Title: Bad semi accident, not at fault, my trailer was destroyed and may not be covered by my insurance, help?

Question:
There was a bad semi accident in Ohio.  The driver failed to brake in time and took out a number of stopped cars.  The driver was charged and I am clearly not at fault.  I was towing a trailer at the time which had liability coverage extending from the vehicle but my insurance may not be willing to cover the trailer or it's contents in this situation.

The trailer contained an aircraft and some accessories which were insured under an aircraft policy.

While I'm trying to get the aircraft inspected and the car claim situated, what am I supposed to do about replacing the trailer and the excessive ($1100) towing charges that it incurred?  Do I have to get a lawyer and sue the trucking insurance company?

If I do get a lawyer would I be better off just suing the trucking insurance for the cost of the aircraft as well to negate paying the premium?  Or should I just sue for the replacement value of everything?

If a lawyer does get involved will their fees be tacked on to everything else during settlement?

Thanks in advance,

tl:dr
Crushed by a semi and my trailer may not be covered by my insurance

Answer: Have you started a claim with the semi's insurance company? They should be paying for all of this.


Title: Landlord towed my car to pave road

Question: I'll start by saying I'm in Georgia. So I live in a condo complex, my toddler and I are on vacation with my mother 6 states away (we flew) and my husband is deployed in afganistan. My landlord sent a text out to all residents that they were paving the parking lot the next day, and all cars needed to be moved or they would tow. I called and asked the landlord to call me since there was no way I could move the car, nor could my husband. They didn't call me. The next day I called again, asking to be called to I could talk to the landlord about the issue, no one called me. They towed my car and sent a mass text to the complex with the list of cars that had been towed (mine was on it) I called and asked to speak to the landlord, he never called me, I called again, he never called me. I am getting notices from the lot where it was towed that my car is there and I need to pick it up, but I cannot before the 26th. I am completely unsure what to do. I also requested a copy of my lease to check for parking lot clauses, they never sent it.

Answer: If he gave you proper notice to move the car, then the tow was legal. You will need to pay to get your car out.


Title: [IA] NICS and appeals

Question:
A week after I turned 18 I attempted suicide, that was the 4th time I have ever attempted but first being time as an adult, the cause for the depression that lead up to my attempt was due to bullying in high school and the lack of care from the school. Because of something that happened a year ago I am unable to purchase a firearm, to my knowledge I have always signed papers to volunteer myself, my question is will it always remain like this or can I reverse it, I have filed and appeal through their website a week ago but don't want to sit around if there is something I can do in a court of law to have this reversed.

1st commitment September 2016

2nd commitment January 2017

3rd commitment October 2018

4th commitment October 2018

&#x200B;

Im not to sure what flair to go with.
Topic:
Background Checks and Expungements

Answer:
 You were committed twice in the future?

I'm a strong proponent of the Second Amendment...but you really need to focus on your own mental health and recovery, and worry about acquiring a firearm after you're stable and can handle the responsibility. This isn't something you should be seeking out right now.


Title: [USA] Want to get disability; how to maximize my chances of winning?

Question: I have a qualifying condition that the symptoms of which have gotten me fired from jobs. I don't want to mess this up. I dont have time to mess this up. E: I live in NW Missouri, locationbot.

Answer: You've provided no information, so we can't really even guess as to your situation. Fair warning, about 70% of all disability applicants are denied the first time.


Title: Violating dress code to protest standardized testing?

Question:
I'm a high school (public) student in Florida. Standardized testing season is upon us and I have ordered a shirt that expresses my dissatisfaction with standardized testing, common core, and NCLB. We have a somewhat strict dress code, basically we can wear polo shirts, cargo shorts, khaki pants, and school-approved (sold by clubs) t-shirts. No black or red because of the supposed gang relation.

So back to the question. We need to do the FSA and an EOC, among other tests. The teachers hate it and so do we. The shirt I have purchased isn't vulgar or inappropriate, it simply shows my disapproval of what is going on. Is this in accordance with Tinker vs Des Moines? Can I get in trouble? I mean I know I can get in trouble regardless of whether or not I can cite a court case, but does the case apply or am I without protection?

Thank you

Edit: So am I just some idiot with teenage arrogance thinking I can get away with anything or am I justified? I'll go through with it either way, I'm just curious.

Answer:
 I spent an entire semester arguing Tinker, Fraser, and Hazelwood both ways. After all of that, I say it's not worth the potential trouble. If you violate your dress code, you can be punished. Answer #2: >  The teachers hate it and so do we.

If everyone hates it, who are you directing the protest to?


Title: [Serious] If I film bad drivers on obvious public road ways, and upload the videos to a public YouTube channel, what kind of trouble could I get into?

Question:
* Salt Lake City, UT
* My identity is not on the channel, pseudonym will be used.
* At this point, I have not been blurring license plates.

Answer: tertelly legal.


Title: [US - CA] I got a woman pregnant while on vacation

Question:
I got a woman pregnant and she is keeping it. This was while I was on vacation. I don't want to do anything with the kid or the woman but I am willing to financially support as much as I can.

The woman is from brazil. What are my legal reprocautions? Can the child have a claim to my estate after my death? Can she come after me in the US?

Answer:
 Congratulations.  Make sure you have a DNA test done.Answer #2: > Can she come after me in the US?

Yes. Start saving your money.

Oh yea, and congratulations dad!


Title: High School Interogation

Question:
I suspect that I will be interrogated tomorrow at school. I'm thinking about typing up a document that summarizes [this](http://njdc.info/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Defending-Clients-Who-Have-Been-Searched-and-Interrogated-at-School.pdf) so that anyone interrogating me will be on the same page.

1. Is this a good idea
2. Should I have a place for the person to sign?

I'm in Texas

Answer:
 No, since they're not going to read it, let alone take your summary of the document;

No, since they aren't going to sign anything.  Ever.

If you're that concerned, refuse to answer any questions without an *attorney* present. Don't get frantic, don't start screaming or crying, just ask for an attorney and politely decline to answer any questions one time.  After that, sit there and don't say anything.  Also be prepared for the strong possibility that they'll threaten serious ramifications from the school, such as a suspension, and that it's likely within their power to effect some of those consequences.


Title: Emotionally abusive parents preparing for apocalypse- how can I take custody of my younger brother?

Question:
My parents live in WA state with my little brother. He is 13 and I am 21.

I moved to San Francisco 6 months ago and will complete a training program in June and am confident that within 3 months after I complete said program I will have a stable job paying enough for me to support two people even with SF's high prices. I have not registered to vote here yet or updated my driver's license and continue to use a permanent address in WA as my own, however I used my current SF address to get a passport.

My parents are insane Mormons, even by Mormon standards. They are convinced that the apocalypse will happen this year, and if not this year then within 5. My mother works as a nurse but has had trouble with employment, having been fired at least a couple times in the past year. My father has been unemployed for my entire life save one job that lasted a year, in 2008 if I remember correctly. They have been stocking up for the apocalypse in the past several months. My mother I heard has been filling up jars with water and storing them everywhere, and has recently asked my grandmother who has been financially supporting them to buy my brother 2 years worth of clothes.

My parents have been reported to CPS for physical abuse several times. They were finally taken to court about 8 years ago when I was my brother's age, but won in court because I was scared of them and testified in favor of my parents. The physical abuse stopped after that court incident but the emotional abuse got worse. I am no longer in contact with my parents but talk to my little brother in secret online and hear about them second-hand.

Is it possible for me to take custody of my brother, and if so what will I need to do?

Answer: Unfortunately the only way you could conceivably get custody is through 1) your parents' consent, or 2) another CPS case.


Title: (Philadelphia) Was laid off from my employer. Found out that a relative of Operations Manager was hired in my place. Wrongful termination?

Question:
I was recently laid off from my employer of 5+ years. I was told it was due to budgetary concerns and they could no longer afford to keep me. I didn't see it coming at all an I am still devastated over it.

I recently found out from an ex-colleague that the Daughter of our Operations Manager (who had always hated me) was swiftly hired to take over my duties. Do I have a wrongful termination case?

Answer:
 Nepotism isn't illegal.  File for unemployment and begin the search for a new job.

Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia, is "at-will" employment, meaning you can be fired for any reason, no reason, or a fabricated reason, as long as the reason isn't because you're a member of a protected class (race, age, etc.), and as long as you don't have an employment contract stating otherwise.

Firing you to hire a family member and lying about the reason for your termination is legal.Answer #2: No. Your employer could fire you for any reasons or one absent an employment contract saying otherwise. Lying to you does not make it wrongful termination. It is possible the new person was hired at a lower salary. Answer #3: >I was told it was due to budgetary concerns and they could no longer afford to keep me.

That's a lie, but it's not illegal.   On the bright side it means you're almost certainly eligible for unemployment insurance benefits while you're looking for a new job.


Title: Can my college do this?

Question:
The college is in Virginia and right on the border of West Virginia.

I have recently been diagnosed with Crohn's disease and contacted the person in charge of student housing in order to find an on-campus arrangement that works for me. The only arrangement that fit my criteria (single living arrangement with kitchen and bathroom) was reserved first for married couples and disabled students followed by juniors and seniors. I applied but did not hear back for several months despite multiple attempts to contact the woman. While waiting I found some off-campus options that worked well. Today I got an email letting me know that some seniors (non-disabled students) got the available apartments. I sent a message that thanked her for informing me and said that I'd choose an off-campus option instead. She replied telling me that I could not do that (apparently the college doesn't allow students to live off-campus until they are 21). Since they disregarded my health needs, don't provide any other fitting options, and since I am possibly disabled (?) can this policy be overruled or something? Thanks for your help!
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 > Since they disregarded my health needs, don't provide any other fitting options, and since I am possibly disabled (?) can this policy be overruled or something?

If that is the case, you could make a claim under the ADA, potentially.  But how does your Crohn's disease require a single as an accommodation?  Just having a disability doesn't mean you get dibs on disability housing.  You have to show a need.


Title: [OH] Fender bender, now my daughter is being sued

Question:
My daughter was in a small fender bender a few weeks ago. She was sitting a a red light. The light turned green and she started to proceed through the intersection. Another driver coming from the left ran her red light and hit my daughter's car. The damage to my daughter's car was only about $270. The other driver's car was a junker and showed no visible damage. Neither my daughter or the other driver was injured. Neither driver was cited, as the other driver refused to admit that she ran her red light. The other driver had no insurance and no driver's license. My daughter had just bought the car about 2 weeks prior. Somehow, she never called the insurance company to add this car to her insurance policy.
    Cut to a few weeks later. My daughter receives a letter from a lawyer that the other driver hired. The other driver is apparently attempting to sue my daughter for (I think) injury. I was at the scene of the accident about 30 minutes after it happened, and there definitely was nothing wrong with this lady.

So, what are our options? My daughter has insurance, so I would think that she would be considered an "insured driver", even though her car had not been added to the policy. Does the other driver have a case? It should also be noted that my daughter's insurance company stated that their lawyers would "not get involved". WTF? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Answer: Many states you have up to 30 days to add a newly purchased vehicle to your policy so check the time limit on yours. But given her insurance company has already stated they won't provide all attorney leads me to believe your daughter waited too long to report the purchase and therefore isn't covered for this accident. As for the injury, unless you're the other person's doctor who examined them, you really aren't qualified to know if they had injuries or not. Injuries can take hours or even days to manifest due to adrenaline masking them. She needs an attorney. This isn't DYI territory.


Title: My friend totaled his car with me in it. My back and neck is in pain 3 days after. What can I do?

Question: It was just me and him. He was driving, got distracted and hit a curb at 35-40mph. I don't know where to go from here. I was just going to move on from my life but I'm experiencing bad back pain. What steps should I take from here? Should I go to one of those accident lawyers on the radio or tv?

Answer: First see a doctor. If you have injuries or lasting pain you can consult a personal injury attorney (not one from TV). You would negotiate with your friend's insurance company.


Title: Should I get a pre-nup?

Question:
USA-TX

quick facts

I earn about 300k/ year, she is about to graduate will earn about 140k/year starting this summer
I owe 250k in student loans, she has about 100k

We both live together in a rented house though we will buy together in a couple of years or so.

I don't own a business, but I may one day start my own practice.

We plan on having a joint bank account for mutual expenses that we will contribute a percentage based on our income.  So I will put in approx twice what she does as I earn twice as much. Then have individual accounts so we can do what we want with our own money.

Neither one of us will inherit much.  I'd maybe get 50k of equity in a house but that is a question.  I have a small change of getting some money from other relatives but I'm not counting on it.  She won't get any inheritance.

Will a pre-nup benefit either of us?  I would want it to be fair, I just don't particularly know if our situation would benefit from one as we both have good income (I don't see a judge awarding alimony to someone earning well over 6 figures), and there is no rich relatives.

Thanks guys I am happy to answer any questions if it helps.

Answer: NAL but I'm pretty sure a pre-nup only protects assets you have going into the marriage.  It isn't clear from your post whether either of you actually have any assets yet.


Title: Living in college dorm during summer, and dorm is enforcing visitation policy (no visitors of opposite sex). Visitation policy was NOT included in fully integrated lease.

Question: I'm an intern, out of college, and found cheap summer housing at a catholic university that required full summer rent upfront. Lease stated it was fully integrated, and lease contained no language of a visitation policy. Residential life administration is enforcing said policy (no overnight visitors of opposite sex, and spouse or visitors of same sex are limited to visiting 2 consecutive nights). Can I fight this?

Answer: You could just do it, and when they try to evict you raise this defense. But be sure that it's not in the lease constructively (like a clause adopting the campus policy without explicitly stating what is contained therein)


Title: I adopted a dog and the "owner" wants him back.

Question:
Throwaway account because the guy seems crazy and I don't, on the off chance, want him finding my account based on similarities.

Anyway, on November 17, 2016, so almost 2 months ago, I adopted this beautiful husky from a animal shelter in Houston. All the paper work is in order and I waited a little over a week from when he got into the shelter to be able to take him home with me. The dog, already had a microchip with owner information and when we tried to contact the owner he said, "I don't want him anymore, glad he found a home." So we took him, and have gave him a loving home since then.

Well today I got a call from the clinic saying there is an individual that is raising hell saying he is going to get the media and his attorney involved unless he gets his dog back. Now, I brought up the owner and the shelter said that this guy that wants his dog back is actually a different owner but that there actually isn't any proof that he ever owned the dog. The shelter asked if I would like to contact with the man claiming he is the owner to which I declined, as I don't want this guy to have my information. The shelter said that they won't give the guy my information and that the only reason they are calling is because of the shit storm the guy is raising.

After typing this out I realize I am being kind of paranoid, but I have taken quite the liking to this dog, he is really part of the family now. I guess what I am trying to find out is that if this guy should somehow find my information, does he have a case? And how should I prepare if he does have one?

Answer:
 Ranting guy is free to rant. You legally own the dog now. Answer #2: Whoever this guy is, if he ever owned the dog, he had his chance to reclaim the dog from the pound and he didn't.  Sucks to be him.

The dog is yours.  IANAL, but I seriously doubt he has a leg to stand on if he were to try to sue you.

But, if he does sue you (cuz anyone can sue anyone for anything pretty much) be sure to show up lest a default judgment be entered against you.

Tummy scritches to the pup.....Answer #3: It's worth mentioning that you should not leave the dog outside or otherwise unattended in the near future. You don't want some lunatic trying to steal it.

For now, he apparently doesn't know who or where you are. That might continue to be the case, and it might not be. It wouldn't be the first time some intern/volunteer got cajoled into releasing information that they weren't supposed to. So don't count on staying anonymous.Answer #4: IANAL

Everything I've heard about being a dog owner means you need to have some physical evidence - like the microchip being registered in your name, vet bills with your name, etc.

But regarding the microchip - at least in the case with my dog - an online account gets set up and I can change any contact/owner info as needed. I would see if you can do this with your dog, just to be safe.


Title: (MI) My student loans stopped providing me with statements. They still auto withdraw the payments every month. Am I obligated to pay without monthly statements?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Short answer: Yes

Long answer: Call them and ask for a statement?  You still have to pay regardless.


Title: Dash cam recorded car accident

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Not a lawyer, but a parent - if your toddler was in a child seat which uses its own straps, it needs to be replaced. The other guy's insurance should do it.  After any collision, child safety seats need replacing I'd they were in use.

If it was a booster seat (which uses the car's own belt, not a harness) it should be fine.


Title: Cancelled flight due to weather

Question:
Hello all,

As the title suggests, my boyfriend and I were scheduled to fly from Los Angeles to Houston on Southwest at 11am on Sunday (4/7), on a direct flight. We got a text at 6:40am saying our flight was cancelled. We didn’t wake up until 8am to see the bad news. I HAD to be back in Houston by Monday (4/8) for work, there was no option for me to fly in after Sunday.

I spent an hour and a half on hold on the phone to talk to an attendant for the Southwest representative to tell me there was nothing they could do to accommodate us on another airline and she did not even offer to put us on another Southwest flight. She said the flight was cancelled due to thunderstorms in Houston. I talked to another customer service representative who told me that I would have to submit a claim through the Southwest HQ to try to get any money back if I were to book on another airline.

We went to the airport anyway, and the Southwest employee at the ticket counter told us the remaining two flights leaving that day were entirely booked, and that the earliest they could get us home was Monday at 3:30pm (again, not an option). They were refunding the points I used to book the flight though.

We ended up having to book a last minute flight on United that cost $600+ each, which also flew us in to a different airport (we flew out of HOU on SW, but into IAH on United). The flight out of LAX was at 11:35am, only 35 min after the 11am SW flight that was cancelled. We did get delayed on the tarmac for an hour, but at 12:35 we took off and were in the air. We landed in Houston at 6pm (with no rain even).

So instead of our flight that I booked on points to go from LAX to HOU (plus SW Companion Pass), I had to pay $1200 for two plane tickets and then $50 for an uber from IAH to HOU.

I understand that inclement weather pretty much allows airlines to do whatever they want with no good answer for the flier, but is there any way I can get some money back- especially since United flew out?

I am at a loss (both mentally and monetarily). I used my Chase Sapphire Reserve card but it doesn’t sound like that the travel insurance can really help. Any advice is appreciated!

tl;dr- flight for me and my BF that I bought with points got cancelled due to thunderstorms, no flights available on SW to get me home on the day I needed to. So, we had to pay $1200 to get tickets on United that flew out 35 min later than my scheduled flight. Is there any way I can get any money back from Southwest?

Answer: This isn’t a really a legal issue. You are bound to the conditions that the airline sets when you book with them.


Title: Can my employer "talk" to me about my spouse? USA

Question:
United States

So we haven't gotten paid for a while, yesterday my spouse blew up at our employer (we work at the same place) while my employer was ranting about money and told her that he's been waiting to get paid. She told my spouse to leave and than for the rest of the day continued to bitc... I mean talk to me about it. A few times it was through grit teeth and she would start on a huge rant while I was trying to work. By the the end of the day and my job was almost done she comes up to me and says "I'll have his money soon" in a threatening manner and than realized when I was almost done with this charade she proceeded to say " I was only joking LOL"

Also she kept asking if I was staying or going, and that I need to make a decision despite me reassuring her I was going to continue work

I have fifteen minutes until I have to go in, should I go in, or just call it a loss cause and stay home?

TL;DRCan she repeatly ask me if I'm still going to continue working after I reassure multi able times that I will, while bitching to me about another employee (my SO) because he wants to get paid since we haven't gotten paid in a very long time?

Answer: Your narrative is all over the place and impossible to follow. I suggest you rewrite it such that others can understand what exactly your question is.


Title: I ejaculated inside a woman after she told me not to. Friends told me this was rape. Am I going to jail? UT

Question:
I’m just going to get to the point, I met a girl at a bar and took her home. She told me not to use a condom and I was okay with that. Near the end of the encounter, she told me to pull out when I’m ready to cum, I did not. Obviously she was not happy about it.

My friends are telling me that I raped her and that she could have me arrested if she’s angry enough. Do I have anything to be worried about? From what I’ve seen this isn’t illegal but I wanted to double check and get some legal advice if the police do show up.
Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer: Your friends are incorrect. It's not rape.


Title: My mom accidentally hit a guy with her car and he died 2 weeks later. Can charges be pressed?

Question:
I don't know where to start since this my first time posting. We live in England.

She accidentally hit him going below the speed limit because the sun blinded her as she was pulling down the sun visor. We had literally just bought the car 2 weeks ago so there was no possible faults with it. The police have had her car in custody for 5 weeks. When he died it was escalated to "Serious crimes investigation" and she hasn't heard anything at all since then (Even when she contacted them asking for details).

Today she received a letter saying a lawyer has been hired/instated? for her and it will be paid by her insurance, also that the coroners results came in. Should we be worried that she will be charged with something? She has spoken to an attorney and they said not to worry about charges but now this letter has appeared.

The man was awake and speaking at the scene and suddenly got a chest infection in hospital and was put into intensive care, from there he passed away a week later. His injuries were a broken shoulder, head injuries and a fractured leg.

If anyone wants links to the news articles I can PM them.

Thank you.
Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer: We would need a lot more details than you have provided (and no, you shouldn't provide us any more details). It's possible that she may be accused of criminal negligence, and possible that she may not be.Answer #2: The letter from the insurance company is about civil litigation for the accident. They are informing her their lawyer will represent your mom if she is sued in civil court. Depending on where you live the criminal case is refereed to the DA who may present the incident to a grand jury or he may just file criminal charges in court. Your mother should only talk to her criminal lawyer until a decision on whether she will be charged with a crime or not is made.


Title: Getting my ex-wife to help pay for our kid

Question: Here is my problem. My ex wife has sole physical custody of our 13yo daughter. We split legal custody. I work 9-5 m-f and my ex wife works as a bartender part time. Our daughter is on my health insurance. I pay for all of her braces. Our daughter is with me at least half of the time (mainly at nights since her mother works as a bartender) I also pay for food obviously, clothes and other miscellaneous things, school stuff etc. My ex also claims our daughter on her taxes. Recently I had asked (Very respectfully and nice I may add) to contribute to the cost of our daughters health insurance and braces. Not even half but something. She told me to fuck myself. My ex is not in school or trying to change her financial situation at all. My ex just bought a house so her finances cant be that bad. What is my next course of action?

Answer:
 > My ex wife has sole physical custody

> Our daughter is with me at least half of the time

If this is the case, you need to take your ex back to court to revisit the custody. If it's shared, it should be listed as so. Sole custody means she's with your ex 100% of the time, which is not true. You would then be able to (in theory) split claiming her on taxes on off years and should push to have the ex cover half of medical expenses as well. Answer #2: > My ex wife has sole physical custody of our 13yo daughter.

And

> Our daughter is with me at least half of the time

are mutually exclusive.  "Sole physical custody" means one parent has the child 100% of the time.

&#x200B;Answer #3: Speak to a family law attorney about getting joint legal and physical custody, and a child support order that sets forth who pays for health insurance, school, etc. and who claims her on taxes.  If your wife only works part time and has at least 50% custody it is unlikely she would have to pay you anything.


Title: Ex avoiding child support with doctors note

Question: I am sorry to ask this here I haven't found anything that can help me. My ex stopped paying child support 3 years ago. He says he can't work and has been trying to get social security which this is his 2nd time being denied by appealing. Basically domestics says as long as he keeps giving them a doctors note that he can't work there is nothing they can do. Is there anything I can do?!

Answer: What do you mean by "domestics"? Are you talking about your state's child support enforcement division? If so, you request a hearing before a family court judge and let them make a decision about it.


Title: Credit Card company still reporting late payments because I won't give them bank info.

Question: PA, USA: I recently closed a bank account because I had such a difficult time stopping ACH payments. My husband (soon to be ex) was in charge of finances and got way behind. Anyways, I contacted our credit card company and they agree to put the account back to normal. We had an agreed upon monthly payment. The first of those payments I made through my new bank's bill pay service for the May payment. However, my account is still showing "Late" in my Credit Karma account. They added May as a missed payment. When I go on their website, it automatically pops up that my payments are late/missed. When I click onto the link to view monthly payments, It's still showing my monthly payment increasing, now at around $1,600.00 (as if no agreed upon amount had been made or that I had made the required May payment). I'm also being charged a $37 late fee because I didn't pay the Minimum Payment. I called about a week or two ago because my husband and I were getting 5-6 phone calls per day, each. They told me they were calling because my account is past due. I explained the previous month's conversation and that a new monthly payment had been set in place and my account is current. She then told me that she did see it in the "Notes". She said it will keep showing late because I have not given them by bank account information to set up recurring payments through their website. I explained that I'm not comfortable giving my bank account information to some woman on the phone I've never met and I'm not comfortable giving any company access to my bank account. We'd just changed banks because of an inability to cancel ACH payments. She said she understood. The calls stopped. However, we're still being reported to the credit agencies as late and the minimum due just keeps increasing. What rights do we have?

Answer:
 >I explained that I'm not comfortable giving my bank account information to some woman on the phone I've never met and I'm not comfortable giving any company access to my bank account.

Then call the company directly and set this up.

Look you and your soon to be ex got yourself into this pickle, and if the company you are in debt to wants recurring payments set up, then you are  the supplicant here and you'd  better follow whatever they want.

Which doesn't actually address what rights you have and /r/personalfinance  might be a better sub for this.

But you don't seem to be taking real responsibility for this and that's irritating.

Just to say, also, that bank bill paying options are notoriously unreliable in getting 1) they payment to the right place and 2) at the right time.


Title: Is my lawyer working for me, or my money?

Question:
Hello /r/legaladvice,

For reference this occurred in the United States.

I was charged with a felony possession of marijuana with intent , a level 3 severity non-person drug felony after being stopped for "failure to maintain".  I immediately retained a lawyer after I was released (ROR) after speaking with a couple different lawyers over the course of a week.

I was stopped for "failure to maintain". I gave the officer my information and he looked it over asked simple questions of where I was headed, where I was coming from, and said I was free to go. He never went back to his patrol unit, he checked my identification and released me. I turned my car on and he knocked in my window and asked if I would step out of the vehicle. I told him "No". He asked me again if I would step out of the vehicle, I refused again and he asked again and it felt as if it was a lawful order.

The officer asks me to follow him to the back of my vehicle so that we can be seen on video from his patrol unit. He asks the same questions, which I answer again with the same statement as before. The officer asks how much drugs I have in my trunk, and at this point I tell him none, and ask if I am free to go, and if I am being detained. He asks if he may search my vehicle and I inform him that I do have 4th amendment rights and I do not consent to relentless searches. He informs me, that I am being detained to wait for a drug dog to pass my vehicle as he has probable cause to do so, he would just have to call for a k9 unit. I ask again, if I am free to go, he reiterates that I am being detained to wait for a k9 unit. I ask what probable cause he may have. He asks me to stand of the side of the road for my safety while we wait for he K9. While I wait, he begins to inspect the content of my vehicle from the windows. He the approach me and asks questions about where im going, where Im coming from. At this point he returns to his patrol unit and turns of the dashboard camera while we wait for the K9.

The K9 Arrives after 15 minutes of waiting and the K9 handler asks me to step back so the dog would not attack me since it was trained to do so as well. The dog makes 2 passes and "Hits" of the final quarter of the 2nd pass. The officers ask for my keys to open my vehicle. They also needed keys to open my trunk as it was locked from the cabin.

Following the search, the officers asked me to drive my Vehicle with the evidence to the police station so that they could do another search. After this occurs I was Booked and Released.

I paid in full immediately and my attorney went to work on the case after I explained what happened with the situation he informed me that I may or may not receive charges . I was told that my attorney was an expert in these issues and not to worry. He promised that I would not spend a day in prison.

My attorney filed for discovery after I was received a summons. 2 months passed an I had not heard from my lawyer. My attorney received the affidavit for the arrest quickly, but never notified me that he had received this information, he also did not notify me that the was a "hiccup" with the video evidence. This evidence was not received until roughly until a week before the prelim trial.  I was able to watch the video 2 days before the Prelim. After watching the video I was offered a plea deal (unsupervised diversion for 12mo, then dismissal w/ prejudice), and my attorney filled for a continuance to think over the deal.

In my state(not sure if every state has this) we have an electric database of actions and status that have been made in the case (summons issued, lawyer entered appearance, evidence sent to attorney for defendant, etc) I have access to free legal advice for students from the University I attend. The university provides attorneys free of charge to discuss the situation and tell you from their experience what *could* happen or what they have seen happen while they were in practice or served as a judge.  They are not allowed to represent us but I like to check my bases and make sure that I am doing the correct thing. Second opinions are a thing in medicine, the same should be true for law as they both affect you greatly and I am not a lawyer.

The attorney that I spoke with at my University seemed upset with the way my retained attorney treated the case and the lack of communication that was had throughout the process. I have never met my attorney and they insisted that is was not necessary to go, as it was a 5 hour drive from where I live. We did our business through phone calls that would be scheduled a week or so out or email. He went through the information that had been filed and this when I learned of affidavit and the lack of a motion to suppress the evidence.  He mentioned ethics issues and recommended that I speak with the bar association about it.

I am concerned that I am being fucked over by my attorney and that he did a half ass job. The video is missing 20 mins of evidence that is chopped out of the middle with the dog search and my illegal detainment, the affidavit is a form letter from the 90's and stated I was stopped for speeding 79 in a 75 (maps? maps every where? its 2015 dude) the officers involved have been terminated since this event occurred. I called recently to get a stamped copy of my diversion agreement, after I had not received it and it took a moment to find it and he was immediately sending me a copy.

This is my first time dealing with the law. I have never need to retained a lawyer before, so this is new to me. Is this how it works? I am not being a smart ass when I ask that, I am just not sure. I want to be able to get rid of the anxiety this is causing.

Thanks Strangers.

Answer:
 TL;DR: OP stopped for speeding, told to wait until drug dog comes, dog hits on OP's car, and finds enough marijuana to charge him with a felony. OP's lawyer may not have the best customer service skills according to OP but gets him a diversion program with no conviction. OP wants to know off the lawyer is committing ethical violations or malpractice.

1) Police have no obligation to tell you anything about why they pulled you over or why they think they have probable cause. I'm a public defender and it annoys even me when people think that.

2) No one here should second guess your attorney since he's the one with access to all the discovery and police reports. He's also in the best position to tell which parts of your story are bullshit and which are not.

3) You're charged with a felony and you're complaining because you think your lawyer is screwing you over by getting you a deal where you will walk away with no conviction? If you want a trial, go take those chances and go to trial. Answer #2: So your attorney got you a deal whereby you can avoid a conviction and keep a clean record, and you're questioning his competence?

Look, if you want to roll the dice on a trial and play discovery games, that's your right.  It sounds incredibly reckless and stupid to me, as an attorney, but your rights are your rights.

But, no, I don't think you have any valid reason to question whether your attorney adequately discharged his responsibilities when he achieved an outcome that probably matches or exceeds your wildest expectations when you hired him.Answer #3: Hehe, Sovereign Citizen posts are always so amusing to read.


Title: (NJ) How is it legal for staffing agencies to avoid paying out benefits to W2 employees working on temp assignments?

Question: I've been working on a few various assignments through a staffing agency over the last couple years. Like most temp jobs these days, I'm required to be a W2 employee of my agency. The agency is only required to offer the bare minimum in regards to health benefits, but nothing else. I know recruiters and back office employees of the agency are able to accrue PTO and are offered competitive benefits packages. My question is... If I am considered an "employee" of the agency, why am I not entitled to the same benefits as employees who are not working on temporary assignments off site??

Answer:
 >My question is... If I am considered an "employee" of the agency, why am I not entitled to the same benefits as employees who are not working on temporary assignments off site??

Because there is no legal requirement to pay and compensate all employees the same?


Title: Can I name a non profit foundation after a deceased child without parent permission?

Question: Child died from child abuse. Dad in prison. Mom not charged and she’s moved out of state.

Answer:
 It's not illegal, but you can be sued in most states for using someone else's name for "exploitative" purposes.  I don't know if this would qualify but I have to say, it seems to me to be incredibly poor taste.

How would you feel if your child died under those circumstances and you found out someone you didn't know was starting a foundation like this?  Your motives my be totally honorable, but there are lots of scammers who take advantage of tragedies like this.  The child's family has no way of knowing whether or not you are one of them.

Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer.


Title: My wife is getting harassed by her regulars and corporate management refuses to do anything.

Question:
-PA-

My wife has been working as the Restaurant Manager for a popular Sports Bar/Restaurant for 6 years. She has two regulars, that only come during happy hour, and they despise her. They call her fat and ugly, they call her a b--ch and a c--t. Almost on a daily basis. They are just the generally miserable people who call corporate and complain about the slightest thing. Whenever my wife has to cut them off for drinking too much, they always cause a scene and harass my wife even more except on an escalated level in front of the entire bar. They try to complain about my wife to her staff and to other customers. They even tried to start a petition to have her fired!

Anytime my wife has tried to ban then, her district and regional managers won't allow her. She's been able to ban dozens of other people for lesser things, but not them. One of her superiors actually told my wife to bake them goodies to try to "win them over."

My wife is a wonderful manager on top of this. Food costs are at an all time low at the restaurant. Reviews are high. Many employees she has trained go on to be managers at other stores. She's even won the Highest Award given out by the company's founders.

Unfortunately, quitting is not an option. We are very dependent on both our incomes and she has not been able to find a job to leave for. Transferring really isn't an option either, as other locations are hours away. But my concern is that she shouldn't have to leave a company because she feels harassed.

At what point does this become a legal issue or can this even become a legal issue? She is getting mentally and emotionally abused daily, and she is calling out for help and receiving none.

Any advice other than the typical "she needs to quit or we need to move" answer?

Please help!
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer: Can she go above the district and regional managers? Sounds like they are buddies with these people. Is there another location she can switch to?


Title: Had an idea of a mobile game so asked and paid for a game developer to do it for me, how can I obtain full ownership of the game? Make him sign a NDA?

Question: I live in the US

Answer:
 You would have to get him to sign an NDA and then get him to do the work under a work-for-hire agreement or something. However that costs you money, and if all you have is "an idea" you're probably going to have a hard time getting someone to go through the hassle of signing a legally-binding document that restricts what games they can make in the future, just so they can hear your idea. Most creative ideas turn out to be bad at an early stage or transform into something else, so they're not worth much.

You'd be better off working on it with some trusted friends or using this as an excuse to learn Unity or something. At least try to write a game design document so you can figure out what your main roadblocks are going to be.


Title: Can I fight a speeding ticket with horrendous writing and a bunch of wrong spellings?

Question:
I got a ticket in connaught ave this morning for going 68 on a 50 km zone. The reason for that is me and this dodge van were going the same speed over 50km per hr and I needed to switch lanes to turn right, up the street, since I was on the left lane. So i accelerated to try and past him. As I was trying to the that, I saw the officer walking in the middle of the street and motioning a stopping signal, he pointed at me at pointed at the curb.

He wrote the ticket having the 6s, g's and e's looking the same they all look like the number 6. For example: "V6HCl6(vehicle)" his H's are N. Then he had misspellings like blu instead of blue. I only figured out what is what because they all are familiar to me but his name I cant read(this emphasises how bad the handwriting was.)

Answer: Not a chance. That's called a scriveners error, or clerical error, the judge will set that aside and and enter the correct information as was intended by the cop


Title: Friend wants to trade in my car without taking over car loan beforehand

Question:
Hello all,

I have found myself in a bit of a pickle, and am in need of some advice.

A friend of mine would like to take over my car payments, and then trade in the vehicle.

This afternoon I spoke with Scotiabank about the process. My friend would need to go to the bank for a credit check, proof of income, etc, which all makes perfect sense.

However, my friend says that all he needs to do is register the vehicle under his name and take it into the dealership to trade in. This seems very fishy to me, and my gut feeling is to say no to this.

If there is still a lien on the car after its appraised value has been put towards a new vehicle, I could be held responsible for the amount.

My brother in law works in law, is there some sort of legal document I should get so as to ensure the transaction goes as smoothly as possible?

I am located in Edmonton, Canada
Topic:
Canada

Answer: Listen to your bank. Your friend is an idiot. He wouldn't even be able to register the vehicle if you still owe money on it.


Title: Getting rid of (possible) ex-girlfriends things she's been keeping in my apartment.

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 > All I want is to get her in the same room as me so I can have a conversation with her about what happened and why she's acting this way

Don't do this.

Drop her stuff off at her parents' house.

Assume the worst and she is a bad person for not wanting to date you.  Then put her out of your mind.  You're young, it happens.Answer #2: If you have already accepted that its over, send her a break up text, leave her stuff with friends and family, and move on. You wont get any closure bro. Closure is a myth. Block her on social media and let the healing begin.


Title: (VA) planning a peaceful protest of a retailer. 1st amendment questions

Question:
I plan on protesting a retailer. This retailer is run by donations, so they operate a unique business/charity model. They own two units of a strip mall. Im guessing the retailer can ask police to remove me from their portion of the strip mall, but not from other portions of the strip mall sidewall. Does that sound correct?
Secondly, i am protesting the transparency and accountability of local management. One of the effects of this environment has been rampent sexual harassment in associate ranks. What are the chances that the organization can try to claim defamation? Should I be worried about anything other ways they might try to shut me down legally?

Thanks guys I really appreciate any advice you might have. I know I am going to be up against some real jerks, so i want to know what my risks are going into this. I know morally this is the right thing to do, so im going to do this either way, but id like to know how bad the repercussions could get.

Answer: Other businesses won't want you in front of them either, so you'll be removed from the whole strip mall. Yes, they could sue for defamation, whether or not they win isn't clear but I'd bet they do it if you do something like this. This isn't really how you make change in the workplace happen and you're going to be trespassed from the property before you can have much of an impact. This just won't accomplish anything. If you were harassed while working there, consult an employment attorney to see if you have any options.


Title: (CO) Apple not fixing problem on my iPhone under warranty, ignoring my support inquiries and now warranty is expired

Question:
So my iPhone 7+ keeps rebooting whenever I get a text and I’ve tried the solutions they suggested. When I contacted them again, I get no response. I try Twitter and through Email.

The problem still occurs and now the warranty is up. Were they waiting out my warranty so they didn’t have to do anything? What protections do I have?

Answer: You should be able to escalate and get them to honor the warranty if you can demonstrate that you opened a support ticket before it expired.


Title: My friend wants to co-sign a loan to pay off their international intern's student debt

Question: My friend (Bob) runs an LLC that wants to offer full-time employment to an intern (Joe) from a foreign country. Joe must pay off a substantial student loan (let's say $50K) to the foreign country before he can work in the US. Bob wants his LLC to co-sign a loan with Joe to refinance the student loan, repayable in 2 years. Is having the company co-sign a loan a good financial decision? If so, how can Bob write a contract that is legally binding for Joe to repay the loan?

Answer:
 Bob will find out this is a very bad idea when Joe leaves the country and he is stuck paying back the loan himself.

They can write up a binding agreement but that will not effect what Bob owes to the bank and no matter how well written the contract is it will not make money appear where it does not exist. So if Joe has no money then Bob is not getting paid back.


Title: (CT)-Is it legal for a cop to record someone on their dashcam while not on duty?

Answer: Unless the officer [found a way to record in an area where you'd have an expectation of privacy](http://i.imgur.com/3tlGh.jpg), there are probably no legal issues.


Title: Ambulance hit my girlfriends car.

Question:
What are my options? An ambulance came down the street and swiped the front end off of my girlfriends car. The cop responded told my girlfriend to shut up and let the ambulance driver do his job. The cop then rushed the driver away after the call. When we asked for the drivers information he only gave us his name. No insurance or anything like that. He told us we would have to wait until the report came out in 3 days. What are my options here? We obviously dont want to pay for any damages when her car was just parked on the side of the road off the road.

Thanks

Answer: You would go after the ambulance company (city-owned or private), not the individual driver. She should notify her own insurance company.


Title: Boss won't let employees drink water at work

Question:
My friend works for a large grocery chain here in Massachusetts and they recently got a new manager. This manager does not allow for extra bathroom breaks outside of break times (which is fine) but also does not allow cashiers to keep water at their registers or step away for a moment to get a drink. I also want to note that they only give 1 15 minute break and will schedule people 7 hours and 45 min so they dont have to give a second one and they have a half hour unpaid break available but are discouraged from using it to the point that most employees dont know it's a thing.  Is it illegal to deny employees access to water during a shift (other than breaks because "that's what breaks are for")? Is there any action she can take against this manager/company?
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 Massachusetts:

    MGL c. 149 s.100 requires a 30 minute lunch period, but does not require breaks. The Boston Globe on 12/7/03 explained: "Although many employers do provide time for one or two breaks during the work day in addition to time for lunch, they are not required to do so. The law in Massachusetts states that an employer must provide a thirty-minute meal break during each work shift that lasts more than six hours. This one half-hour meal break is unpaid. In addition, Massachusetts' law does not require employers to provide any rest breaks."

Your employer is violating State law by scheduling employees for 6 or more hours and not providing a 30 minute lunch break.
But access to water and bathroom breaks are covered under OSHA, and are vague in nature, stating only that 'reasonable access' must be provided.

Answer #2: 30 minute break is required for 6 hour shifts. Call the MA department of labor. Don't try to reason with your boss. Better to just document everything with the department of labor to get protected from retaliation. Answer #3: Practical advice if they need to use the bathroom go and if you need water go drink some (not allowing water at registers is fine but they need to have access to water on site). If you have specific responsibilities preventing you from leaving your area e.g. unguarded tills then get someone to cover for you first.

If the employer is stupid enough to fire you for the above and document their dismal reasons as such start looking for an employment law atttorney and report them to osha and dept of labor as well.Answer #4: Is this a union store?


Title: [OH] Two massage parlors known to offer sexual services just had cameras installed on nearby utility poles.

Question:
Several years ago, a town known to have a problem with about eight massage parlors trading cash for sexual services had cameras installed monitoring the guys coming and going.

When these spas were collectively raided one day, I guess some of them men were made to testify against the spa, either in exchange for immunity or I don't know what.

Out of that raid, two spas somehow remained open, or opened back up months later. The rest remain boarded up.

This was before my time, but it's all in the news archives.

It has come to the attention of the forum us like-minded guys hang out on that cameras have once again appeared on utility poles, one at each spa, facing the parking lot. I have driven the main drag these two spas share, and the town's other busy road. There are *no* other mysterious gray boxes on any other pole in the city.

The cameras see nothing but a car pulling into a parking lot, a guy going in and a guy coming out an hour later.

What conceivably could a gentleman be charged with, given that evidence? There's a lot of macho talk on the forum about refusing to answer questions when the police come knocking, and that's all well and good, but I expect them to come knocking nonetheless.

Your advice will invariably be, "stopping going to spas known to promote illegal services."

That's fine, but it's also too late. They already have my plate.

Answer: Stop going to the spas. If approached by police, get a lawyer. Maybe start looking into lawyers now. Answer #2: This hypothetical is so tangled and I am confused as to the "forums" you are hinting at. Are you asking what is the likelihood, if you attend one of these establishments, that the cameras will tag you and you will be convicted or forced to testify as a John?


Title: [CA] I’m buying a car from Craigslist and the seller isn’t the owner, but is seller the car for them. How do I proceed?

Question:
So I’m buying a nice little BMW from someone on Craigslist, I meet up with the person and towards the end of the meeting he drops the ball that the car isn’t actually his. He claims that the car belongs to his friends daughter and that she was using the car while going to school in California but that she no longer needs the car because she’s finished with school. The guy says his friends are from his home country, somewhere in Europe, and they tasked him with selling the car in the States. I already called my local police department and checked if the car had been reported stolen or if there was any criminal activity linked to the car and they said it’s clean. I just wanted to know how to proceed with documentation so I can register the car in my name at the DMV, like how is the owner supposed to sign the pink slip over to me if she’s all the way in Europe..? What should I do?

EDIT: He says he also has a copy of her Drivers License .

EDIT#2: So I just got off the phone with him, apparently she’s already signed the title so he could sell the car and he’s trying to get her to scan and email a signed bill of sale claim that she’s selling the car to me for an X amount. Is that enough to continue with the purchase?

Answer:
 You should meet the seller at DMV and have them verify the title is legitimate, with proper signature.Answer #2: > like how is the owner supposed to sign the pink slip over to me if she’s all the way in Europe.

One of three ways:

1.  She's already signed
2.  They'll FedEx it back and forth
3.  This guy has POA

Anyways, your answer is easy.  Tell him you'll want to pick up the pink slip *with* the car and you won't pay otherwise.  Then hold him to that.


Title: [Virginia] My mom believes she was drugged by a coworker.

Question:
Last night my mom was out with some coworkers after a work trip and was at a wine tasting event. She said she only had five small cups/samples of wine and felt slightly tipsy but nothing she wasn't used to. Later when she and the coworkers were getting some food a new coworker of hers (a young male) asked her if she wanted to finish half of his beer for him. She said yes and after she drank if she felt very woozy. When she got back to her hotel she started vomiting in the bathroom and passed out. When she woke up, she learned from one of her female coworkers that the male coworker had offered to walk her to her room a few times but the female coworker had insisted that she take her to her room for her. She said she still feels woozy to this moment and has been out of it all day.

My mom is very concerned about what happened and how to proceed. Is it possible for her to go to a doctor and get tested? Should she call the police or tell her boss? Neither of us has been in a situation like this and we don't know how to proceed.

Answer:
 She should go to an ER now(!) and get a blood test. Those drugs don't stay in the system for very long. She should seriously consider filing a police complaint. The hospital has social workers that can help her start the process.Answer #2: Please make sure your mom gets medical attention immediately.

Also, make sure that your mom talks to her coworker, who is a credible witness and has valuable insights about walking her to her room. If the police need to talk to someone, she's going to be one of the first people they need.
Answer #3: Go and get tested now. Be warned many of the date rape drugs are metabolized quickly. It may be worthwhile to see if any of her clothing has vomit on them. Maybe that can be tested? Answer #4: Yes, your mom should contact the police if she wants this to be investigated as a criminal case.Answer #5: Call the police on the way to the ER.


Title: Owner of Restaurant takes half of all tips from waiters and busboys for herself and has done so for a long time possibly since the opening of the restaurant wouldn't surprise me one bit which agency would I go around reporting this to?

Question: Basically title explains it all pretty sure what see is doing is illegal just want to know if it is who or where I should report this to if its possible to at all. If it helps the restaurant in question located in Valley Stream, NY

Answer:
 Contact the New York State Department of Labor.Answer #2: I would think the IRS would like to speak to her alsoAnswer #3: http://labor.ny.gov/legal/counsel/pdf/tips-frequently-asked-questions.pdf

Wham, blatantly illegal in New York. Follow that URL to figure out where to complain to.Answer #4: Since the others have already posted the answer all I can add is that she's likely in for a very rude awakening and substantial amount of fines assuming all falls into place.


Title: Noise Complaint being ridiculous

Question: I'm going to be very real here and provide as much info as possible.  I am a junior college student at Penn State University pursuing an Electrical Engineering Degree.  Last night, my roommate and I received a warning for playing music too loud.  We heard a loud knock on the door and checked who it was and guess what, it was the police.  We immediately shut the music off, but they kept banging on the door until we answered.  State College ordinance says that noise audible less than 50 ft from the property is illegal.  I am pretty sure you can only hear our speakers to the edge of the property line at full blast.  Are we in the right if I call the department tomorrow and complain?  I know that no one in the building would call the cops as we have been here over a year and been much rowdier.  I think the cop just tried to pull a "power boner" because he was bored and tried to do his "job."  Any advice?

Answer: Someone obviously complained about you, or if your music was so loud that a cop just driving by was bothered by it you certainly deserved a noise complaint.


Title: I just found out that someone subleasing a room in my apartment has a warrant out for her arrest. Do I need to turn her in?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 No, you have no legal obligation here.Answer #2: > Am I legally obligated to contact the police?

Not unless she's a fugitive, i.e., she escaped from custody.


Title: Got a Cease & Desist Letter over something I didn't do

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 This is "first to complain" strategy.  The idea is, if they send a C&D to the landlord and you first, you will look like the troublemaker for any subsequent action on your part.

Have no contact with them and call the police with any noise complaints.  Give the police all of the background as the neighbors will probably tell the cops that you are just overly sensitive and they had to send a C&D on you before.Answer #2: > I thought people usually prefer being notified by neighbor

No good deed goes unpunished.

But seriously, you did the right thing.  They didn't like the right thing, so now do it the other way by calling the police.


Title: Landlord is trying to ruin my life

Question:
Please bare with me, here's a little bit of back story but I'm in quite the situation and would appreciate any advice I could get. TL;DR at bottom. I am in North Carolina, USA

I'm currently a college student who was living in an apartment with 2 other guys for the last two semesters. I moved in after they had already been living there for a year. The place was a dump- dogs, nasty carpets, broken screen door etc. This was never fixed, as I kept to my bedroom and didn't have a problem with it.

The lease was a year long that ended on July 31. The owners decide to sell the place, as their son (my roommate) wanted to leave school. They ended up selling the place to a new owner 2 and a half months before my lease ends.

My other roommate moved out and was able to get out of the lease fine, dodging the last two months. I had to take summer school, so the previous owners  came to an agreement that I'd just pay the same price for the last two months, but to the new owner.  I lived in my bedroom by myself for 2 and a half months. I met with the new owner, seemed like a nice guy, I told him a little about the place, how I only kept to my room. He tells me he's never even been to the place before but bought it because it was a good deal.

I was stunned because the place was pretty nasty- other than my bedroom. He repainted the walls, changed a bunch of decor while I lived there. He checked out the place, I told him how the old tenants got a dog before I moved in and how upset I was. I told him about numerous things that happened before I moved in (which was true) and he seemed extremely understanding. Kept saying "don't worry about it". I paid him the same price- no problems. Two months later, I move out. I ask him about the security deposit (that the old owners transferred to him) and he immediately breaks contact with me. No texts, dodges my calls, won't respond to email. I'm horrified, because he is a very quick texter and was texting me back to back right before I popped the question.

Thinking he bailed on me, I send him mail demanding the deposit and showing evidence of him having it- fearing the worst. I get a response back from him finally, via mail. Turns out, he's keeping my deposit and charging the maximum amount (one and half months rent) possible. He gave me deductions and charged me every single thing that was wrong with the entire apartment...

He even charged me for carpet replacement in the OTHER BEDROOMS, which he locked as soon as he first met me.... he charged me for a DOG even though he knew I didn't have one and I told him the old tenant did to my dismay... I am shocked, no idea what to do other than sue...

Do I have a case? In the contract, that I assume passed to him, it's not specific about damages and isn't specific about my bedroom being my only responsibility. He didn't do any checklist in the beginning so I'm hoping I can argue that he bought the place as is. He never requested any cleaning or inspections of the previous owners.

Any advice would be amazing. Thank you for reading.

TL;DR owner buys property during my lease, last two months gets transferred to him, does not make previous owners clean or repair, now is charging me for all damages that happened before my stay throughout time that was never fixed- which we talked about and he seemed to understand.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 Were you all named on one lease? Did all of you contribute to the security deposit? Did the other tenants receive any portion of the security deposit when they left?Answer #2: First: I am not an expert, so take that into account when considering my advice.

That being said, I think you should not pay these charges on the grounds that you were renting ONLY the one room, not the whole place. Anything you have in writing to support that would be helpful -- what it says on your lease, any correspondence with the new landlord, etc. Also helpful would be the testimony of your previous landlord and the fact that the new landlord locked you out of the other parts of the apartment.

Your other argument is that some of these costs are not for damages done during the lease but were pre-existing. In court YOU can testify as to the state of things when you moved in; the new landlord was not there at the time and cannot testify. (Note: you still have to tell the truth.)

I would suggest you quit these facts about to the new landlord and then ask for your security deposit back. If you are sued for damages beyond the security deposit, then respond with these arguments in court; if you are not sued but the security deposit is not returned then you can sue (small claims I presume) for it.


Title: [CA] Landlord recieved notice from county that it is illegal for us to rent here, must move asap. Cannot afford to do so. Advice?!

Question:
Hello, I posted on r/personalfinance but am unsure on how to link it. To summarize, our landlord recieved a notice from the county that it is illegal for us to live on the property. We had no knowlage of this. We cannot affort to move right now. The notice stated we must vacate immediately. We have no where to go.

If we stay here, what legal repercussions will we face? Are we legally responsible for renting from our landlord if we had no knowlage of it being illegal?  What are our options? We have no idea what to do now. He recieved the notice days before he even bothed to tell us. We do not want to become homeless. Any advice on our situation would be greatly appreciated!
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer: If it is an illegal unit and you refuse to leave, there is a chance the sheriff will forcibly remove you. Start looking for ANYTHING you can afford. The county won't let you stay in an illegal unit. Answer #2: Try calling the county and taking to the person handling this case.  They often have a faire amount of leeway in how quickly they need to act on things.  I was living in a place a few years ago that didn't have a rental license and read foreclosed on.  I was able to negotiate am extra 60 days from the housing inspector to finish moving into a new place before he boarded up the old one.  It's certainly worth a phone call.Answer #3: Not that this would help right now, but you have a lease and it is possible your landlords are breaching the lease, depending on the county notice/reasons.  Like if they rented a basement apartment and the county is saying they are violating zoning, I think you would be entitled to be made whole for all your damages.  They should not rent an illegal apartment.  You would need to sue them in small claims court. You could ask them now to pay your moving expenses and help finding a replacement, see what they say.


Title: Can I sue for custody of my granddaughter so I can take her to visit my daughter? - Pennsylvania

Question: My daughter is in jail right now. Her husband divorced her and he got full custody and the judge made it so she has no right to her daughter any more. My daughter misses her daughter terribly but the father will not take her to see my daughter or let my daughter call her on the phone or let my granddaughter see me anymore. Can I sue him for custody, not so she has to live with me or anything like that but just so that I can take her to see her mom?

Answer: If your daughter is in jail, and had her parental rights stripped by a judge, maybe there is a good reason she can't see her daughter.  Just saying.Answer #2: no - for starters, it's very unlikely you would have standing in the first place. then, the fact is a court has already ruled on this issue, if she wants to change the ruling she must file a motion with the court to reconsider. Answer #3: You can try to get grandparents rights/visitation. The judge can also order no contact with the mother during your visitation. The time is to spend with you, not her mother. Answer #4: What was your daughter convicted of?


Title: Can you be charged with vigilantism?

Question: I can see how vigilantism can be motive but can you be charged with it?

Answer: That isn't usually a crime. You can be charged with battery, false imprisonment, brandishing, criminal threats, and any other of a host of crimes that you might commit in the process.


Title: [NYC] Large corporate landlord says it is "their policy" to refuse to list or rent out apartments of tenants who leave early or seek early termination of their lease

Question:
I currently rent an apartment from a large corporate landlord in NYC. I believe that they own over one dozen buildings, each with a few hundred tenants, and probably have several thousand tenants total. I am leaving my apartment for various reasons, and I am moving to a new apartment with about one month left on my lease. I fully understand I am on the hook for the last month if they do not find a replacement tenant, and that I could expect to eat at least a week of that period to accommodate painting and maintenance between tenants.

I let them know my planned move out date and I was surprised when their leasing office informed me that "as a policy" they refuse to rent out or list units for early departures. Sublets are prohibited.

I understand that my case for a potential claim here might be weak because it is only one month, and I would have a hard time proving that they could have found a replacement for a portion of my lease with such a short time, but is this "policy" of refusing to allow new tenants legal? Don't they have a duty to mitigate damages?

Answer:
 They have a duty to mitigate their damages, but that duty is realized in landlord tenant court with regards to their potential damages in lost rent. It is up to them if they want to actually list or market units vacated by tenants breaking their leases. Even if they don't sue you over it, they can still negotiate lease break agreements, send you bills for the balance, and send you to collections. Substantial caveat here is that New York City has its own special and elaborate landlord tenant law, there may be some specific law or regulation about this specific to New York City.Answer #2: >Sublets are prohibited.

NYC law requires landlords to allow reasonable requests for subletting. In practice this means for longer than 30 days, and they have to be able to pass a similar background inspection to what a new tenant would need. Also the law provides attorneys fees if they challenge you and lose. That means there are many tenants rights organizations that will defend you for "free" and get paid when you prevail in court.


Title: Nude House Cleaners (SC/GA)

Question: I want to start a business of topless and/or nude house cleaners. Actually focus on cleaning, just... happen to be topless or nude and let the client watch while you clean their house. Is this something I can do or do I risk running afoul of the law and winding up on the sex offender registry or something?

Answer: This is a dangerous area you are entering. There will be people who expect sex and you could face liability when something goes wrong.   Answer #2: Not a lawyer, but I do own a cleaning service. I have been asked to do this *multiple* times, and I always say no because you have no way of guaranteeing the safety of your cleaners. Are you going to send a big guy out with each of them to watch that the client stays 'hands off'? Will you pay the bouncer, too? Will the cleaners get workmans comp if they are assaulted? What if they just 'feel' assaulted, and make trouble for you? Many people who call you will consider them sex workers, even if they aren't interested in performing sex acts. As for the police, I imagine you'd eventually be visible on their radar. Just my two cents.Answer #3: And let's not forget the whole: client assaults you because he has no self-control. Now I'm not saying that you wouldn't have recourse if he did, but I am saying this is a monumentally stupid idea. Because you are inevitably going to be dealing with people who can't get a woman to do this without paying them.


Title: Getting a mortgage at 16 Australia

Question:
I am 15 at the moment and am wanting to move out at 16 (in a few months) I have 20,000 saved and earn 400-1000 a week. Apparently I need a co-signer which needs to be over 18 if I am to get a loan. Is this true? and does this person need to be a guardian? Or can it just be someone over 18?
Topic:
Real Estate law

Answer:
 You can't sign a legally binding contract until you're 18 for starters, and no bank is going to go near you with credit until you can prove you're responsible. It's why you can't get a credit card or bank loan until you're 18.

You aren't getting a mortgage at 16. Even at 18 it's going to be a real struggle.

Hell I'm 26 and only got a credit card in the last few years. Answer #2: You are probably not going to get a mortgage.

What do you mean by "400-1000/week"? If your income is not steady, like a salary job, banks generally require two years of tax returns to average it out.

Do you have a credit history? Like credit cards or other loans?

What makes you think you can get a cosigner? It's extremely dangerous to co-sign a mortgage when you aren't an owner of the home. That is not something reasonable to ask of even a close friend or an uncle or something.


Title: [TX] Got into an argument with some former friends a month ago and left them at a bed and breakfast with no ride in a country a few hours from me. Now they filed a police report saying I stole stuff when I didn't.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Talk to the attorney who helped you with the other charge.  Don't let your temper get the best of you


Title: Generally speaking, can you be a witness for yourself in court?

Question: Asking mostly to settle an argument.

Answer: Generally you can testify on your own behalf, yes.


Title: Twitter and Tor

Question:
So, I know It's against Facebook's and Linkedin's terms of service to use anonymization services.

When you sign in, you are who you really, legally, are. So using a service that encrypts your identity such as tor for either of those is a bad idea.

I have seen people using anonymous accounts on Twitter.

Is it okay for people to use a service like tor for access to that?

Answer:
 Sure, here's an article from [Vice](http://motherboard.vice.com/read/twitter-users-keep-getting-locked-out-of-their-accounts-for-using-tor) regarding the use of Tor on Twitter. Here's a comment from a Twitter spokesperson cited in the article:

>“Twitter does not block Tor, and many Twitter users rely on the Tor network for the important privacy and security it provides,” Twitter spokesperson Nu Wexler told Motherboard in an email. “Occasionally, signups and logins may be asked to phone verify if they exhibit spam-like behavior. This is applicable to all IPs and not just Tor IPs.”

It's not illegal to do so, but they may also disable your access to their site at their discretion.


Title: Ex Girlfriend wants to give me her expensive couch that we both paid for but I don’t trust her not to change her mind. I need legal advice.

Question:
I lived with my girlfriend for many years and together we bought a really expensive couch that happens to have been bought for under her name (not mine).

She has agreed to give it to me cause she’s moving in with her wealthy mother but her and her mom have a history of screwing me over at any turn. Is there some sort of official documentation or legal form I can get both of us to sign so that in the case she changes her mind she can’t take me to court to try and take it back? Thank you in advance and I’m sorry if this isn’t exactly grade A legal stuff but I really need the help.

Answer: Just write up a standard bill of sale (sale price being $0) and both sign it.


Title: Sister in law's father died and never got registered as her daughter.

Question:
Complicated story here. I'd like to help my 4 year old sister in law put into practice her right to U. S. citizenship.

Situation / Storyline:
*Mother in law (Mexican living in Mexico) got pregnant by her boyfriend (US citizen living in US).

*Boyfriend gets diagnosed with cancer.

*Baby gets born in Mexico and mother registers baby as fatherless (father was being treated in US and couldn't attend).

*Father dies 6 months after baby gets born.

*Deceased Father never gets legally registered as parent of baby.

*Father's parents (grandparents) constantly visit and offer any help or support needed.

I know the baby automatically gets US citizenship by being the daughter of a US citizen, but since she never got registered as his daughter I'm not sure how to approach this.

Is there any way she can get registered as the daughter of a deceased person?
The grandparents are willing to testify for this purpose.

The kid is living in Mexico with her mother and doesn't have a passport.

Answer: Would the grandparents (and any other close relatives) be willing to submit to DNA testing to prove a relationship? Even better, is there any chance of surviving genetic material from the father that could be tested, such as medical test specimens or samples taken by the coroner?


Title: Instructed to lie when selling annuities

Question: I used to set up 403(b) annuities, and I was instructed to make up asset values for clients whose liquid assets were less than $1000 to avoid compliance issues. Was this illegal, or was I just subverting an in-house regulation?

Answer: I would consult a local specialist attorney on this. If so, you might be able to pull some crime stopper awards from the SEC or a state regulator.Answer #2: By "make up" do you mean using an intentionally-inflated number, or do you mean guesstimating because anything under $1000 doesn't really matter?  Or something else entirely?


Title: Hey, I'm a billionaire tech CEO with a superpowered suit of armor I fight crime with, and I need to hide the millions of dollars' worth of expenses from making the armor so the government doesn't find out my secret identity. What can I do?

Answer: Own a weapons manufacturer so everything looks like a business expenseAnswer #2: What'd your butler tell you? He's a pretty sharp guy.Answer #3: Creat a division in your company called R&D.  Make some stuff there and hide the money from the suit by pulling it from that budget.  I mean tiny Servos are useful, so is bullet deflecting metal.Answer #4: Easy.  Build some experimental spacecraft and just blow them up on the pad.  Nobody really knows whether that was a $216 million spacecraft or a hollow shell with a few rocket engines attached.  Just build enough of them that people think you're crazy for spending that kind of money to get to Mars, and nobody will even think about the fact that you're really pouring that money into building Iron Man suits.Answer #5: Hold a press conference and tell everyone who you are?Answer #6: I love this question!  The first thing I thought was "did Jeff Bezos really go to space? Or was it just a ruse to cover up his real expenses?"Answer #7: I think The Dark Knight Trilogy covers this topic.Answer #8: The fact that the multibillionaire is a Defense Contractor renders hiding any development costs moot.


Title: Police wrongfully took my mentally unstable husband to jail.

Question:
My husband has been very suicidal and mentally unstable, sometimes putting his legally owned gun to his head, thinking I can read his mind at times, and desperately needs help. He has never tried to hurt me in any way, but he has refused help.
His parents are aware of this, and wanted to get a welfare check done on him. Essentially that’s where police do a mental stability check and take you to a hospital if need be. While my husband and I were away at different friends’ houses, I got a call from the Police asking if I’d meet them at the police station. I got there as fast as I could and 5 cops surrounded me and started talking to me. They wanted to get the gun away from our house while he was away, and of course I agreed. They said they would park a street away from my house and give me time to grab the gun as well as some clothes for a few days (they told me I needed to stay with a friend for a couple days.) they followed me up to my door and asked if they could come in, I said yes as I’m in a frenzy. I got some clothes, I gave them the gun, but in the meantime they snooped around my living room and found a little bag of my husband’s marijuana. They said they would confiscate it but not charge either of us with it. We left, and they told me not to come home for a few days. Little did I know they stayed near my house and waited for my husband to get home. When he did, they arrested him for having a gun in the same place as illegal drugs and gave him a felony. I was lied to by the cops, I wanted to get my husband help, and instead the police booked him in jail with a felony that will stay with him his entire life. I feel like this is unethical but don’t know if it’s illegal. I was in a very vulnerable place and feel taken advantage of. I’d appreciate any help.

TL;DR: my mentally unstable husband was taken to jail with a felony instead of getting mental help because cops snooped through our stuff without a warrant and found marijuana.

Answer:
 He's not a felon yet.

Get your husband an attorney. Tell him to follow his attorney's advice, and not to speak to the police without his attorney present. This is a serious deal, and he may well end up convicted of a felony if he doesn't treat this situation very, very carefully.

His attorney can review the search and figure out if there are admissibility issues there due to an illegal search, and may be able to help him work out a plea bargain or a diversion.Answer #2: It is perfectly legal for the police to lie to you, especially if they feel it will help keep a very tense situation calm.

Also, get rid of the idea that the gun was legally owned. If your husband was using marijuana when he purchased the firearm, he falsified a federal form in order to do so. It was illegal for him to own a firearm and keep and use drugs at the same time.

They didn't wrongfully take your husband to jail, he committed a felony, and you allowed them to search the house willingly when you invited them in.

The only thing you can do is get your husband an attorney.Answer #3: Police are allowed to lie. You allowed them in to the house. At this point you should focus on hiring a lawyer for him.


Title: Other tenants are trying to get me evicted, and we havent moved in yet. what can i do? *serious*/ US

Question:
NJ

In November I signed a lease for a property in my college town with a group of 9 other girls that were members of my unregistered sorority.  In March, there was an altercation between me and one of the girls and a group of her friends that involved them throwing drinks at me and kicking me on the ground and claiming that I hit one of them and broke her phone.  As a result, I was kicked out of the sorority and told that I was no longer allowed to live in the house next year and would need to sign a lease release because the girls intended on using the house as a 'sorority house' and they were afraid that I would call the police on their events because the house was not up to code for use as a sorority house.  When I would not agree to find somewhere else to live because of cost, and because I was the one that originally found the property, the one of the girls notified me that they were trying to bring legal action against me.  I was also told that if I would pay for the girls phone ($85) and find somewhere else to live, they wouldn't take me to court.  The girl who was claiming that I broke the screen of her iphone 4, never directly asked me to pay for her phone at any time, nor did she ever make any attempt to contact me.  Now that I have refused to move, they are saying that they are waiting to receive a court date, which they will bring to the landlord so that he can evict me.

some facts about the house:

-two separate units, i am in A with two other girls, on a friend and the other is one of the girls that wants me out, and also my current roommate

-7 other girls are upstairs, the girl who is trying to take me to court, 3 other girls that agree with her, and two that are indifferent to the situation

-move in is june 1

-rent in the lease is split up for the two units, 2700 for upstairs, 2000 for downstairs, we were going to all share this cost because the only living space was downstairs, making my rent about 500

- they want to use the house for illegal purposes, such as parties, sorority recruitment, and other underage drinking events

Answer:
 > they are saying that they are waiting to receive a court date, which they will bring to the landlord

this is not how it works.  Similarly situated tenants have no standing to evict one another, and you can't get a court date for someone else.

Nor can your landlord terminate your lease on the grounds that the other lessees want it.

You are liable for the girl's phone if you intentionally broke it, but again, a bunch of unrelated girls can't sue you for someone else's damaged phone.Answer #2: What is the basis of them trying to evict you? What standing would they have anyway - they don't own the house. Does the landlord want you out? Who's names are on the lease?

If you have a signed lease, they would need a reason (other than we don't like you) to evict. That being said, if you do stay, they will probably make your life miserable. Maybe they would offer a buyout of some sort - or even pay for moving expenses if you agree to move.

Please keep in mind, that if your name is on the lease and you move out without getting your name removed you will still be responsible for rent, utilities etc... You need to get your name off the lease if you decide to move. Answer #3:

>they want to use the house for illegal purposes, such as parties, sorority recruitment, and other underage drinking events

Which you were fine with until you got into an altercation


Title: [Indiana] I want to out my rapist years after it happened. Worry about retaliation via defamation lawsuit.

Question:
\# Throwaway for obvious reasons…

I’ve been a reader of legal advice or years, never thought I’d be posting, yet in retrospect, seems kinda obvious. Regardless, throwaway, etc.

Backstory:

I’m a mid 40s male. When I was 16, I was raped by my youth minister. He got me drunk, and raped me while I was passed out. I woke up in the middle of it. It probably doesn’t matter in the context of this post, but I’m not gay, and this definitely wasn’t statutory rape. Even if I’d been sober, I wouldn’t have consented.

Before it happened, the youth minister told the church leadership that I confessed to being suicidal. I wasn’t suicidal and certainly didn’t confess, but I’m sure it was a preventative attempt to discredit me. They believed him. At no point did either the YM or I bring up the rape.

I stopped attending the church. A couple years later, the YM was fired for calling gay porn phone lines from his church office. The church elders came to my house, told me what happened, and apologized. I told them thanks, but no thanks. That was the end of it.

I’ve never told anyone about the rape. Like many victims I just wanted to forget it, so years ago I decided to let the matter lie (perhaps not my proudest moment). But last month, out of the blue, the YM sent me a Facebook message. The message was seemingly innocuous, just something that you’d send to a long-lost friend.

My Question:

The Facebook message has brought up long-buried emotions. I’ve thought of little else since. After a bit of googling, I learned he is currently a minister at a church within a couple hours drive, and I’m considering informing the Elders of his current church that he raped me. Obviously, after \~25 years, I’ve no proof; it’s definitely a he said/he said situation.

I’m worried about leaving myself open to a defamation lawsuit. It seems plausible that the YM would want to defend himself. If I’m believed, the information would destroy his career, family, probably his life. Google has also informed me that for a defamation lawsuit to be successful, you have to 1) prove the statement was false, 2) show damages, and 3) the statement has to be malicious.

I’m looking for a lawyer now, but I want to be prepared during the initial consultation. Under the admittedly brief and detail-lite situation outlined above, would a defamation suit brought by my former youth minister likely be successful? I'm not a rich guy, paying for a defense would be difficult.

Is there anything I’m missing?  Some sort of law that protects victims of sexual assault? Is there anyway to share the information safely

Edit: God, haven’t even posted it, yet, and already adding an edit. After rereading my post, I realize there’s probably no way anyone can give me specific advise. I guess I’m trying to determine if there’s even any point in consulting a lawyer. Are they just going to say I’m opening myself up to massive liability with no upside? Anyway, thanks for any advice/insight provided. Also, on a personal note, tell your children to heed their spidey-sense.

Answer:
 Contact rainn.org and tell them what you've posted here.  They can provide some guidance on your current question. Depending on your state, you may still be able to pursue criminal charges against the minister.  They can also help you identify local resources including counseling.Answer #2: OP, there's a strong possibility your youth minister hurt other young men. Your greatest chance of success would be to find a lawyer who specializes in these kinds of lawsuits against religious institutions. There aren't many, but it's kind of a calling for them.

The first place to start would be to contact rainn, as another poster suggested. The second, maybe to contact the bar association in your state and ask for referrals. If you need a third, if your local library is open, you might go in and ask the reference librarian for help. Invent a cover story. If need be, say a young cousin was molested and you want to find an attorney. Some of these lawyers -- they're usually men -- have successfully pursued many cases against the Catholic Church.

I wish you the best of luck. You may also want to find a therapist to talk to.


Title: [MN] Received eviction notice for unpaid rent. Court date is tomorrow, landlord is telling me they cannot accept payment.

Question:
Couple of things here:
1. This is the second eviction notice I've received in 4 months.  Last time this happened, I was able to pay up the day before the court date and did not have to go to court.
2. I sent an email to the landlord this afternoon advising I would have the full amount paid within the hour to which they replied that I would need to bring it to court tomorrow as they cannot accept payment from me after they have filed the eviction.  I asked why it was okay a few months ago and they said it's too late now.

Am I confused or is my landlord?  I came across the following on [this website](http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/tenant-defenses-evictions-minnesota.html)  which seems to suggest I can stop the eviction before it happens if I pay up:

> The most common reason for eviction in Minnesota is a tenant failing to pay rent. As soon as rent is late, the landlord can file an eviction lawsuit with the court. The landlord is not required to give any other kind of notice to the tenant before filing the lawsuit. The tenant can stop the eviction lawsuit at any time before the actual eviction occurs by paying the rent, with interest, court costs, and attorney’s fees (see  Minn. Stat. Ann. § 504B.291).

Answer:
 If you repeatedly pay rent late (or even more than once), you arguably have materially breached your lease, which would entitle your landlord to seek an eviction for cause, rather than an eviction for non-payment.

They are not obligated to allow you to repeatedly cure your breach by paying rent after you've received an eviction notice.


Title: [OR]Remodeled a room in my house now the County tax dept wants know more about it

Question: Like the title says. They left a door hanger asking me to call them about my reno. I’m assuming they want to see how much they can raise the value of my property and then the amount of tax I pay. My questions are can I just ignore them? How much can they compel me to cooperate. Do I have to let them in my house?

Answer:
 IANAL but I live in Oregon.  When I bought my house my realtor told me that they can continue to ask to come in and look around but to never let them.  She said it’s exactly that reason, to ensure you are paying taxes on what you’re supposed to be.  She told me that we should just tell them “everything on record is correct and there have been no changes”.Answer #2: I live in Oregon and the tax guy forced his way into my house and it was scary and hard to force him back out. Don’t even open your door an inch! He seriously just pushed right past me as soon as I opened the door and then it was just me and my husband telling him to get out, get out and sort of corralling him towards our door til he finally relented.

Wish I had known he wasn’t allowed to just bust in like that, I would have called the cops.


Title: Preventing False Pedophile Claims

Question:
Throw away, just in case.

My mother is very spiteful. She and Dad had a messy divorce. She went back to her boyfriend who used to molest me when I was in Pre-K and nicknamed me "\[His\] Sexy Girl". I reminded her of this when they reunited to explain why I wanted to stay with Dad. She was offended, especially since Dad's not my biological father. My mother turned it into this sort-of "I know you are but what am I" game, and wrongfully accused Dad of being a pedophile to anyone who will listen. She accused me of lying about her boyfriend, of intentionally seducing her boyfriend away from her, of being a prostitute, and of having a sexual/romantic affair with my dad.

My mother is especially looking for revenge because I had to report her boyfriend to Child Protective Services for something unrelated, and she thinks it's tit-for-tat now. She sent me near-daily texts for 2 months, just to call my Dad a pedophile, after I called CPS. I already told her to stop contacting me. (She ran out of steam eventually.)

I am now legally an adult and don't rely on her. I want to remove myself from her health insurance and cell phone plans, reiterate no contact, and change my phone number. I'm afraid of how she'll react to having even less control over me. When I first moved out, she'd threaten to lie to the authorities about me being in a suicidal/homicidal state so I am involuntarily committed. She doesn't have anything to control me with anymore, but she knows calling my dad a pedophile will get a rise out of me.

Is there anything I can do now? I'm not even sure who I should contact or if I should wait for it to inevitably happen. Besides therapy, are there any professional services I can seek out?

I also haven't told Dad at all, though he has an idea of it. How do I explain this to him?

Answer: This entire situation is hella toxic. You need to separate yourself from your mother completely and in every way possible. No contact whatsoever. I know it will be hard but you have to stop caring what she thinks or say about your Dad or anything else for that matter.  But you don't have a legal issue right now.