Title: Grandma was hit by 18 wheeler, company is trying to weasel out of any costs

Question:
Location:Texas

UPDATE: I told my grandma what was said here, she has contacted the insurance company and was able to keep the rental and they told her that they would work with her to make sure she doesn't have to pay anything she doesn't have to,. Thanks for y'alls advice!!

So my grandma was at an intersection on the left lane, and the 18 wheeler was on the right. The green light came on and my grandma started going straight as one does at a green light. Then at the same time the 18 wheeler starts doing a left turn and the front part starts getting in front on my grandma, she honks at the guy and then had to start swerving to avoid hitting the guy. Then the trailer part starts scraping my grandma's van and knocking out the automatic door systems, the right wing mirror and the window system.

Then the owner doesn't want to talk to my grandma and had been very rude. My grandma can't use the van safely without that mirror and can't open the side back doors so she got a rental. Then they're telling my grandma that they are not covering the rental car even though they left her without a vehicle.

They told my grandma to take the van to a mechanic and they would cover the cost but today the mechanic is calling as saying that my grandma had to pay the deductible for her insurance since they have not done anything to send their insurance people to appraise the damage.

Now I had told my grandma to lawyer up since they are starting to get belligerent and now my grandma told them she was thinking of getting a lawyer and they told her that she was threatening them, and that is everything up to this morning.

Should she lawyer up or what should she do?

Edit: She did call the police and has a police report on file

Answer:
 >Should she lawyer up or what should she do?

She should file a claim with her insurance company immediately and pay her deductible. They will go after the trucker's insurance company. That is what your grandma is already paying them to do. Contact a lawyer only if there are costs not covered by insurance.Answer #2: She should contact her insurance and let them handle it. If she needs to pay a deductible, she can sue the truck driver.Answer #3: Grandma should contact her own insurance company. She may have to pay the deductible, but is likely to be reimbursed if the facts are as you state. That could be settled before the repairs are complete. Typically one pays the deductible when picking up the vehicle after repair. Answer #4: Texas lawyer here.  If there are no injuries, she will have a difficult time getting a lawyer to handle it.  The reason is because most car wreck cases are taken by lawyers on a cut, and the lawyer can make some money by negotiating down medical bills and working up the case to make it worth more than JUST the medical bills.

In a property damage only case, it doesn't work.  If a lawyer takes 1/3rd of what it takes to fix her car, she can't fix her car.  We don't like it when clients hate us!

So your grandmother should use her own insurance company if she has casualty insurance.  Her insurance company will then probably go after the 18 wheeler's insurance company.

I'm not convinced your grandmother wasn't at fault.  I'm wondering what the intersection looks like.  Many intersections (as you know) have LEFT TURN ONLY lanes, and I'm wondering if she was in one of those when she tried to go straight.

In any event, good luck.


Title: First Amendment question

Question:
I will not be taking action on this, the opportunity has passed.  I'm simply asking out of curiosity.

Today I was doing political canvassing at the entrance to a festival.  The entrance was on a road, so people had to share the road with cars to enter.  When the staff were too slow in processing the people entering, they would wait in a queue, standing in the road.

I was told by security that I couldn't stand in the road to canvas because of the danger posed by the car traffic.  This was garbage, of course.  They really just wanted me to stop canvassing, and when I said that I wasn't going to stop they told me it would be a different conversation if anyone told them that I had harassed them.  Then they called the police.  The police told me to stop, so I obeyed.  The police did not give me a reason, they just said "You're wrong.  This area is under our control, and we don't want you to do that.  Stop."

Is there any way this could have been a reasonable exception to the First Amendment?  Dayton, Ohio, in case it matters.

Answer: You were standing in the road? IANAL but that does sound like putting yourself in danger and obstructing traffic.


Title: Car was stolen in 2012. Received a certified letter today wanting me to pay 14,000 in storage fees.

Question:
So my car was stolen in 2012 and I filed a police report and everything and never heard anything about it until today when I received a certified letter of intent to sale the vehicle and they had to notify me because my name is on the title. It says I can file an application of hearing with the local circuit clerks office and then I would have to pay $14,000 in storage fees and a $2,000 repair fee to get the car back.

Do I just simply contact the police and have them handle it?

A lawyer?

There's no way I'm paying that the car isn't even worth that.

I'm located in Alabama

Answer: You need to contact your insurance and let them handle it.Answer #2: Did your insurance compensate you for the theft? If so, among the paperwork you signed was almost certainly something which gave them legal title should it be found.  u/vabronx is correct - call the insurer you had at the time and let them know.  Answer #3: Insurance first, if you had coverage. Otherwise, keep in mind that some jurisdictions will waive all fees in exchange for the car (or remainder of the car). Answer #4: The fees imply that it was in storage for a long amount of time. This makes me curious on if the proper procedure was followed when the vehicle was recovered. If it was impounded for being stolen or abandoned somewhere the police in the jurisdiction it was recovered should have notified the police where you filed the stolen vehicle report who should have then notified you. This usually happens with in a day or two. Did you change phone numbers since then or move? There's really no excuse for the fees to get that large if you were we still reachable.


Title: [US, MI] Recall vote for US Congressman from MI

Question: From my reading of Michigan law, it looks like my state allows for recalling US Congressman as long as I meet the requirements. I don't believe there is any precedent for this, but it doesn't look like it violates Michigan law. Can anyone with legal experience confirm this?

Answer:
 There is no mechanism in the constitution that allows the states to hold recall elections, and, as such, Michigan law is irrelevant here. In Term Limits v Thorton the Supreme Court ruled that the 10th amendment does not give states power to overrule the requirement for electing people to congress, so I would imagine that would hold if a state tried to get a recall in place.

On a practical note, the two year window for electing a representative makes it impractical to ever deal with a recall. By the time you organized a petition, held the election, and then had your court case heard by the Supremes the original congressman would have already come up for reelection. Seriously, the average rep with start campaigning for reelection in 10 months, max.


Title: Retroactively being removed from e-police blotters

Question:
I was arrested two Fall's ago (~November of 2012) for smoking pot. The cop searched me illegally, and I won't bore you with details, but charges were never brought against me. I had to go to civil court (at city hall), plead 'liable', pay $110, and that was it. I had no record, except for the record of the arrest, which I then petitioned to have expunged. I won my petition, the file was expunged, and that's it. Legally, I never have to say this happened and no employer/government employee can gain access to this.

The last record of the incident is online - my local paper's website publishes the blotter. Can I legally FORCE them to remove this from the internet, or at least redact it?

EDIT: Balls. Thanks for the replies. It was worth a try!
Topic:
Drug Possession

Answer: You cannot, assuming you're in the US. The paper is publishing fact... you were, indeed, arrested. The paper is allowed to publish facts. You can ask them to take it down, but they aren't obligated to do so.


Title: [NC]Downstairs apartment neighbors complaining water is draining onto their patio from the plants I water on mine.

Question: I have trees and plants on an outdoor patio. I'm on the third floor. I have recently been dealing with some aggressive downstairs neighbors that insist no water drain down there. I have done everything I can reasonably do to keep the water from draining. I have a plastic tarp down and drainage pots for all my plants but they complain about the smallest amount of water. Many of my prized bonsai trees are in peril over this situation. The guy just came up and got pretty aggressive with me. Is this something I'm liable for?  I'm tired of not being able to water my collection of trees worth hundreds of dollars. I personally feel it's ridiculous that I should even be concerned with getting a few drops of water on their outdoor patio.

Answer:
 If the water dripping below you is from the planter's saucer overflowing, then it's gone through the soil and it might be leaving dirty spots on your downstairs neighbor's patio and furniture.

And I imagine it would be pretty annoying to be enjoying a glass of wine on the patio on a nice sunny day and getting "rained" on anyway. Or needing to dry your table and chairs or discovering that the cushion you just sat on is wet when it hasn't rained in days.

Can you get a large, attractive tub for each of your bonsai trees so that any runoff won't intrude on anyone else? Or a couple big car wash sponges so you can soak up any overflow before it leaves your patio?Answer #2: So, who does your downstairs neighbor complain to when it rains?  God?

Have you talked to the leasing office about this yet and explained all of your preventative steps?


Title: Haven't received an electric bill in over 6 months, will I be obligated to pay all at once?

Question:
Hello, I currently rent a home in Southern California where I am responsible to pay for all utilities. For those of you who are familiar with the area, you know how grueling the summers can be with $400 electric bills. Our electric company has a feature that allows you to monitor your daily usage and predict how much your electric bill will be at the end of each month. This was great until one day it randomly stopped working and we didn't receive a bill in the mail. We figured it was just a weird system glitch and it would be factored into next month's bill. After three months of not receiving a bill and having no idea what our usage was, we contacted the company who told us they were "aware of the problem and were working to fix it."

At least another three months have gone by and we still have not received an electric bill. We have contacted the company on numerous occasions through phone call, IM, and email, but they basically told us "sorry there's nothing we can do, you're out of luck." My question is, by the time they "eventually" fix it, are we obligated to pay the entire amount in full right away? I assume we have to pay for all months they didn't bill us as we did use the electricity they supplied, but getting hit with a $2000 electric bill all at once is going to be really hard to pay. If their entire monitoring system is down, how can we be sure the bill they hit us with is accurate? What are my legal repercussions?

TL;DR: Haven't been billed in over 6 months for electric due to company error. We have contacted them multiple times to notify them of the error and ask them to fix it but they won't. Will I have to pay all at once?

Answer:
 > Will I have to pay all at once?

Almost certainly. They have 4 years to collect. Start putting money aside now; maybe you can generate a tiny bit of interest while you wait for them to get their act together.


Title: I have ADD/ADHD and was fired from my job without written warning or the chance to make improvements. Should I file an EEOC charge of discrimination?

Question:
I want to offer a huge thank you to anyone who reads part or all of this and weighs in. I am not trying to sound entitled. I have never thought of myself as having a disability until I recently put together a lot of the struggles I've had in my career with ADD/ADHD. I guess I have taken it really lightly most of my life and I've been advised by both medical professionals and peers with the same disorder to take it seriously and know my rights to employment.

I was diagnosed with ADD as a child. Of course I struggled with school, but I graduated. I struggled in college, but I got a degree. I struggle with work, but have fallen up the ladder enough to have been a manager of dental clinics for the past three years. Since 2011, I have had eleven different jobs. I was fired from about four of them, but never for anything that would put a hold on my career. I started taking medication again last September, as I knew in order to keep up the success and continue to improve, I needed help managing my disorder. In the last year I have changed jobs several times in favor of better opportunities and less stressful environments. When a former business associate contacted me and basically begged me to come work for him, I thought I was home free. It was a non\-managerial position, he matched my pay and benefits as best he could, and the environment was to be less stressful than the one I was dealing with at the time. I took the job on March 19th of this year.

I have past history with the business owner. I worked with his office to coordinate care of his patients with the specialty surgeon I was employed by. He is personal acquaintances with the specialist surgeon. I worked with that former employer for two and a half years, and that employer is a very good character witness for me, for better or for worse. I know that this former employer weighed in on the decision to hire me at this new office. At the "interview" (quotes because I never produced a resume, we simply had a two hour talk about dentistry and our visions for ourselves and our patients, and I worked with his team for a half day before he offered me the job) we discussed a possible leadership position for myself in the future, and he was extremely confident in my role at the office. We discussed how job designs are always fluid, and things would continue to change but we both felt that this was the right direction to go in.

About three weeks into the new job, we sat down and had a conversation about things I needed to improve. This was to be expected. I'm not a perfect person, and every office is different, and needs different things from any given individual employee. The only things on paper were his notes he had typed out to guide our discussion. The paper didn't have my name or a date on it. I didn't read it and I didn't sign anything. He said, "You aren't in trouble! We just need to tighten a few things up. No one has ever come in here and grasped these concepts as quickly as you have." I thanked him for helping me improve, and we moved on.

I am going to try not to give too many ancillary details about the day to day work flow, but please ask them of me if they are needed to give advice. I am very open about my ADD. It is a part of me, like a birth mark. It affects everything I do. While I may sometimes be ashamed of the outcomes, I am not ashamed of having it. That being said, I am very good at what I do, and always have been a natural of sorts when it comes to relationships with my patients, walking them through the diagnosis of dental conditions, the recommendations of the doctors and planning and financing treatment. My job in a nutshell is to secure treatment contracts, to get patients on the schedule, to build production and secure collections for the office. I struggle with some of the more detail oriented tasks of my job, but they have never, ever been a cause for me being discharged. I have lost jobs mainly due to an inability to conform to "the team." I have trouble in social relationships, and it's something I've been working on my entire life. In order to cope with my struggles, I often create structure and systems in my daily work responsibilities to ensure I can mark them complete. In such a new environment, I was still figuring out what those systems looked like. I reached out to the business adviser for the company several times for help in dealing with both interpersonal relationships at the office and in how to structure my day to better manage my time and be more efficient in that particular environment. I definitely dropped the ball on a few things that were typical of me. On one occasion I was asked to do something last minute without being given a specific or written reminder, and I forgot. This job was also on a 40 hour work week pay scale, and not a salaried scale that I was used to, so there were days I had to clock out and go home before I was finished making notations or completing accounts. I kept very detailed written notes on patients I spoke with or needed to go back and complete notations for, but having the restricted hours meant I couldn't always go back and complete them with in the same working day. These are all adjustments that didn't scare me. It was a new environment and I knew I would struggle a little at first until I figured out how to work around everything. I apologized and owned up to mistakes I had made. Nothing happened that was of such consequence that I received any type of verbal or written warning or violation. As far as an outsider might say, it was mostly a difference in the way I completed tasks, and less the follow through of them, that caused the issues. On May 25th, I called the business adviser and we created seven or eight changes for me to make in my day to day work flow to improve my follow through and performance. I typed up an email, apologizing for what I felt was not living up to the expectations set for me, and sent it to the business owner and my direct supervisor.  I sent a text message to the business owner letting him know about the email and that I didn't expect a reply immediately, and just wanted to let him know I had sent it so it didn't get missed when he came back to a full inbox on Tuesday (Monday was Labor Day and we did not work).

On Tuesday, I could sense what was coming. The owner was cold and unfriendly. I felt it in my chest, I knew I would be losing my job that day. Sure enough, he asked me to stay about half an hour after my shift ended, "to discuss your email and stuff." His words to the best of my memory were, "I wanted to give you this opportunity, and I know you are good at what you do and we had the discussion about follow through and some of the other things, I know you are trying, just thinking about this office in the long term, I think its time we part ways. Its really like trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. It just doesn't fit. I've talked to \*CoWorker 1\* and \*CoWorker 2\* and some of the others, and I just feel like this isn't going to work long term. I'm going to pay you five days pay in lieu of notice, so you can just take this week to get back on your feet. I know a lot of offices are hiring for OMs and assistants, and I will give you a good reference. I know you are trying, but this just isn't going to work." I was in a daze and I signed some papers that I'm not really sure what they were. I need to get copies of them. I gave him my key and stuffed as much of my personal belongings from my desk as I could in my hand bag and left without cleaning out my snack drawer, without collecting my personal keyboard, etc. It was a complete fog. I couldn't even bring myself to ask questions or make comments. I just left. I feel that this was a mistake, but given the circumstances, I'm not sure I would ever have been in a better mind frame to do anything differently.

Of course I was/am devastated. I'm not going in to the toll this has taken on my mental health, this isn't the right place for that. I vented my emotions to a sub I subscribe to for ADD/ADHD and someone suggested I look in to work place discrimination. I am not entirely sure I have a real complaint because of the "at will" employment and being so new to the office. I do feel like I was not given a fair chance to work through the changes and adapt to the new environment. I also know that the previous employer that weighed in on the decision to hire me knows about my disorder. I wasn't medicated then because I did not have health insurance, and my struggles were definitely more apparent when I worked for that person, but I was still able to find success. I left that job voluntarily, I did not get fired. I know this came up during the discussion. I have never hid my weaknesses any more than I would my strengths I will also give you that I can sometimes be unpleasant under times of stress, but even so, I had made friends and began creating pleasant work place relationships with members of the team. I felt connected to them and felt strongly that I was headed in the right direction. I had created strong relationships with quite a few of the patients I had worked with up to that point, and several of them complimented and commended my work. I feel like the email really exposed more of my struggles than it did show that I was willing to make changes to improve my performance, and at that point the business owner felt I was too much trouble. He could get someone with less experience and less struggle and pay them a lot less money, and that's what he decided to do.

On a partly related side note, he sent me an email about two hours ago saying he was processing my payroll for this Friday, June 8th, for hours worked, and not processing my "payment in lieu of notice," until June 22nd. I replied that it was unfortunate and would cause me some financial distress. I then contacted the Dept of Labor Hours and Wages division, who promptly informed me that it is illegal for him to hold my pay for any reason at all. I replied to his original email again (he has yet to respond to me) and gave him the information, the phone number I called and encouraged him to look in to the matter himself. If he doesn't pay me the full hours worked and the "in lieu of" amount that he verbally promised, I will be filing a complaint for that specifically, but it has nothing to do with discrimination.

So, what should I do? Should I keep this between my psychiatrist and myself, or should I file an official complaint?

**ADD FRIENDLY TL;DR :** I have a well\-documented diagnosis of ADD/ADHD since childhood. I had not "officially" disclosed the diagnosis to the business owner, but it was "common knowledge" that I am under care for it and take medication for it. I did disclose it to the business adviser when drafting an email to outline changes I was going to make to improve performance. I was discharged with out an official verbal or written warning or an opportunity to improve, and the discharge was apparently based on the opinions of co\-workers and, to quote the business owner, being a "square peg in a round hole," despite that by his own admission, I was trying to improve. I have been encouraged to file a discrimination complaint but I am unsure if I really have a complaint to file.

Answer:
 If your performance was not where it needed to be, they were within their right to fire you.

If you need specific reasonable accommodations, you must ask for them.

Having poor performance is very likely not a reasonable accommodation.

You can file for unemployment. Answer #2: > . I had not "officially" disclosed the diagnosis to the business owner

Then you are not protected under the ADA. You need to both ask for AND RECEIVE reasonable accommodations  to be protected.

In future, request accommodations at the beginning of your employment.


Title: Hypothetical on the old "If you're a cop you have to tell me"

Question:
Most of us are fully aware that cops are allowed to lie about many things, including being a cop.

So let's say that Bob is a drug dealer.  Whenever someone comes to Bob's door, he tells them that he doesn't allow police officers into his home, and any police entering his home would be considered trespassers.

Now what would happen if a cop showed up at Bob's house, lied about being a cop, then entered the home and gathered information to bust Bob for selling drugs?

Edit:  For location, let's say Canada or USA.

Answer: Then Bob would be busted for selling drugs. If it were that easy to get around undercover cops, they wouldn't exist. Police officers are allowed to do things like that, even "trespassing", in the course of an investigation.


Title: [Tennessee] Rented an apartment, now I'm supposed to pay for professional cleaning before moving out.

Question:
Title says it all. In the pre-move out paperwork, the leasing office has made it very clear that if I do not pay to have the carpets professionally cleaned, they will be billing me for it. That's included along with a very long and scary list of possible charges that I could incur when moving out.

I was just wondering if they can legally require me to pay for the cleaning?

And another question would be, what protections, if any, do I have when moving out?

Answer: Usually you have to leave the apartment in the same condition as when you moved in.  What does the lease say?  Did you give a Security deposit?  The LL will probably do the work and take the funds out of the deposit.  If there is no deposit, they might send you a bill, but they'd have to find you first, and you're under no obligation to inform them of where you are moving to.


Title: My ex-roommate might have deposited by insurance reimbursement to her account. Possible actions?

Question:
I live in New Jersey.
Background: My ex-roommate is in her early 30's and I used to live with her for roughly 7months through 2013 to 2014. She is an emotionally manipulative and deceitful person and I have suffered enough heartache because of her lying and taking advantage of me. Partly it was my fault back then because I was too naive and was afraid to speak my mind - I was a doormat.

I called up my insurance company to ask why I am not receiving 4 checks that includes: sept 2014 ($90), Oct 2014 ($300), April 2015 ($400), May 2015 ($200), total of $990. These should all have been arrived by now because the insurance company had almost always sent the checks within 4 weeks I've fedexed the reimbursement claim form to them.

The claim advisor had told me that all 4 checks were deposited and she sent me the copy of checks to my email. I thought this was really weird because I tracked down my e-banking account and found  no evidence depositing each of these amounts to my bank account. The reason I am skeptical of my ex-roommate behind all of this is because for few times in the past the insurance company had forgot to update my mailing address and some of my checks went to the ex-roommate's address which then I had to call the insurance company to void the checks and get them send a new check to me when I've they have told me that some checks were sent to the old address. You might think that it is impossible for her to deposit the check since the check has my name as the recipient but surprisingly, 2 years ago my brother deposited my checks to his account(which is his money that I owed)that had my name on it. So I asked the insurance company if they can track down who deposited my 4 checks, they said it was not possible for them to find out whom. I asked my brother if he took the check but he said no. My brother is not kind of person who lies to me and he financially supports me anyway.

Is there any way that I can identify who stole the 4 checks? I use Bank of America just for reference.
If it is found to be my ex-roomate to be the one, what is a possible legal action I could take? She is not a US citizen/permanent resident and she holds some kind of temporary visa or O-visa(artist's visa). I don't care about the money to be honest, but I want her to pay for what she did – at least to be kicked out of US or go to jail for committing a crime.

tl;dr Someone has possibly stolen my money by depositing my check. Legal advice?

Answer:
 did you get only the front, or did you also get the back?

the backs will indicate who signed the checks (if they were signed), and will also indicate which bank(s) processed the transaction. it can be difficult to decipher the information, especially on a crappy image, but it's supposed to be there.

also, if the insurance company claims they "can't" trace the transaction ... you're not talking to the right person. accountability and traceability are the whole reason they don't pay you in cash.


Title: Textbook buyer is holding my book, saying they cannot verify its authenticity

Question:
I am in Massachusetts. I shipped my textbook to a buyer in Idaho. They say they have received the book, but they were unable to verify its authenticity. According to online complaints (which I wish I had read before I shipped), this buyer will often make that move. They will hold the book for months, claiming that the delay is with the publisher.

I wrote to the buyer. They said it is illegal for them to return the book to me if they suspect it is a counterfeit. FWIW, they had not said before this email that they suspect it is counterfeit; their web portal only said they could not verify its authenticity. And they have not given me any positive reason that they suspect it is counterfeit.

It is difficult to accept that they can hold my book for an arbitrarily long time without giving a reason for their supposed suspicion, and when that suspicion may amount to nothing more than the failure of an undisclosed internal authentication process, or some guy's vague intuition. It could easily be a flimsy excuse for an abusive practice. Questions, then:

* Is it actually illegal for them to return me my book, as they claim?

* If so, does the reason for their suspicion need to pass some test? Can I make them divulge that reason to me?

* If I ask the publisher whether the seller has actually contacted them, is that likely to help me? hurt me?

I purchased this textbook new from my college bookstore, so I have a high degree of confidence in its authenticity.

Answer:
 Contact the publisher yourself, and ask them what you should do if you suspect somebody sold you a counterfeit book.

If the buyer isn't doing exactly what the publisher says to do you'll have more options.

How did you sell the book? Ebay?


Title: [Chicago, IL] We want to break a lease early and landlord made no "good faith" effort to find replacement tenants.

Question:
Dear legaladvice, I could use some help.

In April of 2016, my wife and I renewed a lease with our landlord for 1 year. When we asked to renew, we informed our landlord that we are looking to buy a house. He said that we would be responsible for rent until new tenants were secured, which we accepted. He said that he would immediately list the place "as available" when we told him we had made an offer.

On September 23rd, we informed our landlord that sellers had accepted our offer and we would close on December 1st. Our landlord congratulated us and said nothing more.

On October 7th, we messaged him again, and he said he had "forwarded his information the his realtor." On October 22nd, we messaged him again for updates, and he said that he is going to "list with all of the apartment rental agencies" and also "list the property for sale."

By mid November, we had a few showings. At this point, we were wondering what was going on so we looked it up and our landlord had never listed the property for rental, only for sale. After messaging him several times, he admitted that he only listed for sale because he wasn't interested in renting it out anymore. We have paid for rent in December as a gesture of good faith, but...

1. We do not want to pay rent for Jan-Apr. Do we have grounds to stop paying for rent as he never made any effort to find replacement tenants?

2. I want to stop paying for gas/electricity at the apartment since I'll have to make mortgage/utilities payments at the new home. Would we still be liable for damages to the apartment if, say, the water pipes freeze or something? We wouldn't be occupying the apartment.

3. All of the above, we have in writing over e-mails. If our landlord decides to take us to court, do we have a reasonable defense of our situation? My understanding of the law for rentals is that, as soon as a tenant informs the landlord that they would like to break the lease, the landlord must make a "good faith" effort to replace the tenant, but I don't think ours has done so.

What do you think?

Thanks so much for your advice and have a lovely day,

- Ratsofat

Answer:
 If you don't pay what you are contractually obligated to pay, then the landlord can sue you to recover those losses.  You in turn would have to claim as a defense that the landlord admitted to failing to attempt to mitigate his losses as he is obligated to do and as he said he would do.  The judge would then rule on what, if anything, you owe to the landlord.

Save copies of all texts messages and e-mails etcetera to support your claims as to what you told the landlord and what he told you.

BTW, you can find someone to sublet the apartment yourself.  You don't have to rely on the landlord to do that.

EDIT:  Actually, if he's trying to SELL the place, then you MIGHT have a little leverage over him.  You could tell him that you are going to sublet the place for the full term of your lease (and thus he won't be able to sell it until your lease/sublet term is over - well, he can sell it, but the new owners can't move in until your lease/sublet term is over).  If he's got a buyer, or thinks he might get one, before your lease/sublet term is over, then he might let you out.  Be sure to get it in writing...


Title: [MO]They call me Hell! They call me Charlhott! That's not my name! 👏👏 That's not my name!

Question:
>Long time listener, first time caller, bababooey, fuck u Zapopa and all that jazz. I was in (let's say the Chair Force) and the crayon-munchers in charge of admin did it bad when doing all my onboarding/enlistment, and I did not realize until probably 3 years in that they changed my middle name from "Charlotte" to "Charlhott" through the exciting process of typing like a dickhead. I have been separated for a couple years from what we're pretending is the Chair Force, and no problems have appeared yet. Typing like a dickhead without checking for errors was a common occurrence, but since it didn't cause problems throughout my term of service I just told it as a funny story and moved on. I've been able to get credit, receive VA benefits, enroll in school, be employed, and otherwise have lived my life with no issues despite my civil paperwork (BC, DL, diploma, industry certifications, and state and federal tax and background check forms) using the "Charlotte" and my military-related paperwork (VA disability, education, and medical paperwork) saying "Charlhott" because most of the time they use a middle initial.

>Now I'm looking at getting married, changing my last name. How much grief will this cause me when I update all my paperwork to reflect a last name? Will the non-matching name cause me issues if a civil authority (insurance, for example) thinks they can screw me? What about on federal background checks where I've used my legal name, should I be putting down Charlhott as an alias? Will this cause issues if I'm hit by a bus 32.5 seconds after my name change is reflected by the VA, DOD, DOE, ATF, FBI, DHS, and the Ministry of Silly Walks, leaving my widow to try to collect insurance and death benefits? How soon can I expect to be arrested for voter fraud, malingering, and disturbing the peace, and how loudly do I need to shout "CHARLHOTT DOES NOT CONSENT TO THIS JOINDER" when it happens to walk free as a sovereign citizen?

>TL:DR Dickfingers mispelled my middle name on a government document, the mistake was not noticed for several years and it now effectively canon. Getting married and changing my name, what do, can this fuck me, or should I ignore it like That One Step On The Stairs? Sincerely, a Throwaway.

Legaladvice removed my post, deeming it "incoherent" (I assume for a lack of MS Paint drawings showing two different identities with differing names, held by the same person) so I brought it here instead.

Answer:
 No advice, but Upvote for Ting Tings.Answer #2: Former Chair Force here.

Realistically, it likely won't cause anything other than administrative/paperwork issues.  Assuming you have other official documentation with your correct name (birth certificate, Social Security card, etc.), you can easily provide proof that the SSN is yours and that your name has always been spelled correctly.

It may be worth it to begin listing it as an alias, though, in the event that a credit/background check is trying to verify your service.

If you want to fix it, [here](https://www.dfas.mil/correctmilitaryrecords.html) is a good place to start.  [Here's](http://www.afpc.af.mil/Board-for-Correction-of-Military-Records/) another option if the first one doesn't work.

Theoretically, it should be pretty simple to have changed.  You aren't trying to change your medals, discharge, or amount that DFAS owes you.  It's literally just correcting paperwork misspellings.  That being said, we both know that just because it should be simple doesn't mean it will be.

Good luck.


Title: Is this wage theft?

Question:
I'm a crew leader at a moving company. Two weeks ago my crew and I had an all day pack and move job that was simply abusive. My team and I were belittled and screamed at the entire time we were loading. In 3 1/2 years moving furniture no one has ever treated me like this. I won't go into extreme detail because, well just so much happened, maybe when I have more time.

It was a lesbian couple, clearly an emotionally abusive relationship. I asked the nice one to make sure her partner was not at the offload site and she managed to make that happen.

The abusive one complained so much by the end, I had already lowered the price for them At the end of the 11 hour job the nice one had her partner's credit card to pay the bill and gave us a 20% tip on the $2000 bill, telling us we deserved it especially for all we put up with.

Then, over the next two weeks the abusive one bothered my boss through dozens of emails and phone calls, they gave her more than half the money back AND agreed to take our tip back.

So now we've been told to expect that tip to come out of our next checks. Is that legal? We're in Texas.

-----

Update: The day after I wrote this,  my boss was already on her way out of town when I got off work. I called her from the office and told her that I believed that she was in violation of the law by deducting from my wages without my permission and that if she didn't address it to my satisfaction by the end of next week,  I was going to make a wage theft claim with the Texas Workforce Commission.

She got back from vacation two days ago and told me that she decided to give the money back,  but that she talked to the Texas Workforce Commission and the company lawyers and it wasn't illegal to take my tips because they have a recording of the customer asking for the tips back.

Answer: Generally tips are property of the employee. You had already earned it and it was clearly given. Since it was then yours, it seems to me that your employer's choice to give them a discount is on him. I would talk to your boss and explain that your tip had already been earned and thus was your property and that your boss had no right to return it.


Title: Visa issues due to video piracy - is this real?

Question: I know the US is intolerable in regards to video piracy, biggest example being having OJ Simpson acquitted for murder and giving him jail time for pirating DirectTv content couple years later.  I want to return to the US, and I might have some pirated content on my social websites (i.e facebook) that is easily searchable, how much harm could that do to my visa application if found?

Answer:
 >OJ Simpson acquitted for murder and giving him jail time for pirating DirectTv content couple years later.

That's isn't what happened. He went to prison for armed robbery.


Title: OHIO: My dad going for grandparents rights. He's not a good man.

Question:
I (f 30's)haven't talked to my dad (m 60's) in over a year. My son, significant other and I lived on his property for a time before being evicted bc his girlfriend hated us. It was extremely ugly when it ended.

They were both highly abusive to all us. This included calling police multiple times claiming domestic violence from us but when the police show up they change their stories and tried to act pitiful and get sympathy. Like we were abusive to them. This happened numerous times after they attempted to throw out our possessions and we tried to stop them. My SO and I lost thousands of dollars between us in supplies and equipment after we caught on they were stealing our stuff anytime we left the property.

My dad has a history of being a pathological liar, highly manipulative and narcissistic.
These are things I grew up with but it's not documented.

He has also called CPS several times. The last time over a year ago I played a VM for the advocate where my dad is blowing up on me saying he will lie and tell the police, CPS and anyone else who will listen that I'm a bad mother. Obviously the case was closed and the advocate was pissed none of the accusations were true, I don't think they did anything to my dad about it.

When the fallout happened, my SO took his camper (we all lived in at one point but my son and I had already left for my mother's home at this point) and moved away from them. SO and I have been together 11 years, never married.

My son's biological father hasn't been seen since he was 2. My son is 11 going on 12.

My dad keeps calling and I do not answer. I save the messages but don't want anything to do with him. He leaves VM's on my mother's phone wanting her to warn me about "what's coming".

My son is at an age to understand his grandpa is deteriorating in ways that make him scary. He has told me numerous times he does NOT want to be around his grandpa or his grandpa's girlfriend.

I'm sorry about the long post. Everything is just jumbled up right now. I've read up some on grandparents rights in Ohio and I'm concerned he will follow through with his threat.

I don't much money and we're currently still staying with my mother. What can I do to protect us from this man? What can I do if we do end up in court to make sure my son stays far away from him? I'm really terrified bc I know what he's like.

  I just need an idea what can realistically happen in court. I'm concerned bc I'm not married.

My SO and I are trying to leave the state but that's up in the air if we can come up with the money required for the move. There are jobs for us out west where we're going.

Any advice would be appreciated thank you.

Answer:
 If you do end up in court, the fact that your son can tell the judge he doesn't want contact with your father is likely to be very helpful.Answer #2: You have NOTHING to worry about. There is no way the courts will grand him grandparent rights and force your son to have contact with him.

It seems quite unlikely your father will actually file. Unless and until he does you do nothing. If he does actually file I would suggest an attorney if you can afford one. If not bring all the info above - case reports from CPS closing the case, printouts and screenshots of voicemails, etc with you to court. He will not get visitation.


Title: I think my employer is committing a felony by asking it's employees to falsify their timesheets if they work over 40 hours a week.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Contact your state's department of labor. They will be interested in hearing this.Answer #2: Yes. That's highly illegal. You should whistleblow (look up VA protections) and contact the VA DOL.


Title: Broke college student, got a suspicious job offer

Question:
Hello, not sure if this belongs in here or r/personalfinance

Recently I posted an ad on Craigslist NYC, offering my tutoring services in Adobe products. I used to to this back in my home state and made a bunch of extra cash on the side.

&#x200B;

Today, I got a text offering a pretty sweet deal.

&#x200B;

"All you need to do is to post properties for rent on craiglist under apts/housing and i will be paying $700 weekly or make payment of $100 daily for posting 10 ads  and payment will be made via Paypal or western union...just let me know the one that best works for you and if you are interested in the job"

&#x200B;

Is there a catch to this? Does this technically make me an agent of his? Am I an apartment broker by doing this? What kind of ramifications could I face from this?

Thank you!

Answer: You're posting pictures properties where people will send money to that guy and the house won't even be for rent/sale. Guy is using you as a buffer for his scam, so when the police investigate it's your IP that comes up as posting it. You probably won't even get paid and you'll be part of a conspiracy to defraud people of their money. Answer #2: Of course it's a scam. It would take less than an hour to post 10 ads, and it's easy work. Why would anyone legitimately pay $500 for one hour of clicking?


Title: Legally blind one eye

Question:
In the spring of 2017 my son was cold cocked hit full force in eye by 14-15 yr old school bully causing his glasses to go flying and being sent home with painful eye.
Cut to July 2018 while randomly driving down the freeway returning from a vacation he freaks out saying he can’t see at all in that eye .
We arrive home he says it’s a little better I call the eye doctor and they can’t get him in for a month .
Now it’s Sept 2018 and the eye doctor doing his exam looks horrified and immediately he’s sent to a retinal specialist. He stated both his retina and macula are detached and he’s never seen that kind of damage in someone so young in his life.  He refers us immediately to leading retinal specialist on other side of state.
Two surgeries later he can see but barely and faces a) special glasses for his situation b) potential future surgeries and c) is legally blind in that eye. He can’t become a surgeon join the military and getting a drivers license is potentially at risk depending on how much peripheral vision comes back.

In the past 7 months besides costing out of pocket 7400 in medical bills every visit requires taking a full day of work to drive the long distance to the specialist as well as occasional hotel stays.

The devastation is draining enough but as a single mother the bills are draining as well. I talked to 2 attorneys who stated because of the age of the other child there is nothing they can do. Nor can they sue the school.

All 3 doctors he has seen state 100% cause was that strike to the eye. Anything I can do to get reimbursed for something that was clearly someone else’s fault and will affect my son now the rest of his life.

Heartbroken mom

Answer:
 Where are you located?  Parental liability exists in numerous states for the acts of minor children.

You may also want to be in contact with law enforcement and see if there is something to be done through that avenue.  It may not help for monetary damages, but criminal charges may help bring you closure.Answer #2: \>  Cut to July 2018 while randomly driving down the freeway returning from a vacation he freaks out saying he can’t see at all in that eye . We arrive home he says it’s a little better I call the eye doctor and they can’t get him in for a month . Now it’s Sept 2018

&#x200B;

Not a lawyer but I wonder if not seeking more emergent care could limit the other party's liability?Answer #3: Michigan does have a law imposing civil liability for a minor's torts on the parents (MCL 600.2913), but the parents' liability is capped at $2,500.

Juvenile delinquency proceedings may provide more relief. Not only can the child be held liable for full restitution, the parents can be ordered to pay some or all of the restitution. See MCL 712A.30.  I didn't see a statute of limitations specifically for juvenile deliquency proceedings, but generally the state can bring criminal proceedings in Michigan within six years. So it is probably not too late.


Title: Found a dead lizard in a coke bottle

Question:
So, I don't live in the US, but we found a dead animal inside a coke bottle. It is solid, is clearly decomposing and is just floating around in there. Who should I contact or what should I do?
EDIT: I've been asked to add that I am in Jalisco, Mexico.

Answer:
 >So, I don't live in the US,

Then I'll assume you live in Saudi Arabia. Report it to the [Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice](http://www.hisbah.gov.sa/).


Title: I have a few questions regarding my student loans and university tuition.

Question:
EDIT: Location- OK, USA

I'm anticipating graduating with a Bachelors of Applied Technology degree in one month, but I'm finding it really hard to stay in school. I just came to the realization that I've been ripped-off by the school and that I did not receive the a quality education- especially not worth how much I paid for it.

I feel this way for a few reasons- the majority of the classes I've had were poorly taught or presented information that had already been previously covered, and as the degree program is so new (7 years old), a lot of the classes have changed, most of the classes I took don't exist anymore, the rest were consolidated into more effececient classes. Also, alot of my professors no longer teach there either- and there's a reason for that, they were awful, and I've also had the experience of teachers always being absent and having substitutes( my program is a music school, alot of my teachers are musicians that also tour) At that time, there was no option to test-out of the required courses. I've never felt like I've taken a course appropriate for it's level- I'm currently taking a 4000 level class that is presenting information I learned in my first two semesters, and it's being taught poorly.

I know that, despite my GPA, I do not have the knowledge or education that my degree represents or says that I have. I know that I'm going to go out into the world and have to learn everything on my own.

I just feel incredibly ripped-off and I've never felt so miserable in my life, I really do regret pursuing a degree.  I wish I had recognized it sooner, but I was so optimistic that it would get better, (and I'm sure it has, for students who are starting *now*, but I didn't get what I paid for, or put effort into), and it honestly went by so fast, I didn't really have time to think about it.

I'm aware that schools don't give refunds, and I feel like there's honestly nothing I can do about this, but I have to do something. I'm looking for some legal precedent, there has to be something, because I feel like the program did not fulfill it's expectations, and I know that's arbitrary, but I'm $30k in debt, and I did not receive an education worth that much.

I also know that if I default on my loans, the government can garnish my wages- is there any case I can make to not pay my student loans back?

Answer: No.  Dissatisfaction is not sufficient.


Title: I've been railroaded out of my own children!

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 I got through about three lines of that before I gave up.

Get treatment for whatever is wrong with you, and then get a lawyer and work on getting your kids back.


Title: (NH) Thanking my lawyer

Question:
I'm not sure if this belongs here, but didn't know where else to ask.

Recently my husband passed away and I had to get a probate lawyer. The lawyer I have is doing it all for free and has gone more than the extra mile for me. He let me use his financial advisor and real estate agent, also at no cost to me.

So my question is, is there any protocol for giving a thank you gift to your lawyer? Is it unheard of? I would like to show my appreciation without it coming off as weird.

Answer: A fee comments have mentioned online reviews and referrals. Just be careful how you word them. He probably wouldn't like a swarm of potential clients expecting free services. That kind of reaction might make him leery of helping someone in a similar situation in the future.


Question: I have stolen hundreds of books from a library. I regret my actions and ideally I would like to return them without any consequence to myself. But if there are consequences, then I would rather dispose of them. What is your legal advice?

Answer: Once a year, libraries have a day or so where you can return any books w/o consequence. Google that library to see if/when this occurs, or call them and ask.Answer #2: Do they have a dropbox or something?  Start putting them in there a couple at a time or all at once depending on what tickles your fancy.  Would not recommend speaking with anyone at the library about this due to potential legal consequences.


Title: (FL) Amazon gave my email address to a person whom I am NC with, can they legally do that?

Question:
Basically the title. I do not communicate with my MIL as she is abusive and manipulative. After months of NC she bought an expensive gift for me through a 3rd party seller on Amazon.

Trying to return the gift was a nightmare and while I laid out the sensitivity of the situation which Amazon took no discretion over.  While the 3rd party removed my email address when communicating with MIL, Amazon did not.  MIL has been forwarding me all correspondence and using this all to force communication. Although Amazon had all the information, and even picture evidence that the item was at my house, they emailed her and gave her my email address.  Are they allowed to do this? I do not see in their privacy policy where they are allowed to give out one customer's information to another.

I have bunches of correspondence with Amazon over this.  It might also be relevant that Amazon even called the seller with me on the line about all this and yet they contacted MIL AFTER all of this and gave her my email.

The email I just received from Amazon seemed to talk circles and avoid the fact that they did anything wrong.  This struck me as odd since I was inquiring about the various privacy settings and letting them know that they shouldn't give out customer's emails to other customers and to please not do that to others in the future.

Thanks for reading. Thoughts?

Answer:
 Amazon is not legally required to protect you or respect your NOMIL/RBN safe space. Answer #2: > Are they allowed to do this?

There's no law against it.  Your email address is not private, and "NC" isn't a legal status.


Title: In jail for doing a wheelie..

Question:
Hi I'm from Washington only 20 years old. I was  out riding my r6 with grandpa for the 1st time when I popped a wheelie passing a sheriff. He immediately flipped his lights and I could've easily gotten away as it took him alotta time to turn around... I didnt.. and right away he threw me in cuffs.  I also had a small sub sac of marijuana.
I'm already 4 months into fighting a case for a DUI, I was pulled over for "music" and they questioned me how am I able to afford my car and what do I do for a living..
 But as for the wheelie it seems like I was charged with reckless driving and a MIP. I was wondering if it's best for me to get a lawyer for this or just fight it myself..
Thanks for your replies.

Answer:
 Greetings that’s two criminal charges and you are already on pretrial release for dui which probably includes no crim law violations and no upc while driving.  I’d expect a hefty failure to comply bondon your dui case.Answer #2: You got caught with marijuana while driving recklessly all while still dealing with a previous DUI.

Yes, you need a lawyer. And you need to listen to them.  Answer #3: Just checked post history. Get a good criminal defense lawyer. Memorize their phone number. You are they type who will be calling them regularly. Answer #4: >I could've easily gotten away

You can't get away from a radio.  If you tried to run, the officer would have called his other cop buddies over the radio.  They would have chased you down and you would be facing more charges.  And your recklessness might of hurt innocent people.


Title: The Will and the IRA Beneficiary do not match up. [Ohio, US]

Question:
Hey /r/legaladvice. I've come here today to explain an issue that we have going on and to ask for advice before getting in touch with another lawyer.

A family member recently passed and there is an issue between what the Will says and how the deceased filled out their IRA beneficiary forms. The Will states that Person A is to receive land property and 50% of the value of the IRA, Person B is to receive 50% of the value of the IRA, and Person C is to receive $10,000 from the IRA before it is divided. The total value of the IRA is somewhere around $100,000. The IRA Beneficiary form, however, is listed that Person A receives 100% of the IRA and was notarized before being submitted. Person A is also the Executor for the deceased.

In this situation, which piece of paperwork wins out? Person B and Person C are both pretty upset about the situation, and looking at getting another attorney on board. I say another attorney because one was consulted to set up the Will.

Person A is unwilling to talk to anyone about the situation.

If you have any knowledge in this area, please help me to understand a way to help resolve all of this.

Thank you.

Answer:
 The Will says what happens to assets in the probate estate. The IRA is not part of the probate estate because it has a designated beneficiary. So, A gets the IRA as beneficiary and A gets the land under the will. There is nothing from the IRA that makes it to the probate estate.

Stinks. Perhaps a clever attorney can convince a judge that the later will was intended to revoke the beneficiary designation. But, absent a court order otherwise, the IRA company is going to write the check to person A.


Title: Can Google store and use my medical information for the purpose of advertising to me?

Question:
I watch YouTube videos and advertising pops up pretty often when watching them

I have ulcerative colitis and I've  been getting advertisment that almost seem to be directed by the specifically for my medical condition. My assumption is that Google has figured out that I have ulcerative colitis and is using that information to target me for advertising.

Is this legal? What if I had a medical condition I did not want people to know about and they began running advertising targeted for that?

I iive in Pennsylvania if that matters.

Answer: Yes, that's legal. Most likely you mentioned your condition in searches or emails, which Google can snoop, per its various TOSes that users accept when creating accounts.


Title: Restaurant put undisclosed peanuts in wife's dinner. How do I ensure that they pay for the ER bill?

Question:
Atlanta, GA

My wife has a serious peanut allergy and we ordered chicken lo mein from a local Chinese restaurant. We had been foolishly living without an Epi-pen so had to rush to the emergency room. Yes, we're idiots and we now have multiple Epi-pens.

The website makes no mention on their menu of peanuts being in this (or any) dish but we called and they confirmed that they added peanut butter to their sauce. She always orders the same thing from Chinese restaurants to avoid this situation. Looking back through reviews for this place we learned that she wasn't the first victem; a little boy had the same thing happen a year earlier. The health department said they would look into it.

How should we go about getting the restaurant to pay the ER bill? It's going to be about $1200 after our insurance pays their portion (and I'm not even sure our insurance should be on the hook). I don't know if hiring a lawyer makes sense since the the only damages are the hospital bill and a lawyer would want to get paid on top of that.

We would also like to compel the establishment to display prominent allergy information on their menu to avoid other people being in similar life threatening situations.

Thanks for your help!

Answer:
 Were they aware of her allergy? Had they specified that there wasn't any peanuts in the food, or are you only looking at the omission of their mention? Answer #2: Did you tell them that she's allergic and ask to have it made peanut free?

Is it *advertised* to be peanut free?

You can ask them to pay for it.  You can sue them if you want.  But I don't think I see clear liability on their part here...Answer #3: You can't, because they aren't liable.Answer #4: Did you disclose the food allergy when you ordered, or inquire as to whether peanuts or peanut-based products were present in the dish?

Chicken lo mein is commonly made with a peanut sauce.Answer #5: Did you inform the restaurant at the time of your order that the wife had a peanut allergy? Answer #6: Peanuts are commonly used in Chinese food kitchens. Even if it hadn't been in the dish, it was prepared in an environment with peanuts which is risky within itself if you have a peanut allergy.


Title: Freind being kicked out of apartment, complex won't say why [TX]

Question:
Hi, long time since I've been on here, I'm hoping you can help me give some advice to a friend. Basically it's a couple with 3 teenagers living in an apartment for the past 8 years. A few months ago the complex was giving them a hard time about something, and she apparently had an argument with the leasing agent. A couple months later the leasing agent told them that after 8 years they are not going to be allowed another lease renewal. They say it's not personal and has nothing to do with them but won't give any reason for not allowing it. I'm concerned because this family is foreign, the mom speaks with a very thick Russian accent, and they are also a religious minority.

I know apartments have the right not to lease to someone if they don't want to but I also think it seems suspicious that there was an argument then a mysterious non-renewal of lease after 8 years with no explanation, and I just have a feeling having some experience with this complex before that this wouldn't be happening if it were a white American family.

Is there anything she can do and is it worthwhile to pursue with an attorney to help see if there's something discriminatory happening, or see if maybe just an attorney poking around might prompt them to reconsider? Or is this just too normal course of business to worry about? Thank you.

Answer: Time to move. They don't have to provide a reason for not renewing the lease.Answer #2: There are a hundred different possible reasons they chose not to renew the lease.  Only a couple reasons would be illegal.  The landlord was smart to not give a reason and it’s perfectly legal for them to not renew.


Title: Should I call CPS, or move and try to help?

Question:
I’m currently living in California and visited my family in Texas last week. While there I realized my nephew (2) is living in absolute filth. He is covered in flee bites, the house is covered in dog/cat shit, A/C is not working (100 degrees) and both couples seem to be constantly fighting. My sister (24) has no job, no GED and no drivers license. Her boyfriend (the father) works but is an alcoholic. I should add he didn’t sign the birth certificate. They live with my parents who are terrible people. My dad is manic depressive/bipolar and was constantly verbally abusive and at times physically abusive. My mother enables him although I’ve always felt that she is trapped in the relationship. Probably just an excuse. I’m overall done with my parents. Allowing their grandchild to live in this situation is unforgivable My questions are;

Do I have a case to get my nephew away from the situation?

Should I move back and try and help my sister first?

Answer: Call CPS before you do literally anything else.  Get that kiddo out of that house.Answer #2: CPS first. If you really want to help that child, call CPS. If you move back to help, you'll only cover and hide the neglect and abuse, making it harder for the child to seek the help he needs.


Title: Library is attempting to charge me for a book I returned and I have no way to pay it. Ohio

Question: I live in an area with a library notorious for losing books that are returned. The library recently declared it got rid of late fees and has been trying to charge me for a book I returned. They keep sending me collection letters and automated calls and are currently charging $40. I have kept the letters and I have recordings of the calls. They have "checked" for the book and claim they don't have it. I'm a 19 year old who is living at home and I'm completely financially dependent on my family and I have ZERO income and I'm unable to work due to a temporary personal issue. I have no way to get the money and even if I did, I'm not willing to pay a charge for something I returned. I don't even have a way to get down to the library to talk to anyone in person about it. Is there any way to fight the library and/or collection agency on the issue.

Answer:
 Contact the library and ask to speak with a supervisor. Explain your situation. If the book cannot be found and there's absolutely no proof you dropped it off then you either probably have to pay it back or lose your library privileges.

Ask your parents to help with the book. Have you priced out the book yourself? Can you find a copy on Amazon for cheaper? If you find it for $12, then buy the book and present it to the library.Answer #2: Not legal advice, but I suggest that you visit the library and see if the book is physically on the shelf.  It's very possible that it was reshelved without being formally "checked in".  Answer #3: The library probably won't press for the $40 through legal channels, it'd cost more to sue for it.

But, they can and almost certainly WILL revoke your library card and not let you check out books again until the situation is resolved in a way they are satisfied with.

If you don't wanna pay the 40, check amazon. I lost a hardcopy of a semi recent book (within 2 years of release) book from my library. I bout a replacement hard copy for 5 bucks and they let me exchange the one I lost with that one. The library doesn't care if it's that specific one unless it's got special criteria - first edition, hard copy, etc. Only difference to the library is printing new stickers to stick on the book to mark it as a library book and not a privately owned one.

As long as they have the matching book back or the cost to buy a matching one themselves they are happy.


Title: If I gave a female some of my semen under the condition that she does nothing but safe-keep it, but then she goes against my wish and somehow impregnates herself with my semen, can I take any legal action?

Question:
(NORWAY)

This question is way out, and I couldn't think of any other place to post it. Let's say hypothetically hand a female some of my semen, in a frozen jar, and specifically tell her to DO NOTHING BUT HANG ON TO IT, but then she injects it into herself and gets pregnant. I kindly ask her to abort the child, denied. Since I did not give my consent, can I somehow get the authorities into the picture and have the child removed? What if I had a legally binding contract that says that she was to only keep my semen, would things be different? I'll gladly supply with any additional info if needed, again sorry for the weirdness in my question...

Answer: You gave it to her. It's now hers with which to do what she wants. If you want control of your possessions, keep them in your possession.


Title: [NSW, AUS] Accosted NY police possible $550 fine

Question:
Went to the pub tonight and was drinking top shelf spirits.  As soon as I asked for Tanqueray instead of Bombay Saphire the manager came out any basically called the police on me and told me to leave.  I moved exactly the mandatory 50m away until the cops came but then the manager tld them i had been back in the premises since (which I had,m only to tell my GF that I had been kicked out).

Basically I had to put up[ with a manager subtly tell me I was subtly kicked out and I wasn't allowed to tell my partner as this would be me re-entering the premises. TLDR I  wanted to point out that Bombay Sapphire and Tanquray are at lease equal on the top shelf.  Instead I get kicked out, banned and a $550 fine to top it off.

I'm seriously considering taking it to court, I don't think I did anything wrong and I certainly don't think the government t owns a cent.

I wasn't that drunk but of course the ops back with the pub owners and I'm left out in the dark with a $500 fine.

Any help would be much appreciated, I am seriously considering going to court and arguing m case that I was just making suggestions and next thing you know you are threatened with the cell.,

Answer:
 Bartenders don't just kick people out for drinking a less fancy alcohol.  After all, if they really had an issue with whatever you ordered, they wouldn't carry it in the first place.  Something else is going on here that you're not telling us.

My guess is that you were more drunk than you think, and were disturbing other patrons, which prompted the bartender to kick you out.  Is the fine for trespassing? Public intoxication? Something else?


Title: Can diplomatic imunity make someone absolved from killing another person? In short it makes you above the law?

Answer: In the case of a serious crime the host country will ask the foreign country to waive the diplomat’s immunity. If the foreign country doesn’t agree the host country will expel the diplomat and there will be a breakdown of diplomatic relations until it’s sorted out in the political arena.


Title: Wondering what, as a minor, counts as self defense.

Question: I'm in Wisconsin. A couple days back shit went down with my mom (check my post history for more details on that). My dad does not live with us. I didn't do something my mom asked me to, and she took out scissors. I felt unsafe so I backed away and eventually I grabbed them (from the handle) out of her hand and threw them into the corner of the room. She then grabbed my face and hand to try to push my down, from which I have [marks](http://imgur.com/a/8yoEC). (their a lot more visible than they look in the photos, shit camera). At this point, I decided to fight back and, with as little force as I needed, pushed her arms against the wall and held her legs against the wall. She then said she would kick me in the balls, so I went to call the police (non emergency number) because this was getting out of hand, and she unplugged the phone, then took the battery out of it and threw the battery out in our yard so I couldn't call.

Answer:
 In general, self defense covers a reasonable amount of force necessary to separate yourself from the situation. In your case, as you were held down, assuming you used a reasonable amount of force to remove yourself you'd likely be fine. All of that said, assuming your post is accurate, I don't think you'd necessarily need to raise a self defense case. Self-defense is an affirmative defense, it only comes into play if charged with a crime which is unlikely.

More importantly, you need to get in touch with Child Protective Services. A mother coming after her son with a weapon and physically abusing him is something they'll be incredibly concerned about. Save the photos you have (back them up online/flash drive as well) and all other documentation.

You can find [the number for CPS on this link by county](http://dcf.wisconsin.gov/children/cps/cpswimap.htm).


Title: CT landlord denying access to fuse box/emergency shut off for natural gas.

Question:
My landlord has two properties, ours has 3.5 apartments (using the same street address).  The bottom floor is a normal apartment except for the bonus apartment in the basement. A new tenant has moved in the bonus apartment, who has installed a deadbolt on the door to access the natural gas emergency shut off and breaker boxes.

The house we rent is about 100 years old, heat is supplied by radiators for which there is a thermostat on the 1st floor.  This means that our apartment is constantly chilly (typically above 65), sometimes our space heater trips the breaker.  Now that there is a deadbolt we have to wait for the basement tenant to get home--it is not uncommon for him to be gone for a weekend or working until 4 am.  To make matters worse tensions have been building between us and the 1st floor.  There is a maintenance guy, but he typically takes days to respond; the landlord lives several states away.

Last year we had a major gas leak, the repair workers informed me that the state of the pipes was terrible and that I should not be afraid to use the main shut off if I smelled gas.  The deadbolt also blocks our access to the gas shut off.  That scares me!

Is it legal for him to block access to the breaker and main gas valve?  Is it legal that we don't have a thermostat?  Is it legal for us to rely on the basement tenant for access?

Answer:
 Fuse box access varies from state to state and depends (in some places) on how many units are in the complex/house/etc. I can't find much for CT except [this](https://www.jud.ct.gov/Publications/hm031.pdf) which doesn't mention it.

More troublesome is the gas shutoff. I'd call the gas company as ask them about it, and I'd call your city's code enforcement department to find out what the law says for your city/state on these issues.


Title: Dr performed wrong procedure on my 12 week old - Arizona

Question: Hi, today i took my 12 week in to have her lip tie clipped. The dr started to clamp the piece of tissue under her tongue and i quickly became worried. I said "i thought we were here to clip her lip tie." He just shook his head and continued with the procdure. This all happened so quickly probably one minute max. Afterward, I was attempting to calm my screaming baby down he realized that i was right and told me that his office said to him that he was reversing a tongue tie so that's what he did. he admired that he did not look in my daughters chart at his previous notes and took his offices word for it. He apologized and didn't charge me for the procedure. I am wondering if I have any legal right to sue for malpractice since he performed the wrong procedure and was negligent. I have been an emotional wreck all day and my daughter too. She's been so upset and i have been giving her tylenol to help. I would like to know if it would be worth it to talk to a lawyer and if I would get anything for emotional damages in this situation. The doctor owned up to his mistake and offered to perform the correct surgery but I was too upset and traumatized to make my daughter go through that pain again. This happened today in Arizona.

Answer: This could be malpractice but you will need to contact an attorney who practices in the field to go any further. You wont get anything for emotional damages.Answer #2: You 100% need to contact a medical malpractice attorney.  The longer you wait the worse it looks.  Most attorneys are free consultations anyway and will tel you if they believe you have a legit case or not.  Good luck.


Title: [TX] Ordered a Drink with a Specific Substitute, Got Almond Milk Instead and Had a Terrible Allergic Reaction

Question:
Hi guys, I've had a terrible experience recently while travelling back from my wonderful vacation with my girlfriend. However, just to clarify I do NOT intend to seek any legal action since I don't really have any quantifiable damages but this is a more of a "what should I do?" thing since I am pretty angry about the whole ordeal and would like to write a letter to corporate about the negligence that took place.

TL;DR at the bottom

I flew in to IAH- Houston Intercontinental Airport while on my way back from vacation, had a layover before going home to NJ. During this layover, I ordered at Starbucks, a normal ordinary order nothing wild. I ordered iced green tea lattes with SOY MILK in both, literally nothing too out of the way. Carry on the transaction with some attitude from the cashier, okay whatever bad day, the other barista makes my drinks all is good. I begin drinking the latte and suddenly my throat gets itchy- I didn't think anything of it until it got progressively worse and only then did I realize what must have happened. The barista made my drink with ALMOND milk- which I am allergic to. My girlfriend's drink was made with soy milk but mine was not- she was able to taste the difference so it was just my luck I grabbed the one with almond milk.

At this point my throat really did feel like it was beginning to constrict and I tried really hard to keep a cool head and not panic as that would only exacerbate my symptoms- I also really wanted to go home and our flight had already been delayed several times I did not want to go to the hospital. And I've never had an allergic reaction like this before- so carrying an epipen wasn't ever considered since I would only get an itchy throat but during this incident it really began to feel constricting. So my gf was able to locate and buy Zyrtec at a shop in the airport and I was able to get it in me just in time for symptoms to not increase in severity. (Yes, I absolutely realize now how stupid and dangerous it was to trust the zyrtec and to continue flying, but I was not in the right frame of mind.) However, during the flight and up to now-3 days later- I am still suffering terrible congestion, coughing, dry throat, and a running nose. Literally up until that point was I healthy during all of our vacation and we didn't just fly into cold weather where I'd catch a cold, this is from that idiot! I ended up missing my dear friend's birthday party because my sinuses were so fucked on Saturday.

The thing is: How should I proceed with contacting a manager or should I just elevate this to corporate? I found the terminal cafe but there is only a phone number on the website to which I don't think if I called the manager would care since both employees that served me both seemed to have bad attitudes and didn't even greet me. I have access to a B2B database with contact information of several regional directors and district managers and have been able to narrow it down to 3 district managers in Houston and the regional director for that area, i figure just email one of them and they may reply to me or forward it to the pertinent person. I honestly just want to tell them how shit of an experience it was and how the fucking negligence of that idiot could have seriously harmed me, God forbid I had an even more severe reaction immediately I didn't have an epipen with me. What should I write? Or what suggestions can you guys give me about how I should proceed then... I know I don't have any "damages" that can be redeemed through a suit.

TL;DR Ordered a simple latte with soy milk and got almond milk instead- causing me to get an allergic reaction and having to buy zyrtec and fly home with terrible congestion and a running nose, am still suffering from the effects 3 days later

Answer: Complain to the store and take some more allergy medicine


Title: My girlfriend [19] missed her courtdate.

Question: Illinois, Winnebego County, City of Rockford. She got pulled over in my car because I had expired registration, then he pulled up her information because she couldnt find her license. The thing is that in his system it shows expired in 2016, but she just got it at the end of 2016, and it doesnt expire till 2018. I had to hurry and get there before they impounded my car. The cop gave her a court date and she forgot about it, its been a week, now there is a warrant for her arrest. We have the information to prove that her license was valid but shes afraid of being arrested upon entering the court to reschedule. I guess my question is, what do we do?

Answer:
 It's probably just a bench warrant. If you pay the requested bond (probably something like 500 bucks) they will rescind the warrant and allow you to reschedule. After the hearing, they will pay you back your money. You don't have to go into the courthouse to reschedule. You can call the clerk and do it that way. If you show up to post bond they're not gonna arrest her. You can also not post bond and ask to reschedule but the warrant will remain active. This is risky because if she's driving and pulled over, or in an accident, or has any police contact even if she's not at fault, they have the authority to arrest her.

Call the court to reschedule. Post bond. Show up for the date with proof of valid registration. Hopefully the charge gets dismissed. Get your money back.

PS Rockford sucks


Title: [Canada] Local 'competitor' is creating derivative works of my artwork, and it is now confusing my customers. Do I have grounds for action? (Copyright)

Question:
I'm an artist in Canada, who produces a very unique, original, and distinctive style of artwork in a mixed medium. I don't want to give away too much about what I do here, but in essence it's a sculpture style work using mixed mediums. I have been refining and producing my work for the last *8 years*, with this being my primary income for the last few years.

Early last year at a gallery exhibition, this guy came to our show and looked at my artwork, complemented me on my design and execution and said how talented I was and how it was a fantastic idea. He works in the same field as I do technically, and said he would refer any clients to me since "I get asked about this all the time" (I assume because he's seen my work in the past).

At the time, I thought that was very nice of him, and being that I didn't do things he did, offered the same in return. Co-operative competition is always nice in a local setting (same city, under 30min drive away from each other).

-------------------------

3 weeks after our show, he started posting "his version" on social media, which included the exact same concept, the exact same medium and even replicating small details that to me, was my signature in my work. He only changed 1 part of the design, which was the colour / texture in one of the mediums. Of course when this was happening it made me angry, but I also know of the Streisand effect, and didn't think I had any legal grounds to stand on. **I also fear that he will leverage his social media presence to slam me online and paint me as the bad guy (classic instigate then play victim scenario).**

My thoughts were, he will try to copy me, not get anywhere with it and then resume his normal business. Apparently, I was wrong.

Recently, in the last **two** weeks, I have come across literally a dozen people who have said to me "Oh! I have seen this before, you're related to [competitors name] right?". When I explain to them who I am, the back story, my several years experience, how he effectively copied my concept and show them my work, they all have said the same thing. "This is much nicer, better execution, and it looks very similar to what he is doing!". **This is concerning to me, as some of these people have seen my work in the past, and are now being confused that he is actually me.**

Getting re-fired up, I started to do some digging, and came across a term called "derivative works" which I didn't realize had legal meaning. From where I am standing, and from what I have asked friends / family, his art would be in our opinion considered a derivative work of what we do. They are very similar, just with a small detail changed. From my understanding of Canadian Copyright Law, I own the copyright to my work (and style?), and thus all derivative works.

So, my question for advice from you fine folk today, before I go spend my hard earned artist dollars on a copyright lawyer is : Do I have grounds for action? Should I "risk" sending a cease and desist letter (see earlier for why I say risk), and even more importantly **are there steps I can take to make my case rock solid** so I can confidently stop him confusing my clients and make him stop ripping off my years hard work.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TL;DR : Local guy who works in the same field as I do, started producing works of art that are very similar to mine, with a single small detail changed. He is now confusing my customer base, and after recent events and talking to friends and family, believe that his work falls under "derivative works" of mine. What steps should/could/can I take to make him stop copying my years of study and hard work, or is this just not a possibility.

Thank you all in advanced. I'll read your comments in the morning and will reply where necessary.

Answer:
 You might want to consult with a trademark lawyer, because this is happening locally and directly in the same same field. A lot of time consultations are free.

Hope someone else can provide more insight.Answer #2: That person is directly affecting your livelihood and reputation, process, and style you've spent years culminating. Get a lawyer quick and put a stop to this immediately, save all comments and posts proving confusion between your work and their knockoffs.Answer #3: Copyright does apply to sculptures and if this fellow has been copying your individual works (with our without modifications), that could be the grounds for copyright infringement. Generally speaking, however, copyright does not apply to style directly---it's a bit of a murky bog there as to when things are and aren't consisted derivative, as far as I know.

I'm not sure about the other poster's reference to fair dealing. That's an exception available only for a few specific purposes (unlike the USA's open-ended fair use exception), and it doesn't sound at first blush like this falls under one of them---but of course there could be more to the story.

OP, you should absolutely seek out a copyright lawyer and prepare to fight for your rights. They can look at the situation in proper detail and determine if they think you have a case and advise you on next steps.Answer #4: **Not a lawyer** - law student, take this with a grain of salt

Our Copyright Act is pretty clunky when it comes to "derivative" works.  While its true you hold the inherent copyright to your art, there is the whole question of fair dealing.  While it looks to *me* like you have ground to stand on, you should probably get in contact with a lawyer who specializes in IP/Copyright law.

Best of luck


Title: Married an immigrant, left the US, worried about getting back in.

Question:
(US)

Hello r/legaladvice! Big fan here on a throwaway.

I'm a US citizen who recently married a French girl who was in the country on an H1B. We're now out of the country, but are worried about how we should proceed in returning. It doesn't look like we'll get an appt. with an immigration lawyer in time :/ Any help would be appreciated! Here's the story:

Last month we both quit our jobs and got married. We understood that this invalidates her H1B status and she should stay in the country until she has a green card. Unfortunately, we needed to leave the country for a few weeks, so we did. It seems like her options for returning are:

1. Try to use her recently expired H1B to re-enter.
2. Get her a tourist visa waiver and enter using that.
3. Have her wait out of the country until she takes a new job which will renew her H1B status.
4. Have her wait out of the country until a spouse visa is approved.

We understand the punishment for #1 can be a long-term ban from the US. If we do #2 (most likely at this point), we understand it will be problematic changing her status to something permanent. #3 and #4 require us to live apart for several months (at least), which is far from ideal.

Question A: Does #1 put her chances of receiving a green card / spouse visa in the future at risk? Even if she gets in, could the record of this bite us later? We're pretty sure her former company is too incompetent to submit any notice of her leave to immigration.

Question B: Will the fact that we are married cause issues with #2? We could say that we do not intend to stay in the US for more than 3 months, and then say our intentions changed when applying for a green card. I'm not sure they'll even know we're married (unless they ask, though we're very young).

Question C: Can we do #3 or #4, but have her visit under a tourist visa waiver while waiting?

Question D: Are there better options we haven't considered?

We naively thought that being married would prevent any issues with immigration - it turns out the real world doesn't work that way!

Answer:
 Number 2 actually presents ***more*** issues than Number 1; and number 1 isn't that smart of an idea either.

The marrying wasn't the issue - it was the quitting the job part where you screwed up. And then the leaving the country part.

Can you live in France with her for the time it would take to get her CR-1 visa from the consulate there?Answer #2: I used to be an immigration services officer. Number 4 is the ONLY accurate choice here. 1 and 2 especially are horrible ideas. She can visit under a tourist visa while waiting to get her spouse visa. And about living apart for a while, sorry, that's just part of the process and there's very few (legal) ways to avoid it.


Title: [Question, UK] Do pedestrians have a legal duty to rescue those who are in need?

Question:
I'm doing something in law school and haven't found a suitable answer yet.

Are there any cases which suggest that passers bye, especially in cases of accidents, owe a duty of care to those who are in need of help?

Answer:
 Jesus - have you done *any* research on this topic?  It's extremely central to the "duty of care" doctrine.  You need to know this.  You need to work much harder.

In terms of your answer (for anyone else reading) - no there is no "general" duty to assist.  However, if you owe a duty (say, as a parent or guardian) or have assumed a duty (say as a fire fighter) then yes, you have to rescue those in need.

Also - if you have begun to offer assistance, you generally cannot then back out.  E.g. if you see a house on fire and yell out to the occupants - "Don't worry, I'll call 999", and then you don't actually call - you are liable.


Title: I've won a default judgment but there is no way for me to determine if the defendant is on active military duty.

Question:
Hello, here is my background story:

\- In June 2016 my father passed away.

\- In December 2016 we were looking around for someone to do some headstone work in addition to some stones on top of the grave.

\- In January 2017 the first of 2 payments was made for work to be done.  In this particular contract included a promise to pay the $750 cemetery fee to the handlers.

\- In February 2017 the second payment was made for additional stones and foundation to be laid on top of the grave, also with a contract for $1650

\- Troubles and doubts begin, contractor lies and gives excuses every week.  His partner was shot, his uncle died, the wife of the setter died, weather, etc., etc., etc.

\- May 2017 he he finally places the headstone, actually turned out well, doubts start to subside

\- March 2018, more than a year later of being paid in full the stones still aren't set from contract 2, more lies week after week, even after threat of legal action.  Receive letter from cemetery that $750 fee was not paid.  More doubts, some angry calls, assurance that fee will be paid

\- May 2018, cemetery handler calls and lets me know fee still has not been paid, and if I don't pay the headstone will be removed

\- June 2018, I pay the cemetery fee, file small claims court paper work, have court date and win default judgment because defendant never appeared in court.

I have the default judgement paperwork seen here, [https://www.njcourts.gov/forms/10914\_default\_jdgmt.pdf](https://www.njcourts.gov/forms/10914_default_jdgmt.pdf)

The issue is that there's no way for me to obtain the information on whether or not the defendant is on active military duty.  I doubt he will willingly give me his social security number or birth date.

My question is this, how should I proceed forward?  The initial small claim was against the individual not his business.  Should I try a claim against the business?  The defendant informed me he is relocating his business, unless that is a lie which he is known for, how will I be able to file a claim against the business if it is at a new address?  I don't see any way to reclaim my lost funds.

Leading to my other question, more importantly than funds, the defendant preys on individuals such as myself.  People who are grieving over recently lost loved ones.

[https://giphy.com/gifs/aaron-paul-jesse-pinkman-he-cant-keep-getting-away-with-this-3oEjHCWdU7F4hkcudy](https://giphy.com/gifs/aaron-paul-jesse-pinkman-he-cant-keep-getting-away-with-this-3oEjHCWdU7F4hkcudy)

I'm considering filing a criminal report to the police and possibly contacting other parties that were defrauded as well to strengthen my case.  Is it too late for me to do this?  Do I need to contact the other parties or will the police cover that in their investigation that they will hand over to the prosecutor?

Any assistance is appreciated.

Answer:
 I cannot answer your legal questions, but if you are a curious to see if this person is on active duty in the US military you can use this link to find out:

https://scra.dmdc.osd.mil/scra/#/single-record


Title: Can I get in legal trouble for not giving my landlord back the key?

Question:
My landlord is kicking me out two days before my lease ends because he cleaned the bathroom dedicated to me and he doesn't want to clean it again after I officially move out. Yeah, weird I know. Anyways, there was no contract. I even offered that he just refund me the cost of rent for just those two days and he refuses. Since he's setting me back about $30, I decided I won't be giving back the key so that it'll hurt him financially too. Whats more, I haven't been responding to his texts and so he's threatening to change the locks, not give back the rest of my stuff (don't care for that) and call the police. If he changes the locks, that's even better for me since it'll cost him even more. Can I get arrested for not giving the key back?

Also, I know that this is extremely childish and immoral of me, but I don't care. I've tried working with this guy, but he's on a bit of a power trip. And I know that he can't evict me like this, but he freaks me out so I'd rather move out anyway.

Note: He doesn't know my last name, address, or SSN. He only knows my first name, age and license plate number. He used to do law enforcement and has family that is also in it. How bad can he ruin me if he really wanted to?

Answer:
 They can't kick you out without notice, if you are leaving willingly that is different.

If you refuse to give the key, he could sue you for the cost of having to re-key his home.


Title: US, California. Got a ticket for having a dog at a non-dog beach. Dog wasn't even mine, I was dog sitting for the weekend (owner can confirm). What are my chances of contesting this ticket and getting out of it?

Answer: The ticket is for bringing the dog to the beach, not owning a dog that was brought to the beach.


Title: Recording phone and in person conversations in Texas without the other person's consent

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer: You should ask the school administration before even thinking about this any more.Answer #2: And out of context of the two-party consent, one-party consent issue, my lawyer at one point said: "What are you going to use this (recording) to show? Serious criminal issues including child abuse? Civil litigation? I-said, they-said to a judge? I-said, they-said to your lawyer?"Answer #3: Texas isn't a "two party consent" state. Yes you can record afaik.


Title: [North Carolina] Paying for college with money obtained illegally

Question:
My sister (25F) is a diagnosed schitzophrenic. Since our parents kicked her out two years ago, she has went from being homeless to living in an expensive apartment and driving a Mercedes. I (21M) have no evidence but I believe she is supporting her lifestyle with prostitution although she has had substance abuse issues in the past so it could be drug money.

We have four other siblings and our parents are not able to contribute to education costs but make too much for need based scholarships. I was working full time while attending classes but left after my second year when my GPA began to drop. I would very much like to finish.

My sister has suggested she pay my tuition and expenses for the next two years for me to complete my degree. When I questioned whether she would have the money, she showed me at least 50k in cash she was keeping in her bedroom closet saying she could not deposit it as it would leave a paper trail. She suggests making multiple 5k payments to keep it below the amount the IRS scrutinizes (is it true the IRS only look at amounts over 10k?).

If I accept the money, is there any way I could get in trouble? Is there any set of conditions where I would be made to pay the money back? If she gets in trouble, would my taking the money implicate me in any way?  Is this just a terrible idea?

Thank you legal advice for any insight you might be able to give.

Answer: former House Speaker Dennis Hastert would like to remind you that structuring deposits or withdrawals is a terrible idea.