Title: Help! Judgement for $250,000

Question:
I am in dire need of some legal advice!

I purchased a boat back in 2005 for $250,000.  I paid it down till i owed about $140,000 more.  I decided to give it back to the bank in 2008 as i did not use it anymore (to settle the debt).  I basically walked in and handed them the keys to the boat and said call it even.  (I paid $110,000 of it already & fair market value was $170,000, well over the selling price of $250,000).

The market value in 2008 on my boat was about $170,000.  The bank ended up holding onto it for a few years and selling it for $50,000 ($120,000 below market value)

I just recently (6 years later!) received a letter saying that a judgement has been awarded to the creditor in the amount of $240,000!!!!????  They want to garnish my wages until the debt is paid.

So here are the numbers:
Purchased in 2005 for: $250,000
Owed: $110,000 (at time of trade in 2008)
Bank Sold it in 2011 for: $50,000
Judgement Against me (with interest)= $240,000

How could this happen!?  Can I fight it?  I was never served however it said on file that one of my employees an "andrew" was served with the proper documents....I have never had an "andrew" work for me.  The courts are saying since I never told them i wasn't served I am liable for the debt plus interest....but how could i know that i wasn't served if i wasn't served!!!??? MADNESSS!

I asked a local attorney what I could do, and he pretty much said either reduce my w-2 wages so low they don't ever get a lot of money from me (I own my own company), move to another state, file bankruptcy, or hire him to fight it at $1,000 down plus 10% of whatever he saves meds.  To be honest none of those options appeal to me seeing as how I didn't really do anything wrong other than take the banks word.

I realize this situation was likely my fault as I should have gotten an agreement from the bank in writing that ensured my debts were clear.  But it is to late now.

So my question is can i fight this & if so how?

Any help or advice is extremely appreciated.

Oh and this all happened in CA where I live.

Answer:
 > So my question is can i fight this & if so how?

You hire that attorney you spoke to.  Or someone like him.  The chances of you successfully appealing this matter are slim - especially as by *any* calculation you owe them at least $90,000


Title: My neighbors townhouse caught on fire

Question:
So my next door neighbors townhouse caught on fire. The cause was a water heater thermostat. A month prior, I noticed a burning plastic smell and caught mine shorting. It could have been much worse in my case but wasn't. The maintenance guy even said we were lucky. And that he needs to check others.

Obviously he didn't because that was the cause of my neighbors. The fire fighters even said so. The community manager told us she would have cleaning crews over within the next few days to shampoo carpets and clean everything. That never happened, but I was moving out anyways.

Now I'm being charged cleaning fees for the moveout, including the carpet I was told specifically not to worry about. The worst part is, she told me verbally, not in writing. This is while there's still 8 fire trucks in the parking lot and a lot of commotion.

What can I do? If she wouldn't have told me that, I would have paid the $30 to clean it myself, but instead I now have almost $500 in fees.

Located in south eastern Virginia. Any advice is appreciated.

Answer:
 Document, document, document. Take photos off the entire house, videos as well. If they do end up withholding portions of your for cleaning up areas that were damaged by the fire, then you can sue them smalls claims court. Smalls claims court is pretty easy and doesn't cost to much to file.

You can also google your states landlord/tenat laws to help you out as well.


Title: Can my boss keep me from having drinking water at my desk area? CA

Question:
So my boss is all stressed from an audit we have this week from the head of our clients department and this big shot is requesting we don’t have drinking water at our areas. Can he do that?

Specifics: I work in security and am stuck in a room by myself all day and have to be relieved by another officer before I can exit my spot to even use the bathroom. The walk to the water fountain or break area is around 5-7 mins and would inconvenience everyone involved because the relief officers have to give breaks at certain times as well. Our breaks are spaced out around every 2 1/2 hours apart. My boss has said they are in compliance because there are water fountains in the building. I couldn’t find details about how accessible the water has to be.

Is he right that he’s in compliance to CA laws? Could someone link me if he is not so I can forward him?
Topic:
Labor Law (Unions)

Answer:
 >My boss has said they are in compliance because there are water fountains in the building.

Yes, but if you can't leave your station to go get water, then how could this possibly suffice?

[See here for California.](http://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/etools/08-006/EWP_water.htm)

>Our breaks are spaced out around every 2 1/2 hours apart.

Not legal. 2 hours.Answer #2: Short answer is yes probably. OSHA just requires access to drinkable water it doesn't specify it has to be all the time. How often do you get a water break during the average day?


Title: Saved an attemped suicide - now he is making jokes

Question:
Hey everyone. This is my first time posting here but I really don't know what else to do. I'm going to give a brief account of what happened out of respect for the guy.

A guy in my university club attempted to commit suicide, my friend and I found him in his car, broke in, took him out, got him breathing again and he became stable and everyone was grateful for us. No brainer, would do it for anyone and I'm glad we could save him.

Now this guy

Answer: There's nothing illegal about being douchey and ungrateful. What is your desired outcome here?


Title: I want to open an Imitation Wax Museum, wondering about my defence for when anyone famous tries to sue me because the wax model looks nothing like them?

Question:
My small, run down wax museum lives a sad life crammed into a loft reconverted into a warehouse. Unless they're on the road, then they travel in cheap defective body bags I bought online. The circus tent is a discontinued pattern from the 1860s that failed because the pattern reminded too many people of their underwear, which isn't true today. Me and these 450 other discount imitations of human beings were wondering, after a short brainstorming session, if it was a clear shot to running our own business.

That is, an Imitation Wax Museum. The Imitation bit being key, since I mean to be a parody of the idea of a Wax Museum, part of the appeal would be all the famous wax imitations are poorly-chosen. Because the concept is a meta-joke it could be possible that a Celebrity sees themselves, either by visiting the museum as paying customer or seeing a photograph, but thinks we are making fun of them with a badly-done wax replica. We are, but we're not targeting them any more than we make fun of every celebrity in the wax museum, and since we can tell them the joke but whether or not they choose to believe us isn't up to us.

All the wax dummies I work with aren't great convesationalists, but talking to an entitled celebrity about a joke they don't get is like talking to a brick wall but the brick wall can sue you into next week and get your favourite show canceled.

So to avoid all that trouble ahead of time, I'd like to tell you that the Imitation Wax Museum wasn't real.

🙉🙈🙊

Answer:
 Parody is a defense in copyright and trademark infrigement cases, and was used in at least one personality rights case with Hallmark and Paris Hilton. Whether or not the whole idea is protected speech, or infringement will depend on the specifics facts, it is not automatic that all parodies are protected. Look at Winter v. DC Comics, Hoffman v. Capital, and Comedy Three v. Gary Saderup. Answer #2: I like this "LAOT After Dark" content!Answer #3: I want to go to this museum right now.Answer #4: You could argue that you tried really really hard and make it seem that it wasn’t intentional, the artists just really bad lmaoAnswer #5: Quick question:

What is the process for determining a body bag is defective?Answer #6: I would absolutely visit this museum, & bring my crazier friends.


Title: Husband arrested, DUI, Striking a pedestrian, leaving the scene.

Question:
I know drinking and driving is NOT cool. I am always on him about not drinking and driving but he doesn't listen. A few years ago he had an accident (No one involved but him) and was DUI but the case got held back and was supposed to have a hearing this summer.

Early Wednesday Morning (1am), he was on his way home after drinking and he struck a pedestrian. Instead of staying he fled the scene. Luckily the pedestrian's injuries were minor but my husband was arrested.

Normally I would say well tough luck, you should have known better except....  I am disabled and do not yet receive disability. I need him to be home and he and my son depend on him for financial support.

Despite knowing this the judge socked it to him. This is his third offense the first being almost 20 years ago and the other pending. Despite the hardship the judge denied bail and is keeping him until the 30th. My husband will likely plead guilty and go to prison unless he gets lucky... I don't know how.

Is there anything I can do, being that I am very ill, we have a child under ten, and he is the only income earner in the house? I understand he should be punished. He was stupid. He chose to drink and drive. He almost killed someone. He should pay for his actions... But my son and I should not.

I know this is a casualty of  his wrong doing, but is there anything I can do to possibly get the judge to release him until his hearing? He's not a flight risk and has never missed a hearing ever. Just home to prepare for him going to jail if possible, finding me help and seeing his son who needs his daddy.

Any advice would be appreciated. Not for him... but for me.

For the record I don't drink alcohol at all. I don't smoke. I don't do drugs. I am disabled and often unable to get out of bed. I cannot grocery shop without him and I have no family or anyone to help as I have isolated myself because stress makes me sicker and...yeah.

You can only imagine how my body is handling this. I am trying to stay calm for my son's sake and for the sake of my health but I'm falling apart.

Answer:
 You didn't list your location, but if the judge has denied bail, there's nothing you can do other than find him an attorney.

He's likely looking at some serious prison time.

The only thing I can think of is that you might qualify for some assistance.  What is the nature of your disability?


Title: [CT] My mother (49, F) is threatening to have my car taken when I (22, F) move out

Question:
To make a long story, in January, my mother co-signed a car loan with me because of my limited credit history. Both our names are on the loan, as well as, the registration. Tonight, she told me either her name comes off the loan or she'll have the bank take it from me in a disagreement about moving out. I checked with my lender and they don't offer refinancing options at this time. I currently make all the car payments and I made the down payment myself. However, for 3-4 months, she did give me money towards car payments to help, but only $70 of the whole $270 minimum payments. None of the payments were late.  Does my mother have any legal way she can follow through with this threat? If she decides to sue for the car, will she have a case against me?

Thank you in advance.
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer: Try other lenders. You don't have to refinance with the same bank. If the won't help you, find one who will, take out a new loan, and pay off the old loan with the proceeds. People do this all the time. Answer #2: Her cosigning your loan doesn't give her any legal authority or ownership. She can't make the bank do anything, and if she tries they'll laugh at her.


Title: Did I get a text from an undercover/off duty cop??

Question:
(This is in the United States)

I encountered an angry driver at a stop sign. I thought it was my way to go, he thought it was his way to go, or something of that nature. I decided to go assuming it was my turn, but he evidently thought otherwise... he started honking, and kept shouting at me as I slowly drove away. I kept looking back at my rear view mirror and he kept shouting at me.

I was a little shaken. I decided to keep driving. I didn't want to stop and apologize because he was very animated and seemed really angry! I was just so confused! It was a small street, in a calm neighborhood!

Anyway, I keep driving and pull to the side a few blocks away to calm down and see if I was being followed. Right around then (10 mins from the encounter), I got a freaking text from the driver!!! Something like "Expect a ticket soon ... "

How did this person do this? Was he an undercover or off duty cop? Is he allowed to send me a text like this? Can he even look up my information like this?

Now I am scared because he probably has my address! And on top of that, my car is not from the same state, so he had access to the DMV of a different state!

Can I do something here?

Answer:
 I would probably go down to the station and file a formal complaint. You have his telephone number, which means it can be identified.

You can also reply, and ask who the text is from, what it is regarding. If it is the incident, you can apologize and give him the chance to forget it ever happened.

If he continues pressing on, I'd lodge that complaint, perhaps as intimidation or harassment.

Attorney would be the extreme?

Update the lost when you find out!Answer #2: > How did this person do this? Was he an undercover or off duty cop?

Maybe.

> Is he allowed to send me a text like this?

Nothing banning it.  It may be unprofessional, but there's no legal issue.

> Can he even look up my information like this?

Sure.  There's nothing wrong with him identifying a driver that he plans to issue a citation to.Answer #3: Hey I'm not saying you did something wrong, but...

>I thought it was my way to go, he thought it was his way to go, or something of that nature. I decided to go assuming it was my turn, but he evidently thought otherwise...

If you know the rules of the road, you shouldn't "think" or "assume" whose turn it is to go. You should *know*. Obviously, we can't always memorize every single rule, I'm just saying that it's our duty to remember how right of way works, it leads to less confusion, accidents, and you won't end up saying things like "i thought it was my turn to go" in traffic court.


Title: Could someone be compelled to attend mental health treatment as part of a trespassing charge? [Colorado]

Question:
A mentally ill relative was recently charged with trespassing in Colorado. He went into a business he had previously been banned from and was subsequently arrested or cited (not sure). Against medical advice, he's off his meds and not attending therapy. We called the local DA and let them know this background.

He was offered a plea deal and turned it down, so he'll be going to trial soon. I'm wondering if he's just going to get a fine for trespassing, or if it's possible for the court to "sentence" him to mental health treatment? Could he go to jail for trespassing?

Thanks for any information.

Answer:
 Yes, he can almost certainly go to jail for trespassing.

The court can make nearly anything a condition of probation- including mental health treatment.

In fact, more and more areas are getting "mental health courts" which are set up specifically to deal with people who have mental illness, with an eye toward treatment instead of punishment as a goal.


Title: [NY] Got a traffic ticket for "Passed Red Signal" (VTL 1111d1) but I think I may have a case for why I did it. Is it worth pursuing or should I just mail in the guilty plea?

Question:
So, a few days ago, I was driving in upstate New York at around midnight. I was following a truck closely (but not dangerously/illegally close) behind because I am terrified of a deer smashing into my car and that seemed like a reasonable thing to do. Me and this truck passed through a very small city where the speed limit is 30MPH. This truck was going slower than that, and the only reason why thats important is because the slowness of the truck combined with its height made it so I could not see the traffic signal when it had turned yellow or red. The truck must have just made it through the yellow because when I saw the red light it was already too late to stop. I 100% went through the red light, but I believe it was not my fault. Unfortunately when I explained this to the cop who pulled me over, he was not understanding and issued me a ticket.

This past weekend was actually my college graduation and thats why I was in upstate NY. I live about 4 hour drive away from where this occurred, which means that if I do show up in court it would be an 8 hour round trip experience which I am hesitant to do already because of gas costs. Being an unemployed recent graduate with student loans needing repayment, I really can not afford the cost of this ticket and the raise in insurance rates it may bring. That is why I need to know if I have a case for fighting this ticket.

Now, I would like to know a few things.

1) Should I bite the bullet and drive four hours to get to this court date in order to try to defend myself with the information above?

2)If I plead not guilty in person but then am convicted of the traffic offense, is the monetary amount more than if I simply plead guilty

3)In New York traffic courts, do they go easier if you show up rather than a simple mail in plea

4)The ticket says I have the option to mail in a guilty or non guilty plea. Does mailing in a non guilty plea have the same effect of showing up?

Any help is appreciated, my family and I are already living paycheck to paycheck and any added expense is a huge burden to bear.

Answer:
 >  I was following a truck closely (but not dangerously/illegally close)

but

> I could not see the traffic signal

Following so close you can't see warning lights at night is per se too fucking close.


Title: Drugs Through Mail

Question:
Throwaway account.

My stepson has been ordering prescription drugs through the U.S. postal service to our home address.  He is 19, his full name is on the incoming packages, the most recent having been sent priority 1-day express mail from a business in Florida.  We live in New York State.  The most recent package contained appx 1000 pills of Xanax.  A previous package contained about 100 milligrams of a powdery benzo.  My stepson was kicked out of the house 3 months ago for his behavior, unwillingness to pay rent, etc, and technically he does not live here.

I realize that this is not "give illegal advice" nor is a "parenting" reddit. I'm trying to get information so I can make the best decision on how to handle this situation.  Ideas range from "turn him in to the authorities" to "discreetly dispose of the pills, warn him that if this happens again he'll be turned in", etc.  We don't want him in jail, and he is in counseling, and we want to give him as many chances as possible to shape up before ending up in legal trouble.  At the same time, we don't want to find ourselves in trouble with the law for assisting or enabling a crime.

All that said, what are the possible ramifications of 1) turning him in to the police (he currently does not have a record except for a few traffic violations) or 2) disposing of the drugs (in which case, what would be the safest way of doing this) or 3) some other solution?

Thanks for the help.

Answer:
 A thousand tabs of Xanax, counterfeit or no, is well into possession-for-trafficking territory. It's quantities like that that attract the DEA's attention.

Stop talking to everyone about this right now and go straight to a criminal defense lawyer. Answer #2: 1) Ordering quantities that large through the mail is a pretty serious crime, assuming he doesn't have a prescription for it.  1000 pills is probably enough to get him on distribution charges.  So he could be facing several years in jail if you turn him in.  And there's no way to prevent the DA from charging him one way or another once you turn evidence over

2) Doing that would be destruction of evidence, which would implicate you in the crimes, so nobody here will advise you on the best way to do that.

3) Mark all such future packages "Not at this address, return to sender" and have the post office return them.  That way you've never taken possession of whatever might be inside of them

EDIT:  I forgot the most important piece of advice.  You need to speak with a criminal defense attorney yesterdayAnswer #3: Have a meeting with an attorney tomorrow.  Thanks for the advice.


Title: Dissafiliating with a fraternity

Question: So I joined my fraternity 2 years ago and had a great time and met great friends. I paid for dues myself and spent a lot of money, but for the most part it was worth it. I recently came into some financial trouble so I had to request to go inactive. While I was in the fraternity, they created a Bylaw that required members to pay a $500 inactive fee. Because I was leaving for financial reasons in the first place, I requested this be waived for me. For whatever reason, they denied my request. With no other option I requested to be expelled in order to get around this fee. Some how they denied this request as well. So can my fraternity force me to pay this “inactive” fee,  if I no longer want to even be considered an inactive member? They are threatening to send the $500 to collections.

Answer:
 If you signed a contract agreeing to pay the inactivity fee, or agreeing to pay any charges imposed by the board, then you have to pay it.

Can you ask your national office for help?  They may be able to intervene.


Title: Landlord without lease

Question:
Hey everyone, feel free to roast me considering I know I fucked myself and have learned a lesson from it.
I own a property in Maine (inherited from my parents when I was 18, am now 20) I rented out the place to a good friend of mine without lease. (Told him that he could either pay me weekly or monthly, because I as a college student know that money can be tight sometimes.) I fully realize I am an idiot for this.

The house is also completely in my name.

Anyhow I gave him a thirty days notice and told him that his things and himself need to be out by the 15th if this month because he was severely behind on rent (currently owes me over $1000) he agreed to this.

He texted me today saying he would have his stuff out this weekend because he was having trouble finding someone to move his furniture.

If he is still there by Monday do I have the right to call the local police?

Answer: If he's still there Monday, you go to court to file for an eviction.


Title: I found a phone in my yard. The texts are troubling.

Question:
Am I ok to take this to the police? If so, are the police able to act upon the info obtained this way?

Edit: crimes are parole violations: theft, guns, drugs. Assumed owner is on parole. Decided against indicating my exact location but USA is all I feel comfortable with.

Answer: When you take it to the police do not admit to reading any messages.


Title: Update: Tenancy Situation, Moose Jaw - Canada

Question:
I was going to move in with a friend today, we signed the lease on the 6th. We each put $225 down for dmg. I have a copy of the original lease and the receipt for the entire damage deposit in my name. My lease was voided a few days later and a new one was signed with her (I had nothing to do with this). The third tenant that I didn't want in the first place is no longer moving in and another one will be taking his place, these decisions were made entirely by her - the first roommate didn't back out and I was not consulted. We had only talked once about possibly having a third roommate. I decided not to move in but had already paid her $225 for my half of half the first month (15th-31st). Everyone is aware I am not moving in and she had promised to pay me back numerous times, even telling me she had sent an e-transfer. The other tenant has now paid $450 (225 dmg, 225 for half month). So now the entire $900 required has been paid by me and him. Now she says she will pay me on payday (next Thursday), but I am of course expecting another excuse. It feels like I'm being taken for a ride.

I called the landlord for the second time today and for the second time her boyfriend (maintenance guy) has answered the phone. First time he told me she wouldn't be back until later that night, she immediately called my friend. This time he told me she was in the shower, I asked him to have her call me. I just sent her an email.

If I can't get at least $225 back I will have approximately $50 until next Thursday. A week later I have to be out of my current apartment. What happens if they refuse or delay paying me? Is a copy of my receipt for the damage deposit as valid as the original, as I am disinclined to let them have the original until I get my money back. Do I have to and can I bring my friend to small claims court for the other $225 if she doesn't pay me. I have texts and fb messages where she promised to pay me and she has accepted a half month rent payment from the other tenant.

**Further update**: Landlord called me back and told me I have to get the dmg deposit from my friend. I told them that if that is their decision then we have nothing further to discuss and I will pursue my funds through other means. They are going to make some calls and phone me back. They are working on behalf of a larger organization, they are not the property owners.

Answer:
 First off, do not give anyone the original copy of anything. You need them.

The landlord voided your lease without your consent. This was required, because you were on it. Therefore, he breached your contract. The landlord was also supposed to return your damage deposit to the two of you, not just your "friend".

You can make a complaint against the landlord to the [Saskatchewan Rentalsman office](https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/government-structure/boards-commissions-and-agencies/office-of-residential-tenancies). They have a tribunal that adjudicates these complaints. You do not sue your landlord in court, you go there.

But, you could also decide to sue your friend in small claims court because she ought to have known that part of the deposit was your and she couldn't keep it.

Both processes will not happen within a week.


Title: Old friend fraudulently signed up for marines

Question: A friend of mine signed up for the marines recently and lied about his drug use. I don't want him to be getting in that field since he's had such a RECENT history of drug use. What can I do to get him out of this?

Answer:
 Why is this any of your business? He'll either wash out or he won't, and if he stays in, he won't be able to keep up his drug habit.

Mind your own plate. Answer #2: You can do nothing. Your friend can come clean to his recruiter or come clean during the Amnesty Hour at MEPS.Answer #3: What do you mean "get him out of this"? Does he not want to join now?  This is his decision not yours.Answer #4: What does his drug use have to do with any of this? Why do you feel like you have a right to determine what your friend is going to do with his life? Maybe he's wanting to do this to help cut off his drug use. It's not easy to have a drug habit and be a marine. Answer #5: Well, you can call his recruiter or the command and let them know.

But you should know that you'll be implicating him in serious crimes at the same time.


Title: [NJ] I may have committed some.... slight.... slander. Help?

Question:
Hey everyone. Im a college student whos very interested in politics. Recently, I made the horrible decision to start attacking local poliicians on facebook. Namely, our mayor, and someone he apointed to a position. To make a long story short, and to avoid revealing the location, lets just say the guy is clearly unqualified for the job and he was only hired because hes friends with the mayor.

In any case, after doing a little bit of digging, Ive found that the man had 3 different tax judgements filed against him and his business and that he was convicted of breaking Kosher law. I had read both of those things from a local news site. For the tax thing, that article listed the “New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety, Public Records” as their source. For the kosher fraud, I do not see a source.

In any case, I made an angry facebook post calling him a tax evader (if anything, I think thats what will get me in trouble) and a kosher fraudster. Now Im being advised by a local attorney, who is actually a mutual friend, that I should be careful because he (the town employee) has friends that would take on a case like this for free.

Like I said, Im a local college kid. I dont pull weight in town. I have maybe 200 friends on facebook, most of which are high school friends who arent involved in politics anyway. So lets say worst case scenario, both papers lied, or were false, and none of those accusations against him were true. Could I be sued for slander? Wouldnt there have to be damages, ie ruined reputation or loss of job? Also, I should probably note that my facebook page as of a few days ago has been set to “friends only”.

Im just scared shitless. I should have thought this through.

Answer:
 So defamation against a public official requires a false statement of fact made with actual malice, that is actual knowledge of the falsity of the statement or reckless disregard of such knowledge.  Sounds like you would be in the clear, but stop yelling into the wind if you are that concerned.Answer #2: IANAL

If the politicians themselves actually threaten you with legal action, then hire a lawyer. Other than that, I would just stop speaking against them and find some better stuff to do.

Not legal advice, but practical life advice: make sure that your research sources are reliable *before* you make decisions based on them.Answer #3: You can always be sued. If you believed you were speaking the truth that is a defense to the charge of defamation. The odds of anyone  being successful in a defamation suit against an individual for simply repeating news reporting are very low indeed.Answer #4: Your best bet is to not needlessly interject yourself into this matter, and avoid all cause for being sued for defamation. Just take down the post and do your business elsewhere. You aren’t the police, and you’re not the sentinel to warn others about this person.

Just let it go, man.


Title: I work in an at-will state and was recently terminated from employment because my LinkedIn profile did not show commitment to the company. Do I have any legal recourse?

Question:
First-timer here - what a way to begin on reddit.

I was told that having "Web Developer currently seeking new opportunities" as my LinkedIn profile heading showed a lack of commitment to my current role. I was not working in a web development-related role, but was actively seeking out apprenticeship and mentorship opportunities outside of the 40 hours I was expected to work per week.

Edit: It's Illinois.

Answer:
 Going to disagree with other posters here until we know your location.  New York, North Dakota, Colorado, and
California all give protections for legal off-the-clock conduct.

EDIT:  You edited your post, so my response will be more specific.

Illinois does not offer protection for off-the-clock conduct.  Termination is legal.


Title: [Jackson, Mississippi] Guys, I fucked up. Friday, I puked in court house and spoiled ADA's suit. Would I be in trouble ? Would they take me in contempt tomorrow ?

Question:
So, guys I was subpoenaed as witness in an assault case where my friend was assaulted in a club. I was called to be present in courthouse at 3'o clock. I had roasted chicken in lunch, which I suspect was stale.

So, In courthouse, when I was about to give testimony, I couldn't control my tummy and I suddenly puked in front of judge near ADA. Floor was filled with puddle of my vomit and there were stains as well on suits of ADA.

Judge said if I was ok and asked me to go home and rest for the day. He has ordered me to come tomorrow morning and continue with testimony.

Now, I'm nervous as fucked. What would happen tomorrow in courthouse? Would judge be pissed off ? Would they take me in contempt ? Would ADA ask me to pay for dry cleaning ? Would judge ask me to pay for cleaning charge ? Fuck, help me guys.

Answer: You're not going to get in trouble for getting sick.  Give the prosecutor $10 for dry cleaning.Answer #2: Not sure how the passing of money from witness > lawyer would be viewed, but I would avoid even offering for dry cleaning. Just apologize and move on. Really, no one will be angry at you, and certainly no one will retaliate against you. The judge is the only one that could, and they won't. You certainly aren't the first person to vomit in their courtroom.Answer #3: You may have done the ADA a favor. A professor told a story my first  year of law school about a defense attorney fresh out of law school. His first day in court ever he had a client who showed up drunk. He was trying to deal with it as best he could when his client threw up all over him right in front of the judge. The judge knew the guy was new and obviously felt bad for him. Every judge in the district heard that story pretty fast and all the judges were really nice to him for like a year after that.


Title: Another company is using our address

Question:
I'm in Texas. There is another company that has our address listed on their website and we continuously receive mail for them. We've reached out to them about changing their address but they have yet to do so after our conversations. I really have two questions:

1) Are there any legal issues that could arise with another company using our address for their mailing address?

2) Is there anything we could get in trouble for if we start throwing their mail in the trash rather than going through the trouble of returning to sender?

Thanks

Answer:
 You can contact the local post office/postmaster about this. They will likely be able to hold and forward all mail for that company at the office rather than making you return every bit. But do not just trash the mail. It's not yours to trash.

If your company has a lawyer, you may want them to write a quick letter to this other company. They may listen to a lawyer more quickly than anyone else.


Title: Did I get a PS4 for free?

Question:
Hi, I'm not sure how to start this so I'm going to explain my situation than ask all my questions.

So I bought a PS4 off ebay on November 11th, 2016 and paid with my debit card. I recieved the PS4 and worked well and I went on. Than I noticed a deposit in my bank account for the same amount as the PS4 and asked my dad about it, he told me basically don't complain about free money. I knew what state the PS4 was shipped from but the deposit in my account said a different state in it.

I don't go on ebay often and the money stayed in my account so I went on. On January 8th, 2017 I was on ebay and saw 3 messages from the guy I bought the PS4 from. He accidentally canceled the order and told me on December 26th that if I didn't reverse the refund by January 1st he would take the situation to small claims court. I messaged him January 8th saying "sorry I don't go on ebay very often, I just saw your messages, what's this situation about court?"

It's now February 21st and the seller has not replied to me and I have gotten nothing in the mail about court or anything like that. Like I've been saying, I don't use ebay very often so I don't know how they handle these things. I paid the guy once and he was the one who messed up by canceling the payment but still sending me the PS4. I'm not obligated to check my ebay messages. When I did see his messages I replied right away and haven't heard back in over a month.

Did I get a free PS4? Should I be expecting anything in the mail? Am I obligated to pay or is this entirely his fault?

Any responses are appreciated, thank you.

Answer:
 > don't complain about free money

It's not free money, though. Gifts come from people who intend to give you a gift. The person who sent it to you had no intention to give you a gift, and a simple office mistake doesn't void the seller's right to receive payment. Based on your narrative, if the refund came from the seller and was issued by mistake, then you presently owe it back to the seller.

You could hold out and wait to see if you're served. However, this isn't a suit you're likely to win, and if the seller sues you, the seller will incur additional costs (a couple hundred dollars' worth of court fees and service of process costs) that they will likely add to the suit. Financially, you're probably better off returning the money before that happens.


Title: Girlfriend bought used car with potentially fatal defect from dealership

Question: A couple months ago my girlfriend bought a 2010 Nissan Versa from a used car dealership in Yakima, Washington. Unfortanently not long after  getting the vehicle she received a letter in the mail from Nissan warning her of a potentially fatal airbag defect. The same defect has already killed over a dozen people in the US. Fortunately Nissan covered the whole cost of the repair and even called the mechanic and booked the repair in for her. It seems incredibly suspect (even for a used car salesman) that they didn't tell her about such a dangerous recall on the vehicle when she bought it. Considering she's still making payments on the vehicle, is they're any legal action that can be taken against the dealership, or even just the individual at the dealership who sold her this car? Was it illegal for them to do so?

Answer: She should have done her research. They’re paying for the replacement, so she hasn’t suffered any loss. There’s no legal issue here.


Title: [OH] Blood in 8 year old girl’s underwear

Question:
I’m 23F and I nanny for a family with three kids: a boy, 10; and two girls, 8 and 6. I’ve been with this family since September of this year. One part of my job is to fold the kids’ clothes every week. Today, as I was folding laundry, I noted a reddish-brown stain in a pair of panties belonging to the 8 year old. This is the first odd thing I have noticed about any of the children or the family. They are very sweet, very well adjusted, very polite kids with very easy going, very nice parents. I am alone in the house and have not said anything to anyone about this.

What are my legal obligations to report? Do I call CPS or tell the parents? Do I need to retain a lawyer myself?

Answer: What would you be reporting? She could very well have started puberty/ menstration by that age.


Title: Encouraged to resign week before my entire office was made redundant

Question:
Hi,

Please could you offer me some advice.

In the last month I expressed to my manager that I was thinking of resigning as I wanted to go back to university.

I was stalling a little and then last week my manager asked me whether I would be resigning soon as the director had been pressuring him because he needed to know whether I would still be around for setting our team targets.

I resign then the following week it was announced that everyone would be made redundant but would receive generous severance packages which I will not get because I resigned.

I believe that I was encouraged to resign because of the upcoming redundancies what should I do?

Answer: Honestly, not much you can do. You voluntarily quit before any announced layoffs.


Title: FL DRIVING TICKET: Rear ended a women who was stopped on the entrance ramp to the highway

Question:
A women was stopped on an entrance ramp getting on I-95 south. It was a 2 lane, which merged into one. When looking back to make sure I was good to merge, I rear ended this women who was stopped. None of the cars in front of her were stopped, traffic was extremely light, and all of the cars behind us who witnessed it just moved around us and went right into the highway. Absolutely no traffic. Not very sure why she was stopped. However I understand it was my fault. The highway patrol officer however made sure to tell me, that since he was not a witness that I should fight the ticket in court. He said that the ticket will be dismissed. Anyone have any experience with this?

Tl;dr
I got in an accident and I am at fault. The officer made sure to let me know that he was not present and that the ticket could be dismissed if he was not there to witness the accident. What is my best course of action?

Answer:
 > The highway patrol officer however made sure to tell me, that since he was not a witness that I should fight the ticket in court. He said that the ticket will be dismissed.

Generally speaking, the police don't offer legal advice.

You could fight the ticket, or you could pay the ticket. What were you cited with?

Chances are that it would cost you more to fight it than to pay it, unless there's more to the story that you're not telling us.


Title: Parent created credit cards under my name

Question: I found out about the cards last April and confronted her about them, and she admitted to me via text message that she was indeed the one who created the accounts without my knowledge. She told me she would begin to pay them monthly so I decided to wait and see that she actually should since she was honest with me about it. Unfortunately for me, she hasn't and a few of the accounts have contacted me by mail asking to pay them very soon. I regret not taking care of this sooner and understand that it was a mistake not to immediately report them as fraud. What I would like to know is if I can still report these accounts at this point or if I screwed myself by waiting to see if payments would be made to them. Thank you in advance. In Illinois by the way.

Answer:
 Nope. File a police report and report the fraud.

Do note these are likely going to be felonies for your mother.


Title: Is Salvia legal where I live? Or could I be punished for ordering it?

Question:
I breifly read http://www.commonlii.org/bn/legis/moda27modr541/ which I guess if the full drug laws for the country, Brunei, which also has a death pen for owning drugs. The document didn't say anything about Salvia or its active product so I am wondering if I will be killed if I bring it in, thanks.
Location is Brunei
Topic:
Drug Possession

Answer:
 Jesus H Christ on a pedalo. If you even have to ask if you'll be executed for possessing it just err on the side of caution and don't possess it.

IANAL but I've never seen a Bruneian lawyer here.Answer #2: Watch Midnight Express and Brokedown Palace. Imagine your situation potentially being worse than that. Decide to pass on bringing any kind of drug into Brunei. Live long and prosper!


Title: Can I get arrested for posting pictures of stolen stuff on Instagram???

Question: I posted some pictures of some things I stole, like a few phones, an Xbox and some other things. I’m really worried now Anyway just plis answer my question and don’t say that I’m stupid I know that already. thanksss

Answer:
 Did you remove the photos?

Edit: You posted your Instagram yesterday. Your entire post history is full of edgelord comments about murder, rape, being a gang member, and other such gems. You sound like you’re 13.

Answer #2: No, you can't get arrested for posting pictures of stolen stuff. You can get arrested for stealing stuff.Answer #3: Dude you're either 12 or extremely dumb - you're all over Reddit telling people your name, bday, and IG username. Also stop talking about raping and killing people, that doesn't impress anybody and it's a good way to get cops interested in you.Answer #4: Posting evidence of a crime s generally not a good idea if you intend to avoid being punished for that crime.  But posting pictures of stolen goods is not a crime in and of itself.Answer #5: Hypothetical: if OP posted the pics with the announcement that OP took them, would that be enough for a probable cause search of OP’s home?Answer #6: You have your name, birthday and instagram all on your public
Comments. You are literally giving the police an invite to investigate


Title: Girl saying rape.

Question:
So last night on a whim I decided to hook up with a girl at her friends apartment after a night of drinking, I never met this girl and do not know her in anyway. Long story short I couldn't "perform" and she told me I should go home, which I did around 4:30. I wake up to a text saying that she thinks her friends boyfriend raped her pretending to be me. Now I'm freaking out so bad and I cannot calm down, she already stated she was willing with me and not with him and shes positive it was him. She left the apartment and went to her friends house. Now she wants my name (like I said we really don't know each other) and I am saying I do not want to be involved, the only info she has is my cellphone number. I understand I should help a girl that thinks that she was raped but I am just so scared its going to come back on me somehow, that I don't want to be involved in anyway. What is the best course of action in a situation like this?

Edit: If I am contacted again, should I just ignore it.
Edit2: this is located in florida

Answer:
 do nothing until contacted by police then say you want and attorney and won't speak without one, then get an attorney and don't speak.

and by nothing I mean nothing. don't talk about it with dad. don't rant to a friend. don't post what you think are anonymous posts. Answer #2: Do not contact the girl, do not come back to the apartment, do not say anything at all to anyone about this. If the police show up at your door, decline all 'interviews'. If you are arrested, ask for a lawyer and then remain silent. [The police can lie in order to get a confession, as well as other things to convict you, even if you 100% tell the truth.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wXkI4t7nuc)


Title: Possible to be evicted without signing a lease? North Carolina troubles.

Question:
Hey all,

Currently in a potentially sticky situation, curious if anyone here has any insight on this type of issue. I'll try to summarize as best as I can.

I live in North Carolina, in a residential house with 2 other roommates (3 total, inc. me, all of us in our mid-late 20s). The house is owned by the UNCLE of one of the two roommates (we'll call this roommate Randy). Very recently, Randy and I had a severe falling out, during which Randy threatened to have me evicted from the house. I am trying to figure out what potential there is that I can be forcibly evicted from the premises, which would cause me some issues. If it helps, the altercation was over a series of standing issues between us, and resulted in no physical violence or threats to person/safety, etc.

I have been living here for over 4 months, and have been paying rent and utilities monthly to Randy, who collects a rent check from me and roommate #2, then sends a single check under his own name to the uncle who owns the house (who charges us a flat amount per month). The utilities are all in Randy's name who pays them off under his own accounts. To my knowledge, the uncle (owner) is aware that myself and roommate #2 live here, and has given permission to Randy/Randy's parents to let us live here, although I have never spoken to him in any capacity. Up to now, Randy's parents have acted in place of the Uncle, for instance stepping in when a neighbor made a noise complaint a couple of months ago.

It is important to note I have NOT signed any sort of lease document, and am living here supposedly under the good will of Randy's uncle. No formal rental agreement was deemed necessary.

What I want to know is if I have any legal protection if Randy's family attempts to evict me from the house. Am I entitled to the rent I have paid thus far? Is there some manner of protection I can procure for myself? I want to be at least semi-prepared if Randy decides to take this step. Hopefully it won't come to this.

Any help is greatly appreciated. If you need more information from me, I'll gladly provide it, barring personal information like real names.

Thanks a bunch!

edit: Added some relevant info.

Answer:
 > What I want to know is if I have any legal protection if Randy's family attempts to evict me from the house. Am I entitled to the rent I have paid thus far?

LOL, yeah, that's definitely not how that works.


Title: I lost my purse and it was found and turned into the police station, will I be in legal trouble for what was in my purse?

Question:
Hi guys,
I am from Bloomington Illinois, college town, and i left my purse on the bus last week and it was found and returned to the police station in town. My question is; will i get in legal trouble for having a smoking bowl in there? there's no weed in the purse, just my glass bowl that i use to smoke and reeks of weed.

Thanks guys!
Topic:
Drug Possession

Answer: update: picked up the purse. whoever turned it in took the bowl and 40 dollars but left all my id's, credit cards, and SS card. looks like they did me a favor. Answer #2: Yes. Even if you don't collect it you can be charged with possession of paraphernalia.


Title: Is there a way to find out forsure if someone has hired a private investigator on you?

Question: Nevada

Answer: you could hire a private investigator to find out!


Title: We really need month-to-month on our lease, but rental company is saying we can't, despite them claiming we gave them written notice and other things we did not do [INDIANA, USA]

Question:
Ill keep this short.

We signed a lease about a year ago for a rental house.  There were some problems in the beginning with them not providing appliances (AC in the summer, mainly), but after about a month things cooled and we got in the groove.  I sent a text to the landlord saying something like "we will not be renewing our lease", in frustration.

Fast forward to now, we are looking to buy a house, we don't want to sign another year lease so planning on going month to month.  I check in the lease agreement, it says unless notice is given within 45 days then we are allowed to go month to month.  I sent them an email yesterday (31 days out) stating that "in accordance with the lease agreement, we will be going month to month for a few more months until we can find a home".

Heard back today the "owner" declined the request, due to my past notice in writing...which they are referring to an almost year old text.

The lease itself, in addition to the 45 day rule, says that written notice needs to be sent via USPS or an official email, which neither of those was it.

What are our options here?  I have a feeling we are just going to be bullied into leaving and I can't afford any sort of lawyer.

Answer:
 He doesn't have to let you go month-to-month.  He can terminate your tenancy at the end of your lease, just as *you* can terminate your tenancy at the end of your lease.

To put it another way, month-to-month means "Either one of us can quit at any time", and he's saying "I'm quitting now", which is fine.


Title: My coworker is filming the office to try to get us into trouble

Question: I work with a group of women at a tax office. One woman has created so much drama and hostility that the rest of us are about to walk out in the peak of tax season. She has made racists remarks to me, screamed in the face of a coworker, and spread rumors and lies about all of us. She has tried to manipulate us to turn against one another. Now, she has started to take videos of us and document when we enter and leave the office. We have talked to our manager about this for the past few weeks and she has been in contact with our DM about the situation. Our DM is doing nothing and stated that it is not a hostile environment and made us feel as if we are the ones that are going to get in trouble and will be reported to HR. As stated previously, we are about to all walk out. Is there anything that we can do to prevent this demon woman from returning to work?

Answer:
 Skip the DM and go to HR.  That's their job.Answer #2: We need to know what state you're in. Some states have two party consent requirements for recordings. That might be a way to get her fired.

Otherwise, if she's creating a hostile work environment (and racist comments HR won't fix would fall under that category) you may be able to file a complaint with the [EEOC](http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/harassment.cfm).Answer #3: If you have a Human Resources department, go to them directly.  Tell them about the racist language and video recording and tell them that you (all of you, as a group) feel it is becoming a **hostile work environment**.

HR is there to protect the company, and when they get a report like this, they should pressure the managers to do something to fix it, because the company is at risk.

If you don't have an HR department, write a letter stating everything, have all of your co-workers sign it, and send it to the highest level of management you can find an address for.  Send it by Certified Mail.  That tends to get people's attention, because they know you have proof they received it, and that's also usually the first step before filing a lawsuit.Answer #4: I would suggest sending this question to [Ask A Manager](http://www.askamanager.org/).   You might get some good advice about the non-law-related aspects of the situation, to go with the legal answers you get here.


Title: Landlord doesn't have money to pay back my security deposit (California)

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 Your recourse is to sue her for immediate return of the deposit plus damages.

That won't be faster than her method(it'll be a lot slower) and it's unlikely you'd see any of the extra damages, given that she appears to be broke.


Title: Caterpillar took out a lighting pole and it landed on my car on a parkway

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Here I was waiting for a story about a tiny bug taking out a pole.

Seriously, though, you had a consultation with a shady guy. Try another if you don't feel comfortable with him but want to have a lawyer. Then proceed how you feel best.


Title: Can you take the USPS to court?

Question: I sent an item through the USPS using insured mail and I insured the item for $4000. I have proof of purchase, receipts, and anything else to prove that the item shipped had the value it was insured for. Of course the item was "lost" and I recently had filed a claim to try to recover the money and my claim was denied?? I am unsure what the point of paying for insurance is if they dont honor the claim. Is it possible to take the USPS to court to get my money? If not any suggestions on a course of action? This is in New York, and it was sent domestically to CA to be sold.

Answer: *Why* was your claim denied?Answer #2: Why was the claim denied? Have you appealed yet?


Title: Actions to gain standing and stability (child custody in TX) (x-post from MensRights)

Question:
I recently found this subreddit, so I have not had time to look through it all, but have recently found myself in a situation.

I've been considering doing some things to raise my standing in the community to enhance the stability I would bring to the child.

Actions / Items (that I've considered)

* Becoming more involved through volunteer activities
* Attending a local church to become known in the community
* Starting attending AA meetings (to thwart possible attempts to use this against me; her mother considers me a "functional alcoholic" - which just isn't true)
* Pay for weekly or monthly drug testing; work will only do random once a year
* I also back up my text messages and started recording my calls.

Background Information:

I recently split from my son's mother on probably less than amicable terms because she wanted to work things out and go to counseling.  She ran to her mother who came over and gave me 30 mins to grab clothes and get out of the house before she called the police for trespassing. Mother's name is on the housing paperwork.

This whole process has just started and I'm not certain what aspects will come into play nor if we can agree through mediation because the biggest sticking point is who he lives with.

Her:

* full-time nursing student (grads Dec)
* does not work
* her mother gives her "allowance money" to pay all bills
* previously did drugs such as cocaine, meth and speed
* visited a rehab facility
* has a felony on her background (related to the drugs; don't know specifics)

Me:

* have been at the same company the past 5 years
* home life might appear nomadic due to some of the moves I've had to make. Especially leaving my place, moving into hers, moving back out and then in again. (Basically I've probably never really been in a place longer than a year)
* do have a DUI from 2009 on my background

Plan:

* currently in an extended stay hotel; plan to find an apartment ASAP (would rather have a house, but that takes more time)
* I plan to start interviewing nannies/sitters should I need one while I am at work
* do more research online and start documenting details and cases

Any ideas or suggestions?

Answer: What sort of custody/visitation are you going for, here? Is there some reason that you can't work out a 50/50 and avoid all this mud slinging?


Title: HOA wants to fine me because my car is a “disruptive eyesore” [Maricopa County, AZ]

Question:
I am renting half of a duplex from my uncle while I shop for a property out of town to make my home on. Unfortunately this community has an HOA, and they sent me a fine for $200 now and then $25 a day starting next Monday because my car is apparently a “disruptive eyesore” and “environmental hazard” — it is a classic car but it’s not a hoopty on bricks on the lawn, it’s a 1973 Ford Thunderbird and it is well maintained, I drive it daily. I don’t put it in the garage because the upstairs tenant rents the single car garage and has filled it with stuff.

This is unreasonable in my opinion, and a petty twisting of these vague HOA regulations. What I want to ask is, is this legal?

Answer: Yes, it's probably legal. The better question is if you can contest the HOA decision (check their bylaws), and what remedy the HOA is asking for (such as you renting a parking space from someone).


Title: (CT) How far can I go before it is considered extortion?

Question: A friend of mine owes me 500$ and has been ducking my calls I have messages that prove acknowledgement of money owed, amount owed, and intent to pay. If I contact her and say pay me now or else I'll sue you in small claims. Is that considered extortion where should I safely draw the line

Answer: It is not extortionate to warn them of proper legal action you'll be taking.  "Pay what you owe or I'll sue" is not extortionate.


Title: Co-Owner of house rights and laws?

Question:
Hello

I'm trying to figure out what my options are in an odd situation. So I got a house with my Girl Friend about 5 years ago. 2 years ago we broke up and she moved out. I wanted to keep the house she wished to sell it. We could not come to an agreement and she moved on with her life as did I. I found people to rent my rooms out to so I could meet the mortgage and all was well. Fast forward to today. She now wants her name off the house but refuses to do so without getting some $$ for the 3 years she played into the house.  While I can understand her stance she has not done anything with the house in over 2 years. She has not helped pay for anything at all, taxes, upkeep among other expenses.

She now is making all sorts of wild threats. Like attempting to rent out the garage, Wanting to show up and "walking through the house to check for damage", taking me to court to force a sale of the house. I'm wondering how much of this is bs and how much of it is legal. I have an unwritten agreement with my 2 roommates for their rooms in my house and do not want or need her snooping around their things.

I feel that having been gone for 2 years with no interest in the house or monetary contribution to it that she does not have much of a leg to stand on. I'm also concerned about upholding the privacy of my 2 roommates as I do not wish them to be harassed.

Can anyone help me understand the laws around what she is trying to do and what kind of rights I have? BTW I live in Washington state. Thank you in advance.

Answer:
 If you refuse to buy out her ownership interest in the house, she can certainly go to court to make you sell it. It's called a "partition by sale".Answer #2: I am not a lawyer, but have experience from a similar situation.

She is an owner, so she has rights to the property.  She can ask to be bought out by you or to sell the house.

But possibly the money you've paid in the past 3 years can be used to mitigate the sum you'd have to pay her if you buy her out.

The formula we used was roughly this: say the house is currently worth $100k, with 50k owed on the mortgage, you'd have to buy her out based on 1/2 of 50k.  But since you made payments for 3 years and she didn't, then you get to show that you are owed more than 1/2 of 50k, and she is owed less than 1/2.

If property prices in your area are rising, in the end it might be better for you to own the house all on your own, and perhaps better to bite the bullet before property prices go up more.


Title: Bench trial vs jury trial

Question: Are there advantages/disadvantages to having your fate decided by a judge compared to a jury?

Answer: Judges know the law, are highly unlikely to be swayed by emotional arguments or “jury nullification.” Jurors can be emotional. So it’s a case by case thing. But of course, there are advantages and disadvantages that will vary by the individual facts.


Title: Can my roommate toss my stuff out of our apartment?.

Question:
Note: I live in Seattle.

Hi there. Wondering if I could get some help with a situation.

My roommate signed us to an apartment. He is the only one on the lease as they only allow one name to the lease.

2 bed one bath.

We have lived there since October 1 of 2017.

We recently had a falling out for a variety of reasons. Last night he told me to get the fuck out of the apartment. I am obliging, as I hate living there anyways. He has made several threats to toss my belongings if I am not out within a week.

My father recently told me that if he starts to throw my belongings out of the apartment, I have no legal recourse as he is the only one on the lease and can do whatever he wants (his reasoning). I find this hard to believe as I figured my property rights don’t disappear once I enter into a verbal contract to pay half of the rent and utilities every month.

What would happen if this were to occur and he followed through with his threats? Would the police help me if I called them god forbid this would happen?

Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 >My father recently told me that if he starts to throw my belongings out of the apartment, I have no legal recourse as he is the only one on the lease and can do whatever he wants (his reasoning).

Has your father never heard of the police?

Your roommate can't simply toss your stuff outdoors. Even though you're not on the lease, you're still a tenant so long as you can prove residency (i.e. you get mail at that address regularly). Moreover, in a month-to-month tenancy like yours (since you're not on a lease) you have to be given a 20-day notice to vacate.


Title: Chicago - Recorded my landlord eavesdropping. Is this illegal?

Question:
I suspected my landlord being a roommate was sketch and caught him admitting he went through my chat logs before he evicted me, as reason to the eviction. He said he didn't like what he found in my private conversation with a mutual friend when he found my phone lying on the table and went through the convo. He found the recording and wants to press charges. What's weird is how the recording in question has him admitting to going through a private convo, thus why he evicted me. The recording was done in the living room of the house we both live in.

Who's in the wrong here? What can I do?

Answer: Illinois is a two party consent state. What you did is very illegal.


Title: Filed for restraining order, judge treated it like a joke. how to approach round 2?

Question:
I decided to file for a restraining order against my upstairs neighbor following several weeks of her verbally abusing myself and my girlfriend at ever chance she got including stalking us up and down our staircase.

Our first issue is that my girlfriend has anxiety issues and didn't want to try filling out the paperwork or going to a stand to talk to a judge because she literally doesn't think she would be capable. When we went to present the case to the judge after filling out the paperwork even though my girlfriend was in the room (literally the only other person in there absolutely no way they could have thought she was there for something else. They were only seeing one case and it was ours.) the (female) judge basically said she doesn't see how me, a male, could legitimately feel unsafe by her.  She said this while folding and unfolding a fucking paperclip over and over again as if she didn't have something to direct her focus towards.

I argued that she has literally threatened me via text and I showed it to a police officer the first time we called them to the apartment following our neighbor telling me she "found" nails laid out pointy end up outside of her door the day that she basically started all of this bullshit and she called the police on US for having done it despite there being nothing but her word to back that up.  The judge asked me to explain how she threatened me and I told her that her response to me saying it's ridiculous that she's freaking out at me because I asked her to put back the handrail in our staircase that she took down (which was what sparked ALL of this.) with "I'm happy to have a face to face with you when you're not hiding behind your phone like a little bitch!" to which I only replied with "And now you're threatening me. Want me to contact the police or what?"

She never actually directly answered that and proceeded to change the subject entirely. The judge said that even though the police agreed that in or out of the context of our conversation it was most certainly sent with the intent of being threatening, she feels that it isn't a threat just "not a very nice thing to say"

The final nail in it was when I recorded her literally the day we decided we had to file for the order, she followed us outside and accused me of knocking over her surfboard she kept DIRECTLY next to two doors (and I didn't knock over) when I said we don't have a problem with your board and walked away she called us fat losers for the millionth time since this started so I asked her on camera why she's been following us down the stairs. She said she wasn't she's free to use the stairs so I asked why she coincidentally has to use them every single time that we happen to need to including times I've gone to my car to get nothing just to see if she would follow me down and she did. She turned to go back inside and called my girlfriend a fat loser pig while turning which made me snap and say "well when are you getting the fuck out of here?" to which she just started saying "OH you're racist? You want me to leave because you're racist?" and I ended it with "no, I'm not. Telling you that you should leave isn't racism."

Because I said when are you getting the fuck out the judge decided that I'm causing just as much problems as her despite that she's literally tried to get me arrested for booby trapping her home and my breaking point came after almost 4 weeks of her stalking us down the stairs and shouting obscenities at us. She didn't outright deny it, but moved it for 10 days out so my neighbor can state her side of things. She also wants to push for a mutual restraining order which if I'm not mistaken means if somebody does a background check on ME it will show up against my favor.

The icing on the cake here is the landlord is trying to kick her out. He's asked her to just leave voluntarily literally BECAUSE of this situation on top of that she's sent HIM nasty abusive texts as well and went as far as trying to get us to agree that he sexually harasses his female tenants which is absolutely not true. I told the judge that even the landlord wants her out and her response to him asking her to leave was "I want you to evict me because I feel I've done nothing wrong and it's going to be a long and expensive process for you."

So obviously I'm going to be talking to a lawyer after the holiday today and see if I can get anything from them, but I'm starting to genuinely worry that my neighbor is manipulative enough to convince the judge she's fully in the right here just because it's a male vs a female. Does anyone else have any advice though?

Answer:
 Quite frankly, I tend to agree with the judge. You guys certainly aren't doing anything to avoid confrontation and seem to be making it worse. I really don't see grounds for a restraining order here. Answer #2: The judge has already determined you don't need the restraining order under the current circumstances. If your girlfriend is being threatened or feels unsafe, she needs to file for one and tell the court herself why she needs it. The court doesn't want to hear from you on her behalf, and can't issue one based on your testimony. Answer #3: Please stop saying literally over and over. It's like one of those insane tumblr parodies.

To answer your question, nothing that happened is remotely enough for an RO and you are actively contributing to it. Answer #4: I understand that this is a shitty situation

The legal system is *exremely* hesitant to restrict someone's freedom of movement.  The legal system is not saying you and her arent having a serious problem, its saying that they dont believe you or your girlfriend are in serious danger of death or harm (and often ROs require some kind of police report on violence that has already happened).

Her calling the police is legal, the police could go after her if they wanted to but most police departments cant go after all of the frivolous calls they get.  Even if they did your neighbor would just get a fine and the problem wouldnt be solved.

Work with your landlord to get her evicted. The landlord might have a case for a lawsuit cause she said he sexually harassed tenants, which could effect his business.


Title: help

Question: so my one yr lease was over in May and just last month the landlord told me i had to leave told me to let him know how long i needed but ever since then his been texting me and texting me that i need to leave that i need to leave just a few days ago he asked me to leave again and told me he could only give me one more month meaning till the 1st and today he asked me for the rent so i told him how can i pay him rent if im already kicked out and have to save up for a new place he said if i dont pay up i need to leave asap specially since i never gave him the deposit

Answer: Location is pretty important


Title: (CA) Can an Instructor at a Community College lock a student out of regular class for being late?

Question:
I am also trying to look up the specific code so if you can provide that as well, I would really appreciate it.

Thank you

Answer:
 Yes, it's not high school. You pay for it, so it's a privilege. If their syllabus has a tardy policy, read it. Answer #2: Yes. If you don't like it, complain to the Dean.

Learn to be on time, which means at least 5 minutes early. It will save you a lot of problems in life.


Title: Motorcycle accident in California with an Uber driver

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 I'm not super sure what you're asking for, frankly. You had an accident, unfortunately. I'm glad you're okay. The insurance of the at fault driver will financially compensate the injured parties. Or they might decide that the fault was split, and they'll split the compensation accordingly.

File an insurance claim. If there are any expenses that the insurance doesn't cover, you can then sue the other driver for the difference.

Also, as a previous resident of southern California, I don't blame you for being gun shy, especially on a motorcycle. I've locked up brakes and left rubber on the freeway more than once in LA rush hour morning traffic. I don't have the balls to take that shit cageless and filter.


Title: [NY] Lawyer wants to sue my company for alleged spoiled food

Question:
I honestly have no clue as to where this guy came from, but the customer himself is a lawyer.

Apparently in one of our takeout deliveries, went sent him a spoiled dairy desert. We make it fresh every night so there's no sure way for me to know what happened, and he reported the incident to the health department. No biggie, they did a thorough inspection a few days ago and found nothing.

Now, he keeps trying to call my company to try to get one of the employees to confess to the incident, and has called my personal phone number multiple times in order to do the same. I wasn't there at the time of the delivery as I tend to go home a few hours before closing. I've given him a refund to his card as a good measure but he's called back multiple times with the same story, sounding like some kind of detective.

Yesterday he spoke about suing me. At this point I haven't told the guy anything except to take it to court, and as far as I know, no medical damages have occurred because he called right away about it. I'm practically ready to lawyer the fuck up but I'm genuinely curious about what this guy can do.

Edit: A google search shows that he's a law student
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 Along with what /u/taterbizkit said, file a complaint with the bar association if he is actually an attorney:

https://www.nysba.org/resolvingconflict/Answer #2: At this point, I would recommend that you get an attorney on retainer, and have him/her tell the other lawyer that he is forbidden to communicate with you or your employees directly.  All communication must go through your attorney.

It's a fundamental rule of the profession that attorneys must not speak to parties directly, once the party has retained counsel and asked for the direct communication to stop.  Continuing to do so is an ethics violation.

I imagine that once you do so, the attempts to communicate will stop -- since he's obviously only doing it to intimidate you.  Once he knows he can't intimidate you, he's got no reason to waste his and your attorney's time.


Title: I just received a "Summons and Order of Garnishment In Aid of Execution" for $80.58. The employer listed I have not work for in three years. I need help to know what I need to do.

Question:
So here goes. I received this letter on 12-4-12 notifying me that I have 10 days to respond. There is no contact information and from the language I think I'm supposed to file my response with the court. I'm super poor and basically homeless. The letter came to my dad's house where I stay maybe 3 days a week living out of my backpack. I'm sure filing anything with a court costs money. I'm not flat broke, but I certainly cannot afford a lawyer or filing fees.

The amount is frivolous at $80.56. It is a debt collector trying to get something out of me from a court case that they lost. I had a severe knee injury and was charged roughly $1000 for an ER visit back in 2009. I traveled for a while in the years since and bounced around while bills were sent to my dad's house. Fast forward to 2012 and I find I'm being sued by the debt collector. I submit my financial statements and tax returns to the hospital and they exhonerated me of all charges because I clearly never could afford them. So I thought that was taken care of. Now, apparently the debt collector thinks I owe them the cost of court fees even though they are the ones that filed a law suit. Do I really? I think that is ridiculous. I never made any actions in court so why am I responsible for their court costs?

Originally the court cost was about $60 and this summons letter says I owe "the amount due on judgment interest and costs." How can they charge interest on this? I never agreed to pay interest on anything or their court costs in the first place.

I'm not against paying the $80.58 because it isn't a high sum and I can wrangle it up in a weeks time without a problem. But I think this whole thing is ridiculous and the debt collector could have just sent a letter last month, after I called them and said I was back in town and visiting my dad's address on a weekly basis, and I would have received it and just paid them the tiny sum to make them shut up and go away. But they didn't send anything but this. Now they're trying to garnish my wages. The funny thing is, the company listed on the letter I have not worked for since 2009. They're not even my most recent employer. How could they have made this mistake? Because I don't work for that company anymore, can I just file the paper and not worry about it? What happens if I don't respond?

 And it says "if you have any questions contact a lawyer." Well, I'm poor and cannot afford one minute of a lawyer's time so here I am, asking Reddit. So please help because I have until next Friday to make a move on this or I don't know what is going to happen. I'm not really scared because I'm schooled in how to not give a fuck but I really don't want this sticking with me as it may hurt my chances for future employment.

Side note: I think it's funny that the debt collector is willing to run up their own lawyer bills just to get $80.58. I'm certain my $80.58 doesn't cover 1/10 of what it costs to have their lawyer go through all this trouble when they could've just sent me an addressed envelope with a request for a check.

Answer:
 > The amount is frivolous at $80.56. It is a debt collector trying to get something out of me from a court case that they lost.
> I never made any actions in court so why am I responsible for their court costs?

If you never showed up to court, they didn't lose. If a garnishment has been ordered, they have a judgment against you.

> How can they charge interest on this? I never agreed to pay interest on anything or their court costs in the first place.

Interest accrues by law on judgments and not at your discretion or with your consent.

> The funny thing is, the company listed on the letter I have not worked for since 2009. They're not even my most recent employer. How could they have made this mistake?

Did you tell them you changed jobs? They aren't psychic... When garnishing, it's cheap and easy to send garnishments everywhere you think the person may have money/to everybody who may owe the person money.

Pay it and move on.

> Side note: I think it's funny that the debt collector is willing to run up their own lawyer bills just to get $80.58. I'm certain my $80.58 doesn't cover 1/10 of what it costs to have their lawyer go through all this trouble when they could've just sent me an addressed envelope with a request for a check.

Sending in a garnishment form takes about 10 minutes and the cost of a few stamps. It's no biggie, really.


Title: Australia, what would happen if a State Government refused to implement a federal law that was supposed to be a Country wide one?

Answer:
 Can't tell you about Oz -but here in the states in one such situation the 101st Airborne Division [kinda sorta invaded Arkansas](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Rock_Nine) to enforce desegregation of the state's formerly segregated schools. It was one of the first huge events in the American Civil Rights movement.

The long term effects of that decision were and are legion. It was the beginning of the end of overt legal segregation in the South. Obviously we haven't fully solved our racial issues, but this was one of the first times where the overt and officially legal bigotry in the south was taken on by the Federal Government.


Title: [New Jersey] Mom was uninsured, broke her foot falling at home, and had emergency surgery at a hospital. The bills are currently totaling at $50,000. What are her options at this point?

Question:
Her income was out of range for Medicaid (~40k a year), and she didn't have health insurance at the time of her accident. As you can imagine, $50,000 is a lot of money for her, especially since she is still dealing with pain & will likely have to go through physical therapy.

Will the hospital provide some sort of payment plan? Is there anyway she can end up paying less than the ridiculous number she was given? I know insurance companies haggle that number down to something much lower so that policy-holders only have to pay a deductible.

This may be the wrong subreddit for this, and if that's the case I apologize. Thank you in advance for your time!

Answer:
 Hey! I work at a hospital and closely with our financial counselors.

That is the first step. All hospitals should have them. Make an appointment with the hospital's financial counselors to go over options.

Many hospitals have financial assistance programs independent of the state they are in. Our hospital will not even discuss a payment plan unless our patients apply for ours first. Ours is income based and if approved, 60-100% is taken off the bill. That is a huge chunk.

Even though your mom did not qualify for public aid, she may still qualify for hospital financial assistance. Our usually consider people up to $70,000 for a yearly income. And if she is denied or if she believed that she is entitled to more, there my be an appeals process.

Also, ask about discounts. Yes, there are discounts. There is usually an automatic "self-pay" discount. I believe at our hospital that is an automatic 10% off the bill. There may be others.

Then, of course, call for a payment plan.

But, keep in mind this is only for hospital. Physicians services are usually billed separately. They often work for another employer and are contracted workers or only have privileges (permission to use hospital faiclities) at the hospitals and are not employed by the hospital. Radiology exams, the Radiologist who reads them, labs, etc can be billed separately for the hospital visit. Don't just assume they are apart of the his massive bill.

Feel free to contact me with questions. Answer #2: Does she have any assets? House (with equity), bank accounts, etc? If she doesn't have much, she may be a good candidate for bankruptcy. She can speak with a bankruptcy attorney if she doesn't have luck negotiating the debt down.


Title: Dealership said my mom's "recall expired" and charged her $600 for a repair on her 2015 F-150, which she paid. However all the research I've done suggests that recalls never really expire.

Question:
Did the dealership steal from her?

What actions can she take if they did?

Answer: Call Ford's customer support they can tell you if it expired or not, which almost none do. I used to work for a car manufacturers customer support and only ever saw 1 recall expire but it was very minor.


Title: (Florida) someone keeps calling me on blocked number, 50+ times per day and hangs up when I answer. I have no idea who it is, what can I do?

Answer:
 Change your phone number?

Don't answer blocked calls?

Contact your provider and ask about stopping calls from all blocked numbers?

All of those might be good suggestions.


Title: [Quebec, Canada] Does a store employee have a right to search my bag when I leave the store, absent any evidence I've shoplifted?

Question:
I was inspired by [this post](https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/3ghd2o/what_rightsresponsibilities_do_i_have_to_managers/) but thought I'd make my own, since it's a different country and circumstance.

A few months ago, I went to Canadian Tire -- a big, well-known Canadian box store for home supplies and car supplies, with an attached car repair -- to have some tires changed. I had a laptop bag with some valuable paperwork (no laptop) in it, so just in case I kept it with me. I waited the hour or so for the work to be done in the waiting room, then was given an invoice and told I had to pay at the cashiers at the department store-type. I did so, and the sales clerk held on to my receipt (which is the proof of purchase I needed to have my keys returned to me at the car repair part of the store) and said she had to search my bag. I objected, saying I had not been in the store at all, but had walked here directly from the car repair. She pointed to a sign at the door saying the store reserves the right to search all customers' bags. I gave in, because I wanted to get my car and I had nothing of interest in the bag, but it got me wondering:

* Does the existence of that sign change anything? I entered into the car repair section, and there is no such sign there, only at the entrance to the actual store.
* Can they really insist on searching my bag without probable cause? I literally was in the store section for 5-10 seconds, as long as it took me to walk to the cash.
* What do you think would have happened if I'd refused? I'm wondering if this is a case of Canadian Tire knowing they can't *insist* on searching a bag, but ask anyway, assuming people don't know they can't insist, and so get their consent. But is it plausible they would have called the police? On what grounds?
* The cashier's body language led me to believe she would not give me my receipt, which I'd just paid hundreds of dollars for, if I didn't submit to the search -- but she didn't come out and tell me that specifically. I'm wondering if this is similar to my point above, and if she would have given me my receipt anyway if I'd refused the search.

All of this is for my curiosity only. I'm not in the habit of taking bags into stores, because I realize it looks suspicious, but this was a case of my not wanting to leave it in the car. I considered standing my ground for about 0.1 seconds, but I just wanted to get my car and go home.

Answer:
 Almost 100% certain that here in Canada it's only for stores like Costco where you have a membership and have agreed to that policy.

Unless they see you take something and leave the store without paying for it they have no right to look through your stuff or demand anything of you. Even then they have limited rights, like using appropriate force to detain you until the police arrive and do a proper search of your person.Answer #2: I wish I understood why this post has been downvoted. What did I do wrong?


Title: Aunt Stole my Identity. She is in Cal. I am in TX. Having problems with an account she opened.

Question:
Hello!

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New here and very desperate. Hopefully someone can give me some guidance on what I can do. Early this year, I found out that my identity was stolen. I checked my credit report, and found out that the fraudulent accounts were opened in 2013. In 2013, I was still in high school at the time. Did not have a job, which is probably why it took me a minute to discover the identity theft, Anyways, after some digging I found out that it was my aunt who stole my identity. The reason I found out, is because my aunts physical address showed up on my credit report. Also, my aunt is in San Fran, Cali, and I am in Houston,TX.

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Once I found out, I did the necessary steps which was freeze my credit report through all bureaus, set up fraud alerts, filed police report, as well as made a report through the FTC. Now, the problem is that one of the accounts that she opened was through Sprint. I contacted Sprint, and sent them notarized paperwork, copies of police report, etc. Basically everything they requested from me. Well, first I received a letter in the mail saying that the account was verified to be mine (I don't understand how for the reasons that I mentioned), and that the investigation was closed. I called Sprint's fraud management and told them that I was not employed at the time and that I was still in high school, but most importantly that I was never in the state of California. They then said that it was because there was no found suspect. I submitted everything that I had to the police when I filed my police report, including the copy of my credit report that had my aunt's address but the police said they could not consider that evidence. But as I've told the rep, how is it my fault that they don't have a suspect. I've turned in all my paperwork, but Sprint refuses to take this off my credit report.

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I'm honestly at my wit's end. I feel depressed that I have this debt, that I did not make, preventing me from opening any account that I would want to open. I want to have good credit for a future home I might buy, for a car I might need to purchase, etc. This has honestly given me so much stress. I am supposed to talk to another rep again, but I'm already expecting them to tell me the exact same thing.

&#x200B;

Is there anything that I can do? How can this be legal?

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TLDR; Aunt stole my identity and opened Sprint account. Sprint refuses to close account because there is no suspect.

Answer:
 Look into your rights for disputing credit information under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Also, you mention you were in high school. Were you under 18 at the time that these accounts were open and thus legally unable to open these accounts?Answer #2: Challenge the charge on your credit report through the credit bureaus,  they should remove it from your credit report if there is fraud.Answer #3: NAL, not legal advice.  Have you tried to escalate this issue with management - as in “May I please speak to a manager?”

If not, spend the time escalating the issue with Sprint’s CS management.

Then, if you still aren’t helped, lodge an executive complaint.  Skip middle management and work top-down.  Use the words “Executive Complaint.”

Here’s where I’d start:  https://www.elliott.org/company-contacts/sprint/

This list is current as of 6/15, so you should be able to compose your statement of facts and requested actions and have someone in Corporate leadership pay attention.Answer #4: Is the sprint account showing as not paid? When did she stop paying? FYI after 7 years it should automatically be off your credit report which would be next year if she immediately defaulted on it. should definitely keep trying to get it off if you can be you should also know this won’t be on there forever


Title: [TX] Renewing drivers license at 21?

Question: So I'm turning 21 soon and would like to get a new license that doesn't say "under 21 drivers license". According to the DMV website you can only renew a license 1 year before the expiration date, and up to 2 years after. I'm just wondering if there's any exceptions for turning 21.  My license expires in 2020.

Answer: Just order a replacement license from the DMV. It'll probably cost you $20.


Title: Mentally disturbed/ drug addicted neighbor harrassing all of neighborhood. Especially my family.

Question:
I'd like to apologize in advance for any bad grammar, I'm on mobile and also a little scatter brained by this situation. Also this is probably going to be long. Bare with me.

My husband and I moved into this neighborhood about 7 months ago, we live in Oklahoma and are not technically in city limits so it's county law. We have a neighbor named Rick who is nuts. He lives two houses down from us and we hear him screaming at all hours of the night and day at nobody. We had never had any real interaction with him outside of his walking up to our backyard fence and offering us food (we never took it) or dog toys. This last Sunday night Rick was at his house screaming again at about 11pm and my husband and I had just gotten our son to sleep. We were listening to make sure he wasn't going to do anything crazy, he's told us many times that he went to prison for 20 years but I don't know what for, which is why we were making sure. He quit screaming but then we heard him mumbling right outside of our living room window, and not even a minute after that something hit our front door so hard it sounded like a gunshot. My husband ran into our bedroom and grabbed his rifle because we genuinely thought he was trying to break in. My husband ran out the front door and started screaming at Rick to get off of our property. Rick starts screaming death threats at my husband and started walking back towards our front door. My husband warns him off again but he keeps coming and so my husband fired one off into the ground directly in front of himself to show him it was loaded and he was serious. Rick hightails it back to his house, meanwhile I was already on the phone with the police telling them everything that happened. The police show up and go and talk to Rick but didn't arrest him, and then they chastise my husband about warning shots (I'm not defending my husband, he shouldn't have done that).

Fast forward to two days ago and we find a half gallon of milk in our mailbox. We know Rick put it there because there's nobody else around here that would have. I thought maybe he was trying to apologize but I still didn't drink it even though it was sealed. When my husband came home that night from work Rick is standing in the road blocking my husband from coming in our driveway. My husband slowly kept coming and Rick got out of the way and when my husband got out Rick started cussing at him and calling him a motherfucker and a bunch of other filth. So I figure the milk isn't an apology and I take it to the sink and tip in upside down and squeeze and there's a needle hole in the handle. I'm convinced he did something to the milk but I don't have proof he was who put it in the mailbox so I pour it out. Yesterday night when I went to pick up my husband from work a pickup left Rick's house at the exact moment I left and followed me not even five feet from my bumper until I was halfway to my husband's work, and then they turned.

Rick is constantly harrassing everyone in our neighborhood, I've talked to other people here and everyone hates him. My question is, can we collectively as a neighborhood do anything? What can we do? I don't feel safe in my house anymore. Please help.

TL;DR: My neighbor is scaring everybody and yelling death threats. Please help.

Answer: Cameras are gonna be your best bet to start with.


Title: I feel like I'm being forced out of my apartment. Is this allowed?

Question:
I feel like I'm being pushed out of an apartment that I love. I've lived in this apartment for a year and a few months now. The price for this apartment is amazing for the area and I wouldn't be able to find another place this cheap. The lease ends September 1, 2016. When I signed this lease my landlord asked if I had any idea if I was staying another year after that (into summer 2017) and I said I'm not sure yet that it depends if my job keeps me here or transfers me back to our other office.

I get a text last week from the landlord saying the girls upstairs (they rent the other apartment in this house) want this apartment for their friend starting September 1, 2016 when my lease ends and he asked if I could show them it. I said I am really not sure if I am even leaving yet and he said that's ok they just want to see what it looks like. I showed them it last week and today get a text from one girl asking if I can be out by the beginning of the summer because her friend that's moving into my apartment wants it for the summer too. I texted her back and told her off and said I don't even know if I'm staying for next fall yet. I also was told by the landlord awhile ago that I have first priority here. I texted the landlord and he seemed annoyed and said I need to tell him ASAP if I'm staying or he's giving the lease to the girls. Seriously? It's a year away. When I got this apartment I signed the lease two weeks before moving in because the girl was leaving. I also pay my rent a few days early and haven't caused any issues here.

My company isn't going to let me know until March which I think is reasonable notice for him. If I end up having to stay in this area and lose this apartment I'll be forced to move back to my parents and drive to work 45 min away for a year in the snow and bad weather. My lease doesn't say anything about a time friend for signing again. Any advice? thanks. Located in PA

Answer:
 > My lease doesn't say anything about a time friend (sic) for signing again.

...and there you have it.

The landlord is actually being more accommodating of you than he has to be.

His concern is to *make sure the apartment is leased*.  He's got somebody willing to do that *9 months in advance.*  Would be kind of silly for him to turn that down.

Suggestion:  Renew  the lease now.  Then if in March you find out you're not staying, let the landlord know.  He will then have 6 months to find a replacement tenant.  Should be no problem if the apartment is as awesome and cheap as you say.  Risk is, if he doesn't find a replacement tenant, you could end up paying rent until he does.


Title: NC 24 hour eviction notice due to breaking lease contract

Question: I live in Wilmington NC and was served a 24 hour eviction notice which requires me to pay 3 months of rent for cancellation and it will not be out on my record as an eviction. I cannot afford to go to a lawyer to fight it and truthfully the eviction is rightful, but is it legal to serve someone a 24 hour eviction notice with no previous contact of them except via paper on my door. I was under the impression if rent was being paid on time then I would have the right to a certain amount of time before eviction. Is the 24 hour eviction notice and being charged 3 months rent without it incmy record as eviction legal or just a route to get me out faster.

Answer: Your tenancy can be terminated immediately for violating the lease in NC.


Title: Instagram and watermarked stock photos

Question:
I made an Instagram account where I post stupid (watermarked) stock photos with funny captions. Is this legal if I give credit? I’m not making any money. Thanks.
EDIT: I live in NH, USA

Answer: You can definitely get sued for that. There are tons of bots out there that search for copyrighted pictures and automatically send demand letters for hundreds or thousands of $$$.