Title: After a Domestic Violence Assault, Can the Victim Have Charges Dismissed Against the Defendant? (TX)

Question: [deleted]

Answer: No, because most victims of domestic violence try to recant later.  It's a very common pattern.Answer #2: No, because most victims of domestic violence try to recant later.  It's a very common pattern.


Title: Do I have legal precedent to sue the birth control manufacturer that gave me blood clots?

Question: I’m 22 and suffered from a bilateral pulmonary embolism caused by the Xulane birth control patch. I had 3 massive blood clots in my lungs as well as heart strain from not receiving enough blood circulation. I spent 3 nights in the hospital with the total cost being $96,960.00. Insurance covers about $80,000 with $16,000 being our balance. Aside from financials, I suffer from intense anxiety and panic attacks now. In the future, it would be dangerous for me to be pregnant. Since I’m not allowed to be on any other hormonal pills for the rest of my life, I can forget fertility treatments if I struggle to get pregnant. I’m also on blood thinners for the next 6 months that give me a bunch of side effects that suck.  Basically, my whole quality of life has completely changed. Everyone is saying I should sue the company but my doctor was very explicit when prescribing the patch to begin with that there was an increased risk of blood clots and I chose to go forth anyway. I think this means I don’t really have a right since they do have warnings about it. Should I talk to a lawyer anyway?

Answer: That is actually a well known and printed side effect of the birth-control pill. It is highly unlikely that you would win a lawsuit.


Title: Paying for an apartment that I am not living in anymore. Landlord asked for the keys back. Is this legal?

Question:
Me and my two roommates are currently paying rent for a unit that we are not living in anymore. It was our decision to move out, given personal life changes, and the fact that a water pipe broke in our apartment and we did not have a usable kitchen for six weeks, and ultimately no privacy because we had remediation works in and out of our apartment for the duration of that time.  We made it clear that we did not want to live there anymore. The landlord patched up the wear and tear on the apartment and it is now back on the market as of December, but we are still paying. Even though we don’t have access.

My question is - is it legal to require us to pay rent for an apartment that we aren’t even allowed access to/don’t have keys for?

Thank you in advance.

Answer:
 The landlord doesn't have to try to re-rent the place until you surrender it completely.

So you have two choices: surrender it, and maybe it gets re-rented and you stop paying for it.  Or don't surrender it, and keep paying.


Title: How to sue a state agency for wrongdoing? (NJ)

Question:
Please click spoiler(s) for story and details. The spoilers are for personal safety reasons and some privacy (no personal info included):

\>! A friend of mine has been dealing with CPS and DYFS for over a year because their concerned family member called in on them thinking they'll make things better. The family member was merely concerned for my friend's physical health, but my friend didn't want to be bothered with them (they don't get along with each other). My friend did not physically abuse the child and the child was being cared for despite my friend's health not being up to par.

CPS promised that they'll give the child to the concerned family member. But last year, CPS came with the cops and took my friend's toddler son away without a court order despite the child not being in any danger. And they gave them to a foster family instead. The child also got hurt in foster care and needed stitches. Yet, they didn't take the kid away from the foster parents or punish them. The foster parents have pretty much been able to take him out of state and do almost anything with impunity and without court approval. Meanwhile my friend is being watched, deterred, and told that they will **never** get their son back.

CPS (or DYFS) has been lying, manipulative, making up serious baseless accusations, doing a lot of underhanded things, and changing stuff up with impunity. The judge told CPS they must cooperate with my friend and their family, but they refuse. The courts won't even allow my friend and their family's input. There are at least 3 of my friend's relatives fighting to gain custody. CPS doesn't even want to give the child to my friend's cousin (who has a great job, owns a house, and is eligible). CPS also won't let my friend's relatives participate in weekly visitations to see their little boy. This whole thing is rigged and there is no justice. I'm worried CPS and DYFS will find a way to terminate my friend's parental rights and keep the child in their broken, corrupt system.

<!

**Endgoal:** \>!To finally have CPS and DYFS leave my friend and their family alone and give the kid back. And for my friend to start the litigation process against CPS and DYFS and the foster family that got the kid hurt under their care.<!

How can I get a lawyer involved for a cease to desist or to draft a threatening lawsuit letter? I can't seem to find the right one.

Answer:
 CPS doesn't simply take children away from their parents for no reason. You are not getting the whole story.Answer #2: The mother needs a family law attorney.

And y’all need a big dose of reality - CPS does everything they can to keep families together if possible. If they’re placing the kid in a foster home, they suspect something is seriously wrong.

If you want to submit a specific complaint against DCF, there’s likely an ombudsman or some oversight committee. But don’t expect “she’s actually a really good mom” to be compelling against the evidence they might have.


Title: My gf's grandma is getting sued and she has nothing and is incapable of helping herself, I'm seeking advice

Question:
USA

**CONTEXT**

My girlfriend's grandma is 81, ill, and very frail. Many years ago, her son (who was a crazy anti-government / semi ex-pat) convinced her to use the money she had saved up to purchase a piece of land that shared part of a lake with several other owners. The land her son purchased had the main levee on it and he apparently assumed responsibility for maintaining it.  Several years later he becomes seriously ill and a year later he passes away. Unknown to him or grandma, the levee had been damaged through a flood and apparently had collapsed, allowing flood waters to accumulate on other people's woodland, lowering the quality of the lake, and so on. Nobody's homes were damaged but the general value of the properties has been affected as far as I know. Nobody is aware of this because nobody has been to the land in the several years due to illness.

**WHAT HAS BROUGHT THIS UP**

One of the adjacent land owners has filed a lawsuit against Grandma.

**THE FACTS SO FAR**

1. "M", the son, purchased the land, co-signing it with Grandma (who foolishly just signed wherever her son told her to).

2. "M" has passed away, leaving Grandma as the sole surviving owner.

3. Grandma has no income other than Social Security. Her only asset is the land. She has little to no savings (<$1000).

**WHAT I TENTATIVELY INTEND**

The Complain we received is extremely clear about only summoning "M" and Grandma. I believe they are unaware that "M" passed away, and that Grandma is the sole surviving owner. Nobody else is mentioned and the complaint says they have been unable to find anyone else associated with the land. This, so far, is a relief because "M" was very irresponsible and I didn't want my gf or her mother involved.

At this point Grandma is the only person they can sue as far as I know, but her social security benefits are allegedly untouchable as far as I have been able to discern online. **Can anyone confirm this for me?**

We are required to Answer the Complain within 30 days of receiving it. Grandma cannot afford a lawyer, simply put, and at this point I was thinking the most practical way of handling this would be to call the opposing attorney on Monday, explain the situation, and ask if it would be possible to have a meeting with the Plaintiff. If we can provide ample proof that Grandma has no income that isn't safe from garnishment, no assets (other than the land), I thought the swiftest solution would be to offer the land to the Plaintiff in exchange for them dropping the case. From what I can see, that's all they could possibly take from her anyway, so why not make it swift and save them legal expenses.

If this doesn't work, then I figured I would Answer the Complain, and try to represent her as best as I can, simply providing proof that she has no non-SS benefit income and no assets other than the land. There is no way we can win the case, so my goal would be to concede as quickly as possible after proving she has nothing they can take OTHER than the land which she is more than happy to sign over so she can move on. The land is/was valued close to $50,000-75,000.

I understand representing yourself is a very bad idea, but in our case, she just wants to move on. Her main mistake was trusting her son.

Thank you all.

**EDIT**

**Can anyone tell me if I'm correct in believing her social security benefits are not at risk in this law suit? And that her land, her only asset / thing to her name, is the only thing that IS at risk? This is really the point I desperately need to have confirmed. Thank you.**

Answer:
 > and try to represent her as best as I can,

Unless you've got guardianship or POA, you can't really do this. You can help your gma with the answer, but you can't represent her at trial.

If the land is valued at $50,000, why not set your negotiation as *selling* the land to this guy at a discounted amount? That gives him access to the levee and puts money in your grandma's pocket.Answer #2: Unless you are an attorney who is licensed to practice in his jurisdiction, you cannot help her. That would be a crime call "unauthorized practice of law". Calling the attorney on her behalf and attempting to represent her is absolutely not allowed. What you can do is pay for his attorney.


Title: (CA) Being threatened with a lawsuit for posting negative opinion on Nextdoor.com

Question:
The counsel for my HOA sent me a cease and desist letter "demanding and requiring that {I} immediately cease and desist from {my} continual malicious online false statements intentionally disparaging the Association, its board members, and its managers".

The letter says "in addition to harassment", my "statements constitute defamation because they constitute false statements, are intentionally published to third parties, and are injurious to business reputations" (Civ. Code 44).

It does not quote any of my alleged statements.

If I "fail to immediately cease and desist, then the Association has directed this firm to immediately file a lawsuit and zealously and aggressively litigate to judgment".

All I said in a long thread (that I didn't start) full of complaints about violation letters is that our manager is inept and the board is ineffective.  I believe I am being harassed for speaking up at our quarterly meetings and they are trying to threaten me into being quiet.

Help!  I have young kids and am a public school employee, not really rolling in the dough if I need an attorney.

TL;DR HOA management company butthurt that I said they suck on a neighborhood specific social networking site.  Threatening to sue.  Question:  Would they prevail in court if in my opinion what I said is true?

Answer:
 The proper defense to defamation are true statements.

Have you said anything false, or otherwise intentionally defamatory?


Title: Boyfriend has refused to fumigate our apartment for bed bugs for 4 months because he is convinced he will have to pay for it, not the landlord.

Question:
Even if we have to pay I want it fucking done. I’m going insane in my own home and haven’t slept a full night since getting here.
He was a stupid piece of shit who got thrift shop furniture (ALL OF IT) and so the bedbugs are our fault.
I am FULLY aware of how easy bedbugs spread and have attempted to outline this to him. He does not care about our neighbours.
We live in Ontario, Canada.

Will the landlord require us to handle it ourselves or will he do it? Will he cover costs? Does it matter that we were the ones who brought the bugs in or could we potentially say we’re not sure how they got here?

Answer: I work in housing in Washington state and if bedbugs are found in the apartment the tenant is responsible for getting rid of them. And if they don't before the end of their lease then they will get billed for the treatment from their security deposit. It's better to get them early on because it will only get worse. Especially if you have pets.


Title: [TX] I'm being basically blacked mailed by being accused of rape

Question: So here's the story. Me and an old friend of mine go to a party, we're both drinking, me being a lot more drunk than she is, decide it's time to go back to the dorms. On our way to the dorm she informs me that I could stay in her dorm. Me being super drunk didn't want to walk across campus took her up on that offer. Throughout the ride back she keeps asking me questions about if I've had sex and whom I have had sex with. When we finally get to the dorm, she goes to the front desk to check me in, and takes me to her room. She informs me that she's going to let me sleep on her bed (I was thinking that she was going to sleep on the couch or something while I was on the bed) she gets into the bed with me and grabs my arm to cuddle her. She continues to talk about sex and how many people she's had sex with and who she's had sex with. She then mentions that she's been really wanting sex for awhile now and she hasn't gotten it. Time passes and I feel her push her butt against me kinda rubbing it. This is when I put my had on her inner leg and she opens her legs. I start rubbing her inner leg and she takes off her pants and underwear. I ask her, is this fine with you? And she says yes, so I proceed to have sex, around 10 seconds in, I feel a massive amount of guilt, knowing that I have a girlfriend and this is not my girlfriend and I stop the intercourse. And that was the end of it, she didn't say anything, we just went to sleep. Fast forward to us waking up, I try getting out of bed and she keeps grabbing me to stay in bed. Finally I tell her that I need to go back to my dorm, and she gives me a hug and I leave. At this point my memory was hazy on what happened last night and I get a phone call from her best friend. Her best friend starts yelling at me that said girl was crying and that I had raped her. So obviously I started apologizing thinking that I had actually forced this girl to have sex with me. Well time passes and I start remembering alot more clearly. It's at around this point that I get a text saying that if I don't tell her boyfriend or anyone she won't tell anyone that I raped her. So now I really dont know what to do. I feel as if anything I was raped, she took advantage of my drunk state and kept feeding me thoughts of sex throughout the night. Help me Reddit, I'm scared that this moment is going to ruin my life and I need to be prepared if it does.

Answer: If you feel that someone has committed a crime, you can call the police. I'm not sure what other advice you're requesting.


Title: Time Sheet vs. Pay Stub Hours Worked. Salary (non-exempt) employee.

Question:
I work in York County, Pennsylvania.

At the company I work for, I fill out a time sheet on a weekly basis.  I'm considered salary non exempt where I get paid past 45 hours even though I'm salary.  The way my time sheet is structured is that I'm supposed to work 45 hours a hours a week and once I hit my 45 hours I get paid at an hourly rate per hour worked.  My hourly rate past 45 hours is based on my yearly salary broken down by 26 pay periods a year (bi-weekly paycheck) and then by 80 hours.  Basically I work 90 hours every 2 weeks or as close to it as possible as that is company policy.

My pay stub however shows my bi-weekly pay as working 80 hours instead of the 90 hours that I am really working.

Is this legal?  Is there anything that can be done about it?

Answer: Being "non exempt" and not getting overtime is an oxymoron. "non exempt" means you are "not exempt" from the overtime provisions of the FLSA, which require overtime after 40 hours worked. Are you sure you don't mean "Salaried exempt" and they just pay you extra if you go over 45 hours? (which they don't have to do provided you are paid at least $455 a week)


Title: [California] If a drunk driver hits a pedestrian, but the pedestrian dies in hospital because a doctor gave her a drug she was allergic to, can the driver be charged with the death?

Question:
The coroner says that cause of death was the allergic reaction to the drug. Both the coroner and the doctors who treated before death say her injuries were painful but not fatal and she would have lived if not for the drug. The paramedics also listed here as non life threatening injuries for the call. She had a medical alert bracelet on and the doctor who gave her the drug has resigned and will have a hearing about his license where he is not expected to contest. Given that the death was not caused by the driver, could he be charged with her death or only for the drunk driving part of it? There is no doubt he was drunk (twice the limit) and at fault for hitting her (ran a red). Just looking for some clarification on what the law would be in a case like this.

(Also if anyone could tell me what the penalty is for a second drink driving conviction I would appreciate it. The first one was also in California 3 years ago. No one was hurt, it was a pull over)

Answer:
 Very nuanced question, actually. Sounds like a hypo in Torts 1 or on a bar exam.

It is reasonably foreseeable that, when a drunk hits a pedestrian, and causes bodily injury, the pedestrian will be ushered off to a hospital. It is also reasonably foreseeable the MDs could commit medical negligence. Unless the MDs act is so egregious as  to "break the chain of causation" and to render MDs' actions "unforeseeable" to drunk, drunk is liable.

Under CA civil law, 1% fault => joint and several liability. Under CA criminal law, same result.Answer #2: Chain of event lawsuits are weird.

My aunt had a asthma attack while driving in a rain storm and ended up causing a accident.

Cops and everyone show up, cars are towed and such, everyone on scene is gone except the last cop. He ends up getting hit by another car who never stops, it's a hit/run cop is severely injured.

Because they never found the person who hit him, he ends up suing my aunt. The basic premise of, if she never caused the accident then he would not have been out there and gotten hit.

Years of court battles and it's eventually found to be like 30/70 fault, Him 30 for not wearing his reflective vest properly, and her for causing the accident.

So in regards to your case then it's very likely that the driver could be charged for the death of the pedestrian even if it was the doctors fault.


Title: Landlord denied accommodation for my disability

Question:
Hello everyone, I live in Iowa City, IA if anyone is wondering.

I will keep this as short and sweet as possible.

I requested a reasonable accommodation from my landlord regarding an emotional support animal - ESA (my apartment normally does not allow pets - although an ESA is not a pet).

He denied this request, and this is months after I originally requested for this accommodation. I have given him a letter from my counselor stating that I need this animal to alleviate symptoms of my disability.

He has tried to stop me from getting this animal every step of the way. At this point, my only options are to:

1. Get the cat, and face possible eviction
2. Ask him to break the lease so I can move to a more accommodating apartment
3. Get an attorney and sue him for discriminating against someone with disabilities

I am just wondering what to do from here, because I really think a cat would make me feel happier in my life - having something to come home to every day, something to take care of and give it life, something that loves me.

My landlord is a heartless individual who obviously doesn't care about the well-being of his tenants. I really have been stressed out and given way too much of my time already in dealing with this! I just want a cat. I will take care of it to the best of my ability and not let it destroy my apartment.

Any advice is appreciated, thanks guys (and gals)!

Answer:
 Did he say why he was denying it? Asking for a accommodation isn't an automatic process. He is allowed to deny it if he can articulate why it would be unreasonable. Answer #2: An ESA is not a service animal in Iowa.  I'm pretty sure that a cat couldn't be considered a service animal regardless as Iowa Code 216C pretty clearly states that it offers protections for service dogs and assistance animals where assistance animals are simian and are

>specially trained or in the
      process of being trained under the auspices of a recognized training
      facility to assist a person with a disability.

Anyway go read 216C.11, you cannot force your landlord to let you have a cat.


Title: I have suffered incredible hair loss from a medication that was put on the market in early 2017. Do I have grounds for a lawsuit?

Question:
[Florida] I have severe eczema and was put on Dupixent. Not only did the drug not relieve me of my symptoms, it also caused my hair to fall out from the root. I just had to cut what little was left on my head off.

The hair loss was so bad, I’m just wondering if I could have a case?
Topic:
Medicine and Malpractice

Answer:
 You can speak with a Medical Malpractice Attorney.

Just for clarification, what proof do you have that this specific drug **caused** your hair to fall out? Correlation does not equal causation. Answer #2: Entertainingly, the drug also treats hair loss. Answer #3: What you can do in case there is a class action suit in future which did happen with a medication I took.

Keep the record of when you took it. When you noticed symptoms and the dr you saw for it. Pictures with time stamps also. I failed to do those things And getting the information 10years later was difficult. I went from never having migraines to having them even after going off the medication.


Title: Can my daughter's employer require her to stand for her entire shift, with no sitting breaks besides legal break times, when she has a request from her doctor to allow her to sit down throughout her shift?

Question: Oregon - Daughter is 28 weeks pregnant, and she was just written up for sitting in a chair at her front desk position at a tanning salon.  She was told no chairs are ever allowed.  She has extreme foot pain and swelling.  I can't seem to find anything online.  Thanks in advance for your help!

Answer:
 Normally I'd say no, but the fact that she's 28 weeks pregnant means they could be running up against some pregnancy discrimination.

They don't have to necessarily give her a chair, but they do need to come up with a reasonable accommodation. That's a legal term meaning they need to come up with some kind of solution (of any kind) as long as they can come up with one that doesn't cause "undue hardship". There is no way a chair is undue hardship, so yeah an employment lawyer could take an interest in this case if they want to play hardball with their "no sitting even for pregnant women" stance.Answer #2: My doctor gave me ADA paperwork at the start of my pregnancy and told me to bring it in as soon as I felt that I needed it. Have her request a formal ADA accommodation from her supervisor. They may have specific form they prefer to use.


Title: Caught having sex in car

Question:
A woman walking her dog knocked on my bf’s car window while we were having sex in the backseat. She just knocked and looked annoyed and left. We immediately drove off. We don’t know if she took a pic.

The car was in a back of a parking lot, behind a building and facing a fence with trees. It was around noon though.

If she did take a pic, how fucked are we? Is a picture enough to be charged for a misdemeanor? This is in California

Answer:
 Don't talk to the police if approached by them.

Nothing will come of this in all likelihood.

Get a room.


Title: I want to play NFL games (streaming via wifi) in my restaurant. What are the copyright/subscription laws I need to be aware of?

Question: We are very rural and have no cable service, and rely on some kind of satellite/microwave technology to get our internet. Can't find anything on the web specific to the copyright laws or instructions on how to secure permission/subscribe to do this. Thanks in advance for your help!

Answer:
 Contact DirecTV. They have a special for restaurants with a FCO under 50 & 1-4 TVs for only $599.

Do not try to just stream games off the internet in public. The NFL will come down on you hard. Answer #2: If you want to play legal NFL streams you need to license it. Most bars use NFL Sunday Ticket which is a DirecTV service that you can get most anywhere in the USA as it is satellite-based. Make sure you have the right licenses from DirecTV.

Do not try to illegally stream NFL games. Or use a DirecTV home subscription for a business. The hammer comes down hard on people who do that, to the tune of lawsuits and fines in the six-figure range.


Title: California- Why does a father who has 50% custody of a child can be ordered to pay child support?

Question: My fiance was ordered to pay over $300 in child support for his daughter who lives with us 50% of the time. The mother does not work and was recently charged for 1 count felony for obtaining welfare by misrepresentation and 2 counts felony for perjury.  Child Support court is not aware of her felony case which is in another county. What can we do? How is it that the system can order for a father to pay when custody is split? Shouldn't he receive child support as well?

Answer:
 I can't speak to your specific case but child support is generally to maintain a standard of living for the child, it's not a monetary value allocated to each day on the calendar individually.Answer #2: Because you make more money.Answer #3: >recently charged for 1 count felony for obtaining welfare by misrepresentation and 2 counts felony for perjury

if you get a lawyer, perhaps you can make a case for full custody. Answer #4: You pay child support for the benefit of the child (yes the other parent cashes the check, but in theory the money is for the child).  The idea is that a child ought not suffer because his/her parents are no longer together.

The cost of raising the child is, in theory, split evenly between the parents proportional to what they are earning -with the time spent parenting being accounted for in that caluclation.  Where two parents split custody 50/50, the one making more money will be paying child support (the monetary value of the time spent parenting is the same, but the parent making more owes more than the parent making less - so money flows to the parent making less, to ensure the child is still cared for when the parent making less has custody).


Title: (SC) Can my ex get custody of our son if he’s in the sex offender list?

Question:
He sexually assaulted me. We have a 3 year old son together. I’m pressing charges for rape but if he gets on the sex offender list, can he get custody or non supervised visitation? Thank you.
Topic:
Custody Divorce and Family

Answer:
 It's possible.

Just being on a sex offender list does not make you a threat to children unless the offense is related to minors.

Hire a lawyer. Follow their advice.


Title: (MD) Should I go to court or not?

Question:
I'm gonna try to keep this short but i don't wanna leave out details.

I owe child support money. About $15,000 for just one child.

I had a drug problem which is why i didn't ever pay it. About 3 years ago child support started taking me to court. I had a job at the time so i gave them about $1,500 over 3 months. One court date each month. they stopped taking me to court but i lost my job 2 weeks later. Needless to say i stopped paying them again.

Last year child support has started taking me back to court. My drug addiction has stopped me from getting any work and if I had money, it went to my drug habit. Because of being broke and unemployed I did not show up to court out of fear of getting put in jail. The first time this happened was the moment I decided to get clean. I thought that if I stop using then it would be much easier for me to get another job and start paying it again. 12 months later I em still clean, but also still unemployed. In the last year I have missed 3 court dates because of being afraid to get locked up.

2 months ago I was arrested for a warrant for missing court and did only 3 weeks in jail before they let me go. They gave me a month and a half to get money or a job. I have failed in this, not for a lack of trying but for a lack of transportation. I cant get to interviews. But now I have an opportunity that people would only dream of.

A year ago, when i got clean, i was offered a job that starting pay is $23 an hour. 12 hours a day, 7 days a week for 2 weeks, then i get 1 week off. It's a Union job so there were a lot of hoops i had to jump thru before starting but by the time i finished everything the job was no longer available. I have been waiting for another chance all this time and it has finally come back around. I'm ready to go today if I could but it will still be about 2-3 weeks before they are ready to get me in.

Now for the title of this post. I have another court date in 2 days(from time of typing this). I really don't wanna miss this one because of missing the last 3 in a row. But if i go and they put me in jail then i will miss this job again. If I don't go to court and get the job then i can not only pay off all the debt i'm in with child support(which is why i'm even going to court). I can also start a life for myself. I can get out of my parents house, get a drivers license, a car, a normal life.

If i go to court, they could put me in jail and i miss this job and my problems continue to grow. If I don't go to court then i can get the job and pay off the child support but i will get a warrant again and have to do some time anyway.

If you have any questions then feel free to ask. Otherwise i could really use your opinion. If it was you, what would you do?

Answer:
 You can call the court to ask for a reschedule.  But if you don't, and they don't give it to you, go to court.

You are absolutely out of chances, and your poor excuses aren't going to carry you much farther.  You need to stop screwing with the court and get your shit together.  And no, "I skipped court for a job" isn't the way to do it.


Title: Is it legal for an employer to utalize circular reference? we said no becaues we said no. In a legal defense to why they won't obey the Canadian law - I was broken at work, employer sabotaged my recovery, 2 people spent their life savings paying out for medical bills from the at work accident.

Question:
The emplloyer said no to providing help, stating it was due to the Insurance provider saying no, BUT the insurance provider said no bc the employer said no.

I have the papers showing it.  SO: the employer said no, because the employer said no.   I was/am still injured, so I'm looking for a logical way to make the employer obey the law.  they sabotaged my medical recovery and made me think it was all in my head. But I feared they were going to be dishonest, thus kept records.  F their abuse of me and anyone else they do this too. I hope they stop when I out them.

we CAN all get along :  http://www.funnypica.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Funny-Dogs-Funny-Dog-Picture-06-FunnyPica.com_.jpg

Answer: I have no idea what you're trying to say, and you haven't actually asked a question, or provided a location.


Title: Feedback on Divorce Legal Advice

Question:
I live in Wisconsin and am getting info on a divorce. Original post: http://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/1w6qy1/in_wisconsin_just_found_out_wife_is_cheating_and/

Met with three lawyers today.

First Lawyer: Talked over the phone and they sounded like they were half asleep. Said a lot of the same things the second one said....

Second Lawyer: An attractive and professorial looking lawyer at a nice office, but not too upscale. She said that no evidence is used at all in determining anything during the trial, unless the third person (who my wife is cheating with) is a drug addict or criminal (which he's not), it won't have any effect. She said it was good to have all the fact possible, because it can be used emotionally during the process. My wife will realize that she fucked up, and will be looked unfavorably on by our kids, our parents, our siblings, our church, everyone we know (except for a few of her bitch friends who are also cheating/divorcing). Said I should confront my wife tonight and determine if we want to resolve things. If we decide not to resolve things, she could get involved with trying to negotiate a fair split. The scenario we discussed as a possibility (but only off of gut feelings) was
Me taking:
- primary placement of kids
- 50% custody of kids
- house (mostly mortage)
- credit card debt
- 50% of retirement savings
- my car (mostly debt)

She takes:
- her car (mostly debt)
- 50% custody of kids
- 50% of retirement savings

Since I would have primary custody, my wife would actually owe me child support, but we would cancel that out with the maintenance I owed her. She thought I could possibly get primary custody because my wife currently works 3rd shift (part time, 2-3 days a week). Sounded surprisingly reasonable: Wife leaves, takes car, and we all go about our lives.

Third Lawyer: Pull up to the place and its a bit of a hole in the wall. Receptionist is overweight and has a voice like gravel. A scene straight from a John Grisham book. I have to wait in lobby because the lawyer was still at lunch. About 10 minutes after our appt was supposed to start, the short lady who easily has a larger diameter than height waddles in. This was the lawyer. I go back to her office and she reads through all the paper work I completed. I told her the background of our story (http://www.reddit.com/r/asktrp/comments/1w6i1a/just_found_out_my_wife_is_cheating_on_me_and_she/). Here is her advice:
"Absolutely do not tell your wife about filing for divorce. You want this to be a surprise to her. You want her to feel like your the one in control. And you want her to feel the impact that this will have on kids, parents, siblings, etc. I would imagine that this fling with the guy who is supposed to be leaving his wife will eventually peter out. Then she will really be second guessing her choices. You do not want to make any deals early. As soon as you settle on a deal, she will start getting comfortable with that deal. Once she's comfortable with that deal, she'll want to renegotiate a better deal, and that will keep happening. We want to wait until the last minute to define and agree upon a deal so she has as little time as possible to start asking for more."
"There are two kinds of people in this world, those who cheat and those who don't. If you take your wife back, there is a reasonable chance that she will cheat on you again. If you even do consider taking her back, you need to wait until she begs for it. It can't be a wishy washy 'lets give it one more go'. AND if you do decide to take her back, instead of canceling the divorce, get legally separated. The advantage of converting to a legal separation is that you define all of the financial fallout (just like you were getting divorced) but can stay together. If she cheats again, you just say "good bye" and there is no renegotiation for maintainence, child support, placement, custody, etc. If she decides she want to leave, same story, no renegotiation. At anytime you could file to have the legal separation canceled and be fully married again (but why would I ever want to do that). Since you have been married for 16 years, there will be maintenance required, but it will likely be limited. When it's over 17 years, it gets more and more likely that it will perpetual maintenance (pay her until she dies). So in this situation, it's best to act now and get an deal negotiated in your favor as quickly as possible."

My Conclusion:
The third lawyer seemed to have the most experience and desire to play a little dirty. What are your thoughts on this advice? Which lawyer would you choose?

Answer: My initial feedback is to stop commenting on the appearance of female lawyers and their staff, whether their appearance is good, bad, or neutral.  It has no bearing on their abilities and makes you come across like an ass.


Title: Purely Hypothetical - Third Party Poking Holes in a Condom - Liability and Responsibility?

Question:
(edit: Illinois, USA, for what it's worth...  just a general curiosity though, so any state will do...)

I'm curious - I was reading an article about some douche who poked holes in a condom to try to trap his girlfriend into marriage - the article talked about sexual assault and such.

It left me wondering - say a roommate poked holes in his/her roommate's condoms in a petty attempt at revenge or something.

Are there any known legal cases involving a situation like this?  Would the third-party be on the hook for sexual assault charges as well?  Would this third-party have any legal liability or financial responsibilities towards the child?

Answer: The person wouldn't be on the hook for child support, that would still fall to the father. However, there would probably be some kind of criminal and/or civil action. It's hard to say what without knowing lots more.


Title: Question about new "Sick Pay" policy at my girlfriend's work. [Washington]

Question:
My girlfriend works at a hair Salon where she is paid commission which is a percentage of the price of the service. For example, lets say the service is $100 and her commission is 40%, she would make $40 for that service. Washington apparently just passed a law that requires employers to pay their employees sick pay. The owners new policy is to take a portion (lets say 5%) of the price of the service she performed, and put it in an account to be withdrawn from if she needed to call out sick. The issue here is that at the end of the year, any money left in that account goes back to the owner of the salon. Is this legal? Is he allowed to deduct a percentage for "possible sickpay" and then collect that money at the end of the year if that employee never calls out sick?
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 Question using your example.

Is it (A) She is getting paid her $40 and $5 of the remaining $60 is going into the fund or (B) She is now getting paid $35 and $5 of the original $40 is going into the fund?

Now the big question: Does she have any sort of employment agreement or contract that stipulates she is paid %40 of the service fee?  If so - she may have a case.  If not - well your girlfriend just experienced a reduction in her pay and in most places that is perfectly legal.


Title: Property Manager may have lied about lead-based paint in apartment. I have a small child.

Question:
I moved into an older apartment complex in Apr 2013.  At the time I signed a lease and there was a section on lead-based paint.  The lease explicitly stated that there was no known lead-based paint in any of the apartments.

When I went to renew my lease for the 2nd time this March, there was a new apartment manager.  That section of the lease changed and said that there might be lead-based paint.  I asked about it and the new apartment manager told me I must be mistaken about the previous lease, that it was illegal to assert that there is no lead-based paint in these older apartments.  She also said that since my apartment was freshly painted a few months before I moved in, I probably had nothing to worry about.

I wasn't sure so I went ahead and signed the 2015 lease. I was able to dig up my 2013 and 2014 lease and both of those CLEARLY state there is no lead-based paint.

I have called my son's pediatrician to see if there is a test for lead exposure we can do for my son.

What, if anything, can I do at this point regarding the changing lease?

This is in Georgia

Answer: Just to ease your concerns a little, its been painted over so its much less of a risk unless your kid likes to chew on the trim.


Title: Puppy deposit refund

Question:
Hi all, just trying to figure out what recourse I have. I live in SC, and the breeder is in NC. After some initial negotiating, we settled on a $200 deposit for a puppy in a litter that was yet to be born. The contract states that the breeder is to provide us with a puppy in the fall 2018 litter, but it also states that the deposit is non-refundable.

My family was eagerly waiting for the pup to be born, when we learned that there had been an apparent miss-cariage of the whole litter. While shocked, I understand that these kinda things happen. However, my family wanted a puppy this season for a variety of reasons. I requested my deposit back since there was no pup to be reserved anymore in 2018. The breeder said no and hasn't responded since.

Any thoughts on how I can get my deposit back?

Answer:
 The deposit was non refundable in the event you decided you no longer wished to purchase a puppy.

You signed a contract and paid a deposit with the agreement said deposit goes toward the purchase price of the puppy you want. Now they cannot deliver their promise per the contract, making the contract void. They are required to return your deposit if you wish for it back. Send them a certified letter informing them you want your deposit back by x date, and if you do not have it in hand by that date you will be filing in small claims court.

Wait for that day and if they haven't returned your money, gather your copy of the contract and all written communications you have with them, and file a small claims case.


Title: [US][California] Is social media content, in particular images, in the public domain? Can it be sold? If so, are there any limitations?

Question: Title accurately describes it, thank you for offering your input.

Answer:
 No.

An image does not enter the public domain simply because it's accessible to the public. The rights holder still owns it. That's generally the artist, though it may be their employer or publisher.

Each social media platform handles rights slightly differently. Most require that the author of a copyrighted work give the service a _non-transferrable_, perpetual, royalty-free license to distribute the work, so that - for example - Facebook can't be sued for publishing your selfies. That license generally does not transfer to other users of the same network, except as allowed by the original license.


Title: My GM is using security cameras to record employees conversation. Is this legal?

Question: I work in a private country club in Alabama. He installed cameras a few weeks ago due to some theft. Now he plans to allow the security cameras to record our conversations as well.  It just seems invasive and creepy but I'm not sure if where I work makes a difference on the legality of it.

Answer: Totally creepy but totally legal. Sorry.


Title: Roommate robbed me blind, down to the last sock.

Question:
Hi guys,

I reside in NYC. A year ago I made a big mistake by allowing a roommate into my life and have been living in hell ever since. The chain of events goes like this:

I took him in to live with me in my studio apartment. He stayed in the bedroom, I took the living room. About a week after, he invited his girlfriend to live with him without my permission. They both squatted in my bedroom up until last week when they disappeared.

Aside from the first month's rent, they never paid me a single cent for rent or their share of the utilities for a little over a year. Why? He found out rather quickly (by swiping the monthly statement from under the door) that I was unable to have him evicted in a legal manner because I too was not listed on the lease, I was living in the apartment under my friend's lease who moved out of country and was unable to return to help me at the time.

The "squat-leader", as I'll refer to him right away assumed a position of power. He created mass-amounts of correspondence to his and his girlfriends name to the address. He tried to take over the gas/electric bill as well but I managed to stop that in time. He was on the phone with the landlord everyday trying desperatly to have the lease corrected to his name so he could get me out of the picture. Reason being, the rent was cheap, way too cheap for a NYC apartment and he wanted to get it for himself. I did not want to lose the apartment, so I put up with the abuse and paid the rent/utilities in full for over a year. I was waiting for my friend to come back to help me evict them.

About 2 months ago, they invited a 3rd party to join the squat fest, he was a heroin addict to boot. A few days after I arrived home to find the locks changed (I later found out, they made an agreement with the heroin addict to rent him my living room). They decided to get rid of me all together. I called the police and they were all arrested for performing an illegal lockout as I was able to show the police evidence that I resided in the apartment. During the arrest, I found out they claimed to have also moved all of my belongings to some storage facility to the police and told them I never actually lived there. They were released from jail the next morning as the D.A. told me, there wasn't enough evidence to prosecute.

I was not able to get back into my apartment ever since that illegal lockout. When they came back from jail they refused to let me back in or remove the lock. I opened an illegal lockout petition myself which dragged on for two months while staying at my mom's apartment. The squatters kept adjourning the case for various reasons and making motions to show cause whenever I got court orders to get back in which put my court orders on pause.

For example, I was almost arrested once while drilling open the lock with a court order in hand, they called the police and claimed someone was trying to break in. The police arrived like wild dogs and without asking a single question I was on the ground cuffed and having my penis groped. I had to tell them 3x that I have a court order to do this before their adrenaline rush came down and one of them took me serious.

While the police were going over my court order, the main squat-leader came out of the elevator (how convenient) and showed the police a motion to show cause which once again temporarily nullified my court order. The police told me to go back to court and not to come back here until, else I'd be arrested for breaking and entering. I told them I need to see if my stuff is still in there and get some belongings at least. The police asked the squat-leader to open the door, he produced the wrong key deliberately (I know because I've become a bit of an expert on locks throughout this whole ordeal, and the MUL-T-LOCK installed uses a key with a blue cap, his key had a black cap). The key wouldn't even enter the keyhole and he said, "I can't get it in, he drilled the lock and damaged it" despite me drilling nowhere near the keyhole. This made the police mad and they told me that I'm now liable for the cost of a locksmith to have them get back into my apartment.

I'm getting mad just writing this.. anyway all of that is in the past now. What happened recently is, my friend came back and opened a holdover petition. I had them all served (it wasn't easy..) they had 30 days to vacate. On the 28th day of the notice to vacate, I finally secured a final court order to get back in the premises in the illegal lockout case. The squat-leader tried to motion to show cause once more, but this time was denied. He opened an appeal against the judge's decision (to which he never showed up). The final order stated that I am to regain possession of the premises immediately by any legal means necessary, and the squat-leader and his girlfriend are to return all of my belongings back to the premises by 5pm the next day.

I went back to my apartment the next day, drill in hand and finally opened up the door only to find the place completely empty, down to the last sock. I had a little over $10,000 worth of belongings there. I called the squat-leader and told him to bring back my stuff. He completely ignored me and just said, you wanted me out, im out now leave me alone.

It's been about a month now, I want to take the squat-leader and his girlfriend back to court regarding violating the court order to return my possessions but I'm at a loss on how to proceed.

The police could easily track him down via plate scanners, he works for Uber and would get plate scanned within days but they won't arrest him without a warrant. As far as I know, they can't even get an arrest warrant as this was a civil matter.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Hope you all had a happy new years.

Answer:
 A bit of practical advice.

This guy is involved with drugs and was unwilling to pay half of an already reasonable rent. He likely doesn't have much money, if any. Do not spend good money chasing bad. You could pay a lawyer to pursue this, get a judgement that he owes you $10,000 plus legal fees, and never see a penny if he's judgement proof.

Seriously consider whether you could collect before pursuing civil action.Answer #2: The rent is a civil matter. Stealing your possessions is a criminal matter. Call the cops.Answer #3: Get an attorney and renter's insurance.  If you have renter's insurance, file a theft claim and see what happens.

Probably keep all receipts of EVERYTHING - down to the last sock - of what you are replacing and use it to figure out replacement value.

Be prepared to find a point where you just move on.  I can see you spending a ton of money on attorneys and those losers never getting you your stuff back or paying you a dime.  Answer #4: This is why it's incredibly important to make sure YOU ARE ON THE LEASE if you live in a rented property.  If you aren't on the lease, you have significantly diminished rights if shit like this happens.Answer #5: OP say squatter works for Uber, what about OP putting a lien on the vehicle?Answer #6: Get a lawyer. Now.Answer #7: Did you have tenant insurance?


Title: Extortion scam?

Question:
So I can't post all of this because well it might be real but its also suspicious.

My friends mom is a paralegal and helping me out irl to so here it is.

I received a call from a police officer this morning. Informing me I might be charged with a crime akin to sexual assault (involves unsolicited nudes, i checked the number seems to be real) the father involved has offered to drop the charges if I pay for sexual abuse counselling only under the condition it is through a walgreens or cvs green dot card. I got a late start so I cant talk to any lawyers in town today. It seems suspicious is all. I'm in Colorado if it helps
Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer: Scam. There is no father. There is no girl. Block. Move on.


Title: Received a 50% pay cut today and lost half my responsibilities, MI.

Question:
Title pretty much sums it up. I've been a manager at the company for 7.5 years and had worked my way to a position with only the owner of the company above me. I've been salaried since day one. A few days ago, I got an email stating that I would be peer reviewed by the managers below me. Ok, no big deal. I reached out to some of my subordinates and the owner had not spoken with any of them. I was also asked to itemize all my hours worked, to basically explain to the owner what it is I do. Ok fine, will do. I started the itemization process. I was asked to do this on Wednesday evening, and started last night. I scheduled a meeting with the owner for today (Friday) to see what was up.  At this point I had not turned in my itemized hours.

After a long conversation of me justifying my position, I was offered a new position that consisted of about half of my current responsibilities, and a pay decrease of over 50%, putting me lower than my current subordinates, significantly lower. It sounds pretty non-negotiable. This new pay rate, if I re-call correctly, is about what I started at 7.5 years ago.

This was completely out of the blue. I had not been given any negative feedback about my work, I've never been written up or formally disciplined, all the feedback I have gotten from the owner has been very positive. Of course, I have been asked to take care of things, and alerted to problems in the company, but this owner has only once spoken harshly to me and it was 4 or 5 years ago. I've been completely blindsided. The feedback I've gotten from my most high ranking subordinates are that I am "invaluable to the success of the company". The owners reason for this change is because she thinks I am taking advantage of the company by not working enough... which is bullshit and my staff has backed me up.

This goes without saying, but losing half my income is a huge problem. Do I have any legal recourse? Does this constitute wrongful termination? Can I file for unemployment? I'm scared and confused. Up until today, I have had absolutely no reason to think I've done anything but amazing work for this company.

Answer:
 This definitely is not wrongful termination.  However, you may be able to quit and still be eligible for unemployment if your earnings and the scope of your work has changed dramatically.  You also may be able to file for unemployment while keeping this job due to reduced earnings.

I am not sure about your state, but you can look up the conditions required where you could quit and still get unemployment while you look for a new job comparable to your old pay rate.Answer #2: You have no recourse unless you believe (and have evidence) that this was motivated by some protected characteristic of yours.  It is not a wrongful termination, and you can't file for unemployment if you refuse the job.  MI doesn't recognize pay cuts as constructive discharge.

Time to start the job huntAnswer #3: I was a temp at my most recent job in Michigan and quit when they were going to do this same exact thing to me. I filed for unemployment and am using it now. They use "pay decrease" and "hour decrease" as acceptable reasons to leave. Or at least they did in my case.Answer #4: OP is the company in financial trouble? I see there is some very good advice posted . I would try for under employment . And definitely look for a new job . This can't be a good sign of things to come . Get while the getting is good .Answer #5: You may qualify for underemployment benefits. I'd suggest looking for a new job in the meantime.


Title: Co-worker sexually harassing everyone with no repercussions.

Question:
I am an assistant manager at a small dollar store and have been with the company for over 2 years. My co-assistant manager is and older gentleman in his mid to late 40’s and is an absolute pig. He has been at my store for just a few months and I had many customers saying he would follow them around the store and just stare at their backsides. Our Store manager did nothing while she was there even though she was a frequent victim of his attentions. He would drunk call her and tell her he loves her and even propositioned her for sex on her last day. When she left it was just him and I working together almost everyday. He got too comfortable with me and started his drunk calls on me. He would look for me on his days off and it all became unbearable when he texted me a picture of his bed on his day off. You can’t see him but it is very obvious that he is laying in bed and took a picture of himself, but being drunk it is blurry. I reported him, following exactly every step that my company says to do. I heard nothing for weeks and then and told I’m being moved to another store where they cut my hours and even moved me down positions so I’m being paid as a brand new assistant than the tier two assistant with two years of review pay raises that I am. Fast forward two weeks at being at the new store I was asked to work at my old store and immediately after walking one of the cashiers tells me he has been texting her and sending her extremely sexual songs. He even showed up at her house and tried to force himself on her. I told her to report him and now even she is being moved to another store while this guy is still running the store, now by himself, with no repercussions at all. What kind of legal actions can we take? We both have every text and picture this guy has sent us as well.

TLDR: Coworker has been sexually harassing everything with boobs. Everyone who reports him gets moved and have their hours cut. Don’t know what my legal options are

Answer: This sounds like it is illegal retaliation for reporting sexual harassment at work, not to mention regular sexual harassment.  Contact your local Department of Labor, explain what has happened and open a case.


Title: Does Trump still have any viable paths to victory?

Question: If so, what are the most likely ones?

Answer: NoAnswer #2: Legally, no. Practically, he may attempt a coup.


Title: Neighbors constantly smoking pot in California

Question:
I live in Anaheim California. My downstairs neighbors smoke a lot of pot on their balcony. I know it's legal now, and I'm ok with that, but it rises up and comes right into my apartment windows.

I've tried keeping all my windows closed, but running the a/c cost a lot of money. They are constantly smoking and now that it's cooling off, It would be nice to have my windows open. I complained to building management but nothing has changed.

Is there anything I can do? I'm guessing since they are at their residence I'm out of luck.

Answer: Have you tried the approach of being a nice neighbor and talking to them (politely) about this? How did that go?Answer #2: Does your landlord allow smoking in the units? Just because something is legal doesn’t mean it’s not a nuisance. If you haven’t spoken to them about your concerns, I would start there. Otherwise, it might be prudent to drop your landlord a line and ask how to address the situation.


Title: Are ride share companies really not responsible for their drivers' actions?

Question:
I had a Lyft driver drive off while I was unloading my things because I refused to give him extra on top of the $20 tip I'd already given. Ended up hanging out the back of his SUV on the freeway for several miles and the police had to be involved.

When I mentioned I had to replace a cellphone that was broken during the ordeal I got this reply from their "Trust and Safety" team:

"<Redacted>(Lyft)

Follow-Up from Lyft Safety
Hi <redacted>

First and foremost, please allow me to apologize for offending you. Although it was certainly not my intention, I realize how my attempt to make amends for our miscommunication must have felt terribly patronizing, as though anyone could even begin to place a monetary value on the entire troubling ordeal you experienced. Regardless of my intention, my misguided gesture was inappropriate, and I am deeply sorry.

Lyft drivers are independent contractors, which means they are solely responsible for their actions as well as any damages incurred as a result of those actions. Should you decide to pursue legal or civil action with this driver to cover your financial losses, I would be more than happy to help in any way that I can. Due to privacy laws, some detailed information will need a subpoena or other required court document before being released.

Thank you so much for your understanding. If you ever have any more questions or concerns related to this case, please feel free to let me know. I'm available in-office during the days and hours listed below.

Best,
<Redacted>
Trust & Safety Specialist
Fri - Tue | 10a - 6p CT

Help Center

This email is a service from Lyft."

Answer:
 This is correct - Lyft drivers are independent contractors, and in most cases, the company is not liable for the actions of those contractors.

[https://www.xperthr.com/faq/are-employers-liable-for-injuries-or-damages-caused-by-independent-contractors/10227/](https://www.xperthr.com/faq/are-employers-liable-for-injuries-or-damages-caused-by-independent-contractors/10227/)

Additionally, Lyft has a limitation of liability clause in their contracts that you, as a user of the service, agree to. Go after that driver, get a lawyer.


Title: I was assaulted by my manager and GM did nothing..

Question: My shift supervisor assaulted me while working and my GM pretty much told me to suck it up. Could I sue over this?

Answer: You can sue the person who assaulted you, if you were injured or have some other damages resulting from the assault.


Title: Under Canada's new Bill C-24, my citizenship is going to get revoked

Question:
So as per the title, this a citizenship revocation legal problem.

The new bill C-24 allows citizenship and immigration Canada to send revocation notices without taking the person to court provided they have enough evidence under the mandate and tenants of the new bill. Some of my family members have received a letter, two of us haven't. The letter gives us 60 days to make written, hard submissions that would be taken "into consideration" in the decisionmaking process by the person who is going to be doing the revoking. That in tandem with the evidence they have with them.

The case they have brought against us, namely against my father is misrepresentation in the time residing in Canada during the permanent residency period which was set between 2000-2004. Without getting into the details of it they have iron clad evidence of the mistake made during that time. As such, when my family applied for citizenship in 2004, they did not meet all residency requirements. Fast forward 11 years, now they want to revoke our citizenships. Yes I know that some of you will say you deserve it, deal with it whatever but I am here looking for advice :/

My brothers and I were minors at the time and as such did not intend or consented to or were aware of the fact that there may have been a mistake made in the residency process. However since my father submitted an application for us as his children, we are now as well under fire.

We have a lawyer and the lawyer thinks that my parents shouldn't even bother making a submission to defend themselves because they cannot dispute the evidence regarding the 2000-2004 period. However since the language does not say dispute us but just submit anything you think is relevant for our consideration. My father wanted to submit proof that he has in fact bought a house in Canada, invested in the Canadian economy and all in all has been a good citizen in that he has no criminal record and dutifully claimed non residency once he left Canada so as not to leach off of the social healthcare, welfare etc.

Do you think my dad should make that kind of submission? Another point to make is that the law states that once citizenship is revoked, you default to PR. However, my lawyer is worried that if we give them information that my parents have not resided in Canada in the past two years, it can also mean that they could have their PRs revoked because when they re-enter Canada they will be asked by the immigration officers if they had lived there in the last 2 years, the answer will be no because they were under no obligation to do so and as such they can pull the PR away. So it is a weird loop hole in that sense.

Can we, the children make a case arguing that we did not have any intention of anything like this to happen? This is important because unfortunately, if your citizenship gets revoked, you must wait 10 years to re-apply again as opposed to the 4 years that the normal PRs would face. In other words, it is a punishment tactic and in a general sense, we are going to be punished for something we never did.

Finally, I am desperately looking for a lawyer in Montreal/Halifax that may have more experience with revokation cases just to get a second opinion. Anyone know of any?

P.S. I feel like I need to explain a few things about myself. I have been living in Canada for the past 5 years and have made every effort to become a positive contributor to the country and society I live in. I have no intentions to leave Canada. This issue has made me feel really lost, frustrated, depressed just because it kind of hit me like a school bus. My life feels like it is turning upside down. I have a Masters in Political Science which means that if my citizenship gets revoked, I cannot work in the government sector. I cannot leave to work somewhere else because I have to wait 10 years to get my citizenship back.

Thank you for reading this, and thank you for any responses, regardless of their nature.

EDIT: More info about the law and the process http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/tools/cit/acquisition/revocation.asp
Topic:
Immigration

Answer:
 Jesus man, this is way, way, way above the pay grade of /r/legaladvice. Contact the Nova Scotia Barristers' Society for help in Halifax, and the Barreau du Québec for help in Montreal. We can't give specific recommendations; against the rules of the sub.

Seriously, I get that you're desperate, but citizenship stuff is complicated and we don't have (and cannot have) all of the facts. Your best bet is to call the respective bar societies (and consider looking into Ontario as well; I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of citizenship cases happen there) for their recommendation for an experienced lawyer and get a second opinion.


Title: [MI] Client is refusing to pay contract he signed but didn't read. Owes our company tens of thousands of dollars.

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Contracts

Answer:
 Stop work on this project.  Hire a lawyer.  Find something else that pays (and quickly) to do.  Do that while the lawyer works.

Letting the client know you've stopped all work on the project and retained a lawyer may clarify some things in their mind, and you may find them more agreeable.  Or not.  Who knows.


Title: [Florida]Employer requires to show up 15 minutes prior to scheduled shift but won't allow us to clock in.

Question: I work in a restaurant in South Florida if that makes a difference. We are required by management to be in the building 10-15 minutes prior to our scheduled time in in order to prep for the shift. This includes prep work such as checking sections, side work and pre-shift meetings. Can they legally do this? I've worked in plenty of restaurants and the usual rule is being allowed to clock in 5 minutes prior to the shift at most but actual work doesn't start until you're on the clock.

Answer: No, they cannot require you to show up at time x:xx and only start paying you x:xx + 15 minutes. You should have a polite conversation with your employer on this and if they don't budge, file a wage claim with the federal Dept of Labor.Answer #2: I had an incident like this at a company in Georgia. The senior lab tech who was training me said management wanted us to come in 5-10 minutes early to work a shift change over. I said okay and asked about clocking in early when I came into the lab and she scolded me and pointing aggressively saying: “No! You’re shift starts at 7!” I backed up a little, shocked, and said okay. After about a month I looked up FDL laws b/c it didn’t feel right and got pissed off, so I talked to people and eventually went to the new manager about it (the old one I was told let this woman be the be-all-end-all in the lab), and he said they would pay me for the time I was owed. I was 31 at the time and never have run into anything like this, or anything like all the other incidents before I left that shithole. Now, I am better prepared for terrible coworkers/bosses, but I doubt I’ll ever work with people like that again.Answer #3: It’s a common curtesy to show up about 10 minutes before your shift to any job. But that’s mostly so you have time to get yourself ready (uniform etc) but if they’re asking you to do actual work then you should be paid for that.


Title: How can I report a wrongful termination?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You think you can force your employer to let you work the hours you want to work? The entitlement is strong with this one...


Title: [IN] Father-in-law is the director of boys juvenile facility and is doing things I’m concerned are illegal.

Question:
As Director my FIL pretty much runs the juvenile home, is there on a daily basis and knows everything that goes on. My partner and I have been told by several other family members that FIL’s Brother who is a known drug addict and has been off and on illegal substances throughout the years. He’s been to rehab at least once and has been under the influence while working as child care worker in the past. He’s also responsible for transportation of minors using the facilities van.

It’s common knowledge that FIL’s brother admitted to forging signatures of doctors and judges on legal forms regarding the treatment plans of minors.

I believe the manner in which the Juvenal Home is run is both neglectful and unethical. He often gives personal details about the minors including their full names and offenses that brought them to be in his care.

We first went no contact with my partners family about two years ago when we decided to become foster parents and wanted to distance ourselves from everything going on at the juvenile home. Although we attempted to notify DCS about the activities going on at the home nothing ever really came of it. This is a small town in Indiana with plenty of corruption and for that reason we don’t know where to go for help.

More recently we found out that my partners parents have started housing former occupants of the Juvenal Home as an extension of the foster care program for adults ages 18-21. Although this is technically legal my partner recalls being emotionally abused by both parents and instances of his mother being sexually inappropriate. We believe they are taking in these young men for their own financial gain. Both my in-laws have been very vocal in the past about their destain for the residents of the facility often referring to them as “the criminals”.

My in-laws home is often unsanitary due to their several dogs being allowed to defecate and urinate indoors. There are also signs of mold, my MIL has a problem with hoarding while FIL keeps all discarded medications belonging to previous occupants of the boys home in a safe in his own house instead of properly disposing of them despite his drug addict brother living next door. On that subject the juvee home is kept in a similar state of squalor, especially the directors office.

While we have not been in the juvee home or my in-laws home in two years, we have no reason to expect things to have changed, and suspect that it’s gotten worse.

Can I report these things? Who do I report it to?
Topic:
Juvenile and Youth Law

Answer:
 If you are concerned children are being neglected or abused, call CPS.

If you would like to report other crimes to the police, make a police report.


Title: Me being a minor, how much control do my parents have over my money?

Question:
Hi, I'm 16 in Oklahoma in the US and recently got my first job a few months ago. As the title states I'm wondering what my parents are allowed to do with the money I earn. I had googled something similar to this and found that if the money is in a joint bank account between a minor and the legal guardian that both parties have equal access to the funds. All my money is earned through direct deposit and is sent from my employer to my bank account, and it is a checking account.

Because this money was earned through my job, and they had no part in me getting hired for, do they still get to use it? I'm asking because our current living conditions are slightly worse than they were a year ago and my parents think it would be nice to use my money to help support at least a little bit of our family. I disagree, since it's not like we're impoverished. We're all comfortable, were just not as comfortable as we were before, and I'd made the argument that im trying to save up for college.

Can I open a savings account at my bank and put the money in there so my parents have no control over it? It's not to the point they're demanding use of the money even though my dad does have full access to it. Thanks, any answers are helpful.

Answer:
 Under common law, the parents of a minor had the exclusive ability to claim the *entirety* of any wages earned by the minor. Gifts and inheritances given to the minor are the property of the minor (although can be subject to the control and custody of the parents under their discipline authority), but *wages* were not.

Oklahoma even codified this general principle under statutory law.

>§[1018.  Payment of minor's wages](http://law.justia.com/codes/oklahoma/2006/os10.html).

>The wages of a minor employed in service may be paid to him until the parent or guardian entitled thereto gives the employer notice that he claims such wages.

>R.L. 1910 Sec. 4381.

Obviously, this seems unfair to you. I would try and approach this with your parents, and have a discussion about finances. State that you'll agree to contribute, but that you want a role in managing the household finances as well. Ask that you sit down as a family to develop a family budget; and one that includes savings for your college expenses as well. Answer #2: > they had no part in me getting hired for

Not totally true. They could end your employment with a single communication. Whether they did or not, they played a part in allowing you to get the job.

They can't take money they don't have access too, but they can stop you from working.

Honestly, if your family is going through finanical strife, even minor, trust me it will benefit you more as a person to help out than not. You don't want/need that kind of resentment and if your going to college you will need your family or atleast it will be WAY nicer to know you can count on your family like they counted on you.


Title: [OK] I was asked if I was a threat to myself or others in a triage "corner" of an emergency room during a mental health crisis.

Question:
I was asked if I was a threat to myself or others in a triage "corner" of an emergency room during a mental health crisis.

So when I say corner, I mean a partially walled-off section by the intake desk of the ER. There was no privacy. When the nurse (that clearly had no patience or urgency for my issue) asked if I were a threat to myself or others, I froze. People were capable of hearing me and identifying me in the waiting room if they really wanted to. I froze. She then, with an aggressive and impatient voice, said "ARE YOU OR ARE YOU NOT A THREAT TO YOURSELF OR OTHERS."

*she did take my temperature and BP during this interaction.

I then said "You're being awfully aggressive, Ma'm", gave her a side eye, and then strut my way out of the hospital... back to my home.. where I went to bed, too discouraged to reach out for help, again.

I got a bill for $336.50 for this issue. They didn't run my insurance, and frankly, I don't think they deserve it.

1. Were my rights violated
2. Is this predatory billing?

Answer:
 It seems you went to the EMERGENCY room, which specifically exists to address life threatening conditions, having a "mental health crisis".

During the triage of a life threatening "mental health crisis", the question was every bit as appropriate as asking "Are you having any chest pains".

If you just wanted someone to talk to about your mental health crisis, you should have called your therapist, who could have consulted with you privately over the phone, or made a private appointment.

Your rights were not violated. This is not predatory billing.Answer #2: 1. No.

2. No. Answer #3: No to both. You were taken to the side, chose not to say you were uncomfortable, and walked out during treatment. Also take a moment to remember that, experiencing a mental health crisis, it's possible to you're misinterpreting tone. If you decide to get help again you can ask "Can we speak in a private setting?"Answer #4: You can certainly report to the hospital patient advocate or ombudsman that the nurse's behavior was unhelpful, and in fact detrimental to someone seeking help for a mental health issue. However, I don't see that she violated your privacy rights.


Title: Unfair traffic ticket

Question: I got an unfair speeding tickett of 42 mph on a 30 mph zone. I went to trial and was found guilty. Judge sided the cop. My defense was based on the gun's accuracy but judge ignored all my questions. Already filed an appeal stating there was not enough evidence to find me guilty. If the appeal is affirmed. I will take it to the State's appeal court. Any advice?

Answer:
 My advice is that you are vastly misinterpreting code 22350 and I would suggest you accept your rightful guilty verdict and stop here before you make a fool of yourself.

What that code is saying is that you could be cited for even driving UNDER the posted speed limit if you are deemed to be driving unsafely during adverse conditions. For instance, if it is raining, a police officer could cite you for driving 55mph even if the speed limit is 60mph, if he determines that 55mph, even though it's under the posted limit, is still too fast due to the rain.

It is NOT saying you are good to exceed the posted speed limit because everyone else is, or whatever you're trying to say.Answer #2: How fast were you going?Answer #3: Wait, so by your logic, if every car goes 90 it’s legal because you’re following the speed of traffic? Lmao


Title: Roommate refuses to return my rent money, even though I never moved in.

Question:
I was planning on renting on moving to Austin for a brand new job I was offered. At the last minute, I was unable to move down there as I had a very drastic family emergency. The guy I was supposed to move in with is refusing to give me back my rent payment even though I never stepped foot into the home. He is saying that I didn’t give him enough time to find someone else. It was only half of the rent, at $400 but he isn’t budging. Is there anything I can do? We never signed a contract. Everything was through text. Please help me, I am desperate.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer: Sounds like you had a verbal contract. Given your lack of notice you'd be unlikely to be successful in any claim against your not to be roommate.


Title: [NM] Brother in law may try to sue, for apparent gift.

Question:
My wife (before we were married, or together.) had bought a 08 Jeep in Oct2010 with her brother Co signing.

My wife was able to make the payments until Jun2011. He took them over at that time for the most part.

Around spring 2014 he sent a letter demanding she take over payments and sign him off the jeep. This was done in May 2014.

Fast forward to Jun2017 we missed their baby shower because we were never told when or where it was. (useless i know.) After arguments over him saying we did know, and proving we never got the text saying when/where, he then today says that he will get his money back either through us paying or " less pleasant means." Which i assume is small claims.

He says we owe ~14k.

According to NOLO the statute of limitations for NM is 4 years.

Here is where it gets weird. There was never an oral agreement that i know of. Even if there was does the 4 years start at the agreement, or once it is over?

So here are my questions.

1. Does he have a leg to stand on?

2. Should we see a lawyer?

3. Can you explain how the statue of limitations works in the situation?

Thanks.

Edit: grammar is hard

Answer:
 1. No.
2. If he actually files, yes.
3. Doesn't apply.


Title: Ex-fiance threatening to take or sell house

Question:
My mom's ex-fiance put 200k of his own money from his divorce (selling their house) into the house that she, my sister, and I reside, in order to pay off the mortgage. Things went sour, he left, and now he wants to take legal action. What are our options?

On a sidenote: he tore up the yard and house in the name of remodeling over the past 4 years and never finished anything. The value is shot, and we have no way of paying for repairs at the moment.

EDIT: This is in Washington State

UPDATE: My sister told me that the number is actually 67k, the rest being from those pointless projects (rearranging rooms, "remodelling") that decreased the value of the house.

Answer:
 You have to take out a new mortgage/loan, and pay him back, most likely.

Or you can sell the house and pay him back from that.


Title: [MA] I think my newish neighbors older son is a registered sex offender but hasn’t registered his address yet? Am I suppose to be notified also?

Question:
 I live in Massachusetts, I’m a female, and my neighbor moved into their home around January. They never introduced  themselves but we wave hello and yell hi when we are getting the mail, ect.  I get an odd feeling from the son. Well I’ve been gardening and tending to my plants out front (like a normal home owner I feel) and the son who looks about 30ish looked familiar and went on the porch and leaned over in my direction just watching me. I had an uneasy feeling from the start from him for similar reasons but this really made me uncomfortable so I went inside my home after it persisted for several minutes. Every time I would go out he would seemingly watch me. Then I went online to my towns sex offenders website (updated monthly) that I looked at about a year ago  and there he is, even wearing the same distinct glasses and beard, it couldn’t have been more spot on.

I hear that sometimes you’re suppose to be notified if your neighbor is a registered sex offender, not sure how true that is, I apologize if I am incorrect. I would just like to be sure if he is because I would like to move, I don’t feel comfortable, whenever I get out of my car and he’s in the yard he just stops what he’s doing and stares and gives me an weird smirks and look. I don’t know how to describe it.

**TLDR: I’m 99% sure my newish neighbor is a sex offender that hasn’t registered his new address (my towns website is update monthly.) His old address is listed and I’m wondering if he’s suppose to notify neighbors that he’s a sex offender? He never leaves the house, if I go outside he follows almost instantly and is on the porch watching me and it makes me uncomfortable. If I get out of my car and he’s outside he stops what he’s doing and stares.**

Answer: In MA, there is no requirement of sex offenders to notify neighbors, outside of simply registering their new address. Fortunately, staring at someone in public is not illegal.


Title: How to get out of a non-compete in Missouri/Kansas

Question:
I signed a non-compete with my current company that specifies that I will not go to a competitor within a radius of 25 miles for one year following termination of my employment.  Termination of my employment through choice or through being fired.

The company has gone through several changes in leadership since I signed that non-compete including being bought by a corporate entity and most recently my boss (the president of the company) being terminated.

I am in a fairly high leadership position within one division of the company.  I was recently asked by corporate management to step away from my position.  I was told to tell my staff that the commitment was not right for my family's needs. (Background - I am a new parent.  I put in 9-10 hour days, but always have to leave at 5:15 to pick up my child from daycare.  I have never once received feedback that any of my work seemed to be affected by my family life.) I was basically asked to lie to my staff.  I told management that I refused to tell my staff that.  I was then informed that I would be demoted and receive a pay cut and that the individual replacing me was someone who had recently left the company with no notice (which per company policy would make him not eligible for re-hire for one year).  I offered other options - bring on this individual as an equal to me for collaboration purposes, change the structure of the hierarchy in my division.  But I was met with a pretty firm no.

I immediately began job hunting and received an interview and offer fairly quickly (the field I am in is currently exploding and my credentials are in extremely high demand).  How do I go about telling my new company (a small start up) about my non-compete?  What legal action can I take to get out of this non-compete?

tl;dr - Corporate demoted me/cut my pay and asked me to lie to my staff.  How do I get out of my non-compete so that I can move to a position with another company?

Answer: you can't. Its a contract and one reason why they paid you the amount they did during your tenure


Title: I'm the Landlord, my dog damaged tenants couch

Question:
******** UPDATE *********

Okay - MAJOR PLOT TWIST
He just gave me the receipt - the couch was purchased in 2009, at arizona leather for 1,945.00 + 189.98 tax = $2,134.98 9 years ago

ORIGINAL POSTING

So here is a very interesting scenario.  I am the landlord and rent out rooms in my house...  It is a four bedroom 2 bathroom in California....

Anyway, I have had my dog far longer than the couch has been in the house, and before bringing it to the house I actually had other couches that my tenant REQUESTED me to throw out so that he could bring his "leather" couch that his sister was getting rid of.

When we picked it up, it had some lifting (as it later turned out to be polyurethane, although he tried to claim it was full leather)...., but upon it coming to the house, my dog chewed the corner off of one of the oversized back pillows, ripped the stitched-on-zipper attachment off, and some minor other damage....

Now, if I didn't allow it to come to the house, they would have given it away...  He got it for free, but I felt bad so I said I'd do my best to fix or repair it, WHICHEVER IS CHEAPER.

Keep in mind I have a super solid contract that protects me, but I gave him my word that I would make it right....

Well now, months have gone by and he is making it a big deal.  He tried to pull the same scenario with a washing machine, where I threw mine out so he could bring his better new one.... then he tried to say I agreed to buy it...  I never did, but told him if we could work something out with the couch I would pay him and keep both the washer and couch...

anyway the washer deal isn't turning out how it should as he tried to tell me it was worth $750....

I googled it, and a brand new one in the store is $440.... - So I told him, get me the original receipt with warranty and if you paid $750 we can talk...  HE NEVER PRODUCED ANYTHING... I TOLD HIM THAT DEAL WAS OFF THE TABLE

So on to the couch...  the whole time he swears its real leather, but I found the barcode and info on the cushion... It's polyurethane...  No stores want to reupholster it because they don't use that stuff anymore, and I can't find a proper/fair replacement anywhere.  not in stores, and not on craigslist or letgo, or offerup.

Anyway, the couch had to be 3-4 years old if not 5-10 before it came over....

I am trying to figure out what I am obligated to give him, or what would be considered a fair compensation...  I also told him, if I pay him or replace it, that the new couch is not allowed to come to the house and the old couch becomes mine.... same situation if I pay him, then the couch is mine and he is not allowed to bring anymore furniture or anything in to the house unless it fits in his room.

He is on a month to month and I already give him a far better deal than anyone in the area, at least $500 less than the going rate for any rooms in the bay, and I give him a bunch of free space on the side to put up sheds and all that....

If it were to come down to it, would I just need to hire an appraiser and pay him some amount, or is there an easier solution?

Answer: You need to make him whole. So a used pleather couch. 3-5 yrs old.


Title: California. Parent might take away insurance?

Question:
I live in California. My estranged father contacted me via text, telling me that I am required to tell him about my grades/course of study/future plans/etc in college because he is paying for my insurance. He'll cancel my plan if I don't tell him what he wants to know. Would that be blackmail?

Is he required to keep me under his insurance, or is it optional for him to? I think I can remain under his plan until I'm twenty-six (I think), but I don't know if it's required for him to keep me on. I have no other way of being insured.

This is extremely troubling to me, as I have mental health issues and I need my insurance. :(

edit: wow, responses already. thank you, everyone who has answered/will answer. I value your input.

Answer:
 >Would that be blackmail?

No.

>Is he required to keep me under his insurance, or is it optional for him to?

Optional.  Your school probably has a plan you can get while in school.


Title: IA- Landlord requiring automatic carpet cleaning, this is illegal. Whats the best way to proceed?

Question:
I've lived in my apartment for just under a year on a month to month lease. I am planning on moving into a 2 bedroom unit in the same complex and signing a 12 month lease as I've been pleased with the quality for the price. The leasing agent just sent me an email outlining the move out procedures and told me I'll have to have my carpet professionally cleaned and give them the receipt. I'd like to assume they might intend to reimburse me the cost with the receipt, but I don't think its that likely. This sort of thing has been a big problem among local renters. I really don't have the extra money right now to be paying for frills like professional carpet cleaning. My carpets have no other wear or tear except for a very small detergent stain (covering no more than 3 inches of space) that I'll more than likely be able to scrub out myself. I struggle to find the spot myself when looking, so I don't think it qualifies as unreasonable or unusual damages that would require me to pay for professional cleaning. This is not the first (or even second) time I've been faced with illegal practices from local businesses or companies in the area since I've moved here, and I'm pretty over conceding at this point.

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I sent the leasing agent a response letting her know that our carpets are still very clean, and that I didn't think a professional cleaning at my expense will be necessary, but that I'll be more than glad to have someone from property management come out and look themselves. I've also documented the condition of my carpets as they are, and still have some pictures of when I first moved in. My question is whether I should just pay to have them cleaned, and then sign my new 12 month lease and request reimbursement after the fact? can I legally do that? I don't want to refuse to pay for the cleaning, for them to retaliate and refuse to renew my lease for the next month (as I currently have a month to month lease, rather than a 12 month) and I don't want to ruin my ability to sign a new lease for the 2 bedroom. Would paying for the cleaning services mean that I accept the illegal requirement and chose to do it of my own free will? I'm not too clear on how this works, but I do know that money is tight this time of year for me, and even more so with moving into a bigger apartment. Even just carpet cleaning will put undue financial stress on me. What do you suggest I do in this situation? I really don't want to have to thing about apartment shopping again.

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Answer:
 What is specifically illegal in Iowa is the *deduction* of cleaning fees from the deposit. You're not in a position to take clear legal action until they actually do such a deduction. So the way forward for you would be to just move out, expect your whole deposit back, and sue them in small claims for the missing fees.Answer #2: What does your lease say?

By the way, requiring carpets be professionally cleaned when a resident leaves is very, very common.


Title: A kid damaged my house, the family claimed they would pay, but I've yet to see any money. Unsure who to name in my civil suit.

Question:
In September, a kid crashed her bicycle into my house, damaging my garage door. She ran off before I could find out what house she came from, so I called the police, who basically told me they'd keep an eye out and good luck. The next day, I saw a kid riding a scooter and asked if she'd seen the crash the night before. She admitted it was her and told me which house she lived at and then followed my car back to my house and asked if she'd damaged the door, I said yes and she apologized. I called the police again, but the officer told me it was not a criminal matter, but agreed to talk to them for me to let them know they needed to compensate me for the damage to my door as my insurance company had already come earlier that day and said they wouldn't pay for it since my deductible is so high. He gave me the name and number for the girl's mother, who lives in another city and once again told me good luck.

I called a company to come do an estimate of the damage to fix it and then called the girl's mother, who was agreeable to pay, but said she could only do it in smaller amounts each payday. I said fine and agreed to call her the next week when she told me she would be getting paid. So, I called that next week and she told me that her uncle "does that type of shit" for cheaper than the company was quoting me and he was supposed to have come to my house and left his information. She would have given him my number, but she'd lost it, supposedly. Immediately after getting off the phone, this uncle calls me, and tells me he's going to come the next day and measure my garage. I'm apprehensive, since I have no idea whether or not he knows what he's doing, but I really just want my door fixed, so I say fine. He doesn't show up. I call him and he says he got busy with work, and that he's an electrician for a contracting company in town, but he would definitely be out the next day. He actually did show up this time, measured and said he would order the panels. He texted me a couple days later to let me know he'd ordered them. Great.

About a month later, I still hadn't heard from him, so I texted him and asked if the panels had come in. He replied that they'd come in the past week, but that he was currently on vacation. That's fine, I can wait. He called that weekend and said he was home and he wanted to go ahead and get this done, because the company he had ordered the panels for couldn't store them much longer and wanted to know if he could come leave them at my house on Tuesday and then install them on either Thursday or Friday. I said sure, and sure enough, Tuesday came and went and I hadn't heard a thing from him. I thought perhaps the company had agreed to store them for longer and held out to see what Thursday and Friday would bring. Didn't show up either day. No call, nothing. So Friday afternoon, I called the company he said he had ordered the panels from and asked them to come do an estimate, because I'm getting my damn door fixed.

In addition to this, I texted the girl's mother to let her know it had now been almost two months since the damage occurred and my door had still not been fixed, was she aware. She never messaged me back. The uncle did try to call me the next day, but I was so done at that point, I figured I would get it fixed and then sue them for the money. So I didn't answer his call and he didn't leave a message. The estimate was done on Monday, and they told me the office would call me with the amount, but they never did. I waited two days and then called them to ask why they hadn't called and they told me that they had given the estimate to "the grandfather of the little girl who damaged the door". The grandfather is my neighbor who I believe the girl lives with. I asked how they gave them the estimate when I'd never given them their information, and I don't even know the grandfather's number. She admitted she didn't know, but we set up a date to get my door fixed.

After this, the uncle texted me and told me to please call him so we could set up a date for him to pay me for my door. I called him back and he claimed that he had shown up to pick up the panels and they were the wrong color so he went to the company's office in our city and they told him that they'd just done an estimate on my house. He was really pretty rude about it, telling me how busy he was with his job, but I mean, I feel like at this point, I had been unbelievably accommodating with their bs. He said that he would be in my neighborhood the next week and he'd pay me the amount the company quoted me. Obviously he didn't...shocker. And that was three weeks ago. I've not attempted to call him, and he's not attempted to call me. I had the door finally fixed yesterday and paid the amount myself.

My question is, I have no idea who to name in the warrant when I file for a civil suit. The girl seemingly lives with the grandfather (my neighbor), not the mother, and he was supposedly who the company gave the estimate to, but the uncle is the one I've been dealing with this whole time, and he's the one I actually have a text from stating that he was supposed to pay me for this door. I've never done this before, so I don't know how much evidence I need, but I feel like the text is the strongest evidence I've got.

Also, I'm sorry this is so long. I'm a rambler.

Answer:
 The girl caused the damage, maybe in the suit put “the guardian of $girl’s name$” ? Answer #2: You need to put your state. Different states, different rules on under what circumstances you can hold a minor's parents liable. In my state the parent's are **not** liable unless it was an intentional act by the minor, like vandalism.Answer #3: Or name both the mother and uncle (since OP has proof they agreed to pay) and the gaurdian of girl. Let the judge figure it out. Answer #4: How old is the girl? In Tennessee, if she's under 7, she is not responsible for negligence. 7-14, you have to overcome the rebuttable presumption that she is not responsible for negligence (show she's smart/mature, that perhaps she had been warned to be careful with her scooter, etc.), if she's 14 and above, she can be held responsible for negligence.Answer #5: Can I ask how much it cost you to fix it?

All of this sounds like a huge hassle, including the lawsuit. Answer #6: Like others mentioned, laws differ by state. But your best bet, get a copy of the calls from your local PD where you asked them to come out, might be a few bucks. That shows the date. Also any and all texts you have with this lady. All the documentation you can get. As the kid still has a legal guardian, it'll be her mother. That "my uncle/cousin/dad/whatever can fix it for whatever price", that doesn't fly if they can't provide a quote and are actually an owner/employee of a relevant business