Title: [WA] Employer avoiding paying overtime due to holiday pay .. is this legal?

Question:
This may be long and convoluted, bear with me.

I am an RN covered by a union contract. The hospital I work for offers time and a half for holidays worked. So this past Monday was President's Day and I worked and will get time and a half for those hours worked. I also picked up an extra shift later in the week. My normal work week is 3 12 hour shifts for a total of 36 hours. An extra shift would normally result in 8 hours of overtime pay (time and a half), however the hospital is saying that because they paid me time and a half for a holiday already, they don't need to pay me time and a half for the overtime hours. They say that this is "pyramiding" of overtime.

The contract vaguely mentions pyramiding under the overtime heading stating, "There shall be no pyramiding or duplication of overtime pay or premium pay paid at the rate of time and one-half or double time." It does not really define what pyramiding is anywhere. As far as the holiday header it just states, "Any nurse who works on the following holidays, New Years Day, Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day shall be paid at the rate of one and one-half times the nurses regular rate of pay for all hours worked on the holiday."

So, obviously, my question is Is this legal?? I feel like I am getting screwed here but I wanted to ask here and get some opinions on whether I should take this higher up. Thank you!

Answer: Talk to your union rep.  At my hospital I work 8 hour shifts but if they need me to stay for the 3-7 piece it's OT, however yesterday you would just get holiday pay, not OT+holiday.  That would be "pyramiding".  I know all contracts are different but I think you should still get OT for your extra shift.


Title: My employer is clearly abusing their legal rights to their employees and customers

Question:
I work in a very sketchy McDonalds in Ontario, Canada. It is literally VERY SKETCHY to the tune that there are daily fights in the lobby, stabbings on a fairly regular basis, rampant drug use, rapes, the occasional bomb threat etc. You may even know which one I'm discussing if you live near me.

Some of my coworkers have been abused financially to the point that they are making less than minimum wage. As punishment, one of my coworkers didn't get paid for a week's work. Another employee signed a contract to be paid for 30 hours a week despite working almost double that. They are being abused because they are vulnerable and impoverished.

Not only this but there are some very bad health violations. There are ants in the kitchen. There are bad safety violations including getting new employees to work in the kitchen untrained (the potential for severe burn is atonishing). I regularly get burned by the hot water and the burner but I expect this as apart of the job responsibilities.. It's not major.

I don't personally feel like I am being abused but I know my coworkers are and I can't help but feel very bad for them.
I've thought about trying to get a lawyer for them, this could be a collective suit even because I know many of my coworkers are not getting paid for the full amount they work.

Please provide help. Should I try to get a lawyer and how can I do this at little cost as possible? Should I go to the press? How can I handle this situation. I don't particularly care if I get fired over this.. I'm well off financially, I can take a beating if it helps my coworkers.

Answer:
 * Call your local DineSafe department and report the pest infestations. You can withhold your identity; the inspector doesn't care who you are.

* Call the [Ministry of Labour's Employment Standards](https://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/feedback/) department and report your concerns of wage and hour violations. Wage deductions are very restricted in Ontario, and employees _must_ be paid at least minimum wage regardless of contract terms. If your wages are affected, you will have to give your identity to initiate a claim. Ask them how to safely protect your coworkers, too.

* Call the [Ministry of Labour Health & Safety](https://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/feedback/) centre to report the training and safety issues, or call your local fire department if you suspect there are fire code violations such as missing extinguishers or blocked fire exits.

As for your concerns, there's a very real chance that the restaurant will be shut down (DineSafe in particular has the power to close the restaurant immediately if necessary to protect public health), or forced to cut way back on staff, if the situation is as bad as you say it is. Nothing you can do about that, necessarily, but if it leads to your coworkers being fired, they may not think highly of you.Answer #2: That isn't sketchy, that is just outright crime ridden.  Call your health department, code enforcement, and get a new job.  You don't need a lawyer, they may, but it won't be a collective suit situation either.


Title: Manager wants me to work with mono [FL]

Question:
I work in a bar. No food but our cocktails contain candies, gummies, fruits, whip cream, etc. That get eaten and that we touch with our hands. We also touch straws with our hands.

I have mono. I have been sleeping 12-15 hours a day on days that I work (9-10hr shifts) and all but maybe 6 hours of the day when I don't. I have 3 days off a week.

I have a doctor's note saying I should not return to work so I went in on Weds to ask my manager if someone could cover me or if they could run without me on Friday since I'm an extra server only so I could rest for our bigger night, Saturday. He laughed and said absolutely not then walked away.

I feel really bad about going into work with this. I haven't even showered in 2 days because I have no energy to and don't plan on even going to do my laundry for work tonight... I just know I'm going to look a wreck but I know he's the kind of manager who would take a shift away permanently if I called out.

We are a will to work state and all the FMLA (think that's what it's called) only covers bigger companies. We only have 11 employees and I've been there 6 months. Do I have rights?

Tl;dr: manager wants me to work high volume bar as a server with mono.

Answer:
 The Florida state Health Department does not explicitly list Mono under their communicable diseases page, but I can guarantee you they'll be interested in knowing about a food service worker being instructed to work (against doctors' orders) with mono.

You can reach them at this number: 850-983-5200


Title: [MA]I work for the state, got hit at work a few months ago in the neck, now have severe neck pain, can never sleep and my doctor doesn't want me working.

Question:
I am in my twenties, I work for the state as a health care provider. During an assessment on an MR client I was struck multiple times EXTREMELY hard in my neck, with a CNA right next to me. (my witness) I immediately filled out IA paperwork, and called out sick the next day and went to my doctor for X-rays. Of course the X-rays were "negative" since I didn't break/fracture anything.

Speed up to a few months later; if I get 2 hours of sleep a night I am SO lucky! Most nights I spend concentrating through the pain with meditation or PT exercises. Every night I end up in a ball clutching my neck sobbing gritting my teeth. I've bought 3 new sets of expensive pillows and nothing has helped. I have used electronic impulses, patches, creams, pills, medical marijuana, nothing touches it. Got an MRI, I went to a renowned spinal doctor in Boston and he confirmed a disc is crushed and another disc(c5-c6) is potruding/bulging so far it's compressing my spinal fluid and nerves. This is why I have been dropping items so often and unable to have a good grasp/falling on my right side out of nowhere. I'll be talking to someone and just literally fall to the floor because my right leg just gives out. I don't have my medical documentations on hand right now but will update later with a copy/screenshot

So. My doctor is very concerned with my high risk of being paralyzed due to the area of damage, he said it is comparable to a car accident. He doesn't think I should be working in this condition, my doctor said I shouldn't have to work since it affects almost my entire body. I am being sent to a spinal doctor next week since he fears the worst he said. I am a home owner (by myself) and I don't have enough savings to pay for my mortgage even if I opted for a surgery. So my question: **Do I have a case to get workmens compensation or is my age a hinderance? **

**TL;DR** **Got hit at work by a MR patient in my neck. My doctor doesn't think I should work *at all*  and I feel like I am barely functioning. I can't sleep because of the pain, work is excruciating (work as a nurse for the state) but I am only in my twenties. Is it possible for me to get workmens compensation on a case like this?**

P.S. so sorry for the discombobulation I am on mobile!

Answer:
 Yes, you have a case for workmans comp. You sustained an injury during the normal course of your duties; age has nothing to do with it.

Save every single document--X-rays, MRIs, discharge papers, etc. in hard copy and in digital. Answer #2: Do you have an open worker's comp claim?


Title: [MI] won a lawsuit, but loser is refusing to pay

Question:
Three months ago I won a lawsuit against an ex boyfriend. To call this guy a scum bag would be a massive understatement.

So far, I have not received a single cent from him, despite me trying to be polite about the entire matter.

This morning at work, a mutual friend told me he plans to file for chapter 7 bankruptcy. I looked it up, and found out that if he is successful in this he might not have to pay me anything!

I am completely at a loss. I paid my own lawyer a decent sum of money to help me file these papers, and he (my ex) did not even show up to court, if that makes any difference. What are my options here?

Answer:
 You might be a little relieved to hear that Ch7 isn't as readily available as a Ch13 bankruptcy.  Many file under 7 but are forced into a five year Ch13.  You must file as an unsecured creditor.  He may be stupid enough to willfully list you with a wrong address so you never get notice.  In this regard, you are going to want to search his name to obtain his case number.

Even before he can file at all he has to complete an approved credit management class.  Is he the type of person who will actually follow through with tedious requirements?

Before you hire an attorney, find out what exactly is necessary to execute a wage or bank garnishment.  Do you have his banking info, social security number, birthdate, employment information?  You may need most of this to get a garnishment.Answer #2: You ought to just consider selling the debt to a collection agency. You may only walk away with a few thousand dollars but professional debt collectors will make the guy's life pretty unpleasant. You would need to do that before he files bankruptcy, though, so whether or not he's actually done it yet is important.

After all you have a debt to collect but you are *not* a professional debt collector. Your recourse is to go to court again and get his wages or accounts garnished; a process that will cost you money. If he declares bankruptcy it puts everything on hold as the courts figure out what happens to his debts.

My advice to you is to approach this like a business decision. You're getting emotional about it (and with good reason) but getting angry and frustrated won't help you get your money.


Title: (NC) I hit a parked car a few weeks ago and have heard nothing

Question: I hit a car in my work(3000 people at this location or so, so I have no idea who's car it is) parking lot. I left my name, phone number, license plate number, and driver's license number on a note on the car. But, after about four weeks, I have heard nothing. Is there a time limit on how long the other owner has to contact me?

Answer:
 Generally that time limit is measured in months or years.

With that said though if they come back with a fresh estimate for damages you might be able to dispute it because so much time has passed there’s no telling what happened between when you hit them and now.  They could have been in another accident, their negligence could have made it worse, etc.

There’s also a chance they never saw the note becuase it blew off, was rained off, fell off while driving, some asshole tore it off, etc.

Did you take any pictures at the time?


Title: Dealing with squatters

Question:
One common scam I see on legal advice from time to time is OP buys a house, and between the old owners moving out and the new movers moving squatters break in and claim residency. Now the police wont remove them because it's a he-said-she-said type situation where the police let the squatters stay and force the eviction process.

What would likely be the consequences of this type of OP getting a bunch of buddies to throw out the squatters and their things, barricading themselves inside, and if/when the squatters try and re-enter the home OP calls the police for breaking and entering?

(Assume the removal part uses the minimum force necessary/intimation only and the squatters aren't hurt)

Answer:
 The law strongly disfavors property owners using self-help to evict squatters and trespassers. You are likely to cause yourself more problems than anything.

These squatters have been around for about 20 years and there are ways of dealing with them. Figure out who handlea evictions in your area (usually a sheriff or constable) and get in touch with them quickly. They deal with this stuff all the time and will be able to help advise you on how to progress within the confines of your state's law. If you can get to them before the squatters establish residency on your property, you can usually get them ejected pretty quickly.

If you have property that is going to be sitting vacant for a while, figure out what the period is to establish "residency" in your state (usually around 30 days) and be sure to check the property more often than that, so if you find someone in there, you can sign an affidavit establishing that they have been there less than that period.


Title: How do I get this creepy homeless guy away from my place of work?

Question: Ok bear with me here. I work at a gas station (I am 21F if that makes a difference) and this man will not leave me alone/not stop coming on the property. He sexually harassed me verbally for weeks on end until myself and my coworker shouted and brandished a baseball bat and he left. I don't want him on the property/in the store at all after what he did and said to me. He seems to "live" nearby and I still see him passing through every day despite telling him off. Anything I can legally do on this front? I would call the cops but they won't get there in time to catch him I guess? Like I KNOW he would run so...thoughts? Located in WA

Answer: Have the managers trespass him from the store. If he returns he'll be arrested.


Title: [CO] Can landlord confiscate prohibited items?

Question: I am going to be moving soon and the place that I'm probably going to end up going has a clause in the lease stating that any prohibited items can be confiscated by the landlord or their agent. There's a detailed list of prohibited items (weapons, fireworks, explosives, flammable items, etc...) and while I don't really plan on having any of these things, I was just curious if such a clause is even enforceable. I know that they could terminate the lease, or even issue a fine if its in the lease, but can they really confiscate your property?

Answer: I'd be careful about signing any lease that says you can't own a gun. It shows a lack of respect for your rights.Answer #2: You mean, can the LL take possession of your items, no.


Title: Two different online dating scams, one person. Do I take action on either of them?

Question:
19 year old Male, Texas, about to turn 20.

&#x200B;

Hey, I've read through this sub a bit and already have a general idea of my situation but I still want to make my own post to ask questions. Obviously this goes without saying but I'm a FUCKING idiot for being in this situation in the first place, I'm a depressingly horny loser who falls for multiple online dating scams because I'm desperate and lonely.

&#x200B;

First one, it's the underage girl scam. I met a girl on okcupid, talked for a while, we move to text and after a bit she mentions she's 16 instead of 19 but she turns 17 in 2 weeks (17 being age of consent in my state). There are no nudes exchanged, no explicit material/nothing about me saying I'm going to fuck her, we just have friendly conversation and set up a date at a bbq place. I go out to the place, she never shows up, next day at work I have her "dad" calling me and you know the rest. I freaked the fuck out at work, thinking my life was over and I was going to jail forever. It was a really bad conversation, I broke down and sent him some money. Before checking this sub, I actually thought this was 100% legit because the guy seemed considerate of the situation and talked me through it like he was helping me (he told me to delete all my dating apps so stuff like this doesn't happen in the future). From reading in this sub, everyones just saying "ignore him, block the contact and don't send money" but I already sent \~700 and I'm supposed to owe 1400 in total. This happened a few weeks ago and I don't know what to do, I've already sent money and they have all my info from me talking to the "girl". The worst thing I did was I asked if she wanted a relationship or a hookup/fwb, nothing past that. Should I still just block them even though I already sent money? The money was to pay for her "broken electronics" after they "deleted the evidence" but based on what I'm reading in other posts that's super common. Do I just accept the 700 is gone and then still block them? is there a small chance they're real? I'm ok with losing 700 and calling it there, I just genuinely don't want anything else to happen.

&#x200B;

2nd scam, happened today. I deleted all my dating apps after the incident a few weeks ago because I'm scared shitless. I still get scammed again though, this time through facebook messenger. A girl adds me, we talk briefly, and then she gets video evidence of my face + penis in a short 15 second clip. They immediately text me and tell me they'll ruin my life if I don't pay $5k in charity to them, this time I was smart enough to not pay them but still stupid enough to be in this situation at all. They then ask for 200 instead of 5k and I still say no, afterwards I deactivated my facebook and stopped replying. No one involved was a minor, so the content isn't illegal, but they still are threatening to post it everywhere. First thing I did is contacted a sextortion website to find out if they could help and they listed off every possible thing that could happen. They said I could have a website made of me with all my information, the video of me with my penis, and forged evidence of me asking for sex/having sexual content with minors among other horrible things. They also said that deactivating my account and then blocking the contact is the WORST POSSIBLE THING to do, although every thread I've seen here says that's what I should do. I was going to ask the service for help, but they said it's $1,500 for them to conduct an investigation to hunt down the guy and I thought that was crazy so I thanked the guy I was talking with for his time and hung up.

&#x200B;

I don't care about my dick being shown to my friends or family, friends have already seen it and after I explained it to my family they'd just laugh at me and we would get over it. What I'm afraid of is losing my job, having my dick permanently on the front page of google when you search my name, or getting in legal trouble for forged sexual content with a minor.

&#x200B;

tl;dr underage girl scam and sextortion scam, is there anything I should do other than block them and hope for the best? I'm an anxious mess and don't know how to calm down over this

Answer:
 There is nothing further to do. Block and ignore.

Stop getting yourself into this situation. No one on the internet wants to see your dick. I promise. If she is asking, it's a scam.Answer #2: >tl;dr underage girl scam and sextortion scam, is there anything I should do other than block them and hope for the best?

No - just ghost them and hope for the best.

>I'm an anxious mess and don't know how to calm down over this

One ounce of prevention is better than one pound of cure... stop sending nudes to strangers, and blackmail attempts will drop down by a lot.


Title: (IL) Husband says I need to change my business name.

Question:
I recently started an LLC for my local service based business in IL. My husband says he did some research, and I can be sued because my business name is similar to another one in the state who offers the same service. As an example, there was already a registered business named "ReadytoFix Services LLC" and my business name is "Diana's ReadytoFix Company LLC." Should I be worried? We perform the exact same service.

Thanks in advance.

Answer:
 You could possibly be sued for trademark infringement, if the name could be confused with the other business, and the services you offer are similar to that other business.

I'd consider changing the name. Answer #2: Based on the example it sounds like it is too similar and could be easily confused as being associated with them.

the costs associated with changing the name now would be much less than a legal battle.


Title: I'm in Canada. I'm a male charged with Assault with a Weapon against a women who attacked me in a bar. Defence will be self defence.

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 >Please keep in mind this is Canada and not USA. We do in fact have a more lenient legal system.

Well, then just say “I’m sorry, eh”, and it should all blow over.

You’ve got a great attorney. I’d listen to her, and not us random shmucks on a website.

It’ll come down to credibility, and if the court believes you were acting reasonably to protect yourself. The phone in the car certainly backs up your side of the story; although theoretically you could have swiped it in the scuffle and left it in the friends car after.

Do you have any drunken selfies of the two of you together that night to help establish your timeline?


Title: Can you sue an Officer outside his official duties and as a individual for personal injuries and civil rights violations and committing perjury PC118

Question: California 42 1983

Answer:
 I think you'd just sue him for the normal stuff, battery, unlawful imprisonment, etc.  I'm not sure why this would be a civil rights issue if he was acting as a private citizen.

On the other hand, California peace officers retain their police powers 24/7, on duty or not, in uniform or not. If they invoke their police powers are you reasonably know or should know they are police officers (like they display a badge) then you are required to submit to their authority in the same manner as a uniformed officer.  If your rights were violated by an officer invoking their police powers then you have a civil rights suit.


Title: A bull escaped from my dad's cattle trailer, 2 guys got hurt trying to catch it, and now he's being sued

Question:
Hi reddit,

My family was transporting bulls in Texas to a veterinarian.  One bull escaped through the roof of an open top trailer and crossed the highway hurt two people who got in its way. The men who got hurt were both on foot, trying to stop the bull. What laws are there about transporting cattle in Texas? The bull escaped through the bars on the top. The trailer was just like this one and secured properly

. https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ5Epm2l6tELJ7WPBo3Da2IsLcTk8oceYTgsnJFRlUAigyskYaT2g

Is there really a legal ground to sue? Did we do anything wrong?

Edit: we do have surveillance footage from the veterinarian showing the bull escaped from the top bars of the trailer roof.

Answer:
 Generally people are liable for their animals actions if they were negligent in securing their animals.

E" i didn't say op was negligent. I was just stating a general threshold for liability.
  The only neglige t act I see is two random guys trying to wrangle a fucking bullAnswer #2: If your dad has any type of insurance then he should contact his agent Monday morning. What happens in a court case is that both sides present their case then the court decides. One of the factors is how much will it cost to litigate as to how much it costs to settle. If your dad has no insurance then he should consult with an attorney ASAP. Failure to properly respond will result in a default judgment against him. YMMV. Answer #3: Most likely your dad is responsible for the injuries.  It was his responsibility to secure the bulls, and clearly the trailer did not do that properly.

>The men who got hurt were both on foot, trying to stop the bull.

Could you explain that a bit more?

Your best bet is insurance.

If you don't have insurance, and lose in court, you might be able to take the trailer manufacturer to court, but that's a real long shot.Answer #4: I am not familiar with this type of tort, but could the fact that the two guys actively involved themselves mean that they have >50% of the fault, thus absolving the father (IIRC TX is modified comparative fault)?

Any sane person, especially in Texas, knows that they are putting themselves in harms way by stepping in front of a bull.


Title: [OH] Could Donald Trump/Ted Cruz win a suit over this billboard?

Question: [Picture here](https://i.imgur.com/1kqAjtz.jpg)

Answer: Nope.  It's about public figures, not meant to be taken literally, and there's a pretty good argument that saying someone is gay is no longer "defaming" them.


Title: Gender wage discrimination

Question:
I am a female in my 20s working at a prominent tech company in NYC in analytics. On my team everyone has the same title except our manager.

Before joining, I worked at a consulting firm for a little over two years. One of my male team members at my current job came from this same firm where he worked for a little over a year. We were hired into the same title at our first job (the consulting firm), I had been promoted at my two year mark, he had never been promoted. Upon leaving our former job I made 10k more than him in salary (and significantly more in bonus and profit sharing.)

I recently found that my male colleague makes 10k more than me in our current role despite us having nearly identical work experience (the only difference being that I had more years of experience and had been promoted.) I was told this was because of negotiation (he negotiated and I did not) but recently learned that he was offered a higher salary than me to begin his negotiation at. He was offered 5k more in his initial offer than I was offered in mine. I'll reiterate that we received our offers less than a month apart (his was a few weeks after mine.)
Is this legal? We have gotten identical, high performance ratings (luckily this co-worker is a very nice, supportive person and is willing to share this info with me) but my company refuses to raise my salary to match his. Am I protected under the Equal Pay Act by this?

To add some color on this: the women on my team make on average 10k less than the men.

This is the law I'm asking in relation to:

The EPA does not require proof of discriminatory intent, and an employer will be held liable to a woman who is paid less than a similarly-situated man unless it can show that the discrepancy is attributable to: (1) a bona fide seniority system; (2) a merit system; (3) a system that measures earnings by quantity or quality of production; or (4) any factor other than sex.

Prior legal cases show the negotiation does NOT count as a factor other than sex.
https://www.employmentmattersblog.com/2013/06/equal-pay-act-male-employees-strong-negotiating-skills-not-a-factor-other-than-sex-to-justify-pay-di/

Answer:
 Without more you have no case. Do you know why he was offered more initially? And have you tried negotiating a higher salary now?Answer #2: Your coworker possibly negotiated a better salary and played hardball, came on at a time where his job was in demand, or received a raise at his old position that made his current salary competitive (small timeframe, but possible).

You can't prove this is because you're a woman.


Title: [TX] I refused to let another driver pull me over (that was not Law Enforcement). Did I do the right thing?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Yes, you were in an accident. "Clipping" someone else's car is still an accident. The fact that your car only sustained a scratch doesn't negate your responsibility to pull over and communicate with the other driver.

Your refusal can be seen as fleeing the scene of an accident. Semantics aside (yes, it was an accident, and yes, you had an obligation to stop), if the other guy sustained enough damage to call the police with your plate number, you could have potentially turned a "Here's $50 to buff that out, sorry for your trouble" minor error into "Now I have to go to court" territory.Answer #2: But there **was** an accident. It might not have been major but it was contact. And I don't really see how you could tell if his or your car was damaged without stopping, and particularly at night.

The SOP if you don't feel stopping at the time of the accident is safe is put on your hazard warning lights and proceed to a well lit area where there are other people around. Not behave like you do. If they got your plate, I would expect them to report that they had been involved in a hit and run, and I have to say, that's what it sounds like.Answer #3: Sounds like hit and run to me.  No matter how many times you say "not an accident", contact was made and there was an accident.  This guy apparently believes that your lane change caused the accident.
Your fleeing the scene and ditching him does not look good.


Title: Buying a house that had liens and now the owners are suing me (Allegheny County PA)

Question:
I am buying a house through owner financing, and was pretty foolish about it.  I have a handwritten contract that says I am buying the property "as is", paid them 3,000, and will pay 500 a month for 6 months, and if i fail to make a payment within 5 days of the first of the month all money and the deed is forfeited.  I agreed to pay the taxes after I pay them their money although there is no mention in the contract of paying the taxes owed.  The house has foundation problems and is pretty much gutted.  There are about 4500 in liens on the property.  I was told the electricity and plumbing are fine, and that I could get the electricity turned on.  After I paid them they told me they have been stealing water and that before I get the water hooked up I will have to switch it over so I don't get in trouble.  After I moved in I called the electric company and they said that I would have to pay $2400 to get it turned on because the meter had been tampered with.  I have been living here for 2 months without electricity and I haven't been using the water.  The owners said they would talk to their attorney about the electricity but never did.  I have been cleaning and working on the place (including taking out 50+ gallons of their urine in jugs)

The other day a sheriff came to the door and handed me some legal paperwork saying that the school district is suing them and that it had to be responded to within 20 days.  I contacted the owners and told them they should come pick up the paperwork, and they responded by saying they wouldn't, that I was responsible for paying the taxes.  The house is still in their name, and the legal paperwork, I told them no, that I agreed to pay the taxes after I paid them.  They told me I would have to pay all of their legal and attorney's fees for this case, which I refused.  Then they threatened to sue me.  I told them I would simply stop paying them, and as per the contract, they would keep the money and the deed and all of this would be off of my back.

I spoke to a lawyer and he said that because the "as is" in the agreement is based on illegal activity (stealing utilities) that the contract is illegal.  Also was told that because they said they would refuse to go to court and take care of the taxes, that there is reason to believe that the deed wouldn't even be theirs by the date on the contract that I would receive the deed, which is also illegal.

Now, I worked hard for this money and don't want to quite give it up.

Is there any way I can get my money back ($4,000), and would it be worth the legal fees?

What would you do?  I am thinking of just giving it up and cutting my losses, but I really don't want to go back to square one (homelessness) after all of the money I gave up to buy this place.

Answer:
 Running away from this money pit is probably your best option.

You could theoretically sue the sellers, but I'm giving good odds that they have no money, so it'd be wasted time & money.


Title: Ex-Fience cutting herself and suicidal soon to be ex-roomate them on the streets :(

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 That doesn't make much sense. Proof read and correct.

If she is a danger to her self or others you call the police.


Title: Friend had accident at work. Company sent an interviewer to her house.

Question:
I need some legal advice for a friend of mine. She is like family. Let's call her Jane, she lives in California.
She had an accident at work while she was 32 weeks pregnant. She eventually delivered her baby at 37 weeks. The company that she works for contracted a man from another company to come to her house and do an interview about what had happened at work. Let's call him John. The day of the interview happened to be the day in which my family and I visited at her house. We decided to stay and be witnesses of the interview. Here's what happened.

1. John said he was coming alone.
2. John called Jane when he was near her house, and asked her if it was okay to bring in a a second person, Karen, that was going under training. Jane said it was okay.
3. John and Karen came in, saw my family (5 people) and did not question us in any way. Nor did they ask for any privacy.
4. I decided to record from my phone the interview, and Karen noticed it.
5. Karen asked me if I was recording. To which John continued and asked me to stop and delete it. He said that I was not allowed to record in any way because I did not ask for permission. Makes sense I understand, and proceeded to ask him if I could record. He said it was okay but that he would also record us. We agreed.
6. Just before John started the interview again, He asked if he could call his boss because he wasn't sure if it was okay to have as many people hearing, and or recording.
7. We don't know what the boss said. John and Karen just told Jane that she could make another appointment, and they left.

So my question here, was it okay to record although it was inside Jane's home? She in fact asked me to do it.

Was the behavior of the interviewer okay? Like bringing in a second person?

Additional notes: John was showing Jane documents but it was all in English, and she requested to do everything in her native language since the beginning . He agreed but still did not bring any paperwork for her to read in her language. Also, John and Karen kept on speaking English in front of Jane, and both do speak her native language. They did not say anything bad, but I feel like that was also wrong from their part.

Any advice would be appreciated, thank you!

Answer: Depending on location all parties may have to be aware they're recording, not just Jane. Why wouldn't bringing someone along for training be OK? especially if Jane said it was OK? They also have no obligation to have documents in other languages and using english takes out any chance of translation errors, especially if her boss doesnt speak her native language.Answer #2: It is illegal for you to secretly record conversation in California.


Title: Someone took photos of my friend's kids without her permission.

Question:
Hey Reddit! We live in Utah, US. On Halloween night my friend took her kids (siblings and relatives) out to trick or treat. When they came upon this house things went downhill pretty fast. The owner of the house PHYSICALLY PULLED two of the kids inside and shut the door to slightly to take pictures of them. This is when my friend intervened. She walked up to the house and after finding out the owner was taking photos of the kids, asked said owner to remove them from her phone. Not only did she (the owner) take a photo of them, she posted them on Facebook immediately after taking them. She refused to delete them from her phone but insisted that she had deleted them from her Facebook. After some arguing a man came from the back of the house and was all up in my friend's face, aggressively telling them to get out.

 Is there anything she can do about this?
Is it worth pursuing any further?

Edit: she did call the authorities only to be told that there was not much they could do.

Edit: Yes! She was definitely concerned that they pulled them inside. What prompted her to  go up to the door was seeing her kids get pulled in. She did have them step away from the house before she spoke with the owners.

Answer:
 >the owner of the house physically pulled two of the kids inside and shut the door to slightly to take pictures of them.

What happened when the police were called?


Title: CrossPost - I work at a Public Library and my Boss told me we don't "follow" our employee handbook.

Question:
Initially this started as a different sort of advice seeking post and now the kind people in r/relationships pointed me here. So if you want the full background here is the link to the [original post](http://www.reddit.com/r/relationships/comments/2kh5ub/update_me_29f_with_my_boss_5060fim_afraid_her_bad/)

I live and work in NY state. Not the city.

So basically I have worked at this Public Library for just under 5 years. My boss, "Julia" has been there for over 40 years. When I was hired, I was not given any introduction to the work place, handbook or anything.

A note - Julia admits she is no planning on retiring because she is Tier 1 retirement and gets a sweet salaried pay so she can come and go as she please. And she does. A lot.

Recently she asked me to copy something for a new Board Member. This document was an employee handbook and some other library policies. When I asked about the handbook, that I had never seen or heard or before she told me we don't follow it anymore. So all of the holiday pay (I've lost about $200 in wages in the last two months for holidays that feel on the days I would be working), vacation time, breaks and everything else doesn't apply to us....but there is no current handbook we do use.

I was pretty upset to find out that there was the possibility that I could be getting benefits, but now I literally have no idea what to do. I haven't gotten a break (meal or otherwise) for 4 years. In the handbook it said a 15 minute break earned for every 3 hours. When I asked about that, Julia told me that was old policy and not followed. But there is no current handbook. And when I asked about updating it, she just said it takes forever and they will get to it eventually. So I kind of get the feeling I'm being jerked around.

I know that the policies in the employee handbook may not apply to me anyways as this handbook is from 1998 and I'm not sure what has changed. I just can't believe we can not have a current handbook at all.

I spent the morning on the phone being transferred between the Labor Department, The Civil Service Department and my local county HR person. No one could help me or tell me what  (if anything) I can do. It sounds like the library controls their policies...so does this mean I have no recourse and we can continue on without an up to date handbook?

I am not rolling in dough so I was hoping to pick your brains for a little bit before calling an employment lawyer for a referral.

This library is a very small one, but we have been well funded since we were incorporated into the public school. They have their own library on site, but they collect taxes for us. I think I'm a non-competitive civil service position, but the old handbook says I'm competitive. We have no internal HR and no one is "above" Julia in the chain of command. The village government technically is, but they are all friends with Julia and I'm afraid I'll get sold upriver if I ask them about it.

Sorry if this is long and scattered. I honestly just don't know what ground I stand on.

TLDR: Hired 5 years ago. Found out we have an employee handbook with benefits, breaks and other amazing things. Was told by my boss we don't follow it, but there is no current up to date one we do follow. I asked for an updated one and 5 months later there is still nothing. What can I do?

Edit - added location

EDIT 2 - Just background. Julia did not tell me or get me to sign up for the NY state retirement system. The Village Clerk called to ask if I had ever submitted the paperwork 2 YEARS later. Julia seemed way more concerned about covering her butt (I'm the third employee she forgot to tell) and now I'm a tier lower that I would have been if I signed up when I was supposed to. There is definetely a history of things that we are supposed to be aware of not happening. No mandated labor board postings, no training for emergency or hazardous waste situations and no emergency plans at all.

Answer:
 Per http://labor.ny.gov/workerprotection/laborstandards/faq.shtm#8

Q: Must an employer give meal periods and "breaks" to workers?

A: Employees who:

 Work a shift of more than six hours starting before 11 AM

AND

 Continue until 2 PM

MUST

 Have an uninterrupted lunch period of

AT LEAST

 Half an hour between 11 AM and 2 PM

For meal period requirements, go to:
http://www.labor.ny.gov/formsdocs/wp/LS443.pdfAnswer #2: Unless it's something they are required to do by law, or some type of contract or bargineering agreement, it's not anything you are due.


Title: (MI) I’m going to have to miss jury duty in the morning

Question:
I got summoned for Jury Duty and it’s just terrible timing. Today is day 4 of a horrible migraine and I’m not going to make it I can barely see. How much trouble will I be in if I not show up? I don’t have insurance atm (working on it) and I’m physically unable to go to emergency or urgent care in time. Thought about writing an apology letter when I feel better but I’ve never dealt with the court system before.

What do?

Answer:
 Depends on the judge.  Also do you know for sure you're called in the AM?  My county uses a web/phone system to show which numbers are called.

If I were in your shoes, I would wait until morning, call the court clerk's office, and tell them you woke up very ill and ask if you can postpone a day or two. It's not the best course of action, but saying nothing and not showing up is more likely to get you a bench warrant or a fine.

Who knows, the migraine may even dissipate overnight.  Answer #2: Yeah log in online rn and make sure you are actually expected to turn up. They will give you a date but often cancel the night before if no jurors will be needed for the next day. I think your notice should have a phone number to call—figure out when the courthouse opens and call them first thing if you are in fact needed to appear. I have only had to attend once out of >7 requests. I believe though that at least in MA it is not a crime punished with jail time, only a fine (not more than 2k). With a reasonable excuse that would probably not be likely to be the outcome for you but it’s still a factor for your decision making tomorrow morning. Best of luck, feel better


Title: (California) I paid $23 for 2-day shipping on an item I ordered. On day 3, I checked the tracking info. It read that due to recent hurricanes, shipping would be delayed another 3 days. Hurricanes were two weeks ago. Can I get my money back?

Answer: There's a [hurricane](https://s.w-x.co/wu/nate-oct7.jpg) and evacuations occurring right now, in case you weren't aware. Ask for a refund on the shipping, if you want to.


Title: How much trouble can I get in for getting paid under the table?

Question: So I’m a 19 year old female and work as a hostess at a small family owned restaurant. I get paid 9$ an hour under the table. I am suppose to work 12hrs a week but that is rare so I’m lucky if I make more than 100$ a week. can I go to jail if the IRS finds out? I’m a college student and this was the only job I could find that would 100% work with my schedule and be accommodating back when I started a year ago.

Answer: You are required to report wages to the IRS, including those that are paid in cash. You will have to pay back any taxes you owe


Title: Can I date/have sex with an 18 year old if I’m 16 in Mississippi?

Question: The title is pretty self explanatory but if it’s one of those situations where you need parents permission then what exactly can you legally get away with without permission?

Answer: The age of consent in Mississippi is 16. But remember that child pornography laws are 18. So no dirty pictures or videos.


Title: I [21f] was almost raped 4 years ago by a man [m24] but was able to get away by attacking him in the groin area, now he threatens to sue me for grievous bodily harm and for causing his infertility

Question:
I don't know the exact laws that apply here, but the would-be sexual assault took place in the Philippines. As of now he lives there while I live in the Netherlands.

He tried to rape me in a dark room at a party where some people may or may not have been present, all of us heavily intoxicated. He was about to rape me, his pants already down to his knees and the only way I could get away was by going straight for his dangly bits... I did the whole twist and pull method of self defense courses and violently twisted, pulled and squeezed his testicles causing him to pass out, after which I went away.

I never told a soul about what happened. Not a member of my family nor a close friend. No one, only online but never in person. Years later I am moved to another country. I am a working student, and I work hard to pay my bills.

Suddenly he messages me out of the blue. He claims that:

1) I sexually assaulted him and caused his testicles to be permanently damaged

2) I caused him to become infertile as a result of my 'assault' and he has medical certificates to prove it and zero sperm count

3) He says he has a witness who was in the room when it happened, that him and I were about to do it and I violently attacked his genitals for no reason

4) He never pursued legal steps against me out of shame over what happened to him and his mangled parts and now he will pursue legal action so it's a 'heads up'

I don't know what laws apply in our particular situation. But I do know that his message was long, detailed and terrifying and that I almost immediately went into a state of panick and blocked him on all accounts and devices.

What do I do now?

Answer: Block on all accounts and devices, save the messages he sent you and contact a lawyer who specializes in these types of cases. They will direct you from there.Answer #2: Block him, and live your life. The only time you should worry is if you get paper work from a court. But, then it'll be public record that he's accused of attempted rape, which isn't something most people want.


Title: My dog ran out my house and bit someone!! Please help.

Question: My dog ran out of my house this morning and bit my neighbor. The thing is she hasnt had any shots yet but she is always inside so I am positive she doesn't have rabies also the fact that she's bitten me any times to bleeding point also and I am fine. My family and I are taking her to the vet first thing tomorrow. My family got her a while back from a friend but we weren't sure what do to with her since we've never had a dog before, but i understand that is no excuse. Anyway he wants to make sure he is going to be okay so he wants proof of vaccination of rabies but i'm not sure how i can provide it for him. I am in a pickle. What should I do??? (also I live in california)

Answer:
 Dog Law specialist here.

Dog owners like you are the reason my field exists. You're clearly negligent here in at least three ways. Answer #2: So you have a dog with no vaccines who bites a lot?

You pay for all the damages and report the bite because the law requires it (may be country specific). The dog will likely be put down. Answer #3: Hopefully they will quarantine the dog, you will be responsible for the bitten persons medical fees and possibly pain and suffering.

You can't provide him with proof the dog was vaccinated , it does not exists. If you try to stall you will only make things worse , there is a point coming soon in which they will euthanize the dog to test it or administer the prophylactic to the person bitten.

BTW  things like rodents can carry rabies. Answer #4: Well you can't provide the proof of vaccination because you didn't vaccinate your aggressive dog that you know bites. Nor did you take proper precautions to keep the dog from getting out and biting someone while unvaccinated and out of your control.

You are up shits creek. You might be sued, and if you are, that suit will likely be a total success for the other person.


Title: Girlfriend was fired out of the blue by her employer with flimsy reasoning and no prior notice, is there anything we can do?

Question:
So to preface, we're both currently college students and are basically living paycheck to paycheck. So the little money we can get in the limited hours of work we can each get in while we try to keep up with our busy class schedules.

Anyways, when I dropped her off at work I went to get gas and when I got back into the car after pumping, she was calling me saying that they had just fired her, but what she was saying didn't make a lot of sense.

She went into work on Tuesday (the time she was scheduled to work) and for some reason she was off the schedule and they claimed she had requested the day off months in advance, which she had no recollection of. She just accepted the free day off, and walked off without really thinking much of it.

The next day, she knew she had never been scheduled for, but after the surprise the day before, she called in to work to see if she was still scheduled for Thursday, which she remembered having been scheduled for. They told her that they changed the schedule around and moved her to Friday evening. We took the surprise day off to celebrate my birthday with my family and she was happy to have that opportunity.

What caught us by surprise most of all though, is the fact that when she came into work at the time they said she had been moved to. When she showed up, they claimed to have attempted to call her dozens of times on Wednesday because of a shift in the schedule that was requiring her to come in on Wednesday.

The thing is, she didn't have a single missed call from them. Also, she didn't receive any mention of this when she came in the day before their supposed attempt to call her in. Furthermore, they didn't say anything about it when she called them that day. Do we have any options in this scenario, or are we just kind of out of luck?
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 If you’re in an at-will employment state they can fire you for any* reason.

There are exceptions for discrimination and similar things

Edit: Indiana is in fact an at-will state.


Title: What recourse do I have if my roommates mess with my stuff? Portland, Oregon.

Question:
It's a long story, but I live in a house with several other people who have asked me to leave.

I'm on the lease for this place for another six months, so leaving is something I am choosing to do, obviously I don't want to stay where I'm not wanted. I don't HAVE to go anywhere, but I don't want to be a dick and create a bad situation.

Keep in mind that I haven't done anything worse than offend people with off color jokes, and I haven't broken the lease in any way. I haven't threatened anybody, sexually harassed anyone, broken anything, or bullied anyone.

They asked me to leave almost a month ago, and said 30 days. Not the landlord, but the roommates. The landlord has not gotten involved yet.

Now, the rental situation in this city being what it is, it doesn't look like I'm going to find a place in the next week or so. Problem being, they've already gotten a new person (I think) who wants my room.

So given that I'm on the lease, and I'm choosing to leave at the earliest convenience, what recourse do I have if I come home from work in a week and find out they've moved my stuff into the basement for the new person?

Answer:
 Your roommates cannot evict you; only your landlord can.   You want to get your landlord involved anyway because you want to get your name off the lease.   So long as your name is on the lease your landlord can come after you for rent.   So ideally your landlord would allow this new person to take your place on the lease; but they are likely under no obligation to do so.

You probably want this new guy to come in though, so he takes over you.   If you are locked out of the apartment, you can contact your landlord and/or the police to let you back into the apartment.    If you can sleep in the basement for another week until you find a new place; that might be ideal.   If the lease includes access to specific rooms, or you have a signed agreement for access to a specific room, they can't bar you access to it, and a verbal agreement may stand up here; but as above it might not be in your best interest to get this enforced.


Title: Legality of giving someone sugar free gummy bears as revenge?

Question: Title explains it all. I live in Ohio and peeled off the warning label about them causing “intestinal distress” if that affects anything.

Answer: Poisoning someone is illegal.


Title: Why was my affidavit for contempt denied? It doesn't say why, only "rejected upon judicial review." Did I fill out the papers wrong? can I request an appeal? Do I just redo the papers? Please help

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 I will take a wild guess. If this is related to your post from last week, which I assume it is, you had no grounds to ask a judge to hold someone in contempt because you didn't sue them and win a judgement yet because you didn't have grounds to sue them to begin with.

The paperwork means a judge reviewed it and decided you have no standing to request someone be held in contempt. My guess on the reason above comes from six days ago you were asking how to sue for slander and defamation. You didn't do that, win, obtain a judgement and give them long enough to not obey the order to even be in contempt since this past Tuesday.

If I'm off the mark, give us something to go on?  Or don't, because the answer is going to be "you *really* ***need*** an attorney if you have any case whatsoever."


Title: Someone is selling baby turtles illegally in Texas

Question:
Like the title says, there’s a guy selling very small, baby turtles in my town. He sits in a gas station parking lot under a canopy in a lawn chair with a table set up with a dozen tiny plastic containers each with one baby turtle inside. I called the local game warden who seemed very annoyed at my call. I asked if it was legal to sell baby turtles in Texas and he said that it is legal as long as the seller has a permit and hung up on me.

After doing some googling, I found a similar situation in San Antonio (not my city) where people sell turtles on the street. Even though it is illegal to sell baby turtles (under 4 inches) according to federal law unless it’s for educational purposes, there’s no such law in Texas specifically stating this. Game wardens can only enforce Texas law, not federal law, so I guess there wasn’t much the game warden could do anyways. I found another article from the spruce that said you can report illegal selling of turtles to the FDA. So I looked up the FDA website and couldn’t navigate the website well enough to figure out who to report to.

My partner thinks I shouldn’t even report this guy selling turtles & says “snitches get stitches.” Yeah I know but the turtles don’t look well cared for, they’re crammed into tiny boxes and look like they want out. And they’re very small, definitely less than 4 inches. I went to the gas station to get a closer look.

Can anyone help me with who I can report this to? I don’t want the animals to get hurt. Also, what are the repercussions for the seller? Will he get a warning? What if he doesn’t know it’s illegal? I don’t want him to get in big trouble especially if he doesn’t know. I just want the turtles to be safe and healthy.

Answer: Have you tried calling the FDA if that is where you said you think you are supposed to report it?


Title: [UK] Rented out a holiday home with no security deposit and now Landlord is pressuring me for minor damage costs

Question:
I rented out a holiday home for a weekend earlier this month and the Landlord did not ask for a security deposit when the accomodation was booked.

There has been some minor damage to the house and the landlord is now texting and emailing me to pay £100 to them. I have checked the so called "booking contract" and it states:

"The damage deposit may be used for any repair and/or replacement of the property, furnishings, fixtures and fittings that are necessary after your stay. We will return the damage deposit to you following the return of keys to us, less any deductions in accordance with the conditions listed above."

I have queried the landlord on the lack of a deposit requested and they have stated:

"As we are in our first season of letting yours was one of the first bookings we took.We didn't have a security deposit in place for your booking."

Could the landlord legally pursue me if I refused to pay this fee? is it their responsibility to ensure that they extract a deposit initially?

Thanks
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer: On what possible legal or moral grounds do you believe you should not be responsible for damage you caused? People like you are the reason security deposits are required in the first place. Most people are honest and would pay for damages they caused so a deposit shouldn't be needed, but because of a few bad apples everybody has to pay one.


Title: Found a screw in my Chipotle Burrito Bowl. I'm in Virginia and wondering what I should do.

Question:
Pretty much the title.

I ordered lunch on the chipotle app for all my co workers and myself. I paid for it via my credit card. So when it comes time for me to have my lunch I'm nearly finished when I bite on a cold metal peice. I freak out and spit it out. Turns out it was a freaking screw.

Now idk why tf it was in there. But there was a screw in my burrito bowl. I kept the screw. Kept the receipt.

I already put them on blast via Twitter but it didn't receive a lot of traction. I opened a case with there help center and was contacted by a representative. I haven't called back as of yet so I can prepare what to say.

I'm not exactly trying to get compensation for this but I mean if I could why not. People get more for smaller things.

I'm a 20 year old male if that helps at all. I also have witnesses of the incident.

Thank you legal advice I hope this is the right place to post

TL;DR found a screw in my Chipotle meal. Can i sue them?

Answer: You should ask them for another burrito.


Title: [MA] I was sexually harassed/assaulted at work and then fired as a result. The emotional distress afterwards caused me to make poor choices trading my financial assets. Is this money recoverable from the employer?

Question:
Thanks for any guidance.

I was fired from my job a few months ago after I had been repeatedly harassed and ridiculed for having "man boobs" by coworkers and superiors at work. I'd asked several times for them to stop and warned that I would report further behavior. Nonetheless, it continued and I when I got frustrated enough I told them I was done and reporting it to management/HR. When I sent the email complaining about the harassment I was informed in a response email that I was terminated effective immediately (citing work performance, even though I had the top sales record at the company for anyone in my position).

Since being fired, I've filed a complaint with the EEOC and provided what documentation I could to support my account (references to the behavior in communication, a snapchat picture taken at work with breasts drawn over my chest, etc.). I'm still waiting to hear back from them about whether the employer is willing to try mediation. After I was terminated, my emotional state declined very rapidly. I have barely left the house in the past 3 months since being fired and have had only very limited interactions with others. I've become deeply depressed and looking for another job has become a task that I cannot manage effectively as my self esteem is at an all time low and I feel completely dejected and without the support or resources to rely on. To that end, I've experienced several panic attacks during this time relating to fear that I'll be permanently destitute and won't be able to gain employment or recover emotionally from this ordeal. During these fits of anxiety and panic, I've managed to squander basically all my savings/assets in the form of trading Bitcoin. I had held onto Bitcoin that I'd bought in 2013 up until I was fired. After that, I'd figured I wouldn't be able to get another job and that my only hope was to rely on the savings that I had to live on. This was close to the time that Bitcoin rising in value quickly. I managed to margin trade away close to a million dollars worth at the peak price of $20,000 (started with about 40 BTC).

Are these assets theoretically recoverable as damages during a law suit? I fully expect to take this case to trial if necessary and I'm confident that I would win based on the amount of evidence I have and testimony from coworkers who were witness to the harassment. I know that most will ridicule me for acting so irresponsibly with that amount of money and I deserve all of the hate and chastising for what I did. Trust me, I beat myself up constantly for making these mistakes. However, as described above, I've been an emotional wreck since being fired and I'm very confident that I would not have acted this way had I still been employed and not dealing with the harassment at work (I wouldn't have even had the time to trade due to being busy all day with work). I'm wondering if this money is potentially recoverable as damages from the employer if I take them to court.

Thank you so much.

Answer: No. It's not foreseeable and you have no way to prove causation. You may have claims against your employer, but your bitcoin losses aren't among them. Answer #2: Hasn't the value of BTC halved since you sold? What damages exactly do you think you've suffered?Answer #3: No, these type of damages are not recoverable.


Title: Can correctional officers in New York State pull citizens over and make arrests? And what can they make arrests for, as a peace officer?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 How would he have been pulled over? ~~They aren't issued cars with light bars.~~ NY had a rash of rapes in the '90s where a guy was pulling people over, so the law there requires a fully marked police car.

EDIT: see /u/thepatman's answer below. In NY Corrections Officers are sworn peace officers, and can drive fully marked and lit cars.


Title: I live in a condo community and slipped and fell on frozen steps walking my dog. My dog requires stitches. Can I make a claim for compensation?

Question:
I was walking my dog yesterday evening and while we were going down the steps near my unit, I slipped as the steps were completely frozen and we crashed down the stairs together. My dog suffered a nasty gash on her leg, but I am OK. I went to the vet and was told told she now requires stitches which will cost approximately $500 to $800. Generally speaking, can I request compensation from my condo association? They never treated the walkways or steps with salt yesterday afternoon and even now. I am trying to find the bylaws for my association, but was curious if, generally speaking, I have a legitimate claim I can submit. Frankly, I suspect the replies will be "in almost all cases, no, because blah, blah", but at least wanted to ask. Thank you guys.

Edit: my location is Virginia, USA

Answer:
 This is a really interesting question for several reasons. First, does a premises liability analysis apply to a condo owner who is injured in a common area of the condominium? Second, what is the duty of a condo association to treat common areas after an ice storm?

I think the last one is probably set out in the bylaws, but the first question is really interesting.

I think it is worth taking to a plaintiff's attorney.Answer #2: Not a lawyer. From what I've heard , the standard is really hard to meet in Virginia. So, probably no lawsuit, but maybe they'll pay out of the fear of getting sued.


Title: Are movie trailers public domain? CO. USA.

Question:
I want to use some footage from the trailers for Repo Man, Walker and Sid and Nancy.  I have heard wind that trailers are PD but I am skeptical.
Topic:
Intellectual Property

Answer: No, they are not public domain.


Title: Violent neighbours

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Coming at this from the angle of child endangerment: http://www.tusla.ie/services/child-protection-welfare/contact-a-social-worker

You need to keep records of every disturbance / event - times, dates, duration.

Camera phones are your friend. Even if you aren't recording the event visually, having a recording of what is occurring is a good idea.

Check with your council to see if there is any noise abatement laws that their screaming maybe breaking and put in a complaint through the council.

I'm not sure if it would be possible to find out, but look into if any of his convictions have requirements that he maybe breaching (curfew, certain habitation requirements etc).

I would look into if his mother is the actual owner. She maybe saying she is, doesn't make it so. She maybe subletting.


Title: NEED HELP NOW!

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 > Will they arrest me?

Probably. This is clearly domestic violence. Not only did you keep her from leaving, but you stole her phone as well.

> Should I give a statement?

No.

> Will I go to jail no matter what?

It's a very good possibility.

Make sure you have bail money and someone able to bail you out, then hire a criminal defense lawyer and be prepared to stay away from your ex for good.


Title: Landlord is Withholding my Damage Deposit

Question:
I moved out of an apartment in Seattle, WA on December 31st to move to SoCal.  When I inspected the apartment upon moveout with the maintenance person, he claimed that the apartment was in excellent shape.

While in SoCal, I received a bill from the managing company charging me for $55.00 for carpet cleaning and $115.00 for full apartment cleaning.  My apartment has all wood floors, no carpets.

Also, Washington State law states that damage deposits cannot be collected for "wear and tear": http://apps.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=59.18.260

I contacted the apartment building and was redirected to accounts receivables where I was told that the apartment building gets to determine what "wear and tear" is (!) and that there were terms in the lease that allow them to collect those funds (there weren't).

When I informed the person on the phone that I didn't even have a carpet, he sent me a revised bill for $55.00 for full apartment painting and $115.00 for full apartment cleaning.

Before I left I took pictures of my apartment.

Also, I recorded my phone conversations.

I know that I am in the right.

How should I approach this?

Answer: Take them to small claims court. A judge will see through their nonsense.


Title: What can I do about a wedding photgrapher who is 2 months late on delivering our project, and the quality of the pictures is amature at best?

Question: We hired a photgrapher for our wedding based on his the many video clips he had on Instagram. We are in Southern California, and he was significantly more expensive than the other photographers we looked at ($4000). The contract states we were to receive 250 edited photos, a 15 minute video recap of the the full day, and to be delivered in 4-6 weeks. It is now 14 weeks later, he has sent us through Dropbox, all 767 images he took from roughly 10am to 11pm, and says he still needs another week to finish the video. The photos are pretty terrible to say the least. He claims he edited every picture with "filters and colors", so he went above and beyond his promise of 250. NONE of the photos have any editing done on the skin, which he claims is something Extra that he does if its requested by his client. The actual pictures themselves are terrible. He took pictures of her wedding dress outside from a distance and didnt even bother to spread the bottom of it out. the result is none of the detail in her dress being shown and the color looking completely washed out by the sun. The only fix here is to re shoot the picture. There acutally isnt a single picture throughout the day that shows the detail in her dress. Our "first look" pictures are terrible as well. He captured the back of my head (not my look/reaction at all) and i am casting a dark shadow over her face and body as well. His response to all these complaints has been that "he did the best with what he had" and that he was hired to "put his own personal spin on it", so he feels he has done his job. What can I do about this. I am ready to take him to small claims court, but Im not sure exactly if there is even a leg to stand on. The work is terrible, and he is beyond late. Other than that, the dress pictures will have to be reshot, and many family pictures in the wedding outfits that he "didnt know we wanted" like her and I with both of our parents for example.

Answer:
 “Terrible” is subjective and unfortunately not a legal argument. Unless you can prove this particular wedding is substantially worse than his other wedding photos by showing his portfolio. A lot of sleazy wedding photographers will put up other people’s pictures as their own to get work. If you can get evidence of this, it would help your case. As for delivering the photos late, you make have an argument to get some of your money back, but it all depends on the contract you signed.

The burden of proof for civil matters is “a preponderance if the evidence” so if the judge believes there’s a 51% chance you were scammed, you may succeed in court. Collecting the money is another matter entirely.


Title: What does life with the possibility of parole mean?

Question:
http://abc7news.com/news/teen-who-stole-guy-fieris-lamborghini-gets-life-term/22512/
Life in prison means you can't get out, parole means you can get out. Right?

Answer: It means he will be in prison for the rest of his life, unless the California Board of Parole Hearings (BPH) grants him parole. They don't exactly hand it out like candy, so this kid will probably be well into middle age before he has a realistic chance at getting out.


Title: Neighbor Stole $200 Dollar Package

Question:
I ordered a package from Sephora and got the email notification it was delivered. Cool, because there were totally Xmas presents in there (got my shopping done way early!). Get home - no package. I have an inkling it was stolen, so I write a note to the apartment manager asking her to check the camera. My suspicions were confirmed.

Apparently the manager asked the person who took my package and they denied it. I don't know how she asked the person or whether she mentioned she got them on tape. She didn't communicate that to me in her note. Sidenote: I plan on calling her tomorrow to get some info from her regarding this issue.

She also asked if I wanted to press charges. Yes, yes I do. Mainly because they straight out lied about taking my package. If they were honest, repented, and gave it back, I wouldn't be writing this post.

Here are my questions:

\-Do I get a copy of the tape from her? And do I ask her the identity of the person (which she hasn't named) in order to press those charges?

\-What happens after I press those charges? The Internet tells me they most likely get a fine, is this correct?

\-To get my money back, do I take them to small claims court/ sue them?

\-Is there anything else I should know or document regarding pressing charges in a case such as this?

Answer:
 File a police report, they will get the footage from the apartment manager. you don't need to get the footage yourself to press charges.Answer #2: >-Do I get a copy of the tape from her? And do I ask her the identity of the person (which she hasn't named) in order to press those charges?

 Sure, if she gives you a copy.

>She also asked if I wanted to press charges

 *You* should file a police report now.

>What happens after I press those charges? The Internet tells me they most likely get a fine, is this correct?

 Who delivered the packaged?
Answer #3: Go to the police and have them talk to her. Ifv they say she's on camera stealing a package that ups scanned as yours and delivered to your address... she'll likely confess. I'd post a photo of her stealing ther package in the communal areas of the apartment building saying to watch out for the package theif. Shame the bitchAnswer #4: Contact Sephora and explain the situation if you haven’t. Generally they will reship it for you, you can wait until you have the police report for a better chance.


Title: Public Employee...Need Advice (PA)

Question:
Without going into too much detail, I am a public employee working in a local City Hall. My job is to oversee day-to-day operations of my department. I report directly to the department head. A local "activist' has been pressing the issue of a department policy enacted in 2001. I have the unfortunate job of upholding this dated policy and interacting on two occasions with the person challenging the policy.

This past week the person came to my office to file a complaint about an employee in our department. My supervisor was not in and he thought I was the supervisor of this employee. I told him I was not. He began arguing with me and trying to force me to watch a video he claims shows misconduct. I asked that this person report the incident to the police, but he did not want to and insisted on waiting in my office. I asked that he not do this. After he refused, I panicked and called for the police to talk to this man who was causing me great fear.

The man is now asking presses be charged against me for "filing a false report" (me calling the police to speak with him) and threatening to sue the city and I'm assuming me as well. I recorded my side of the story in a memo that I forwarded to our legal office. The person making these allegations decided to take to a well known anti cop forum to voice his side of the story.

What can I do? I fear for my job, my safety and my future.
Topic:
Constitution

Answer:
 Calling the police and asking them to come out is not "filing a report."

Even if it is, if you did not knowingly give the police any false information, you did not break the law.

He can ask whatever he wants- if you didn't break the law (which seems to be the case) he'll get nowhere.


Title: A friend was recently arrested after a party. The police informed him they needed witness statements from all people at the party. Do I have to give a witness statement or can I refuse?

Question:
Some friends and I were recently partying after a long first week back at college. At some point two of our friends disappeared and we learned later one had been arrested for some unspecified crime. He has since then been released and told some people at the party that the police wanted us to write down everything we saw and turn our statements in. Do we legally have to provide a witness statement if we didn't see the crime happen?

There's a part two to this question:
If we do provide a witness statement and it contains things that are illegal (ex: doing drugs, underage drinking, etc...) can the police use that to bring charges against us?

I'm in TN if that helps
Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer:
 if you have received a subpoena, you are required by law to comply.

if not, you're free to refuse to talk to the police. the magic words go something like, "i'm invoking my 5th amendment rights to not talk to you. have a nice day!"

> If we do provide a witness statement and it contains things that are illegal (ex: doing drugs, underage drinking, etc...) can the police use that to bring charges against us?

yes. **protip: the police are not your friends. don't act like they are.**


Title: Super Bowl Ticket Issue - Seller demands money.

Question:
Hi,

I'm stuck in a bit of a situation. I live in Palo Alto, CA and I was interested in buying a ticket for Super Bowl 50. So in Decmeber, I looked up on Craiglist as found a good deal to buy from a lady (based in North Carolina) who gets tickets through her office. She offered a ticket to me for $2700, and said that I'd need to put a deposit for $540 and pay the remaining $2160 once she physically gets the tickets. Then she would mail them to me. She said that she also does signed contracts to ensure that the ticket is not a fake, but I declined to sign a contract since I trusted her.

Now, I cannot attend the Super Bowl because I need to take care of some work-related activities that weekend. So when she said the tickets have arrived and asked for payment, I said that I can't pay for them since I won't be able to attend the event in person. However, she sent me another email today saying that she needs the ticket paid for or something, and that a lot of people have screwed her over. She said she is willing to sell it for less, but has some family emergency and needs me to pay for it. I had paid the $540 over Paypal, and we had not signed any contract - so I'm not eligible to pay for anything right? I'm a little concerned because she had said earlier that she works for law enforcement. So I'm not quite sure what to do. I'm not a US citizen- but here on a visa, so I don't really want any trouble with law enforcement. How do I tell her that I can't pay for it without any problems? Does she have the right to sue me? Or am I making this into too big of a deal?

Answer:
 Super Bowl tickets for only 3k????

Fuck man, first instinct is to resell that shit. It was near 10k to get into the door for the AZ super bowl last year.

With that in mind- it sounds like she is scamming you. The price is too low to be real.

http://www.stubhub.com/super-bowl-tickets-super-bowl-50-santa-clara-levi-s-stadium-2-7-2016/event/9336460/

3500 is the cheapest. This reeks of a fake ticket scamAnswer #2: > but has some family emergency

>  she works for law enforcement.

Classic signs of a scam. Dispute the $540 with paypal. but don't send her another dime.Answer #3: > Can get tickets from her office

>Said earlier she works in law enforcement

I'm struggling to think of any type of law enforcement that could believably get their hands on cheap Super Bowl tickets


Title: [CO]Tenant stole from my store, Notice to Quit/Demand Letter?

Question:
I have quite a situation here. I own a small apartment complex and run a convenience store on the ground floor. Today I caught a tenant on camera stealing. Noe, this tenant has always paid rent on time, but I can't just ignore this.

I know my state allows me demand a $250 "shoplifting fee" plus the value of the item. What I don't know is if I can request that in the form of a 3-day notice to pay or quit. My store and the complex are under the same LLC, so my guess is I can? I'm hoping she will just pay the charge and I can wait until the end of her lease to sace me trouble. I do have a clause against criminal activity written in the lease.

Answer:
 > I do have a clause against criminal activity written in the lease.

What you have now is alleged criminal activity. it would be much easier to enforce that clause in the lease if you reported her to the police and she was convicted of a crime.  Maybe you should just consider banning her from your store.


Title: Homeland Security has me on some kind of list? (sorry long story by my standards)

Question:
So a year ago, maybe two (i really cant remember as alot has happened in my life since almost all positive), i was driving back to my uncles in Tucson AZ from my Grandmas in way south-east AZ and had to go through a border patrol check point.  I am a medical marijuana user with a valid card from California and knew that AZ accepts other states medical licensces so i had it with me, with my stuff all zipped up in the back of my trunk.

 I had never seen a dog at this checkpoint in my whole life of 21(or 20) years visiting my grandma.  It just so happened to be that day, i was driving a BMW M3, in a hawaiian shirt and a young age so (i guess i ticked off the marks for a smuggler?).  The dog flagged me down and they searched my card, found my med. mar. and card and then started to ask me questions and decidng what to do with me.  I started geology nerding out to show im basically just a kid and this was a stupid mistake and i think they realized it as they said "this happens alot, we have three options.  we can confiscate your med. mar. we can give you a citation or arrest you."  twenty or so minutes go by and they come over saying that they were just going to confiscate my med. mar. (< 3grams), my pipe, and my med. mar. license and that i was free to go.

Now i never though much of this other than telling my friends how lucky i was, as they just let me go with my lesson learned until yesterday.  I was flying back into the US from visiting my sister in the UK for the holidays with my dad when at the US-Preclearnce i go the X on my pass thingy.  The first thing the customs guy asked me was "how much did they sieze" and obviously i was like "what?  i dont know what your talking about" and then he said "how much marijuana did they sieze from you" and and i responded with "like and eight or less so about 3 grams" then he started to ask who i was traveling with and stuff and then after a few minutes of saying i was traveling with my dad and pointed out which bag was mine of the two ect he finally let me go.  I plan on doing Mining Engineering and working overseas alot, i hope it wont affect it but i have a feeling that it might make things a little difficult.

TL;DR
Got pulled over by border patrol and only had my MM confiscated and let go without anything other than broken pride and stupidity.
 Planning on doing international job, and now suddenly anxious about background check/ ability to work overseas.
My questions are: 1) If they just let me go without any kind of ticket or anything why am i in the system? 2)  How long am i going to be flagged for? 3) and i get the flag off?  via lawyer or anything? 4) Will it affect a background check or my future in Mining Engineering if nothing is done?

edit:
Thanks guys for all the information, its basically what i was assuming from looking at the various websites.  Guess i just gotta plan for a little longer layover between international flights then

Answer:
 1)Just because they didn't arrest you doesn't mean they didn't log the encounter

2)Homeland/Customs doesn't typically disclose how their lists work, so I am not even going to look for that answer

3)You don't

4)Impossible to tell, but maybe (Though since the list is likely not publicly available I only see it affecting you if you apply for security clearance, but I may be wrong).

IANALAnswer #2: The only way to get “off the list” is through the “DHSTraveler Redress Inquiry Program” [DHS TRIP](https://trip.dhs.gov). But it’s typically only going to be helpful in situations where there is erroneous information applied to your profile history. Since the derogatory information is true; you’ll likely get increased scrutiny for a while, and likely be ineligible for the Global Entry program. But eventually the information will be so old they won’t consider it relevant anymore.

It’s not likely to impact any background check or anything (except for a TS/SCI government check; and even then you may be ok as long as you disclose it; although habitual MJ use is problematic for that level of clearance anyway).


Title: Could someone explain the contradiction in this hiring prerequisite to me?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Title VII carves out exceptions for employers that employ less than 15 people ("my dog walker must be a rastafarian!") and religious organizations ("You must be catholic to work for the Roman Catholic Church's diocese in your area").


Title: (California) Denied Tenure, May I Collect Unemployment?

Question:
Location:

* California

Summary:

* I was denied tenure at a California Community College. The reason given is "failed to complete your probationary period satisfactorily". I had a two year contract, which is coming to an end in June, and I am not being offered a second two year contract.

Question:

* Is this denial of a second two-year contract (and by extension a refusal to offer permanent employment) a "cause" such that it would affect my eligibility for California unemployment insurance?

Answer:
 I disagree with the other poster.  In California the burden is pretty high to deny your UI.  "Cause" isn't the standard California uses to deny UI.  You have to demonstrate a "willful and wanton disregard for the employer's interests."

Mere incompetence is not enough.  Even an isolated disciplinary incident is not enough.  You need to either establish a pattern of disciplinary issues or do something so egregious (like bring a gun to the office) that a pattern is not required.

There is one appeals case, forgot the number, but the employee basically told his boss, and I quote, "Yeah, I don't give a fuck" and walked off the property.  He was granted UI on appeal because it was a one-time incident and considered a lapse in judgment.

So file for UI, absolutely appeal if EDD denies your initial claim.


Title: What can I do (WA)

Question:
Ok so 26 days ago I called the police because my husband was throwing things while he was upset. This has lead to him having a DV charge, and a failing to allow me to report charge since he took the phone away from me the first time I called 911. They also forced a no contact order between him and I.

We have been seeing a marriage counselor, and one of the things we were working on was that I needed to own my side of arguments and how what I’m doing impacts our relationship.

So we are in court today and the judge is reviewing the no contact order, which I asked to be removed. He talks about my statement. How he doesn’t like to see when the victim is blaming themselves for the others actions. Which I wasn’t doing. I was owning my side of the argument like our marriage counselor said I need to do. And the prosecutor makes statements about how my husband is awful.

Well I instinctively decided to defend him. Which was my fatal mistake. After I did that the judge stated that “I was going to agree to dropping the no contact order, but after you did that I’m not going to”. I lost it and ran out of the courtroom.

I need this dropped. Desperately. There is no other way to say it other than that. It’s destroying my family. It’s destroying me. I have extreme anxiety and depression and my husband is my support system.

No I don’t think I made the wrong call calling the police in the first place. I made the right call doing it. I shouldn’t have spoken out at the hearing either, again emotional and upset mixed with my anxiety/depression combo isn’t good.

Is there anything I can possibly do to get this dropped before the next date, October 4th?

Answer:
 >I need this dropped. Desperately.

Unfortunately, that's not going to happen. Those are put in place for a reason and you displayed behavior that is textbook for someone who is chronically abused. Just make do till your next court date and hope it gets dropped then.Answer #2: Can I ask you a couple of things? What has the marriage counselor said about your husband's behavior, about the things your husband could be doing to improve things? Why is your husband your entire support system?

The thing is, not once in here have you placed any blame on your husband for the domestic violence charge that he brought upon himself with his actions. You did not force him to throw things, nor did you force him to take the phone away from you when you tried to call 911. Instead, you're taking the blame upon yourself. And like you said, that's what the judge saw.

Legally, no, you're not going to get this dropped before the 4th.


Title: [CA, USA] Mother's safety deposit box cleared out by local Bank of America

Question:
Hello legaladvice. As the title says, my mother's safety deposit box was cleared out by our local Bank of America and I would like to know what her options are.

The day she found out her lockbox was cleared out was last Friday, September 23rd.  The branch's manager told my mother that they recently had their systems updated and perhaps there was an error in the system, and to try back again Monday once they've completed their investigation.  Here we are on Monday but now the bank tells us that the contents of her safety deposit box was shipped over to BoA's inventory department because neither she nor my aunt(who's name is also on the box) answered the banks notice for whatever reason.  According to my mom and aunt, they did not receive any mail/call notifying them of their box's content being cleared.  In her safety deposit box she had family heirlooms, ten's of thousands of dollars worth of jewelry, and family photos that was locked behind a $25 annual box that had no ties to their banking accounts.

Now they say they will get back to her this later evening to see if her things are even retrievable.  Normally I would want her to wait out for an answer but this bank is known to us to be questionable as one of their staff at this same bank cashed out one of her business checks.  How should she begin to escalate this?

Answer: Given that there's "tens of thousands of dollars" of assets, I would be shopping for a lawyer. It may be that your best course of action will be to wait for the inventory, but there's no harm in getting a professional to say so.


Title: [TX] Hormone Replacement Therapy may have given me pulmonary embolisms - Dallas

Question:
I started doing testosterone replacement therapy mid last year and got off of it after just a few months (ended around December). I'm a relatively healthy person in my late 20's who exercises frequently and have had no prior health issues or any family history related to blood clots. In doing some research online it seems that there is a relatively high risk of blood clotting as a result of the injections and I was not warned of this risk. Had the clots gone to my heart instead of my lungs I could have been killed, and the resulting medications I have to take now put me at severe risk of stroke, nevermind that it's all very expensive and the anxiety and stress has resulted in me seeking a therapist to help deal with all of it.

I've never sought legal advice for any reason and would really like to know how I may proceed to possibly seek legal action against this establishment. Any advice at all would be very helpful, I don't know what to do.

Answer:
 To be honest you probably were told of the potential side effects. You just probably glossed over it and forgot about it. Even if you hadn't been told it's on the information sheet with your meds. All the doctor has to write in his notes is explained risk of therapy to patient.

By the way the resulting medications from PE are generally blood thinners. Blood thinners reduce the risk of stroke.


Title: Need help with my illegal status

Question: Currently 15, I came to the US when I was 3 I am Brazilian and I came here crossing the border. Both of my parents are illegal. I dont know what to do and I heard theres some type of working permit but I dont know how it works. Please help me thank you! I live in New Jersey right now

Answer:
 What you're looking for is **DACA - Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals**. It doesn't give you a green card (though that might be a possibility in the future, depending on how the politics of it all works out), but it does allow you to work and will prevent you from being deported, though potentially not forever depending on the political climate.

See here: http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/consideration-deferred-action-childhood-arrivals-daca

>You may request consideration of DACA if you:

>Were under the age of 31 as of June 15, 2012;

>Came to the United States before reaching your 16th birthday;

>Have continuously resided in the United States since June 15, 2007, up to the present time;

>Were physically present in the United States on June 15, 2012, and at the time of making your request for consideration of deferred action with USCIS;

>Had no lawful status on June 15, 2012, meaning that:

>You never had a lawful immigration status on or before June 15, 2012, or

>Any lawful immigration status or parole that you obtained prior to June 15, 2012, had expired as of June 15, 2012;

>Are currently in school, have graduated or obtained a certificate of completion from high school, have obtained a General Educational Development (GED) certificate, or are an honorably discharged veteran of the Coast Guard or Armed Forces of the United States; and

>Have not been convicted of a felony, a significant misdemeanor, three or more other misdemeanors, and do not otherwise pose a threat to national security or public safety.

FAQ - http://www.uscis.gov/humanitarian/consideration-deferred-action-childhood-arrivals-process/frequently-asked-questions

Good luck!


Title: A man has claimed residency in our home, has assaulted my partner, has threatened our service animal, and is threatening to take all of our things. What can we do? (Seattle, Wa)

Question:
One of my roommates was dating a man and had him come stay with us for a while while he was having a rough time. We allowed him to stay for a few nights so he could get on his feet since he had just moved up to the area. According to police, he has now declared our home as his place of residence and we have to go through an eviction process to get him to leave.
He has threatened us and our service animal. He has threatened to steal everything in the apartment. He has physically assaulted my girlfriend twice in the past 24 hours and the police refuse to help us because we have no "proof" that he was the one to assault her. The police also say that when he moves out, we cannot physically try and stop him from taking our things. He has claimed them all as his, if we would like to get our items back, we have to take him to small claims court. He is threatening to take all of our belongings and take our service animal. My girlfriend just got out of the ER on Thursday and has almost died multiple times due to the stress and not being able to breath. We are at a loss for what to do. We just want all of this to be over, but we are worried about the fact that he still has free reign over our apartment for the next 30 days until we finish the eviction process.

Answer:
 Are you sure you talked to actual cops? Were they actually there, in person? What type of cops were they? Did *you* actually speak to them, yourself?

I ask because none of the responses that supposedly came from them sound like cops.

Your girlfriend's claim that the guy assaulted her *is evidence*. If it went to trial, her testimony to the same would be trial evidence.

The guy has not lived there long enough to claim residency.

Something about this process sounds very fishy. Try calling the police again.


Title: Trying to find out if there is a restraining order or legal way to keep someone away from me for my own mental health and safety. (Mississippi)

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You need to grow up. Your roommate can have guests over, even if you don't like them.


Title: Is it illegal for someone other than the spouse/power of attorney to hold a memorial service for the deceased?

Question: In the USA (I'm assuming) [Trying to help this lady out](http://www.reddit.com/r/relationships/comments/2yywvd/my_28f_husband_36m_passed_away_and_now_his_best/)     > **Tl;dr** My husband's former "best friend" is trying to plan his entire memorial service and is tarnishing his memory. How do I get her to stop?   This girl planned an "official memorial" the day before the wife did. Is there any legal repercussions she could take?

Answer: Well, the friend doesn't have a right to the body but other than that they can have a party for whatever and whomever they want. Answer #2: You can't stop people from holding a gathering, and you can't control what they call it or the thoughts in their head. Sorry. Death and bereavement often bring out the ugly side of people.


Title: OK, someone apparently contacted the California state police over stuff I said in an IRC.

Question: I have mental health issues and sometimes I get intrusive thoughts about a person. I talked about them on the IRC, mostly to private individuals. I believe I have been reported because they think I actually want to murder that person. I do not want to murder that person and I am not capable of it. Please help, what constitutes as "conspiracy to commit murder"? Could I be put in prison for doing nothing but thinking unwanted violent thoughts and sharing them? I'm very scared right now.

Answer: I think you should speak to your therapist, psychologist, or another mental health professional immediately.


Title: My Massachusetts employer is changing from accrued vacation time to "flexible time off". Those carrying balances are having their balance eliminated July 1st.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Take a vacation starting today.
Answer #2: When you say balances eliminated do you mean paid out for them or reduced to zero and no paid? Because the second thing isn't legal. Promised vacation pay in MA is earned but unpaid wages and cannot be forfeited ever.  They can set conditions for using them, or pay it out even against an employee's wishes, but it can't be forfeited.Answer #3: a few relevant things I found there:

>While the employee retains all earned vacation leave, the employer is permitted to cap,
prospectively, the amount of vacation time or pay which it must provide to the employee.

>As is the case with any condition of employment affecting wages, employers may amend the terms of
their vacation policies at any time. Any such amendment, however, must be prospective in nature.