it provides consumers with so little information, that they may assume it covers more than it does.  It borders on false advertisement for making such a bold claim that they are often able to back out of with little or no explanation.  It offers Home Depot the benefit of being able to make great promises on the website, while refusing to honor them in practice.  My first question is are they in any way legally obligated to honor the policy they have set forth?

Price matching can become a very complicated argument, but my basic question is that if I can buy an item at lowes, and take them the receipt with my actual purchase price how can they claim they will only match the price on the sticker and not the fully advertised final price I paid.  Does this not qualify as a regular retail price as they state in their policy? I could buy this item on a regular basis, at any interval I choose and this number is the regular retail price I pay.  Lowes publicly advertises their price for the item, and the 5% off every day on their website. Lowes also addresses percentage discounts and makes it clear what they will match while Home Depot prefers not to address this at all in their statement. I fully support Home Depot legally not price matching if they make no claims that they will.  If it is not a violation of the law to put forth a false advertisement like this it is still a dishonest business practice.

The rest of the post consists of the price match claims made by both Home Depot and Lowes.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Home Depot Claim:
Nobody beats our prices. Take advantage of the guaranteed low price
If any competitor tries, we'll beat their price by 10%. Guaranteed.*

*If you find a current lower price on an identical, in-stock item from any local retailer, we will match the price and beat it by 10%. Excludes special orders, bid pricing, volume discounts, open-box merchandise, labor and installation, sales tax, rebate and free offers, typographical errors and online purchases. Online purchases are subject to price match only.

In-store customers: policies do not apply to going-out-of-business sales, or discontinued, clearance, obsolete, seasonal, or distressed merchandise of a competitor.

Prices must be regular retail prices of competitors.

http://www.homedepot.com/c/PM_New_Lower_Price
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contrasted with the Lowes price match claim:
We guarantee our everyday competitive prices. If you find a lower everyday price on an identical item at a local retail competitor, just bring us the competitor's current ad, and we'll beat their price by 10%. If a competitor is offering a percent off discount, we’ll match the final net price the competitor is offering. Our price guarantee does not apply to installation labor, to the competitor's closeout, special order, discontinued, clearance, liquidation or to damaged items. Limited to reasonable quantities. Please reach out to Lowe's Product & Sales Customer Care at 1-877-465-6937 or visit your local store.

http://www.lowes.com/cd_Everyday+Low+Prices_787241445_
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Answer:
 >Prices must be regular retail prices of competitors.

Any discount you get at Lowe's for using a credit card, etc is **not** the regular retail price. The regular retail price is the price you paid before any discounts were factored in.


Title: Job abandonment when I didn't know I had hours. Plus a relationship with my boss.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You were told that they'd start getting you hours again, then you didn't check the schedule. Sorry, but that's on you, not your employer.Answer #2: Is the FYI text something that is company policy, or was it a nice gesture on behalf of those above you? When I worked in retail, it was *your* responsibility to check the schedule. The schedule was posted on a particular day, and you were expected to check it ahead of time.Answer #3: I'm not sure what you think can be done here. You were taken off the schedule, fired, whatever you want to call it. You were an employee at-will. Did you find a new job or file for unemployment? This was months ago you should have moved on by now.Answer #4: When they quit giving you hours you should have filed for unemployment


Title: CA - Would this be considered child pornography? Is there any actions I should take?

Question: While I was looking through the computer of my child (who is a minor), I found images of feet of people around the age of the child. They are just images of feet that can be easily googled, nothing more. I do have a feeling that the child has a fetish for foot. Would this be considered possession of child porn?

Answer: No.  Feet are feet.


Title: Time sensitive question.

Question: I've been asked to sign a release form by a guide service that will be running a rock climbing outing for my daughter on summer day camp.  The form states that I assume risk "even if arising from the negligence of the releasees".  My inclination was to cross that clause out and initial it.  My daughter is 13 and the form requires her signature.  Are these standard clauses? Would you sign it? What if it meant your daughter was excluded from the activity?

Answer: Do you want your daughter to participate? If you don't sign it as is, she will likely not be allowed to participate. If there is gross negligence, a release will not save them in court.


Title: Facing termination of employment due to ADHD (urgent)

Question: I am employed at a university in Indiana where I am also a student. The job requires that I maintain a certain GPA or I get fired. I was diagnosed with ADHD 2 semesters ago but the medication (tried different dosages, XR and IR) did not have any effect so the doctor thinks there might have been a misdiagnosis. As one might expect, this took a toll on my GPA and despite the fact that my employer was well aware of the entire situation, I face getting fired for something that I have little control over. What are my options? Are there any laws that pertain to my situation? How should I go about speaking to a lawyer? Any help or suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Answer:
 > I face getting fired for something that I have little control over.

You are being fired for not maintaining the GPA required. You are not being fired for having ADHD.


Title: Ended an abusive relationship last week and my partner was arrested and removed from my house and I have a question I can’t find the answer too.

Question: I recently had my ex girlfriend removed from my house (she had been staying with me but was not on the lease or paying rent) have tried contacting; the police, victim services, and lawyers. I keep getting the run around. My question is: How long do I legally have to hold on to her possessions? She can only come here with a police escort but I’d like for this to be over ASAP.

Answer: Can you not return the property to her family?


Title: Seeking custody of my child from a different state (not your typical situation)

Question: [deleted]

Answer: ARE you actually the child's biological father?  Who has custody now and how long have they had custody of Sam?  How old is Sam?


Title: I'm a Malaysian that is in a same-sex LDR with a Kenyan currently living in the UK, is it possible to get married despite being from countries that do not recognize marriage equality?

Question:
do we both need to be present in a country that **does** recognize marriage equality then?

*if we do that, will she be recognized as my wife if i return to malaysia/she to kenya?

*if lets say, i fall very sick while she and i are living together in malaysia, will the marriage hold any merit *at all* in entitling her to make decisions for me if i were unconscious? or will my toxic Narcissistic "family" still hold the power to bar her from even seeing me?

Answer:
 I think immigration is what you need to do first than think about marriage.Answer #2: Your marriage would be valid in the U.K. And other countries that recognise it, and useful for emergency/immigration purposes in the U.K.

Wouldn't be recognized in your home countries but that's only relevant if you plan to return there to live


Title: Got beat up at a company party (az)

Question:
While at my company's holiday party i got beaten up i don't remember it happening or who did it, due too blacking out.

What i have heard though is that i called a female co-worker a cunt and her boyfriend did beat me up and they left me there,  employers and co-workers i was hospitalized for 4days but had to take four more days off too somewhat fully recover.. I still got to keep my job but at what cost..

What got broke was my nose and fractured both eye sockets and a broken cheekbone.

I didn't even know our had happened the paramedics had to show me a picture of my face for me to believe it when i got to the hospital my blood alcohol level was .29. No police report was filled,  what should i do? I'll answer questions the best of my ability thanks.
Brokemyfaceaway

Answer:
 You can file a police report. You should get help for your drinking problem.

> I still got to keep my job

There are not even words to describe how lucky you are.Answer #2: Just to note, you can almost certainly sue the man who beat you up to recover medical cost and other damages. Were you wrong to call her a cunt? Most likely. Was the other guy wrong to beat you up enough to put you in the hospital? Almost surely. Also note, some states have an exclusion on liability for "fighting words."


Title: Indiana, Hamilton County. Paid ticket, pulled over later saying i didn't. Have receipts. How do I represent myself efficiently and in line with court decorum.

Question:
I was pulled over on the Dec 18 for driving while suspended over failure to pay a ticket for a seat belt violation.

The original infraction occurred late in August. I paid the ticket on October the 26th, the day immediately after the one printed on my ticket.

I never received notice of a suspension or was contacted by anyone until a Carmel police officer pulled me over and notified me.

I asked for a bench trial but before I made my request the Judge gave the courtroom a lecture about the pit falls associated with representing yourself.

I can't afford a lawyer over something as trivial as this. I would greatly appreciate any advice you guys have to offer.

Some things:

I have two receipts from the board of transportation with the date that I paid printed on them.

I know I should go about submitting them into evidence so they may be admitted but beyond that I am unsure.

Should I explain my situation to the prosecutor before hand and see if he won't just drop it before we get started?

Thanks again!
Topic:
Traffic and Parking

Answer:
 Any way your payment method failed?

Either way, Carmel PD are straight up criminal with their traffic enforcement.


Title: Apple Watch While His Kids Are On Food Stamps

Question:
Howdy everyone!  My ex hasn't paid child support in over 2 years and I finally had to take him to court.  He has been living the life while I work 3 jobs to keep our heads above water.  I mean, he lied completely on his Financial Affidavit.  Didn't report 2 incomes, claimed the kids he barely sees on his tax return.  It's a complete mess.

The children and I have been living in HIS father's building rent free.  It's basically a studio, a basement and we are living like litter of puppies.  I've been saving up, but can't swing it in the long run if he still doesn't help support the kids.  Him, his family and his lawyer are convinced that us living there counts as child support, but my lawyer says otherwise.  The building is NOT in his name whatsoever and living here isn't ideal for any of us.

This is the question I have - whose lawyer is right?  We currently live in Illinois.

Answer:
 None of us are in a position to make this determination.

The court will decide that.


Title: [Maine] Suspended from school for threats; now what?

Question: Hey, I am 15M and from Maine. Me and my father have gotten into arguments in the past that have escalated into hitting. Because of this, DHHS is investigating my family. At the same time, I had gotten banned from a small Minecraft server and sent them some threats. This morning I was suspended for 10 days even though almost all of it had occurred off school property and not on a school computer. The principal said she would call the police. Will my father need a lawyer?

Answer:
 Schools have a lot of latitude to suspend students and my guess is this private minecraft server is frequented or operated by other students who expressed concern about your threats and not just randos who figured out which school you go to.

Your Dad may not need a lawyer, he should try going up the chain-o-command first because the principle isn't the boss of the school system...

On the other hand, stop making threats and being a dumbass. You're going to find out it doesn't help and worst case scenario is there's very real consequences even if you're just trying to get even with people who pissed you off by getting a rise out of them.


Title: [Missouri] I might be being sued for an old debt that has past the statute of limitations, and that I've been sued for before.

Question:
So a little background I have some old credit card accounts that have been in default for at least 6 years due to economic hardship. I am still in no financial situation to pay this debt. It is greater than $5,000. Lately I have received letters from 2 attorneys, informing me I am being sued, telling me it is public information and that they can help. I have received one letter with an attorney letterhead involving the debt in question, stating that it is an attempt to collect a debt and all that mumbo jumbo, but it does not state that I am being sued.  I am assuming this is the same debt that the other letters are referring to because it is the only one I have heard from lately. This is a debt to Chase Bank that is now owned by a colections agency.

Let's go back to 2009 or 2010, when I was sued by Chase for this debt. I responded to the summons and represented myself in court. I requested to see their records of my debt (in advance) and a few other things, which they did not provide. The only thing they had were 3 statements showing the last known balance to be much less than the amount they were attempting to collect. The judge asked them to produce further evidence and gave them so many days to do so. The next I heard from the court was that Chase was dropping the lawsuit against me.

Fast forward to now. The statute of limitations in my state for Open Ended debt is 5 years, so that has clearly past. Are they allowed to sue me again for a debt they already sued me for, and obviously it is past the statute, so I'm looking for some advice please. Am I really being sued? I haven't received an actual summons or paperwork from the court showing the charges against me at all, but these other letters are being forwarded from my old address, so perhaps they are attempting to serve me at the wrong location.

Edit: Thanks for all the advice! I am looking more into this. How do I go about finding out if I am actually being sued?
Topic:
Credit Debt Bankruptcy

Answer:
 it's 10 years for breach of contract, your cardholder agreement is a contract

>#[516.110. Within ten years:](http://www.moga.mo.gov/mostatutes/stathtml/51600001101.html)

>(1) An action upon any writing, whether sealed or unsealed, for the payment of money or property;

>(2) Actions brought on any covenant of warranty contained in any deed of conveyance of land shall be brought within ten years next after there shall have been a final decision against the title of the covenantor in such deed, and actions on any covenant of seizin contained in any such deed shall be brought within ten years after the cause of such action shall accrue;

>(3) Actions for relief, not herein otherwise provided for.

>(RSMo 1939 § 1013)


Title: [MA] just signed a lease for rental apt. Turns out metro line is right underneath the building making horrible vibration + apt. is flooded from above and not very usable

Question:
First time renting apt in Boston, MA. Made a 15min visit before, looked quite and good. This is the day of moving in, metro is lines are shaking the walls and floors, not just making noise every 5min. Lines are underground and the nearest station is around 10min walk from the building. During these 15min there was magically no train passing by and nothing was mentioned about it. It was not possible for me to know this before moving in. Lease is 11 months, not a word about train or noise in it. The worst part is that price was not cheap at all and I supposed to get another studio in the same building, but in the fifth floor (that would solve a metro problem) and they messed up with my application even though I delivered a first check and forced me to move into this 1st floor more expensive unit. That`s what you get for 1900/month for small studio apt. here in Boston.

Bonus: they delayed moving in date 3 days saying that minor plumbing was needed. I thought that was related with shower curtain falling off. At the day of moving in they delayed handing over the keys saying they are still finishing plumbing, and building management company wants me to move in tomorrow. Agent said this might be because of some paint might be drying or something so she recommended to move in as late as I can. So I went there 11PM. It was flooded from above and they knew about it since walls were still soaking wet and there was two industrial dehumidifiers blasting full power making horrible noise. Even the shower curtain frame I was told will be fixed was in the same state. Bathroom, kitchen and big part of the corridor are not usable. Some smoke coming out of the ceiling lamp since it is so wet. Impossible to sleep. I would say it will take like 4 days to make a bathroom usable again and I would breath the fresh paint for who knows how long. [some pics here](https://imgur.com/a/rg4OiOP)

Answer: **I would terminate the lease using the condition of the unit as your primary reason** and the public transit disturbance as your secondary reason. This is straight up "failure to deliver possession" and an out for the tenant (if you choose). You can also get into the habitability of the unit...


Title: Let go from job

Question: [deleted]

Answer: It doesn't sound like you have a recourse. It's your responsibility to make certain your vacation is cleared completely before taking it.


Title: [MA] Neighbors looking to regrade their yard

Question:
Hi,
Our neighbors' yard slopes down quite a bit toward our yard, where the land flattens out.  We have not had a problem with standing water due to the other side's water flowing down toward ours.
This may be because it drains well on the way down to us (fairly sandy/rocky soil), and/or it may be because of a drainage easement the town has at the bottom of their yard, just over our property line.

What that drainage easement does is it collects water from further up the hill (like on the street in front of their house) and drains down through a pipe, down their yard, and into this roughly 20-30 ft area along their side of our fence.  I do not know the exact function of this easement but i suspect it is a dry well.  I made an inquiry at the Building Dept. but they did not know and advised to check the deed, which we did but it does not specify technical details - only that the town shall have rights to it at any time.

Our concern is that they want to regrade their yard to make it more usable.  We already know (or think) there is nothing we can do to stop them if this is what they want, even if it includes putting soil over the drainage easement.

My question is:  Is there something we should do or say now, that we will have had to have done or said down the road, if there turns out to be a problem with water on our property after they have regraded their yard?

Thank you!!

edit - update:
They flattened out the grade partway down with a retaining wall and no further drain considerations - it actually worked out fine because by flattening that slope, it slows any runoff up the hill before it picks up steam on the way down, and more of it sinks straight down before running off.

Answer: Anything they do now that causes you water problems is actionable. I would send them a letter voicing your concerns and asking them to take the drainage into consideration. And if the town has a drainage easement remind them of that. Answer #2: Take "before" photos and video of the area. During dry and wet times, if possible. Establish a baseline for future comparison.


Title: Unofficial "Living at Work" Tenancy Question (Hypothetical)

Question:
I hope the title is okay, first time posting here. So I've read a lot about tenancy and eviction laws on LA of course and today I was contemplating an old friend who was in an awkward spot involving living at his workplace. We'll start with the basic situation, then do the legal questions.

This friend worked at a hotel. He was a supervisor but not salaried. He got paid significantly less than his job should have paid based on the market, cost of living, and his qualifications, but he stayed on the property for free. This started in Texas, but he was at one point transferred to Iowa and worked at a resort for a few months. At one point while in Iowa the GM told him he was being let go and gave him until Friday to move out (!) I believe. This was overturned by HR the next day (not sure which wires got crossed there where he was almost mistakenly fired and evicted). He was soon after transferred back to Texas.

He several times during his employment asked about being given a raise to bring him up to a more competitive rate for his job title and one of the arguments for not being given more money was "you don't even have to pay rent". There was no documentation/contract for this living situation AFAIK, and of course Texas is at will so he could be fired technically at any time and the assumption is he would have to move out that week with basically no where to go.

I always felt this was a bad choice my friend got into by being too much of a doormat (I can't imagine being comfortable with an arrangement like this myself), but today I was mulling over the legal implications in employment and tenancy laws.

1) Would he be considered a tenant and need a formal eviction even assuming no formal agreements? Would it be possible for the company to make an agreement absolving them of needing to give sufficient notice to move?

2) Is there a possible income implied for his rent? Say he is claiming unemployment, can he claim the value of his living accommodations as income?

3) Is there any other possible legal implications here I'm missing?

This is of course mainly Texas and possibly Iowa.

I hope this is an interesting a situation to everyone as it is to me. I know this situation was pretty bad for him, but I'm curious how difficult it could have been up for the company. I know they saved money in the long run since I'm pretty sure nothing ever came of this with my friend (we haven't talked in a while, but I assume he upheld the pattern of bad judgement getting into awkward situations; it's doubtful he'd sue or push legal action if he was fired and kicked out suddenly).

Answer: one thing to consider is if they were considering housing part of his rent they'd have to be paying taxes on the value of the rent as though it were income.


Title: [GA] Ticketed for violating "move-over" law -- required court appearance

Question:
A few weeks ago, I was driving down a 5-lane road (2 lanes in one direction, 2 lanes in the opposite direction, middle access lane with yellow lines). I was driving in one of the lanes closest to the middle access lane and passed a police car (I didn't really notice much, but apparently they had another car pulled over?). A few moments later, I see the same police car drive-up behind my car in my rearview mirror and its lights come on. I pull over and they ask me if I saw the "emergency vehicle." I told them I didn't know what they were talking about and they gave me a ticket for violating the "move-over" law, which requires a court appearance late next week.

My first question is, what can I expect to happen in court? I called the courthouse the other day and asked them if the punishment for violating this particular law ever entailed a prison sentence, and the receptionist/assistant said that it usually doesn't but that it could, depending on the judge's "discretion."

Is this an issue I should definitely hire a lawyer for, or is having a lawyer not likely to make much of a difference in the outcome in court? A friend of mine knows someone who is supposed to be a very good Albany-based lawyer, and I got in touch with his office the other day, but his fee for representation is $550, so I'd like to avoid spending the money if it's not likely to improve my chances of receiving a favorable judgment. Then again, I definitely don't mind spending the $550 if I'm at risk of receiving a prison sentence, developing a criminal record, etc. and there's a good chance having a lawyer could make a big difference.

Thanks in advance

Answer: Counting left to right for all the lanes, left shoulder,1,2,3(both directions turn lane),4,5,right shoulder, which lane were you in and which lane was the stopped car and the police car in?


Title: Cost to have an attorney handle my elderly mom's monthly budgeting

Question:
I am looking for an attorney to handle my mom's money.  She's getting too old to stay current on bills, makes random purchases, etc.  I think we can get her to sign PoA.

We just want someone to receive her social security checks (and some subsidies from her kids), pay rent and bills (including paying down some debt), and then deposit the leftover cash in her account.

How much $ will I be looking at for this task.  She will not allow one of the kids to do it.

Edit: Mom lives in Connecticut

Answer:
 An accountant or business manager would cost less than an attorney, IMO, and be better suited to the task.

Her social security checks should be auto-deposited in her bank account, and checks or online banking used to pay bills.   It sounds like it would take an accountant about an hour a month.Answer #2: Sounds like you are looking for a professional fiduciary. A lawyer could do what your asking for but it would be very expensive.


Title: Continuously being sent home soon after arriving at work, losing hours promised.

Question:
I live in Florida and recently it has rained almost every other day. I work at an outside job where if it rains, we can't do our job, and just get sent home. Predicting Florida weather can be challenging, I have gone to work on days where there was a 10% chance of rain and it stormed, and a 50% chance and it drizzled for a couple minutes. I didn't mind this at times, but recently it has started to happen a lot. I have driven to work, it rained, and I got sent home without making enough money to pay the gas I just used.

After getting annoyed by this I looked up if there was anything I could do, and I noticed that there were some places saying that I was entitled to some hours of pay. I don't know if this is true or not, but where I work this isn't the case. They send you home, you clock out right then and there, and it's a done deal. I also have seen some places say that I have the right to stay if I want to. I don't know if this is correct either and I don't want to talk to my boss unless I know for sure what i'm talking about.

Help please.

Answer: Typically you can claim partial unemployment when hours are cut dramatically.  I'm not sure that would count in this case though since your work seems to be heavily dependent upon the weather.  That is beyond the control of your employer.Answer #2: If they let you show up to the door without calling you and telling you not to come in, you are typically entitled to two hours of pay, even if you immediately go home.


Title: [FL] "Open access" Healthcare provider won't approve imaging, treatment

Question:
Preface: I don't think we have any legal recourse, but I have to know for sure, because I can't stand by and watch my girlfriend hurt anymore.

My girlfriend has been struggling with back and leg pain for 8 years. Things have gotten significantly worse in the last few months, and her primary care physician sent her to a spine specialist and to have some imaging done on her lower sacrum and coccyx. Her Healthcare plan through the school system (she is a teacher) is open access which I take to understand she can be seen by any doctor in network, without need for a referral: despite that, she found this morning that 1 of the 2 requests from her PCP for imaging was refused by her provider, and the spine specialist payment was declined as well - leaving her with a $1500 bill that, after 2 phone calls confirming it was covered prior to the appointment, she is now expected to pay for.

I don't know a lot about this stuff. I'm a lowly telecom technician and this medical legalese bullshit makes no sense to me, and before I call and ruin some poor call center reps morning, I need to know if there's anything else I can do, any legal recourse we might have to pressure her provider into approving the diagnostic work and treatments she desperately needs.

Answer:
 IANAL but I do work for an insurance company.

Was the service specifically not covered or did they not pay for it because it applied to her deductible?

Most of the time imaging services will have the deductible apply.

Do you have a copy of the EOB?  If so there should be codes at the bottom that explains what happened on the claim.

Does anything indicate that the claim was actually covered but applied to the deductible? Answer #2: You should also post in /r/insurance


Title: [AZ] My car was totaled in an accident that was the other party's fault. I'm basically getting screwed out of a car, any help?

Question:
So I have a 2013 Honda Accord, a car failed to stop at a stop sign and pulled out in front of me. I hit the tail end of his car, spun and flew head first into a brick wall. My car was totaled but I more importantly was okay.

Fast forward past hospital visits and yada yada, I was doing Honda's "Lease-to-Buy" program where you lease it for 3 years then have the option to buy, it made payments cheaper and was overall a good program to start with. At the point of the accident I had $14,800 left to pay on the vehicle. They valued the vehicle at $15,590. So long story short, after all this I would be left with $790 to go towards a new vehicle. (Obviously not including pain & suffering/other $$$ I'll be receiving.)

I'm in my low 20's, and don't have the best credit. On the Accord I put $2.5k down on the vehicle that I had with the help from family and whatnot. With this new car I would only have $790 which would not help at all, and now my payments would be higher. So my next option is a used car. I do not want to settle for a used car when I was previously driving a "new" car and I did nothing wrong but drive my car down the road that day. With talking to my family we're thinking about lawyering up but we don't know how much that would do.

What do you guys think?
Topic:
Insurance

Answer:
 You had $790 of equity in your vehicle. You were paid out the value of your equity-- you were "made whole" from a liability point of view.

Sucks for you, but you've really got no recourse here past "time to buy a new car."


Title: could Pewdiepie make a lawsuit?

Question:
So many people on the r/pewdiepiesubmissions have been wondering if Felix Kjelberg could make a lawsuit for a thing called i think "Defamation of character" because the many media outlets have been calling him a nazi or racist.

I dont think that Felix would do this,but would it be possible to sue a media outlet?

also sorry for any bed spelling or not ttoo much use of words since im 12 and come from Germany!

Answer:
 /r/legaladviceofftopic

In the United States, the truth is a defense against claims of defamation.  The fact that he was wearing Nazi uniforms and has said multiple racist things on-stream weakens his defense that he's neither a Nazi nor a racist.Answer #2: Well them calling someone a racist is generally a matter of opinion and so immune from a defamation claim. And given his actions I think he'll have a hard time arguing that people calling him a nazi are not either expressing an opinion or just telling the truth.


Title: My dad canceled a car purchase due to unexpected financial circumstances and the bill of sale was signed.

Question:
The car dealership was claiming my dad owns the car since he signed the bill of sale. We explained our current situation since he was unable to afford the car. They insisted we downgrade.

We begged them to cancel the sale since there was no way we can afford a car with our circumstances. Our conversation with the dealership was on a loop and they keep insisting we downgrade despite they were stating there is nothing they can do to cancel the sale. We ended up walking away as my dad felt unwell.

A week later, the salesperson called my dad stating they will cancel the car and they wanted my dad to come there so they can conduct a refund of the downpayment of $50. My dad avoided it as he doesn't want any confrontation with them due to the past experiences.

Four months forward, we received a mail stating the car was registered for an insurance under the dealership without any permission of my dad and as far as we know, the car was canceled.

What can we do? We reside in Alberta, Canada.

**TDLR: Dad purchased a car. Requested it to be canceled despite bill of sale was signed. Salesperson called and they stated they will cancel the car. Today we received a letter regarding the car was registered for an insurance.**

EDIT: Formatting

Answer:
 So your dad bought a car and then wanted to have the dealership void their contract because he changed his mind? They has absolutely no obligation to do that.

Then they did agree to cancel but instead of going in and actually taking that offer your dad just ignored them?


Title: [MI] Question about Medical Marijuana Dispensary

Question: Hello everyone. I am a new MMJ patient in MI. I have yet to pick a designated caregiver and have been getting my medicine from a dispensary in the city I live in. Recently they were raided by some type of law enforcement agency (not sure if it was local cops, feds, etc). The dispensary owner has stated the seizure was illegal and she won't be able to open again until she gets more product. They didn't sell anything except for flowers -- no edibles, oils, etc and apparently had all of the proper paperwork filed and approved. I have no idea why they were really shut down, but somewhere I feel like maybe I should avoid that place if they re-open.  Say this dispensary was operating illegally, do patients have liability in some form? I haven't yet found anything in the Michigan law that says I can't purchase from a properly licensed dispensary, but the last thing I want to do is unknowingly be obtaining my meds in violation of the MI MMJ laws.  Due to the fact that ignorance of any given law isn't a solid defense, I thought I'd see if anyone here had any insight.

Answer: Had the same thing happen to a former dispensary of mine-it was the Feds who did it. As far as I know, there was no legal liability to me-other than acknowledging the fact MM is still illegal federally, and while they're not really supposed to go after patients anymore, they still technically can. IANAL, but you're probably fine. I would change dispensaries however, in my personal opinion-unless of course that's not possible due to price or medical disability. If they've done something to get on the radar, that's usually not a good thing.


Title: Suing my university for neglecting their duty of care resulting in mental anguish.

Question:
At the beginning of my first semester of university i was living in residence and was exposed to a situation where one of our friends was drugged and raped. We called the ambulance for her from our residence and spoke to police, special constables, and residence life staff about the situation that night. From what we know she never gave the police a name so nothing could be brought against the person even though we knew who it was (not in residence).

A few weeks later the accused rapist was on our floor of residence (the top floor) and we had to call the duty don to get them removed. Throughout this entire situation which is clear a traumatizing event for anyone especially first year university students the university (more specifically Residence Life) never made contact with us in any way. Residence life also did not staff an RA or don on our floor until the second semester. In two unrelated meetings with residence life i brought up this issue and the fact that the students involved had a traumatizing experience and should be talked to. Both times they promised to get back to me and never mentioned it again. It’s now been several months and they have said nothing to either of us, we now have a don but they were unaware of this ever occurring and we got the don months after.

Do we have a case for negligence?

Myself and another student involved are hoping on going to Ontario small claims court and seeking damages for mental anguish and academic impact under the universities duty of care. I do not want this to happen to future students.

I have meetings set up with the head of residence and the dean of students to explain how policy needs to change. Is there anything I should avoid saying in these meetings or anything?

Thank you for any advice
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 > Do we have a case for negligence?

I'm not all that familiar with Snow Mexico's laws, but I'd have to say no. Not only did your friend never even give this person's name to police, so there's no record of them committing any crime, but I'm failing to see where any negligence ever actually occurred in your story.


Title: (Los Angeles,CA) Can I use video/audio evidence of a conversation I had with a business owner on their private property and they didn't know they were being recorded in small claims court? (Excuse the title gore)

Question: I had no other options except to videotape his bs. I left my phone on the desk (so the camera is facing the ceiling) with video running. It is a ~25 minute video. This was all in their facilities. There was no other way I could catch these guys being in the act. The way I see it, I was documenting a crime. And it may make or break my case because the business owner says some things that would definitely work in my favor.

Answer: California is pretty strict on recording laws. You have to have the consent of *all* parties in the conversation. Not only will this be inadmissible in court, you likely committed a crime.


Title: Assaulted with a weapon, didnt press charges, what next?

Question:
&#x200B;

One of my relatives was attacked by her husband in a public-ish area with a knife, getting her a few shallow slashes on her arm before she ran away. Someone noticed and called the police who then arrested him. My relative chose not to press charges since her husband is, for lack of a better term, mentally unstable. They don't know what he's dealing with yet just that he has some mental disabilities. She also chose not to bail him out but I don't know anything beyond that. Does anyone know what happens next or why they're still holding him? Are they awaiting a trial even though she chose not to press charges?

Answer: She doesn't get to decide whether he's charged or not. They are holding him because bail hasn't been established yet.


Title: The Jail I Was In Refused My Medicine.

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Disability Issues

Answer:
 Too fact specific for the internet.

Speak to a personal injury attorney in FL. Most offer free consultations. Answer #2: It is extremely common for jails not to accept the medication which comes from the person being arrested, because they don't know if the medication inside matches what was actually prescribed. During indoc, they're supposed to ask about any medications, and then either fill them from the jails formulary or use the items provided by the inmate, after it has been reviewed by their medical officer. This process can take time, but they aren't responsible for your withdrawal symptoms if they were following their established program. They would still be required to cover the injury which occurred while you were in their custody; but temporarily denying you the medication likely isn't a violation, even if it resulted in harm to you. Answer #3: Did a doctor diagnose your seizure as withdrawal?


Title: Okay please help

Question:
Okay so I had to get a root canal, basically I needed a new dentist and we went to the local one that swore up and down they took our insurance, we just got a 900$ bill in the mail from them saying that basically they’re “sorry” they didn’t tell us and that we have to pay up front bc they don’t take our insurance
Topic:
Insurance

Answer: Unfortunately, the customer is responsible for verifying coverage, so you are liable for it.


Title: [Florida] I need to establish a 'My Social Security' account for my elderly mother, but the website warns against opening an account for anyone but yourself

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Get Social Security to name you your mother's "Representative Payee".  They'll then make the check payable to "(your name) as representative payee for (her name)".  You'll need to keep this money in a separate account and to file a quick accounting form with the SSA once a year.  Details are here:

https://www.ssa.gov/payee/


Title: neighbour harrassment

Question:
Ontario -I am in the midst of what I guess you would call a neighbour dispute.  Long story short, we occasionally host bbq's and have music within reason, and the neighbours do not like it.

The neighbour worked for a provincial service in which she used her position to gain access to my driver and vehicle records, as well as those of everyone who visited my home.  I initiated a privacy investigation and she was fired as a result once they confirmed she breached my privacy and others around me.  The privacy office informed me that it was the worst case of a privacy breach that they had seen.  She has used the information she obtained about me to harrass and threaten me.

The neighbour calls the police almost weekly complaining of the noise, the police attend but have not once found us to be unreasonable and we have received no tickets or any punishment.  She reports us to the city's municipal standards office for noise, snow, my chihuahua, garbage and anything else she can think of.   Again, no tickets, fines from the city.  She is grasping an anything she can find to harrass us.

I am at my wits end.  We are first time home owners, having lived in our home for just over 2 years.  This has been occurring since we moved in.  She has vowed to drive us out of our home and is constantly trying to provoke and harrass us.

Is there anything I can do to stop this?  Is there grounds for me to bring this to the police to lay charges?  Do I have grounds for a civil lawsuit?

Answer:
 Given that you have evidence that she broke rules and were fired from her job in her pursuit of you, you might be able to bring a case of harassment against her.

The many unwarranted calls and complaints to police and the city ought to count in your favor.Answer #2: I just noticed I rage more about the busybody neighbor posts than the meth cook neighbor posts. Answer #3: There is a tort called 'nuisance' that you can bring up in civil court. You just need to show that she's preventing you from reasonable enjoyment of your property. I doubt you'd get much money out of it unless you suffered any financial loss, but the judge can order an injunction on the neighbour. Then if they continue to harass you, they can be charged with contempt.


Title: Jane the Virgin Hypothetical Situation

Question:
There's a TV show I just found called Jane the Virgin.  It's about a 23 year old virgin who is accidentally artificially inseminated with a guy's junk.  And a legal situation just popped up, and I'm wondering whether it would hold up in court (I'm assuming no, but I figured I'd ask).

The players:

Jane: Virgin who is accidentally impregnated

Raphael: The father of the accidental baby; he had a sperm sample frozen years before, and his wife was about to get artificially inseminated with the sample, but it was accidentally given to Jane

Petra: Raphael's soon to be ex wife, tried to get pregnant with Raphael's sample

Before Jane got pregnant, Petra and Raphael drew up a preadoption contract that lined up how they would get a surrogate to carry their baby.  Petra is trying to use that contract to claim that Jane is the surrogate, and therefore Petra has a legal claim to the baby with Raphael.  Raphael is trying to divorce Petra and is dating Jane.  Both Jane and Raphael want to keep the baby and cut Petra out.

So, there's no way Petra could get custody, right?

Yes, it's an absurd show but it's making fun of Latin soap operas and is kind of fun.

Answer: Absent Jane's consent there is absolutely no way Petra would get custody.  The person you have the surrogate contract with is the surrogate, and absent such a contract, Jane is the legal mother.


Title: I'm unsure if my marriage license was legal.

Question:
I moved in with a SO Fall 2011. We then got married Spring 2014 in North Carolina even though we live in Virginia. We obtained a license beforehand. We signed it. However, the license was not returned to the court within 10 days. We never received a copy of the marriage license in the mail. We attempted to request one and it was never received. I moved out of our shared residence December 2014. We have been apart ever since.

My question is if our marriage is still valid even though we did not return the license on time. Our state doesn't recognize civil marriages so I'm unsure.

Answer: Contact North Carolina's vital records department to see if it has a record of your marriage. You'll probably have to pay a small fee to get the information.


Title: (WI)Fathers Wrongful Death suit didnt cover everything, help

Question:
Hello.  My father passed away a few years ago by being cut off by a car while he was driving a motorcycle and passed away.  As such we filed a wrongful death suit there was for a large hospital bill we presumed that would take care of my fathers estate.  Well my brother and I kept one of his Harleys and his old camaro since all of his belongings that were smaller and meant something to us/him mysteriously disappeared and these were the two items we want to carry on his legacy.  Well it turns out today(the wrongful death suit is already closed) that there were a bunch more medical bills from a different segment of the hospital or completely different hospitals(same occurrence though).  Now the estate is trying to take away the only items we took of our father's.  Is there anything we can do??
EDIT: Removed firm name

Answer:
 It's highly unlikely you will be able to get any more money from the wrongful death suit. I'm guessing it was settled (these things usually are), and these settlements almost always are worded in a way to cut off future claims. You can contact your attorneys for the suit to confirm though if you want. If they were negligent in not discovering these outstanding bills, you might have a lawsuit against them as well.

How long has it been since your father's death, and probate closed already? Creditors only have a specific amount of time to notify the estate of claims after a death, assuming they were appropriately notified. But we don't have enough info here to confirm if things were done correctly here. There's always a chance the hospital screwed up, and they are just approaching an incompetent executor trying to get whatever money they can.Answer #2: You can buy the items from the estate for their fair market value.


Title: Neighbor installed a bright security light directly into my bedroom window, just 15 feet away. In Los Angeles, is there anything I can do?

Question:
Tonight I came home to find that my neighbor had installed two ultra-bright security floodlights, shining toward my house.  One of them shines into a window of what we had intended to be our nursery, roughly 10 feet from the light.  The other, and the most currently distressing, shines directly into our bedroom window, just 15 feet from where the neighbor installed the light.  Even with curtains, both of the rooms are illuminated by the light.

After a quick search, I didn't find anything about light pollution laws for Los Angeles specifically.  Is there anything relatively inexpensive I can do to get him to fix this?  (I have access to a lawyer through my university for very limited uses.)

Finally, I should note that, though we intend to politely ask the neighbor to consider redirecting the lights or placing hoods on them, I am not hopeful about this strategy.  Once, several years ago when this neighbor was blasting music past 3am, I asked the next day if he could keep it down in the future.  He responded aggressively, and ended up saying that if he saw me on the steps near his house again he would call the police.  I contacted my landlord about it, and she informed me that she has documents showing that those steps may be used by occupants of her home as well as his; his threat was empty, and he had to have known it.  So... not a nice or reasonable guy.

(Last note: I'd love to move, but the rental market in LA is insane.  We'll be buying more black-out curtains as a temporary solution, but it'll be sad to lose the ability to look out our windows because our neighbor is an asshole.)

Answer: Call code enforcement and ask, but there's a good chance you'll have to solve this with blackout curtains or a sleep mask.Answer #2: My neighbor tried the same shit with me. Put up a motion sensor light at the dividing line in our shared carport that blasted me right in the face when I walked into the carport. I simply installed a small square of plywood in front of the light, effectively blocking the light at the source. Neighbor took the light down the next day. Maybe you could put up a screen at the fence line to block the light...Answer #3: Is his bedroom on the facing wall? A mirror angled to redirect the light into his bedroom should put a point on it.


Title: Trouble with jury duty

Question: My aunt in law was an illegal immigrant who voluntarily went back to her country of origin. The remaining family here in the states keep getting notices for her to serve jury duty. We’ve tried calling and saying that she isn’t in the country anymore but we keep getting notices saying that she needs to come in or else she’ll be in contempt. What are the next steps that we need to take to handle this? She’s trying to get a work visa to come back and having a warrant could really mess that up.

Answer:
 Is your aunt a US citizen now? I'm confused since you said she was an illegal immigrant but never mention that she is a US citizen. If she's not a citizen, contact them back and tell them that.

If she is a citizenship, keep calling them and ask for a new date. You may also be able to do this online if it says on the summon. Normally, they won't ask for proof but if they do, send them your aunt's itinerary.


Title: [Tennessee] My best friend's grandfather died and left a car behind. It's been sitting outside his house for a year but his family is complacent with not doing anything with it at all. My best friend needs transportation to get a job. How can we get it in his name?

Question:
So my friend is unsure of where to start with getting this car and I want him to succeed so here I am. Like the title says, his grandfather passed away leaving behind a truck that's been sitting outside my friend's house for over a year now, unused. He's 19 years old and needs a job and cant get a job if he can't get to a job so he's been asking if he can have/use the truck, but no one really seems to be putting much effort into getting it into legal usable condition.

We're pretty sure the truck legally belongs to his mother since she's the grandfather's step daughter and she has the keys and the truck is parked outside of her house. There was no will so it wasn't officially willed down.

The title of the car is evidently lost. No one seems to know where it is. The plates expired over a year ago along with the insurance that was under the grandfather's name. My main question would be how do we get a new title, how do we approach getting insurance for it, and how do we renew the plates? I know how to do all these things under normal circumstances, but how does the situation change with it previously having belonged to a now dead man and it being completely unused for over a year?

We appreciate any ideas and will answer any questions as quickly as possible. Thanks for your time.
Topic:
Wills Trusts and Estates

Answer:
 If it doesn't belong to him, he has no right to it.

It's the property of whoever it was left to. If they don't want to get it in working condition, that's how it's gonna be.


Title: Customer paid for repairs, customer hasn't / won't pick up car. It's been here for 4 years. (Kentucky, USA)

Question:
Recently purchased a mechanics shop and the previous owner of the shop informed me that the car on the side of the building has been there for 4 years. It's a an old 60's Chevy Nova.

.
.
.

The work done to it had already been paid for but the customer never came to get it and eventually stopped answering calls. I was able to get the name on the registration and the address. The taxes have been paid on it and it hasn't been reported stolen.  Assuming they haven't died, what's my best option? Can I send a certified letter to their address demanding they pick it up? (and what do I do if they ignore that letter?)

Answer:
 Get a lawyer.  You can get a lien on the vehicle "for the reasonable or agreed charges for repairs, work done or accessories or supplies furnished for the vehicle, ***and for storing or keeping the vehicle***”

Lawyer can perfect the lien and issue a demand for 4+ years’ worth of storage costs.  If they ignore demand then your lawyer can help you execute the lien (i.e. sell the car to pay your bill and forward any balance to the original owner).

[KRS § 376.270 Lien on motor vehicle for repairs, storage or accessories](http://www.lrc.ky.gov/statutes/statute.aspx?id=35314)


Title: Roommate stole my debit-card and took $750 from it last night

Question:
( Viginia Beach, Va U.S.) My roommate has a very bad coke and heroin addiction. We have a past that goes way back and I don't want to get her in trouble but my livelihood is in jeopardy now. I know which 7-11 she pulled the money from so I know she is on surveillance. It was all the money I've been saving up for a year and 2 months to get out of this place and find a more peaceful living arrangement, now it's gone and the way I feel right now has no words to describe it. I f I call the police right now that's it right? No turning back from that but I'm so torn. If I wait I risk not getting anything back via insurance though too, right? I guess I just hope I can hear from someone who has been through something like this before, I'm at the verge of tears. What are my options, if any?

Edit: Didn't know to include location

Answer:
 Call the police and your bank immediately. There is hope for you to get the money back if you do.Answer #2: >What are my options, if any?

Call your card company immediately to report it stolen. Then call the police directly afterwards.Answer #3: Assuming she took the card and you didn't give it to her, call your card and let them know.

You can call the police or not. Your card may require it.

Answer #4: How did she get your pin?


Title: Sister is letting abusive husband move back in; what's his plan?

Question:
As short as I can make this: "Wilma" and "Fred" are almost divorced, I think the decree is not yet signed (we're in South Carolina). He is violent, moved out after fight 2 years ago; kids are 16 and 9. Judge orders him to pay child support and mortgage, which he stops after 3 months or so and house eventually goes into foreclosure; it will be up for auction next month. He has dodged financial responsibility largely because his parents paid for a very good lawyer, much better than the  one that Wilma could afford.

Fred is disabled from a work comp accident, gets that check monthly plus SSI; Wilma is not able to find regular work because of criminal charges Fred and the 16-year old filed (not so much as parking ticket before that).

The 16-year old claimed that Wilma beat him (not true; tried, convicted, overturned on appeal) and that Wilma was the instigator in the domestic violence incident (not true; she fought back, got to the phone to call 911, convicted, fined). 16 year old was allowed to stay full time with Fred and the 9 year old spends one week with him, one with her, back and forth.

Ugliest divorce you can imagine but now she is ready to let him come back (he's been begging, says he's changed) because she hates not having her kids full time. Her kids are absolutely everything and she will give up everything (including self respect, whatever) to get them back.

My question is: isn't the timing on this sudden change of heart a bit suspicious? Fred is a con man with a *very* lengthy criminal history and I'm not shrewd enough to know what his play is. I know he's always wanted the house so I wonder if there's some angle that will allow him to get the house back from the auction block if he is residing there.

So: if you were a street smart con man, your divorce is almost but not quite official, the mortgage hasn't been paid in two years (during which time you have done every single thing possible to destroy your ex's life) but now you've sweet-talked your way back into the house... What is the goal here? This guy doesn't do anything that isn't to his advantage, and I just don't think enough like a con artist to figure out what he's doing.

Forgive me if the is is in the wrong place, but I figured the this is where the best minds are. Thanks~

Answer:
 >I just don't think enough like a con artist to figure out what he's doing.

>but I figured the this is where the best minds are

Most subtle lawyer insult I've seen all year.