Title: (TX) Texas Workforce Commission cancelled my benefits because I was driving for Uber part-time

Question:
First post ever on Reddit, a friend told me to give this a shot. My story is a long one, so if you think can help, please bear with me. Feel free to ask any questions you need for clarification.
Here we go:

-In October 2015, I started driving for Uber in Dallas part-time. Needed extra cash alongside my ad agency job. At this time, I was living in downtown Dallas.

-In February 2016, I was laid-off from my ad agency job. I kept driving for Uber part-time.

-Also in February 2016, I filed for unemployment benefits through the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). When requesting payments from TWC, you are required to report any income you've made, including anything from Uber.

-In April 2016, my downtown Dallas apartment lease ended. Having no other job, and not making enough money with Uber, I moved back to my parents' house. They (and now I) currently live about 50 miles away from Dallas.

-I stopped driving for Uber at this point - it was no longer feasible. The money is terrible as is, and my car can't handle driving hundred of miles per week just to get back to Dallas. I kept requesting payments from TWC, and stopped reporting income from Uber.

-Here's the fun part. TWC is now telling me that because I "quit my job" at Uber, they can no longer pay me benefits, and that I OWE THEM about $2,300 for undeserved benefits. They're saying that moving is not a good enough reason to "quit" a job.

I understand that the government needs a legal definition of "quitting" a job, especially with a company like Uber, but I didn't quit anything - I simply stopped going online as a driver. I can go online at any time, and I am still technically employed.

But beyond all that, why does any of this matter??? I'm not requesting compensation from Uber, I filed for unemployment benefits because I was laid off from a full-time advertising job. What good are all the taxes I've paid to UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE over the years if this is what I have to do to receive them??

I have filed for an appeal with the TWC; hearing date is 6/20/2016. Thanks in advance for any help - it's much appreciated.

Answer:
 You should be able to clear this up at the hearing.  As long as you accurately reported all earnings and dates you worked, you shouldn't have an issue.

Uber drivers are all independent contractors so you don't qualify for UI benefits based on your work with them.  You have to report the income, which it sounds like you did.

At most, if you stop receiving income from Uber, you wouldn't be entitled to an increase in benefits.  But it shouldn't DQ you because you didn't quit "employment" technically.  If your benefits did increase after quitting uber, you would have to return that as an overpayment.


Title: Mobility scooter denied in las vegas

Question: Wife and I are in las Vegas and we were told by the hotel security that she could not use her mobility scooter in the hotel because it was not from their hotel and told us she had to walk or rent one from them. Is this legal?

Answer: Is she physically disabled or just lazy?


Title: Detective seized car 10 months ago. Just got it back now he's threatening to raid my house (again)

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 You aren't obligated to answer his calls. Ignore him, if you're arrested then speak to an attorney.Answer #2: Police are allowed to lie to you to gather evidence.

The court is not allowed to lie about the status of your vehicle.

Pay attention to the court. And your lawyer. Answer #3: If the parts were stolen they would have been seized by the cops before now. Hell, they probably would have seized the whole car. Answer #4: IANAL: this sounds really weird, As others have said, I would let all calls go to voicemail and make copies. Also speak to a criminal defense lawyer and present all evident to them. Lastly, if this keeps up you may want to call and speak to the cops supervisor. id look up the laws in your state about consent to having conversations recorded and if you feel the need to pick up the phone and talk with this person to record it, as like others have said he may say something stupid.

good luck


Title: Told I am to receive a $20,000 Inheritance, Afraid that Someone is trying to make sure I Don't

Question: [deleted]

Answer: All going to be highly dependent on the language of the will.  If it was 20,000 to each of his grandchildren, unless you were adopted you likely don't have a legal claim.  If you were specifically named or there was some other novel way of saying who got the money that might be different.


Title: I was terminated from my job 3 weeks after having my baby (Tucson, AZ).

Question:
Hello everyone. I apologize in advance if this isn't the right sub to post this in. I'm a long time lurker but decided to finally ask. I was terminated from my job 3 weeks after having my child.

Son was born 2/27/2017. Terminated 3/18/2017.
I did not have an "active" FMLA disability claim with our disability provider at work. However, my supervisor and I kept in touch about the pregnancy, birth etc.
(I didn't submit the claim because I kept forgetting. I was extremely tired with the pregnancy, working two jobs, and my 4 year old). Anyway, I was terminated. That month of the birth and the previous month I had perfect attendance.

Arizona is an at-will state I know that much so it wasn't surprising when I called HR twice and emailed them to ask for an appointment to go over why I was terminated or if I had been under an employee performance review. (I live in Tucson)

The calling in policy changed while I was out of work (having the baby and post partum), but my supervisor did not let me know. With this new policy, if I didn't call within 4 hours of my shift ending, I was considered a no call no show. When I called, I had 2 no calls no shows. I advised I had medical documentation that I would send in (we had 9 days from the day to do so). A couple of days later, I received a "Letter of Separation" in an email from HR.

I was going to let this go but I can't. If I was wrong, then be it, I'll take responsibility. But, if it's some sort of wrongful termination I'd like to know so I can proceed to meet with a lawyer or someone who can help me take legal action.

I'm currently looking for work, applying everyday. I did submit for an unemployment claim which is in process of finally getting paid out. That should help.

I'm seeking legal advice (or even words of encouragement at this point of what I can do)... I don't have the money for a lawyer consultation at the moment so I don't know where to turn. I have two kids and now my emergency funds for 3 months are almost gone and bills are just piling up.

Answer:
  An employee giving notice of the need for FMLA leave does not need to expressly assert rights under the Act or even mention the FMLA to meet his or her obligation to provide notice, though the employee would need to state a qualifying reason for the needed leave and otherwise satisfy the notice requirements set forth in § 825.302 or § 825.303 depending on whether the need for leave is foreseeable or unforeseeable. 29 CFR 825.301

You did not have to specifically claim leave under FMLA to be protected, you just needed to request leave for a qualifying reason, which a pregnancy is one. Answer #2: You decided not to use your protected leave (FMLA) so.... You have no protection. Answer #3: You chose not to fill out the paperwork that would have protected your absences.


Title: Husband not being paid properly. What should we do?

Question:
My husband has been working for a local company here in Kentucky since April being a furniture delivery driver. He gets paid 10 dollars an hour and works Tues-Saturday 8:30am to 5:30pm with overtime as he delivers all over the area.

Anyways, he got paid yesterday and it says he worked 106 hours of normal time and 6 hours of overtime in the past 2 week pay period.

106 hours of normal non-overtime hours. It is our understanding that anything over 80 hours in a 2 week period is considered overtime. After calculating what he should have been paid, there should be an extra 390 dollars in that check.

He brought it up to his boss and he came up with the excuse "it's how our pay periods land".

The pay periods usually go July 1st-July 15th and then July 16th-July 31st. His co-worker has noticed that the company has done this before and people have quit over this. I went through the past pay stubs my husband has and there are stubs saying 95 hours of normal and 7 overtime. And 88 hours of normal and 4 hours overtime.

What should we do? We are pretty livid over this. He likes his job but he's furious over this and is on the verge of quitting.  He has been screwed out of roughly 850 dollars due to this if what they are doing is illegal.

Answer: File a claim with the [Kentucky Labor Cabinet](http://www.labor.ky.gov/Pages/LaborHome.aspx) (I've never heard it called that before). They'll investigate and possibly force them to pay what your husband is owed and also possibly face a fine themselves. They also probably provide remedies if there is any kind of retaliation from the employer.


Title: Landlord kicking me out so her son can move in

Question:
My landlord just gave me thirty days notice on paper citing that her son needs my room. I'm just renting a room in her house.
I know that if I were to be renting an entire house and the landlord moves in they have to pay a relocation fee.

Just wanting to know if I can get a relocation fee. This is in Southern California

Thanks !

Answer:
 The relocation fee is not necessarily true, it's more nuanced than that.  If you are on a month to month lease your landlord can terminate your tenancy with 30 days notice.  This is fine. Answer #2: Do you have a fixed-term lease? If not, this is perfectly legal.

>  I know that if I were to be renting an entire house and the landlord moves in they have to pay a relocation fee.

Huh? What city are you in and where did you get that info?


Title: Odd thought I had: can I put my texts under an NDA with my friends if I can but simply have them sign it? Would it stand in court?

Question:
A friend and I were having a conversation about another person over text, one that would be humiliating for all involved should those thoughts get out into the public.

Suppose a trusted friend was to go rogue and post the contents of those texts out for everyone to see on social media; what's the recourse? So, I had the thought:

Is it legit possible to draft up essentially a NDA saying that in the event of our friendship falling apart, you can't willfully expose the messages to anyone, etc? I know, for example, stars have groupies sign such things before they party with them in order to protect their interests; is this something you can do that would have any legal standing later?

It's just a thought experiment I had on a slow Wednesday at work. Thought it would be worth posting.

Answer: Probably not.  For a contract to be binding there has to be an exchange of value. Arguably the value herein exchanged would be reciprocal promises of silence, but maybe not.


Title: Want to name my app "Rubik" which is a trademarked name.

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Intellectual Property

Answer:
 No.

And you can't do it by paying them either, because they won't license their trademark for that.  Find another name.Answer #2: Ideal Toy Co. owns the license. You can ask them, and then once you're told no, you can pick another name :)Answer #3: You will be sued for trademark infringement and you will lose, plus the app stores will shut down your app for trademark infringement.  Saying it's a tribute does not exempt you from the law.


Title: (US) An ebayer sold me counterfeit audiobooks and wants me to return them. Am I obligated to spend more money and time returning goods that were sold to me under false pretenses?

Question:
He refunded my money as I requested, but wants me to return the discs. I planned to toss them in the trash because they have awful audio quality (which is why I got suspicious of counterfeiting) and the reason I bought them in the first place was because I wanted a quality recording. (US)
Topic:
Consumer Law

Answer:
 Report them to eBay for selling counterfeit goods, then eBay will refund you and ask you to destroy them. Don't deal with the seller directly if you are sold counterfeit goods because then they can just cover up their behavior by asking you to return them for refund. Of course you should not pay for shipping to return counterfeits. Answer #2: Tell him to pay for the return of the discs if he wants them.

You can also report the counterfeits through eBay.


Title: [NJ] Publishing Pictures of Undercover LE Officers

Question:
Through scouring the internet, videos of Occupy, and CopBlock, I have put together a fairly large picture collection of highly probably undercover officers in many, many different States.  I specifically left out any potential NJ officers in order to avoid any "over interpretation" of NJ laws.

YouTube has many Occupy videos where people followed and photographed people who were definitely undercover police.  Many websites also have pictures of undercover officers available accompanied with news articles about those undercover police acting unethically. None of these have been prosecuted, nor charged with any crime.

I realize that woman in Texas was arrested and charged for distributing that flyer with a picture of the officer that sold drugs to her, however, her charge was "retaliation". I have no charges against me in ANY State, and should therefore be unable to "retaliate".

I am hoping a plan almost finalized to host the database **entirely** on servers within NJ that are controlled by a verified independent journalist and blogger, thus receiving full 1st Amendment protection and beyond personal jurisdiction of other States' Courts.

My question is how far does long-arm jurisdiction of a *State outside of NJ* extend in regard to publishing the photo database of their undercover police?

If it is not illegal in NJ to publish an undercover police officer's photo, and/or the pictures are not of NJ police officers, then there should be no legal mechanism to prevent this, no?

Answer:
 God I would like to take every idiot from the Occupy movement, everyone who lives and breathes bitcoins, and you and put them on a barge going slowly out to sea. You know I have a lot of clear constitutional rights to do things and a lot of grayer constitutional rights. But whether this action will hold up as permissible under the first amendment is one thing. The real question is whether it should be done or not. This places people's lives in danger whether they are police officers, innocent people misidentified, or even criminal mopes who may get caught in the crossfire. You may fancy yourself a crusader but you are not.  You want to address situations where you believe police officers are getting away with the law then volunteer for the Innocence Project or some other worthy organization who engage in lawful ways to address it. Or keep up what you are doing and join the society of scummy bottom feeders.Answer #2: >I have put together a fairly large picture collection of highly probably undercover officers in many, many different States.

Legality aside, do you really want to be the reason that some guy gets shot by criminals who think he is an undercover cop?Answer #3: While I support one's right to have colossally stupid ideas, one had best have a really, really big war chest to pay the inevitable legal bills.

For long arm purposes, keep in mind some states have case law holding that an internet site is "targeted" in every state that has access to it.


Title: [CA] Schizophrenia attack may land my cousin in prison

Question:
Hello. Two nights ago two of my cousins were staying at my auntie's house while she was at work. The youngest one, 18, was cleaning his closet. The eldest cousin, I believe around 23, was diagnosed with schizophrenia for about a couple years now and refuses to take his medicine. Well, that night, he had an episode believing that my youngest cousin was molesting his children, even though he didn't have any children. He was stabbed about 20 times around his neck and back. Luckily he's fine, but my eldest cousin is now sitting in jail with a charge of attempted murder.

I was wondering, since he is sick, is there something we can do to not land him in prison? We've been hoping that he can take the insanity defense and hope that he can get the help he needs. Thank you in advance.

[Quick Edit]: I live in Georgia, so I don't know how much help I can do. I want to try to relay as much help as I can to my grandmother and auntie since they're the ones who are in California

Answer: Even if the insanity defense works he's still going away for a long time it will just be at a different type of facility.


Title: The woman who became famous by destroying the Fresco now demands royalties. Does her claim hold?

Question:
Read on BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-19674622 ) that she is claiming royalties. My understanding is that since she has indeed created a unique piece of art (regardless of how awful that was, and that it was done by destroying another piece of art.) Would her claim for compensation stand any chance?

And if she was to win, could the owner of the original painting sue her for the whole sum of what she gets awarded, arguing that her painting only became famous/valuable because of the original painting?

Answer:
 I think the question is "royalties for what?"

If the church is charging for admittance to view her work, she *might* claim royalties for the exhibition of her work... but I think any judge would find that she freely contributed the work (whether restoration or novel work) to whoever or whatever owned the original fresco (the church?).

If she wants licensing fees from any individuals or groups who use the work, I think she's in a bad position for the same reason.  I think the actual owner would be in a better position to collect those fees, but she shouldn't be able to sue in the owner's position.  Of course, any notes she owns detailing her restoration effort, any photographs she took, or any work she writes regarding the restoration would be considered her IP.

Obviously, if I were to doodle on the Mona Lisa, whether I had permission or not, I would not now own the Mona Lisa.  But if I then photographed the defaced Mona Lisa and published a book about my hijinks, I would have copyrights to those works.

All in all, I think there's a very strong argument that the original owner has the full copyright of the work.


Title: My wife is a teacher and was assaulted by a student, what are the options?

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer: It's a serious crime. Report it to the police.  I'm not kidding. The kind of person who assaults a teacher is the kind of person who grows up and assaults a cop.


Title: My mom wants to co-own my car in order for me to get a lower insurance premium. Does this mean she could legally take the car away from me?

Question:
Hi there,

So I've been saving up for a car and I finally have enough to buy one through a private seller. I've been discussing this with my parents and my mom brought up the idea of co-ownership.

My older sister apparently shares ownership with my mom in order to receive a much lower insurance rate. While this sounds great in theory, I am wondering if this means my mom could legally take the car away from me if she feels like it. Both my parents have a habit of punishing me by taking things away, and part of the want for my own car is so they can't do that as I need the car for work.

Some other possibly relevant info:
-I'm 19
-The car will be paid for by me
-The insurance would have both our names, but would be paid by me
-I currently live in Connecticut

Thank you in advance!

Answer:
 If you put her name on the car she would be partial owner , and check with r/insurance but I think something is hinky about the rates being lower if the car is jointly in your mom name.  To my knowledge insurance  offers a discount by households and whose name is on what car (as long as everyone lives in the same house) doesn't make a difference  Answer #2: > So I've been saving up for a car and I finally have enough to buy one through a private seller.

THIS WILL BE AN AS-IS SALE WITH NO REFUNDS AND NO WARRANTY. **Get the car checked out by an independent mechanic before spending one dime on it.** Otherwise you could end up with a broken down car and not have the money to fix it.

> I am wondering if this means my mom could legally take the car away from me if she feels like it

Yes. She owns the car. As do you. Either of you can take it.

> Some other possibly relevant info: -I'm 19 -The car will be paid for by me -The insurance would have both our names, but would be paid by me -I currently live in Connecticut

Do you live with your mom? In that case you likely would not be committing insurance fraud. If you do NOT live with her, this is problematic, and *might* be insurance fraud. (It's 3AM and not all my cylinders are firing properly.) Check over at /r/insurance for more insight into this.


Title: [WI] How can my buddy get his shotgun back from his estranged ex-girlfriend that lives in California?

Question: So I'm not sure this is the proper sub for this question, but I wasn't sure where else to post this. My friend was telling me that he left behind a brand new Benelli shotgun at his old house in California. He says he's convinced it's still there because he hid it in the insulation up in the attic. He's afraid to ask her for it because he claims she will just sell it and lie to him about finding it. Apparently they had a pretty messy breakup a couple years ago over her hiding a drug habit and he noped the fuck out of there, leaving her everything except a few items. He says he hid the shotgun, planning to go back for it, but forgot about it until a year or so ago. The house was his but he sold it to her after the breakup. She has been renting it out since. He does have friends in the area that could pick it up for him, but again, the crazy history with his ex means they probably wouldn't have much luck. If the gun is legally his, but he doesn't trust her to give it back, how can he get it back?

Answer: It's probably best that your friend not get the shotgun back. It's incredibly irresponsible for a gun owner to leave guns hidden around and forget about them.


Title: Wife and I bought a house but she let her sister and family move into our old rent house under our name.

Question:
The reason she did this is my brother in law has a drug related felony and it has made it hard for them to find decent housing in the school district my niece and nephews have been to their whole lives.The landlords still think we are the ones living there. What sort of retribution could we face if caught and if caught how long would they have to get their stuff out? We live in Oklahoma.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 You could be evicted from the old house, which could negatively affect your credit.

You could also be liable for damages to the rental house if your family causes any damage.

Is it a fixed term lease or month to month?


Title: Why is it so hard to fire someone in corporate America?

Question:
I've been a long time reader of this subreddit, and I've always read with the small businesses that they can fire you and there are zero repercussions due to current laws. Yet with corporate America, firing someone seems to be dragged out so long, I just don't get it.

I have a friend who works for a Fortune 500 company, maybe 100, and the stories they tell me just boggles my mind. She has one employee she's talked about for over a year that everyone knows underperforms, always messes up, causes problems, but nothing ever happens. Management wants her gone, they say it's in process, they say these things take time, and say that the person will be gone soon. Yet here they are, 6 months beyond that conversation and nothing has changed.

So with that said, it made me think of this subreddit. Why doesn't corporate America just fire people like they do in small business situations? I have to imagine there is lots of money flying out the door due to disgruntled coworkers of bad employees, loss revenue due to bad employees, etc. You'd think they'd just fire them and be done with it.

Answer: That's because they're following self-imposed best practices to mitigate the risk of a successful lawsuit.  Union agreements can exacerbate the issue, as can incompetent management that runs from confrontation.


Title: Underage person got caught using my backpack to transport alcohol. (Ohio)

Question:
Hello Reddit, I am an 18 year old college student enrolled at a university in Ohio and last Saturday I got tied up in a legal matter, and am seeking advice about how to handle it, I am hoping you guys can give me some advice on how the laws work in this situation.
Last Saturday night, an acquaintance of mine had friends visiting, and I let them borrow my backpack to use that night and return to me the the next day. When I returned to my dorm that night, my acquaintance informed me that the person I had given the backpack to had alcohol in the backpack, and was stopped by an undercover police officer on campus because he had an open container (he is not 21, but he is 18). The undercover police officer took the backpack, searched it, found the alcohol inside, and also found about a gram of marijuana that I had forgotten was in the bag. The alcohol belonged to the guy I gave the backpack to, but the marijuana was mine. However, I was not with him when he got stopped, and was not involved in the matter whatsoever. The alcohol and marijuana were confiscated, but the backpack was returned to him, was returned to me the next day, and is once again in my possession.
Now here comes my question. The guy who I gave the backpack to was not arrested, but was given a citation and must appear in court tomorrow. Since then, he has contacted my acquaintance and told them that his lawyer is going to call me and ask if the backpack did belong to me, and in the words of the guy who got caught, "just to make sure I am not lying to him about the backpack not being mine." He also said, "My lawyer is not trying to get him (him is referring to me) in trouble, he just needs to confirm that I am not lying to him, and my case is being dropped."
So tomorrow, I am expecting a call from a lawyer to confirm if the backpack is mine or not. As far as the marijuana goes, I am planning to say that I was not aware that it was in the backpack, so I can't claim responsibility for it. But the part of this that is frightening me is he claims that they are going to drop his case, but I feel like they are lying to me by saying I won't get in trouble, and that they are actually going to transfer the blame to me in order to get him off. So my question is, if I was not present when the undercover police officer searched tha bag, and was not in possession of the marijuana and alcohol at the time, can I still get in trouble by admitting that the backpack belonged to me? What should I say when the lawyer calls me tomorrow? Thank you very much for your help, and if you need anything clarified, I would be happy to do so.

Oh, I should also probably mention that this guy has a record, one of them being a DUI he received for hitting someone with his car while under the influence of alcohol. I have no criminal record.

Answer:
 OK.  This is what gives me trouble:

"My lawyer is not trying to get him (him is referring to me) in trouble, he just needs to confirm that I am not lying to him, and my case is being dropped."

HIS LAWYER CANNOT DROP HIS CASE.  His lawyer does not need to know whether or not his client is lying to him.  His lawyer knowing the truth does not help him defend his client.  THEY ARE SELLING YOU DOWN THE RIVER.  They are not on your side.  Do not talk to your friend's lawyer.

Do not in any way admit to a crime.


Title: My 19 year old sister claims she has legal rights to threaten and assault me if I don't leave her room

Question:
My 19 year old sister claims that, because she's over 18 and is under my parent's roof as a tenant who works in exchange for residency, has legal rights to her room as her 'property' and could threaten then assault me if I refuse to leave(whether that be with a gun or less-than-serious means). I think I have just as much right to be in her room as her, being a resident of the same house, and it not being split by house numbers like a duplex.

Of course this is all in fun, but if someone who knows more about law could give us an answer as to who is right and specifics that would be awesome.

EDIT: Right. I live in Navarre, Ohio. Well, more like Harmon. Right on the edge, the legal address being Navarre but the house and property being in Harmon on a map.

EDIT: Lol, this isn't about some petty 'omg mom get your son out of my room', I regularly go in there and talk with her and we're pretty close. It was just one of our many strange conversations.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 >I think I have just as much right to be in her room as her, being a resident of the house under my father.

If she has an agreement to have a room in exchange for work, then it's her room and you have no right to it.


Title: (FL) Looking to fight the greedy towing company!

Question:
My car was recently towed from a guest parking spot at a friend's apartment complex. The HOA changed the guest parking rules and gave notification by posting a letter on each resident's door. My lazy friends took it down without reading it, and I was never notified of the new, and ridiculous, guest parking rules. However, I think I may have a valid fight against the towing company for two reasons:

* Pinellas County law states that "A person, operator, firm or corporation that provides nonconsensual or trespass towing and storage services pursuant to this article shall accept payment for charges from the vehicle owner or authorized representative in the following forms: (1) Cash; (2) Major credit card; and (3) Debit card."

When I arrived at 1 AM to retrieve my car they refused to take credit card, saying that they only take credit card from 8 AM to 5 PM. I came back at 8 AM to pay with credit card and was told the machine is broken - I have to pay cash.

 * The entry that I enter into the apartment complex has the tow away zone sign facing perpendicular to the stop sign - meaning that your headlights do not flash off of the sign as you come into the neighborhood. The sign is pointing to the left, while the stop sign is pointing directly at you (I think that makes sense). Isn't it required for the sign to be visible at night - meaning it needs to be reflective upon entry?

Do I have any shot here, and is it even worth fighting since the fee was $124?

Thanks!

Answer:
 If you want to sue somebody for the 124, go after your friend which had a duty to know the guest parking rules and inform you about them.

Otherwise, move on with your life. You will NOT win this fight against the HOA or towing company.

Also, while I am not a fan of towing companies, what exactly makes this one greedy? They seem to have done everything by the book with the minor exception of having a broken credit card machine.


Title: My car was searched without my consent on school property. Can I fight this.

Question: To start, I live in Wisconsin and am a senior in highschool at age 17. We had a random drug search in my school today and they pulled me out of class to have me g o to my car. They said that the dog smelled weed but there is no possibly easy that is true. I don't smoke and weed had never been in that car either. They searched it and found some alcohol in the glove box. Can I fight it at all?

Answer:
 Short answer, no.

A drug dog's signal is, unfortunately, sufficient to create the probable cause necessary to search a vehicle without the owner's consent.  Additionally, under *New Jersey v. T. L. O.* schools don't even need probable cause to search student property that is on the premises; the Court there ruled that, "the legality of a search of a student should depend simply on the reasonableness, under all the circumstances, of the search."  If a drug dog's signal is enough to create probable cause (and it is), then it's more than enough to clear the much lower bar for student searches.

Claiming that the dog must have been wrong to signal does not go over well in court.  Under *Florida v. Harris* the Supreme Court has basically said that as long as the drug dog is certified by someone, the dog's alert is good enough.  Even if most of the dog's alerts in the field are false positives they still don't care and the dog's alert creates probable cause as long as the dog performs satisfactorily in its tests when the police run it through training.

You can get an attorney and fight it, and I'd definitely recommend talking to one since you might at least have a chance to plead down, but I wouldn't hold out hope of beating it in court.


Title: CA / Sister dying in the Hospital / Survives, now wife says she can't come home.

Question: My sister has been in the hospital since Dec 2016.  She nearly died several times and was a very very big long shot to survive.  Well she fought through it and is doing much better with some long lasting effects.  To make a long story short,  her wife,  they are legally married,  has decided to abandon her.  She is currently still in the hospital and requires a lot of care to do basic things.  Somehow the insurance has "run out",  according to the spouse and she is being discharged on July 3.  She is unable to walk and still has open wounds that are healing.  The spouse sent me a text message today stating that my sister is not welcome in "her" house and that I need to pick her up on that date.  The whole thing is just despicable.  I WILL take my sister in,  for as long as she needs but I want to know what her rights are legally.  The home they have lived in together for the last several years is owned by the spouses sister,  and I doubt there is actually any paperwork with my sisters name on it.  Would she still have the right to live there until actual divorce papers are drafted?

Answer:
 Get your sister in contact with a divorce attorney.

It's likely that your sister has every legal right to return to their marital home, but I doubt it's wise for her to do so: the _last_ thing she needs while she's recuperating is to live alongside someone who now despises her presence and who is trying to kick her out. The stress is going to interfere with her recovery and may well put her at risk of further complications.

Your sister's attorney can help her sort out things like temporary spousal support (if applicable), insurance policies paid for out of marital assets, housing, and so on. It sounds like this might be a bit of a drag-out divorce, so going in with an expert is doubly important.

Talk to the hospital's social worker, as well. The hospital may have some pointers on how to get your sister in contact with support systems and which benefits she may qualify for, if nothing else, and both of you may be able to get some more practical advice, as well.


Title: Federal law and tip pooling, possibly something that's never been brought up to any court In the United States.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: The other key word in that bold part you are looking at is "mutually", thereby referring to an agreement made between the employees and employer.


Title: Is the Baltimore curfew constitutional?

Question:
I'm not sure if this is the right sub for this, so forgive me if it's not.

In response to the riots and demonstrations, Baltimore has instituted a week-long 10:00 P.M.-5:00 A.M. curfew. During these hours, citizens are told they may not be on the streets unless they are going to/returning from work, or they have a medical emergency. (I'm not from Maryland, and I'm not affected by the curfew; I also may not have all of the details right. My knowledge is based solely on media reports.)

 Does a state or city government really have the authority to effectively confine its citizens to their homes?

Answer:
 Yes, until somebody goes to Court to challenge it.

http://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/346jdb/baltimore_md_how_are_curfews_legal/Answer #2: Constitution bars **unreasonable** restraints to liberty, not all restraints. No one has challenged such a thing as unreasonable and had a judge agree.


Title: Jury duty tomorrow, driving with bad sleep deprivation?

Question:
Hello folks,

Let me start by saying I apologize if this post is hard to follow, or should be in the hypothetical legal advice sub, I am very tired and can't quite make sense of things at the moment.

Anyway, I was summoned for jury duty tomorrow in Philadelphia PA, and I have to drive about an hour and a half to serve. It's clearly too late to request a postponement or excusal, and I would actually like to sit on a jury, as I never have before and it sounds interesting me.

That said, I am quite concerned as I seem to be having a bout of insomnia the past couple nights, which has never happened to me before. For example, two nights ago I got about three hours of sleep and now last night I did not sleep at all. I have been trying off and on to sleep all day and having no luck, so I'm getting a bit worried tonight will be a repeat of the past two nights.

I have nobody in my life who either can, or is willing to, drive me that distance first thing in the morning and I cannot afford to pay a bus fare to get there because I am between jobs and very broke. My gas tank is full, and it won't immediately cost me anything to drive my car tomorrow so it's my only option.

I understand it's my civic duty to make it there, and that I can be held legally accountable for not showing up. That said, it's known to be unsafe to drive sleep deprived and I feel like I am in a bind and would like to know what kind of liability or consequences I face should I:

A.) "Call off" or no-show, after explaining my situation to the jury office.

B.) Make the drive and get pulled over for careless/reckless driving. I know for sure I do not have good driving ability when I am very tired.

C.) Make the drive regardless of my concerns and get in an accident, causing harm to myself or others.

I'd like to state that I believe it is dangerous and reckless to drive sleep deprived, and I would never willfully endanger other drivers on the road. I feel it is comparable to driving intoxicated, and thus is wrong to do.

Answer: You should call today and see if they can reschedule you.  And plan appropriately, because that will be your one and only postponement.


Title: [Texas] If I were to sue every single judge in the county, could I get out of speeding tickets?

Question:
Note, this is a hypothetical. I'm just curious what would happen if someone tried this.

Alright, so as a general principle, if a judge has a personal history with a defendant in a criminal case, they are expected to recuse themselves due to a conflict of interest.

So, generally I would assume if a defendant has ever been in a lawsuit against a judge, that would be sufficient grounds for a judge to recuse themselves. This would likely bias a judge against a defendant, and the conflict of interest is obvious.

So, what if someone files nuisance lawsuits against every single judge in the jurisdiction they live in? You can file a lawsuit against anyone for anything, so just make up some petty BS lawsuit that immediately gets thrown out. The lawsuit doesn't need to succeed. The important thing is that it happens.

So, hypothetically, what would happen if someone did this? Could they perhaps use this to get out of minor offenses such as traffic tickets? What can be done if every single potential judge has a conflict of interest against a defendant?

If it matters, go ahead and use my location, Harris County, TX.

Answer: Only if the flag in the courtroom has a gold fringe.Answer #2: Nope.


Title: (California) Previous Landlords demand me to pay for the window years after I moved out

Question:
**TL;DR: I moved out of the rental home more than a year and half ago. Today, previous landlords text me want me to pay for the damage of the defective cracked window. Want me to cover the cost of the newer double-pane window to replace single pane 1990s window.**

Today, my previous landlords texted me and want me to cover for the cost of the newer double pane window for defective cracked single pane 1990s window. I moved out of the rental house more than year and half ago. I did text to the landlords two years ago the window was cracked due to the nature of the design. The window is in my room, it is a single pane 1990s window. When I open the window, there is a strong friction to open the window. When the window slide, it will make a small jump each inch which cause banging on the bottom of the lip of the window frame. One night, I struggled to open the window because it is old, and it is not lubricated well. It caused a bigger bang and I think nothing of it. In the morning, I saw the small vein-like crack from the corner. It is only about 6 inches crack only in the corner. I taped the crack to prevent any further damage and texted to the landlords about the crack. I have not received any response or information from them regarding to the crack. When I moved out, the landlords did not perform inspection in my room after I left.

My former roommate decided to move into my former room because it spacious compared to his room. The landlord went in the room and one of them saw the crack. This is one month after I moved out. The landlords ask my former roommate about the crack in the window, he respond the window is causing problem which lead to the crack of the window. The landlord accepted it and told my former roommate not to worry about the crack because they do not care about it. Then later, the couple moved in and asked my former roommate if he can switch room with downstairs bedroom. He accepted, and the couple moved in that room. Three people been using that room after I moved out. My former roommate said they use the windows as well which cause the crack to worsen.

There is two persons as my landlord, they are a married couple. Often, they don’t communicate with each other regarding to the rental property. Sometimes, I asked one of them about something and the other one forgot to tell their SO about it.

The reason why my previous landlord is asking me to foot the bill because everyone in that house (total of 5 persons) moved out last month. The landlord decided to remodel the house a bit to sell the property. They replaced the downstairs carpet with hardwood floor, took out the fans, installed brand new stainless steel mid-end appliances, installed new door for the master bathroom, took out the sliding door on the bathtub, replaced the defective cracked window to a brand new double pane window. Basically, they are paying a lot to remodeling the house to sell the property. I imagined they want to recoup the cost of the damages. My former roommates told me they know my roommates did have some damages in their rental property but decided not to pursue them. They are waiving the everything my roommates did to the property.

Are they within their rights to ask me to cover the cost? I have not lived in that rental property for a year and half, they did not perform any inspection after I moved out.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer: Ignore him. He's way past the time he can claim any damages from you.


Title: Fishing without the license / Colorado

Question:
My wife got a ticket - fishing without a licence in Colorado.

Ranger took a picture of her from another shore while she was holding the rod.

Is it legal to take a photo of her as a evidence where there is no signs posted (video / photo recording)

It seems like everybody was photographed by ranger on that lake and then everybody was checked for a fishing licence....

Answer:
 > It seems like everybody was photographed by ranger on that lake and then everybody was checked for a fishing licence....

Have you never left your house before?   Rangers do this all the time. The picture is proof she was fishing. If you want to fish and you need a license, then you should get a license. They are not expensive and they help to maintain public waters and other important things.


Title: Used car's engine froze on the way home from buying it. USVI

Question:
I live on St Thomas in the US Virgin Islands. A few months ago, I bought a car through a recommendation from my mechanic. It had some knocking in the engine, but my mechanic took it for a few days, got it running smoothly, and changed all the fluids. However, when I drove it home from his house, the car died on the side of the road. It never turned over again.

My mechanic looked at it once, and then went out of town for a few months. While he was gone I had 5 different mechanics look at it. Unfortunately,  any of them that got close enough to turn the engine said the same thing- the engine froze.

I don't know too much about cars (a huge fault in a place like the Virgin Islands!) But the basic assessment is that even though there was oil in it, the oil pump wasn't moving anything to my engine. Somehow,  my mechanic overlooked that.

I contacted the guy who sold it to me, who basically said "sorry, it's your problem now". My mechanic came back into town and basically told me what everyone else did. The car is done and not worth the money to fix. I basically paid 2k for a yard decoration.

Now my mechanic is telling me the guy who sold it to me wants to buy it back... for 500. Way less than I paid.

Am I getting scammed? Do I have any legal recourse? Or is this the kind of thing that is just my problem now?

Answer:
 Unfortunately it is your problem at this point.

It's not illegal to do crappy work.

Answer #2: I would be highly surprised if there is a used vehicle lemon law that would cover this, so it was sold as-is, which means this is your problem.Answer #3: Used cars are generally as-is, however your situation may be a little different. You might be able to sue your own mechanic for the damages since possession passed from the seller, to him, to you. It may all be covered under the same laws that protect you when  any shop damages your vehicle.


Title: [Oregon] My roommate had a gift card sent for her birthday stolen out of our mailbox. We suspect that a former tenant still has a copy of the mail key. What can we do to take action and recover what was taken/make sure this problem doesn't occur again?

Question: Thank you for your help and time.

Answer:
 Does the person who bought the gift card have the receipt?

With that, and the store it was purchased at, you have a chance of tracking its use.

THEN the mail cops can come into the play.Answer #2: > make sure this problem doesn't occur again?

Talk to USPS about changing the key on the box.Answer #3: Suspicion is not enough to do anything at all.

Do you have any evidence?

How do you know that the card even made it to the mailbox?


Title: A wild dog is loose in my neighborhood and it killed my cat, if I see it again can I kill it? SC

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 No, you can call animal control and report an aggressive dog. Answer #2: You prob could’ve legally killed it the moment it killed your cat...

But yea...

Seeking revenge against an animal is kind of what separates humans from animals...

Animals aren’t competent in the court of law unless they smell drugs or bombs.

I understand that you’re angry. But killing the dog isn’t going to solve your problems.

Do you know who owns the dog?


Title: Lost my Bag in 2012 when visiting LA, Insurance denied my cliam

Question:
Long story short, I lost my bag and my insurance company couldn't do anything because it was left in a public place. I know it was back in 2012 but not a day goes by that I felt like I just got punked and I didn't know what to do next so I just left it. Is it too late now to do anything or can I some how get something back or some advice.

Email/Police Report to LAPD
"Hi my name is Ritchie from Australia. I am emailing you in regards to my backpack being lost at the Thrifty Inc at (Thrifty,Inc .5440 West Century Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90045) on the 12th of November 2012.

I left my backpack at the Thrifty Car rental place and upon arriving to my hotel I found out it was missing. I rang immediately and they said nothing has been handing in, even after getting transferred to lost and property. When returning the car after 4 days I asked again yet to find nothing, but after looking around the car yard outside there were some security cameras pointing directly where we picked up the car. So I would believe who ever took the bag would be on camera. Im not to sure how it all works over there but if it is stolen I could put an insurance claim and because I am no longer in the states at the moment it is very difficult to contact people and try to find my lost bag.

If you can forward this email to the right department who can help me that would be amazing. I will attach an image of the bag and serial numbers which are most valuable to me like a laptop and an iPad which may or may not be of any help but maybe local Pawn shops may be of assistance.

I thank you again for your help and look forward to a reply.

Thank you

Serial numbers:
iPod nano (6th generation) RED
Serial number DCYDD5CKDDW3
MacBook Pro (17-inch Mid 2010)
Serial number C02CG7DRDC79
iPad 3G
Serial number GB02127QA90"

After emailing Thrifty to ask them about the security camera which I have in email they said they cant share that info. I facebooked them and they gave me the company which then I found out that they erase the data after 5 days wtf? I have a number of emails from the insurance company  which basically stuffed me around for a while then said sorry we cant do anything because int he fine print it says anything left in public space is not covered? I was with Allianz Global.

Is it worth basically doing anything now or just try to forget about it?

>"Dear Ritchie,We would like to thank you for sending your claim form and supporting documentation into our office for our consideration.We would also like to advise you that you claim has been turned down, as your bag was left unsupervised in a public place where the public could gain access to the bag when picking up and dropping off their rental cars.I have attached a letter explaining this in further detail, and as mentioned in our telephone conversation, you can submit your concerns in writing stating why you would like the claim reviewed by my senior or team leader.
We're sorry we couldn't be more favourable in this instance.In the meantime, if you have any further queries, please do not hesitate to contact us on 1300 724 825.Kind Regards "

Answer: Forget about it. It is gone. No insurance will cover your negligence. No business is required to help you and the police cannot do anything because you are in a foreign country now. Also this happen three years ago. It is well over at this point.


Title: My doc is a name-dropper...should I report this HIPAA violation?

Question:
I have been going to the same gynecologist for 35 years and, medically, have total faith in him. But he name-drops all the time about his other patients. I live in a city of about 130,000 in Texas and the names he drops are mostly women he knows I know as our social circle somewhat intersect (though I wouldn't at all call us 'friends') as well as well-known community figures. For example, before a procedure, he'll say something like "Mrs. Smith has had this procedure and it went well." or he'll give me an update on the health of my cousin-in-law. Obviously I have to worry that he's telling them about me as well!

I have decided it's time to switch because of this and because he actually over-charged me for some procedures that he said the insurance company wasn't paying him enough on. I've got the insurance company working on that with me and he's going to owe me money.

So, the name dropping issue is obviously a HIPAA violation. But it seems petty of me to report him when there has been no 'actual' harm. What are your thoughts?

Answer: Yes that's a HIPAA violation here's a website that should explain how to file a complaint: [https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/filing-a-complaint/complaint-process/index.html](https://www.hhs.gov/hipaa/filing-a-complaint/complaint-process/index.html)Answer #2: Any time medical info is shared like there there is harm done. Your health is very private info and yours alone to share or not share. I have doctor friends that talk about some of the more interesting cases they had but the NEVER give names or identifying traits about their patients. Blatant name dropping should be reported especially if you fear your info has been shared with other people.


Title: [Florida] Who is required to clean a shared fence as mandated by a HOA?

Question:
##Short version first:

My HOA sent a notice requiring my PVC fence be cleaned. One neighbor had "latched on" to my PVC fence with a 3/4 chain link and has sole possession of that side of the fence. Who is responsible for cleaning this side of the fence?

##Long version:

Myself and my wife are the original owners of the home we live in now and I was the first HOA president, we also improved the property by installing a 6' privacy PCV fence.

For a few years we were moved to another state for work and our company took over and subsequently sold the house to its current owner. When we were able, we returned to this house and entered into a lease / purchase arrangement with the current owner (who bought the house from us), but we are effectively renters at this point.

While we were away both of our neighbors moved and new neighbors moved in. One neighbor has been fine - polite and no problems, but the other has chronic allergies and has asked us to mow our lawn every 48 - 72 hours and remove all of our landscaping. Obviously we said no, but, of course he found his way onto the HOA board and is sending the current owner violations left and right out of spite. (We've lived here a combined total of 5.5 year. The first 4.7 years, we never recieved a violation, but the last 9 months, we've recieved 10 violations).

This became too much for the current owner and she turned the management to a property manager who simply says "correct it or we'll do it and bill you".

The main reason the fence needs a power wash (after the last power wash 4 month ago) is because this same neighbor mows / "burns" his lawn constantly. It's the only side out of compliance. The rub is that he attached a 3/4 fence to mine and has sole possession of my fence. I can't even access that side of the fence without hopping his fence, but he expects me to pay for cleaning his mess.

I've searched but can't find any relavant case law / president and the HOA covenants don't provide any clarification.

Who maintains that side of the fence?

Answer: Garden pump sprayer with a mix of Clorox, TSP , Jomax and a 6' ladder. Wash it from your side. If it was mine I would crank up the chain saw and cut it down and plant a row of Ligustrum.


Title: Unlawful Arrest?

Question:
My fiance was pulled over last night because one of his headlights shorted out while he was on the road. A police officer happened to be right there to nab him.

Upon pulling him over and running his plates, he was informed that he was being taken to jail for evading court for expired tabs??

Not only are our tabs NOT expired, but we never received a summons, and the ONE incident where our tabs were out of date (last year, november?) We were told we weren't getting a ticket and that we need to go get them updated ASAP, which we did.

So my fiance (and caretaker, as I'm disabled) is currently being held in jail until Monday where they plan to take him to court.
Not only is he going to lose his job over this, but I have no way to care for myself in his absence.

What do I do?

Edit: This took place this morning at 1am in St. Cloud, MN.
Topic:
Traffic and Parking

Answer: That's not an unlawful arrest. If you want to help, hire a lawyer for him.


Title: [IL] I (cyclist) was in a hit-and run, but I got the plates. What can I do?

Question:
About a year ago, I was biking in the city of Chicago when a black Ford Explorer blew through a stop sign, hit me and dragged me for about 15 feet, then drove away. Luckily, my bike took most of the hit, so I was able to jump aside and drag my bike with me to get away. There were about six witnesses who happened to be walking/driving nearby, so we got the plates, but it was dark so nobody saw the driver's face.

The police were called, a report was filed, and I refused medical attention because I wasn't seriously hurt and I had shitty health insurance.  When I followed up with the police after not hearing anything for several months, they said there was nothing they could do unless I could identify the driver in a lineup (which I couldn't).

I want to see some legal action against this asshole, mostly just to look them in the face, but also maybe to get some reimbursement for my totaled bike and loss of transportation (about $350 total). I know the burden of proof for a civil suit is less than for a criminal one, so my question is, can I file a lawsuit with what information I have (police report, bike shop estimate, public transit receipts, make/model/plates of the car)? Unfortunately I didn't get the names or numbers of the witnesses because I was distracted by having just been run over by a car, and I don't think they made it into the police report (thanks, CPD!).

I know 'John Doe' subpoenas are a thing, but can I do that for such a small civil claim? Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Answer:
 [Here's a bit of info for you.](http://www.wikihow.com/Find-a-Vehicle's-Registered-Owner-Using-a-License-Plate-Number)  You need to do what you can to identify the owner of the car that hit you.  Keep a receipt for any fees you have to pay.

You should file a small claims suit for the cost of your bike.  You won't need a lawyer.  If your small claims suit is successful, you'll get a judgement from the other party.  You can supply the judgement to the police to add to your police report and they might continue to take action on it.


Title: What crime can you be charged with for setting a small fire in a public right of way?

Question: If you bring your own wood and start a fire, I’m sure it’s illegal but it’s also certainly not arson, so what is the name of that crime/violation and what penalties could be associated with it?

Answer:
 Depends on what state/county/city, and an array of specific factors, such as where the land is, and whether the fire damaged, or risked damaging, anything.

Based on those factors, it could be legal, or it could be a non-criminal violation, a misdemeanor, or a felony.

So, the short answer is, it depends


Title: Birth center closed after bad practices exposed; Do I have to pay for my services there?

Question:
I had my baby last year at a stand-alone (owned and operated by midwives, not associated with a hospital) birth center (BC). There were some things that we were unhappy about regarding the care I and my baby received there. Some things went beyond the unprofessional and were definitely unsafe/illegal.

We did not pay in full before the baby was born, as is their usual policy, because I transferred to the BC late in my pregnancy after we moved from another state.

After the L&D, they had to resubmit some of my insurance stuff, and in the meantime of getting that straightened out, the birth center came under legal fire and became too busy for a while to work out a payment plan with me.
(details: A baby had died after supposed poor care of the mom/baby during her labor, and the midwife/-wives (not the ones who had been responsible for my care) taken to court because they did not transfer the mother to hospital when they clearly should have. The primary midwife was charged with homicide but not sentenced and her license was not stripped. The BC was forced to close as a result.)

Now that I am finally talking to my former midwife about payments... Am I required to pay for my services there? What should/can I do since I received improper care? I don't think I can afford a lawyer... all I want is to not have to financially support a midwife group that acted unethically.

Note- I'm brand new to reddit, so please excuse me and let me know if I should make any edits... or if I need to elaborate on any details. And Thank you!!

ETA: The birth center is in the state of South Carolina. My midwife gave a shot to my son even though her license does not allow her to do so.

Illegal and unsafe practices: She attended the birth after admitting to less than 2 hours of sleep in the previous 24 hours and less than 8 hours in the previous 48 combined.

TL;DR: Do I have to pay the birth center where I gave birth if they've been closed since then? My widwife wasn't charged but she did do some unsafe things and at least one thing illegal.

Answer: Yes. Your debt to them is considered an asset to the business.


Title: Are we legally married or not?

Question:
I got married two years ago in the state of Tennessee.  We got a marriage license and my dad was ordained online and we did a simple ceremony in my dad's living room with my mom and her nurse as witnesses.

Now I just read online that as of 1998 onlive ordination is not accepted in Tennessee.

However we have a marriage certificate that was sealed by the county clerk's office.  I understand as of July 1st they're changing the laws so nobody ordained online would be acceptable in Tennessee, but it seems like it's been that way awhile.  Please help!

Answer:
 > However we have a marriage certificate that was sealed by the county clerk's office.

If you have an official marriage certificate, you're legally married.Answer #2: If the clerk's office stamped you, you have a legal marriage.  There's no requirement for a religious ceremony in order to recognize a marriage, whether the officiant is recognizeably ordained or not.Answer #3: Unless the people commenting on this post have case law stating that a marriage certificate is a de jure marriage not subject to challenge in court, this post is full of bad advice. Marriages can be challenged in court sometimes. For an example, NC previously held that Universal Life Church marriages are voidable (There were marriage certificates FYI) but statutes have changed and there is a federal case out of California that recognized the church as a tax exempt religious org that may render Tennessee's statute invalid. I have no idea about Universal Life church marriages now a-days in NC BTW.


Title: (PA) one of my roommates took a photo of me without my permission or knowledge, is there anything I can do about this. They have already shared it with one person.

Question:
I am a 25 year old woman living in Philadelphia, PA. In the last few months it’s been extremely hot in my home, I have been wearing shorts to combat the hot temperatures. I have a thick thighs. So my shorts ride up...... I suppose someone thought it be okay to take a photo of me and send it to my landlord stating my attire makes them uncomfortable. We are human we are allowed to feel a lack of comfort whenever we please. However my problem is the photo. I’m not sure who else this photo was send to. I told my landlord to please inform me who took the photo. But she will not. I am extremely uncomfortable with my photos being shared without my permission. Is there anything I can do about this?

I want to mention the Roomate thought the shorts were underwear even though they came to my mid thigh. They took the photo as the shorts has began to ride up and I was pulling them down looking away. Could this be categorized as revenge porn. I know it’s tricky but it was preserved as underwear so if distributed or taken without someone’s permission can it fall under those guidelines.

Answer:
 > Is there anything I can do about this?

No.


Title: I found the person using my pictures to catfish (NYC)

Question:
For the past year, someone has been using my pictures on different social media, using a variation of my first name (Eg: If my name is Kristina, they would go by Tina). I’ve reported them to Tinder, Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, Tumblr, etc., with varying levels of success- accounts will get deleted, then pop up again. I’m a grad student, and I’ve been confronted by people on campus (mostly women) who have interacted with the catfish online, and some of the things they’ve written online have been very sexually charged.

 I have my own business, and social media is a big part of my brand, so it’s impossible to fully lock my stuff down, and I am very concerned about my reputation.

Anyway, a friend matched with the catfish on tinder, chatted with them, and did some detective work. My friend linked the catfish to an email address matching someone in my graduate program, that I did a group project with last year. I confronted the person, but they denied it, and refused to engage with me.

What is my next step- can I go to my school or a lawyer, or the police? This person hasn’t threatened me, but their behavior is very odd.

Thanks for any advice.

Answer:
 Go to the school. Report it. This is absolutely something you should report and your university has personnel to help you deal with this

Also file a report with police. Campus or city.

And it never hurts to contact an attorney.

I’d advise not confronting the person you suspect of doing this. Not yet. Let campus, cops, lawyers do it ... and follow their advice.

What they are doing to you is not legal. At the least, it’s harassment. Maybe identify theft. An attorney will give you a laundry list of the litany of wrongness here.

Sorry this is happening to you! Answer #2: Who took the photographs being used? If you own the copyright a DMCA takedown is probably a faster way of getting the accounts nuked, as well as creating a paper trail of incidents.Answer #3: File police and school reports- if a person is impersonating you this much, something is very wrong with them, and they're somewhat obsessed with you. Start a paper trail now.

No healthy person does something like this.Answer #4: This has happened to me a lot. I trademark my working name and I’ve had no problem getting people to take things down off the internet when it comes to them trying to profit off my name; but it is very time consuming.

I’ve also had many people send me my picture being used in other locations for things like Tinder, and it’s difficult to have them remove my pic then.


Title: Sexually harassed/assaulted at former job. Received low settlement offer and not my old position back. [NJ]

Question:
I made a post earlier but it got buried and I left out details so I would like to try this again.

In October 2017 I left my job due to a third incident of sexual harassment. The first two incidents occurred in May 2017 and when the second time it happened I notified HR. I didn’t know at the time what action they took with the manager who did this to me. So a few months later in October, the same manager groped me at work. The next day I sent a resignation letter to HR telling them what happened. They called me and spoke to me and told me that they told him that he was never supposed to be alone with me unless he spoke to my boss. They never told me this and it made me furious because I know if I did know this I wouldn’t have been put in that situation in the first place.

I filed for unemployment which I later granted, filed a police report without pressing charges and hired a lawyer. My lawyer contacted my old job and sent them a demand letter. After that happened they fired the manager and offered me my old job back and if I didn’t accept it then they would be willing to settle with me. I still was angry, upset and riddled with anxiety so I didn’t accept their offer of me going back to work. However, in March I asked my lawyer if the offer was still on the table and he told me he would let me find out. So yesterday he emailed me and said that they’re offering me $5,000 without returning to my job. He said in the email that he suggested the next action will be mediation.

That email left me very upset because I was a very solid employee. Also, months prior they offered me my position back WITH compensation. And lastly the fact that they won’t take me back and lowballed me so hard is truly upsetting. This isn’t about the money because I really just wanted to return. But I feel so insulted that they said no and offered such a low amount.

Basically I have two questions:
1.) Is it normal in situations like this for a company to first offer you such a low amount of money?
2.) What is mediation like? And is there any chance in the mediation where I could possibly still be offered my job back?

Thank you.

Answer:
 1) Yes. It's called *negotiating.* They want to work up to a number they're comfortable with. Not throw it out at the beginning and then you demand *more* than that.

2) Mediation is just a back and forth where to try to settle. You'll likely be in one room and they will be in another. The mediator will go back and forth between the rooms trying to get you guys to meet somewhere in the middle. The mediator will likely tell you the strengths and weaknesses of your case as they see them. Is it possible they'll offer your old job back? Maybe. But they did at one point, you turned it down, and then some time passed between then and now. That gives them some leverage.


Title: [UPDATE] California CPS. Adoption questions.

Question:
[Here](http://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/33euoy/californiacpsdont_know_what_to_do_or_what_is_the/) is my original post.

The second hearing is May 15.

Currently, the case worker is making a reunification plan, but also doing a concurrent plan for adoption.

I went to California and saw my daughter (mom).  I don't think the reunification plan is going to work.  If she fails, then the entire family is in agreement that I should adopt the 2 year old.

The caseworker said that it is too early for him to be placed with me as mom needs to visit, etc as she does the reunification plan.  They also said that if a local family adopted him, they would require them to allow sibling visits, etc.

Would they adopt him to a local stranger due to sibling proximity over adopting him to out of state Grandma (me)?  Is that a real concern?  Would they do that?

I also have one major dilemma.  My work requires me to be on an oil rig for two weeks at a time.  I am single so there is no one available to watch a small child while I work.

I do have a second job, waiting tables.  If I quit my oil field job, I can get by on my server earnings, but I'd have no insurance, etc.  I would have to have help with child care, but I think that free child care is available for low-income people through the county here.

I am not sure if it would be better to look for a live in sitter and keep my current job...or be home and poor.  Should I be proactive about this and do something now...or wait to see what they say about it during the adoption investigations?

Other than the job issue and the proximity issue, I don't think there would be a problem with me adopting.  I have no criminal background or anything.

Answer:
 >
Would they adopt him to a local stranger due to sibling proximity over adopting him to out of state Grandma (me)?

Yes. You are not local so placement with you now would mean mom could not reunify. Reunification is their goal. Also, you are not a good placement honestly. You work two jobs and work out of town frequently.

It is unlikely that you would be an option unless something happens with the current foster adopt placement after mom fails to reunify. Sorry but it is not in the child's best interest. By the time it gets to adoption the child will be bonded with the foster parents and local siblings. Ripping the child from all that is familiar is not in the child best interest (at this time)


Title: Ca state ref for "Modified Exhaust", the exhaust is stock.

Question:
Hey guys,

Don't really know where else to ask,  so I figured I'd utilize what resources I have and ask here!

So the story: I was heading home from work last night and I take what is a very notorious canyon here in socal called "the snake" (Mulholland Highway).  This area is heavily patrolled with aggressive law enforcement presence, knowing this I drive like an 80 year old grandma here.  Sure enough I pass the lookout and there are 2 cops sitting there.  I pass them well below the speed limit but to my surprise I still get lit up.  I pull over not worried as my car is completely STOCK.  However, my car is a 1986 Toyota MR2, and the muffler happens to be rusting.  I kid you not when I say the sound of the muffler has only changed within the last 2 days.  I ordered a new muffler and resonator yesterday, earlier in the same day I was cited.

So during the stop I give them my paperwork and show everything is as it should, and to my surprise they hit me with "You're getting cited for a modified exhaust".  I try and explain that it is not modified, and that I haven't had the car long and am restoring it, I ordered a muffler literally today, etc.  Doesn't matter and I don't want to push it as I know these guys are just doing their assigned job (to scare enthusiasts out of that canyon).

My question is this:  The muffler I ordered will probably not pass the state ref inspection, I don't think this car with a brand new factory muffler would even pass as it is mid engine and the exhaust is extremely short.  Is there some sort of appeal I can do to show that this wasn't a modified exhaust?  It is not functioning as it should and I understand this, but I had already taken measures to correct this previous to the citation.  Also, I really don't want to pay the fee, which online I am seeing some very high numbers.  I bought this car for $1,800 and will not pay a fine that is a significant portion of the purchase price.

This isn't the most pressing issue, but I work a LOT and don't really have time to deal with stuff like this and feel I became collateral damage in what the officers and city are trying to achieve up there.  I just wanted to get home.

Thanks!!!

Answer: Just an FYI: although I can't speak for California, in every state I've had to deal with auto rules the year the car was manufactured is the basis for what is considered "legal". If that muffler would have been legal when the vehicle was manufactured then it's usually legal. Same goes with how far tires can stick out, bumper height, etc.


Title: Okay- this sounds super weird. Where do I find a lawyer who will send a cease and desist through Facebook? I'm not kidding

Question:
I have been harassed, insulted, and bullied by someone over messenger for the last day.

The admins of the group it started in decided to issue us both a warning, instead of kicking her out or punishing her. I didn't reply to any messages other then to say stop messaging me, or to correct lies she told.

I've talked to my parents and they want to contact Facebook over it but I know how useless that is. They said that then they think sending a cease and desist will get the point across- and have tasked me with finding a lawyer to do it.

Here's the thing: I don't know her or her adress. I'd essentially like it if she was sent a Cease and desist through Facebook messenger, by a law firm. I know it's pretty as hell but she does this all the time to other people and I'm sick of it.

Does anyone know if this is even legally possible? Like- is it something that they can do? If so how do I contact someone and ask them to do it?

PS: anyone have any contacts at Facebook that can help lol!

Answer: No reputable attorney will do this. It’s not valid service, for one. It also detracts significantly from the impact of a C&D.


Title: Ex-friend trying to call in my gf's debt (NYC/NJ)

Question: removed for privacy

Answer:
 It's extremely difficult to believe that Kate actually made the agreement that Jane is telling you she made. With those loan terms, it would take almost ten years for Jane to finish paying.

But in general, if a borrower has been fulfilling the terms of the loan, the lender cannot unilaterally change those terms.


Title: A mess involving a once night stand with an affluent girl, DUI and possession.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Are you quite sure that you aren't being scammed? Because this sounds like the set up to a scam.

It really doesn't matter what you say. If you say the drugs are yours, she'll still likely be convicted. She was, after all, driving under the influence while in possession of drugs. Admitting it to anyone won't help her, but it *will* open you up to charges of your own.Answer #2: > she becomes compelled to have me forfeit all the drugs I have to here

I don't think we're getting the whole story.  But, don't be an idiot.  Get an attorney if you get arrested.  Don't speak to her lawyer or the police without that attorney present.
Answer #3: Don't meet with her lawyer. No way. That guy's only goal is to protect his client from a drug charge and pin it all on you.  He's not your friend. You aren't "working together to figure this out" or whatever he told you. He's the enemy and you are only helping him by talking to him.Answer #4: > she becomes compelled to have me forfeit all the drugs I have to here

That's one of the most interesting ways I've ever heard anyone say, "I gave her some drugs." Congrats!


Title: What happens if I stop paying for my Mexican timeshare?

Question:
I bought a timeshare in Mexico, and after paying off about 30% of the purchase price, I would like to give it back to the resort, but they won't take it. After doing some online research, I've come to realize that US-based timeshare companies may take a non-payer to court.

But what about the resorts in Mexico? Can I simply ignore their threats?

Answer: There's nothing to stop them from hiring a lawyer and suing you in the US.


Title: I'm supposed to go to a trial in March - I moved from NY to Palm Springs California - can they make me go ?

Question:
Long story short - over 3 years ago I remember an accident occurred behind me on an expressway when I lived in NY - I slowed down because I was scared and concerned - the person behind me took down my license plate and since then I've had depositions scheduled for over 3 plus years - they even took fake photos of a car and tried to blackmail me saying I scraped against another car coming from oncoming traffic

Anyway, after my deposition, me and the other 2 parties of this scenario put in our max amount from our insurance companies. I prayed that this would be settled. They said it would take only a few months to see whether or not the people in the accident would accept the settlement or it would move to trial.

5 months later, as life happens, my husband and I decided to move to california we he had a great opportunity for work. Yesterday I get the email there will be a trial in march.

What do I do? Pay for the flights all the way across the country? Does my free lawyer that came from the insurance company take my place?

Thanks so much for your suggestions!

Update: my lawyer from NY called and I found out the trial isn't in march, but it is the day when lawyers pick the jury. If it goes trial In April or May, I will most definitely have to go and my lawyer from insurance company put in a request to have my travels paid. Since my mom lives in Ny, they did not put in a request for accommodation, just travel and rental car.

Here is what concerns me: the other two parties involved (the SUV who almost hit me and the car who actually hit the person who is pointing all these fingers) did not propose any money from their insurance companies. One of them had a limit 50,000, the other 100,000 and those insurance companies did not offer anything.

I said to my lawyer hold on, the other parties did not offer anything? He said it was correct that the insurance companies defending the people did not.

Does this make me look guilty that we offered and the other insurance companies did not?
I have an outside lawyer I've been speaking with who has been speaking to my insurance company lawyer as well. She also agreed at the time to offer max limit thinking the other parties would offers theirs and the case would be dismissed. It looks like that didn't happen and I'm thinking this could really take me down. The opposing lawyers are "no Joke" and I've heard they can take people down really hard into serious debt.

Answer: If you are subpoenaed, then yes.  Talk to your attorney.


Title: I live in an apartment upstairs and the store downstairs got condemned.

Question: So yesterday I woke up to a bunch of people outside my house making a commotion. Just make a long story short, the owner of the store downstairs called the building inspector and the store is now closed and condemned downstairs. The police/inspector/fire marshall did not come upstairs to my apartment, am I fine or what? My landlord has not been in touch with anyone in the complex to this minute. It says "111 ave has been condemned." I don't know what to do right now, any advice at all would be a godsend. I live in upstate New York by the way.

Answer: Contact the building dept in your city/town/county and ask them if the building you live in has been condemned and if it  has a valid certificate of occupancy on file. Some jurisdictions use the word condemned more.....freely than they should. It could just mean the downstairs business was doing unsafe/unsanitary things and the actual building is fine. OTOH, it could mean the whole building is unfit, but if that were the case the persons who closed the ground floor should have gone to the other units too.


Title: [California] Told my landlords that rent will be late. Will they kick me out?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 They are allowed to give you a three day notice to pay rent once you're late, and then they can legally initiate an eviction. That is California state law.

You *do not* want an eviction on your record. The best thing to do is work something out with them, if they're amenable.


Title: Florida, Grandmother gave property and states that I can only sell it to her family

Question:
This is about some property in Florida, inherited from my dead grandmother. I am 26
I inherited some property from my grandmother after she passed away, that was actually my dads property, and the property was supposed to be inherited from my dad, but because of grandma's name on the deed she got it instead, and then passed it to me after she died. I am getting ready to sell the property, and I see at the bottom that it says that "This property is not to be mortgaged, and can only be sold to (the grandmothers family), or her grandchildren". This should not be an issue, because this was my fathers land, and she was only on the deed because she looked out for the place while he was away.

Anyways, all of my grandmothers children are either dead, or are addicted to Crack, and there is no chance that they will be in the market for this property anytime soon. I think my grandma just screwed me out of the property my dad left me. But is this in anyway legally binding? Could I just go to the Clerks office, and record a new deed that from me to me, that doesn't state that it has to be sold to my grandmothers family? If I sell it, could I get sued (not that anyone  really would do so), or if I try to sell it, would the county clerks office stop the sale until I can identify the person as "grandchild"?

Any advice would be great, and thank you in advance.

Answer:
 Restrictive covenants are not valid in Florida unless your grandma has a "valid business interest" in the restriction. Since she has passed, she has no interest.

http://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0500-0599/0542/Sections/0542.335.htmlAnswer #2: Not a FL attorney but some restrictions such as this can be valid, others not enforceable. You probably want an attorneys opinion and assistance in drafting any transaction documents to avoid issues like the recorder not recording the transaction or being denied title insurance. Answer #3: This sounds fishy.  Go to the court house and check the deed there.

Grandma is dead and a restrictive covenant like that is unlikely to exist.


Title: This may be a dumb question, but I'm curious about the legality behind the confiscation and withholding of a high school student's cell phone for a day or many days in a row.

Question: I started my first day of senior year this morning, and in homeroom they went over the cell phone policy which basically states that if a cell phone is seen by a teacher they may take it up and the school will hold it for a to-be-determined amount of time. I haven't had any issues with my school and I don't see it being a problem at all, I'm just curious as to what extent they are legally able to seize my property. I tried searching online and I couldn't see find any verifiable information regarding the subject, so I figured I'd ask here. Thanks.

Answer:
 The school can withhold your stuff from you more or less as freely as your parents can.

If your parents are unhappy with it, they can likely compel the school to return your property to them. The school doesn't have a legal right to keep private property indefinitely. However, if you get your phone back through your parents and bring it into class again, it's just going to get confiscated again.


Title: Fired for an injury . Washington state

Question:
r/legaladvice
Wrongful termination injury
u/djzeo
Hi I worked for a Fortune 500 company in wa state , last Monday I fell out of a bay door and injured my face and back in front of 3 temps and a manager . The manager never filed a report and sent me home early to rest . Come Friday my face was still swollen , I mention I might have to see a dr . They immediately find something to fire me for saying I was stealing time walking to the break room , yet it was to talk to the onsite staffing manager about an employee and he can verify that. 100% work related. Basically they didn't want to ding their safety score so they fired me before I could claim it. I have pictures and am going to dr today. What kind of recourse do I have in this situation

The manager broke protocol by not immediately filing a injury report . I've never missed days and only had one write up that I've signed ever in 3 years . So they didn't follow termination protocol as well.

I loved my job and everyone there loved me too . Any help would be great thx you

Answer:
 First, get your ass to a doctor.

File a complaint with the state dept of labor and/or get a consultation from a local worker's comp attorney or three.  Consultations should be free and if you have a case they usually work on contingency for percentage of settlement.

  Dept of labor complaint might be quicker.  If it's a big company, someone higher up in HR will sort it out quickly.

http://www.lni.wa.gov/WorkplaceRights/ComplainDiscrim/Termination/default.asp
Answer #2: Consult with a workers comp plaintiff attorney. Answer #3: Yeah lawyer up immediately...

But don't forget to go to the doctor.  Settlement won't do you much good if you're dead 💀 Answer #4: Yep go to the doctor ASAP. That's the only immediate thing you can do right now.

Them firing you sucks and you won't likely will not get your job back, I'm sure you wouldn't want to go back anyways. Them firing you also won't help with any kind of safety score, you will still be covered under their workers compensation.

Your steps after the doctor would be to file for unemployment, then get consultations from attorneys.


Title: Employee misclassification lawsuit -NYC -options

Question: I worked for a company for a month which refused to pay me OT and classified me as an independent contractor to avoid paying taxes. I reported them to the DOL and want to file an SS-8 form. Apparently I won't see any Back-pay for lost wages if I do this. Does anyone know any other ways I can get this unethical employer to pay me for the work that I've done? I don't feel like spending thousands of dollars to go after a shady employer.

Answer: The SS-8/8919 is just about getting your tax situation in order, but the Department of Labor will pursue your employer for the owed overtime on your behalf if you file(d) a wage claim. Alternatively, you can sue in small claims if the missing amount is less than $5k.


Title: [UK] Divorce Entitlements after short, one-sided marriage

Question:
I've been married for 9 months, and we've been living together for a total of about 3 years. My wife is now saying how much she hates being with me, hates living here, and how she wants out and wants a divorce. Awful news, and not how I feel in the slightest, but she's not even willing to work on things and I feel there's nothing I can do.

She then goes on to say how she is not going to just walk away, and how she's entitled to half of everything because we're married.

When I say "everything", we have:

* The house, which I owned before we met and which I am still the sole name on both the deeds and the mortgage
* The car, which is paid for in half by part-exchanging her old car - which was hers outright - and in half by a loan that is solely in my name (Due to her credit rating)
* Our pet dog, who is registered solely in her name (Because the registration paperwork requires one name, not a couple)
* Various other possessions - furniture, etc - that in total are worth less than either of the above
* Some debts - some in my name, some in hers - that we're currently paying off just fine, but they are still outstanding.

On top of that, she has not worked a single day since we've been married, and she's worked a total of maybe 3 or 4 months in the time she's been living up here. Not from lack of trying, but she's had health problems and has struggled to find work and to keep it when she has found them.

What is the legal entitlements here? Is she actually able to decide to walk away and talk half of everything I own even though she's barely contributed towards it herself?
Topic:
Non-US

Answer:
 Hi, this sub is mostly for US and Canadian legal advice. The UK has it's own legal advice sub /r/legaladviceUK you should try posting this there for more accurate information or seek advice from a licensed solicitor.

That said you may find [this](https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/relationships/relationship-problems/ending-a-marriage/#h-financial-arrangements-at-the-end-of-a-marriage) helpful.


Title: I really need help. What just happened.

Question: Ok. So my girlfriend and I just got caught having sex at the park by a cop. He got us out of the car and was rather nice about it. He took our ids and asked us if we had a record. Neither of us do. We both have clean records. I'm a premed student who plans on going to medical school and I'm so scared. He walked us to his card and typed stuff in then walked out and gave us our ids back. He said that it happens all the time and to not do it again. He didn't say anything about a warning or a ticket. I'm just worried that this might show up on my record one day when I'm applying to medical school. Can anyone explain what happened? This happened in the Texas.

Answer:
 He was checking you for warrants or if you had a suspended licence, orders against you etc. He may have generated a small incident report, he may not have, that would be department policy specific.

Don't sweat this too much, there was no citations given so you'll likely not hear about this again. If you get contacted about it again then start taking actions to protect yourself. Otherwise, it sounds like he was not all that interested. Just don't continue the habit, find a more private place (indoors preferably).


Title: Found Money in Missouri

Question:
Last week I found upwards of $1000 outside my apartment building with no identifying information attached to it. I looked up the laws in Missouri, and saw that I was legally obligated to turn it in or I could face a fairly serious penalty. SO, I did that today, expecting that if it went unclaimed at the station for a certain time period, I might be able to claim it. However, the woman working the desk said she didn't think that was the case in Missouri, and I wasn't really able to find anything online to say one way or another.

Does anyone know if I have any sort of right to the money if it goes unclaimed for a certain period, or is it another donation to Uncle Sam at this point?

Answer:
 As a lawyer I advise you to turn back time and keep the money.Answer #2: You wouldn't have any right to it unless you proved it belonged to you. Sorry to say this but you shouldn't have turned the money in.

There are cases where you can keep the money even if it's clear the owner of the house/trailer/whatever did not intend to give the money as well, but you basically forfeited that when you gave it up.

This is one of those cases where doing the right thing doesn't pay off. Sorry, but thanks for turning the money in.


Question:
20, flying US domestic, can I take a bottle of wine in my checked bag?

Edit: Missouri to the DC area, if it matters.

Are the state laws regarding underage possession of alcohol different?

Answer: No.Answer #2: No.  You can't possess alcohol, at all.


Title: [MI] Guy messed my front end up in may. Insurance only pays out $1,000, but I have $1,600 worth of damages. How do I go about getting the other $600?

Question:
In early may, I was driving to the gym, when the guy in front of me cut over real hard. He ended up hitting a chunk of roofing material, that was then kicked up straight into my front end. The guy that was hauling the material didn't have anything to hold it down and it was stacked above his roof. He received a ticket for not properly having his stuff tied down.

Where/how do I take the guy to small claims, and what can I best do to get my car fixed? I just need it to ideally last me another year and change. I'd like for it to not be a rust bucket so itll have *some* trade in value.

Answer:
 Who's insurance paid out the $1k? His? Did you sign anything when they paid you?

I ask, because if it was his insurance that paid you, then they almost certainly had you sign a release of all claims as a condition of receiving the payment. In which case you're SOL and cannot sue.


Title: About to lose it. Know about boss drug use. Getting fired. Help.

Question:
First I would like to say I'm on mobile so I apologize for any gramattical/spelling errors etc. For the past year and a half ish I have worked for a nation wide big box store in Idaho.  They have attendance policy where you can be late/miss work 9 times before being submitted for termimation and theybroll off 6mo after perfect attendance.

I'm not claiming to be a perfect employee I have missed days, bu t recently my schedule has been changing with no notification after its posted. I was late several more times which put me into being submitted to corporate for termination. When I tried to bring up its changing after its posted and nobody is telling me they said it hasn't been changed because they can tell and that I should have been there when I was "supposed" to be.

After that date I watched my schedule like a hawk, I checked Friday night after schedules were posted and I wasn't working for 5 days. Checked sat night before bed and a shift appeared for Sunday morning opening shift. Happened again a few days later, but because I was watching I have been taking screen shots before and after it was changed.

Im beginning to think its happening because my hoss knows that i know about his and other management/suoervisors drug use. I dont care that they do drugs but i guess mayne they do.So fast forward to yesterday and I look at the schedule and my name is nowhere on it for next week. I texted my boss that not only do I have no hours next week but I'm not even on the schedule anymore. His response was that when he made the schedule it had shifts for me on it. How is it not possible for my schedule to change when it benefits them to put me up for termination but the now I guess its possible?

So now I'm working having no idea what to do. What I can do. Its a right to work state here. I just need some advice, I have been submitted for termination just waiting for the paperwork from corporate to make it official. Sorry if this doesn't make a whole lot of sense.

Tldr- schedule changes randomly and makes me late, boss says it has not changed. Submit me for termination because of attendance. Pic/text proof of it changing. And  management k ows I know about their drug use.

Answer: There's no legal recourse for you here. File for unemployment.


Title: Will I be fired for attending my baby's birth?

Question:
A few specific details.

I have only worked for the company for 3 months. I verbally informed my employer several times that my wife and I are expecting a child any day now since I was hired. I have been late 2 times since I was hired, and called in sick once, and called off work during my shift once, the policy states that the 4th time will result in termination/review. My boss gave me permission to go home when I called off during my shift, and when I came up for review, he vouched for me so I was not terminated.

I thought of FMLA and OFLA, but both require 30 days written notice. Which I did not do because I didn't even know these existed.

There has been a lot of "office drama" over the last couple weeks, and I'm worried that if I end up taking time off for the birth that I will either be terminated, or I won't have my old position back. And I've been working 40 hours a week for the last couple weeks, and 32 for all the rest that I have worked for the company. They still consider me part time.

Please help, is it unreasonable to say that I want my regular schedule back when I return? I want to be at my babies birth and I'm the only one with a job right now, so if I did get fired, we'd be fucked.

Answer:
 You do not qualify for FMLA. You have to have worked there for 12 months. So there is no requirement for them to let you off work for any reason (other then authorized sick or vacation pay situations)Answer #2: You haven't been there for 12 months, so you unfortunately do not qualify for FMLA.

Have you tried to talk to HR people, or your boss, and get approval internally for a couple days unpaid?


Title: Can I quit my Job if..

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You can quit for any reason. It is up to them if they want to hire you back.