Title: Can my aunt sue as a third party beneficiary? Need to know ASAP!

Question:
Location: San Antonio Texas
My aunt is trying to sue.

My aunt's husband (Joe) was killed in San Antonio by a telephone pole that fell and struck him when he was getting into his car. The pole was brought down because a truck nearby hit a Southwestern Bell Cable that was sagging from the pole. But, the pole itself was owned by the city of San Antonio.

Under the Texas Utility Code the minimum clearance for a cable to hang is 15 feet but the cable the truck hit was sagging at 13 feet. The sagging was caused by the gradual rotting and deterioration of the pole that had occurred over 16 years of its use. The driver of the truck was driving safely and is not at foul here. The pole itself, being owned by the city of San Antonio, was subject to a Joint Use Agreement which had a ton of provisions that established the duties relating to the maintenance of the pole, the facilities attached to the poles, and clearance requirements. My aunt is trying to sue. Can she sue Southwestern Bell for breaching the Joint Use Agreement as a third party beneficiary????
Topic:
Contracts

Answer:
 I don't even think she would need to be a third-beneficiary. She likely has standing as the spouse of the person killed. Regardless this is not something to do on her own. As everyone said she needs an attorney to do this. This is the kind of case a PI attorney would do on contingency assuming they feel you have a valid claim and haven't settled already in some capacity. Answer #2: She is going to need to speak to a lawyer about this.

It's theoretically possible but it would depend on a lot of the specific details. I'd definitely recommend speaking to attorney about this - she very well could have case and there's no harm in asking.Answer #3: She should sue for wrongful death instead, with the city AND utility company as the defendants. The code would definitely work in her favor, but suing for enforcement of the code is unlikely.


Title: US,TX What can and cannot a therapist legally tell a minor's guardian/parent

Question:
I am a minor and would like to go to therapy, however having somewhat suicidal thoughts among other things, I would like to keep them private until I feel ready (if ever) to share them. My concern is that the therapist would share this information. Thank you for the help
Topic:
Juvenile and Youth Law

Answer:
 Most therapists will prioritize your privacy in most cases as it makes therapy more likely to be useful.  You will need your parents written consent and agreement to foot the bill. If your parents are cool and can respect boundaries, you're good as therapists rarely share info with parents unless parents ask/push. Your parents do have a right to all records if they want to be real dicks.

Suicidal thoughts do not have to be legally reported to anyone, including parents. Once you move to intent or making statements related to planning and attempting, safety always supersedes privacy.


Title: Made a cryptic countdown account and now might be in legal trouble...

Question: Alright, so this started yesterday when I decided to create a random Instagram account at 1 in the morning because I was bored. I was not sure what I wanted to do with this account until this morning. I had decided to turn it into a cryptic confusing countdown to winter break. I followed a lot of my school so people could see it. I then posted 3 pictures one was of people dressed up as smurf characters, the second was a black screen and it says "The clock is ticking", and on the third post I had a picture from a classroom inside my school saying that more clues were going to come and time was counting down. With it also saying below that "14th" (That is the day winter break starts) I am then walking around the halls when I find out that people assumed that my countdown was for a school shooting which was not my intent nor did I ever post any threats. So I decided that I should delete the account and tell the office that it was a misunderstanding but that's when they tell me that they have had police trying to "find my IP address and figure out who created the account" They then tell me that I wasted thousands of dollars of resources and could be charged with a felony if they choose to.. Not really sure what to do because I never made any threats nor did I intend what happened. What should I do?

Answer:
 You shouldn't do anything nor you cannot do anything.

If the police contact you, you should politely refuse to answer questions and hire a criminal defense lawyer. Answer #2: Shut up. Do not talk to anyone else about this except with your attorney. Hire a criminal defense attorney if you are charged.Answer #3: From a legal perspective you'll need to inform your parents and just keep your head down, you shouldn't speak to the police without a lawyer present and should absolutely NOT ANSWER QUESTIONS WITHOUT ONE, simply state that you will not speak without your lawyer being present. I cannot stress how much you should not answer questions without a lawyer present. Answer #4: so what the cops are alluding to is the crime of making terroristic threats, however the threat has to be credible and specific. are you absolutely sure that that's all you said? if so, the posts likely wont meet the legal test.

Dont talk to the police any further, even though you know you're innocent and no crime has been committed, they are going to attempt to get you to incriminate yourself to open you to criminal and civil liability, and they're good at it, they are going to manipulate your desire to help and to clear everything up to manipulate into saying something you may not realize will get you in trouble.


Title: Reckless driving w/ no objective evidence

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Search this forum for posts about reckless driving in VA. You can go to jail for it, and people do. You need an attorney


Title: Guy cut his hand while rooting through my garbage now he's suing me.

Question:
Every garbage night on my street there are a few people who push around shopping carts and fill them with bottles and cans.  While one of these guys was going through my garbage, he cut his hand on a double edged razor blade that i threw away when it got dull. I guess he needed a bunch of stitches.  now he's saying I booby trapped my garbage and is filing a criminal complaint and he's gonna sue me for thousands of dollars. does he have a case?

Edit: this is in New York State

Answer: I sense a troll thread, amigos.


Title: WI - Landlord only allows payment in money order through mail. In the last 4 years I've been renting from them, they haven't received my payment in the mail which requires a $25 stop order AND a rent late fee 4 times.

Question:
I've been renting from this company for 4 almost 5 years. When I first started renting from them, they allowed for money transfers from one bank to another which I used, then they changed company names and changed websites and for the last 3 years only allow rent payment in money order. I've never been late on my rent since beginning business with them other than the 4 times the money order was lost in the mail. I use pre-printed envelopes so I know it's not getting lost in transit due to bad hand writing. Every time the money orders were lost in the mail, I'd had to request a stop payment on the money order which is $25, as well as the late rent fee, which is $50. It's happened more in the last year than any other time before this and I've started fighting back on the late rent fee.

Is there anything I can really do other than just ask for forgiveness on the late rent based on good faith of never being late on rent in the past? I've already asked them to add money transfer between banks and they refuse. I'm at a lose as to what I can request since I'm not extremely familiar with the legal side of this.

Answer: Send it by certified mail. It's tracked and requires a signature when delivered. If Landlord claims they don't have it, but USPS has their signature on file, you have hard evidence you can use in court.Answer #2: What does the lease say exactly? Did they have this written in the lease or just tell you? If it isn’t in the lease you can pay by check. At least the stop fee will be less and you won’t have to pay the money order fee. Just take pictures of the check and the envelope every month, to show that you paid on time.Answer #3: Drop it off at the office?Answer #4: Send it by certified mail.. It's around $8.00


Title: Apartments & Pets

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Dog Law specialist here.

You materially breached the lease; of course they can evict you for this.


Title: I was involved in a car accident where the other driver ran a stop sign and their insurance said that we are equally at fault

Question:
I was driving through an intersection early in the morning before the sun came out. This intersection is just a few blocks from my home, so I was fully aware that the other direction had a stop sign and I did not. Just as I'm reaching the midpoint of the intersection, a car rolled out in front of me and I collided with it, totalling my car. The other driver admitted fault on the scene, police were called, but no report was filed because "we were being civil". This occurred in Colorado, which is an at fault state so I had to go through the other driver's insurance company. After taking my statement, they contacted me and said I was at equal fault for the accident because I didn't see the other car until it was in front of me (did they expect me to look to take my eyes off of the road in front of me??). I'm already in a tight spot with money and can barely afford to get a new car, let alone the rental I'm using while waiting for a settlement.

What legal action can I take? Should I pursue action against the police officer that failed to file a report? I suffered some injuries from the crash as well, is there a separate route to go for pursuing damages for those?

Answer: Contact your insurance company and file a claim. Let the insurance companies fight over who pays for it. This is one of the reasons why you pay for insurance, so they have to deal with this, not you.


Title: Are air wedge devices for automotive entry legal in Alabama?

Question: I work at a car rental place at an airport in Alabama. We have a kit like [this](https://www.galls.com/bigeasy-glo-lockout-tool-kit?PMSRCE=GAPLA&gclid=CjwKCAiAm7LSBRBBEiwAvL1-L52_WOfYnzoAkSU_TIY-6t2erU8h2NYP-AvW3fxyQbq1sMkoRw9_5xoCMGgQAvD_BwE) that we use (semi-)routinely to get keys out of locked cars. I've just been informed by our friendly law enforcement officer here that it's illegal to have one in our state and that there's a $5000 fine. Conveniently he is not going to "charge" us for using it. I sorta think he's full of shit. Is he?

Answer:
 They're illegal to possess only if there's an intent to commit a crime with them.

Unlocking cars that the company owns where the keys were accidentally locked inside is not a crime, so intent would be difficult to prove.


Title: I’m being sued and I’m scared to talk to the attorney

Question:
On mobile sorry for formatting.

Alright I’m young (20) and stupid and I have no idea how any of this works. I am being sued for a car accident I caused about two and a half years ago, I was driving my ex’s car with her insurance on it. Her attorney apparently is representing me even though I’ve never talked to him, and the law firm keeps calling me and texting me, and they showed up to my house the other day.

My mom is telling me not to have any contact with them, but I’m not sure if that’s the right thing to do. They just texted me telling me that I need to give them my information to prevent a default judgement from being made against me in court. Can anyone please help me? I’m so sorry if this is stupid, I really don’t know what to do here, I’m young and dumb and don’t know a thing about this stuff. If you need any more info let me know.

Answer: No offense, but in this situation your mom is an idiot. This is the attorney that's defending you against the lawsuit. It's their job to try to win for you. You do not want to make this person's job difficult or impossible. Unless your mom is going to pay the tens of thousands (or more) dollars in a default judgement against you.Answer #2: Her insurance covers your use of the car.  So they are defending you.  You absolutely SHOULD talk to them.  If there is a default judgement against you because you refused to cooperate, that may give insurance company an out so they don't have to pay anything on the claim leaving you holding the bag for any judgement against you.


Title: I might have a case for Chipotle.(RETALIATION) (Wrongfully Terminated.)

Question:
I live In New York State

I was fired recently and I do have some questions based on the event. I am not sure what the regulations are for Chipotle but I do feel that some actions on their part is unjustified.

Here is the event at hand..

I talked to my Manager recently on how he treated us at work. He would nit-pick and if you made one mistake (even though the rest was perfect and it's been awhile to make that mistake/slip up.) he would remind you that you did it wrong and correct you. It felt like you were walking on glass ( It didnt make me want to go to work anymore.)  and other employees felt the same way. At Chipotle we are encouraged to talk to our managers/workers to make sure the work environment is subtle to work in and that's what I did. However, After the discussion with her it felt that my job when down the hill.

1) I was promised and trained to be on cash for months and finally last month I was starting to get trained. ( I just needed one more lesson to be considered on cash.) they promised me more hours and pay while on cash. After the talk with her, I stopped getting time on cash and they kept making excuses on why. "oh you need to get better on line, you still lack the motives in line." even though they were already training me on cash.

2) They said I was a "distraction" at work. Which, I naturally have a loud voice. However, more than half of the time it was other people talking to me. I got all my work done,made sure the line was clean, The people I "distracted" were closing on time and there was no issue. I improved my coworkers moods and my other managers. (all commented towards me.) I was not a "distraction" or considered one until after the talk.

3) apparently ALL the managers felt this way but did not tell me. I never had a performance review, never given an 1 on 1 by a manager (no copy of writing of the issue.) I was however, talked to once that I  was distracting and to calm it down and I tried to ask how I was and they couldnt give me a clear answer on it. I had no "warning" which in NY STATE law you dont need one but the fact of the matter is I did my job correctly and if they worked with me and told me how 'serious" the issue was I would cooperate with them and work on my "distracting."

4) When I was fired there was only one manager in the room and it was the one that fired me. To my understanding in NY STATE you need TWO in the room.

I feel very cheated in this situation and I'm begging for some help. I am drowning in college loans and I am scrambling to find a job. Whatever comes of this I just want the people I worked with to be happier. thank you for reading this post and I hope for the best. I am not sure where to go from here.

Thank you.

Answer:
 >he would remind you that you did it wrong and correct you

What the heck is wrong with this?? That is his job.


Title: (CA) Littering ticket.... PLEASE HELP!

Question:
So I was smoking a cigarette, driving my way to work and a cop drives by, no problem at all. After I make the next turn I drop my cigarette out the window and the cop followed me to pull me over.

It's so common in my area to throw away cigarettes while driving that I thought nothing of it.
The officer told me I will receive a bill in the mail costing anywhere between $800-$1000. As a student who works part time to pay for classes and such, is there anything I can do to fight this?
 I know I littered, but paying $800 for doing something so common seems unfair to me.
The officer told me it was legal to smoke in the car, but where the hell am I supposed to throw it away? I've never seen anybody carrying an ash tray in the car to throw their cigarettes away. Please help!

Edit: I deserved it and admit my wrongs. I'm struggling financially at the moment and must have been too ticked off to think about what happened rationally. Thanks for the truths guys~

Answer:
 Yeah that's littering. You're "everyone does it" defense will not work.Answer #2: I don't normally comment with just an image, but here you go:

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31Qv0SMTWlL.jpg

That fits in a car cupholder and solves any future problems for under $10.


Title: Roommates going through my private belongings. I'm paying rent to them

Question: They have been going into my room when I am not home and rooting through my stuff. I pay them rent to live here. What are my options?

Answer: **Going through personal belongings and theft are the immediate distinctions here** (the whole invasion of privacy thing is hard to enforce). After all, you live together. It's certainly not the ethical thing to do, but ***the best way I would handle this is to either move or change the lock on your door.*** Once the lock is changed, you will then create a better case for yourself to enforce an action against the other roommates. But how ridiculous would that be while continuing to live there? So **I favor moving.**


Title: I want to take United Airlines to small claims court. They cancelled on me and are keeping my money

Question: [deleted]

Answer: This is your fault, so nothing. You should have figured out if they would cancel it for missing when you booked it. You need to read contracts you sign. You can't sue, all of your damages are because of you.Answer #2: So you missed your flight?


Title: Neighbor raised his lawn. Now mine floods. New Jersey

Question: My neighbor raised his law a good foot and s half resulting in my lawn flooding when it rains. This happened when my parents owned the house about 10 or so years ago. I now own the house and will be putting it on the market in about 5 years. Can I now raise my lawn so that it no longer floods? Neighbor had no permit to do this and my elderly parents didn't fight it.

Answer:
 After that much time has passed? Get the necessary permits and permissions to raise yours. Put in appropriate gravel traps/drains/sinkaways in order to keep unseen water from just pooling under your yard and affecting your foundation etc.

Literally a case of "I see your lawn and raise mine too."


Title: Can teachers legally confiscate and not return materials for senior prank? Also how much trouble could we be In if we re-do it? (TX)

Question:
So my senior class had planned a prank for this morning. We tried to make something that wouldn't be destructive of cause any issues with staff so we decided to have a water balloon fight outside in the passing period

Well as soon as the bell rang admin took all the coolers and the campus police drove over. The admin took probably 4 coolers  and about 100$ of water balloons. No water balloons were thrown at all, literally the coolers were just sitting on the ground and they took them. They didn't say anything about is getting them back and our school is known for taking phones, games etc and either charging students to get them back or just not even getting them back.

We are thinking of re-doing the prank tomorrow, and I know this isn't really a serious question, but is the school obligated to give me and others there property back and can they charge us and pop balloons? Also how much trouble could I get in legally if we redid the prank tomorrow ( asking since they brought police today)
I am in Texas

TLDR:
School confiscated water balloons and coolers and police were called over. Will I get my cooler back and how much trouble can I get in for re-doing the prank?

Answer:
 > a water balloon fight outside in the passing period

that is not really a prank, but kudos for not attempting something like felony vandalism

> We are thinking of re-doing the prank tomorrow

lol

> is the school obligated to give me and others there property back [in time for me to do what they stopped me from doing]

lol

> how much trouble could I get in legally if we redid the prank tomorrow

Possibly, a little bit. Realistically, a medium amount. Theoretically, a lot.


Title: (GA) Move-Out Landlord Woes

Question:
I am moving out of my apartment after 30 months.  My landlord is planning to keep my security deposit ($1150) and menacing me about my pet deposit ($500 refundable).  He states this is a reletting fee, which is mentioned in the lease.  He is also saying he can hold me accountable for rent until the lease is up.

MAJOR CAVEAT, I did not renew my lease last year.  He dropped it off to be signed, but we never signed it and he didn't ask about it anymore.  According to the lease, this puts the lease on a month-to-month basis.  He is acting as though he doesn't know this.  I have asked verbally, but not written, for a copy of the most recent lease; His response, "It's the same [in form] as the one initially signed at move in"

In order for the reletting fee to be valid I must either 1)move out before lease termination, 2)fail to give proper notice, or 3)be evicted.  Notice via email was given on 10 March (putting 60 days at 9 May).

As of now, he does not have a new tenant, and says as long as he doesn't have one I am liable for rent.

Regarding the pet deposit, before the lease was signed he verbally offered to replace the carpet (slightly damaged by a previous tenant's dog), we negotiated to not change the carpet and make the pet deposit refundable. There was a small stain during the walkthrough (has since been [wet-vac'd](http://imgur.com/A72Xg8L)) and he was threatening to charge me for cleaning the carpets from my pet deposit.  So in the span of 2.5 years the carpet went from disposable to "must be kept".  I read him our emails, and he said if we clean the spot he will give all/some of the pet deposit.

We asked 2 weeks ago for some sort of move-out checklist, "I don't do that".  Then during a walkthrough he noted 2 broken blind slats ([since replaced](http://imgur.com/2gNQJy6) ), a dirty oven ([since cleaned](http://imgur.com/CmdePCp)) and a drywall issue (location has been [previously repaired](http://imgur.com/zazGNlv), repair does not look of quality).  I have called a handyman to repair my damage (and give notes about the previous repair, reimbursement?)

So right now it seems I have a few advantages, but I'm unsure of how to proceed.  My gut tells me to pay a prorated 10-day rent on May 1 before demanding my deposit back, then proceeding to small claims court.  What else can be done?

Thanks for your time :)

Answer:
 Your lease has certainly reverted to a month-to-month, but have you given him a 30 day written notice of your intent to vacate?

It's sounds like you've done your due diligence in readying the apartment for re-let. It wasn't totally clear from your post: how much is his re-letting fee? I didn't look at your links or pictures though. You are not entitled to reimbursement for fixing things that you damaged. If he doesn't refund your deposit, send him another letter via certified mail with all your documentation and timeline, requesting your deposit be refunded. If he doesn't return it or almost all of it, take him to small claims court and let a judge decide.Answer #2: If as seems likely this is going to end up in small claims, make sure you take lots and lots and lots of photos on the day you move out. Like, photos of every single thing you can think of. If he fights you in court he's almost certainly going to try and claim that he's retaining your deposit to cover damages, so you'll want to be able to prove that there aren't any.


Title: I lost my phone at the river and now the person who found it wants $40 for it or else he’s keeping it.

Question: So long story short I lost my phone on Fourth of July on a river. I bought a new phone because I need one for work constantly but I could track the old one for a while and I saw someone had found it. It’s in lost mode so you can’t do anything with it if you don’t know the password to my Apple ID, but today my dad got a call because I had his number on the lock screen case someone found it and the guy said he found it but he wants $40 for the phone to be returned to me. I know it’s not a lot of money but can he do this? I just spent $600 to get a new phone so I really don’t wanna spend anymore money to get it back. Can I just have the police come with me and make them give me my phone back for free? I couldn’t find anything online about this and didn’t know where else to go for help.

Answer: You could certainly make a police report stating that you lost the phone and now the guy doesn't want to give it back that way you have documentation and then at that point the person will be in possession of stolen propertyAnswer #2: Tell them you’ll pay them the $40 and ask to meet somewhere public like a McDonald’s, etc. Call the cops and tell them this guy found your phone and is trying to extort you to get it back and you’d like an officer present at the meeting. Get there, retrieve phone, do not pay $40, officer ensures the twit doesn’t do anything overly stupid.Answer #3: You didn't list your state like you're supposed to, but this usually constitutes theft of lost or mislaid property. Tell the police.Answer #4: NAL, but can you pretend to agree, set up a meeting, then get a police escort? Answer #5: Just ask to meet up say you'll pay. Confirm its your phone and walk away. It's not his so what he's going to do?Answer #6: The only way I would think to ask for money is for shipping.  If shipping it with insurance is $40 that is only fair... But I doubt that is the case here.  That is also assuming you aren't local and could pick it up. Answer #7: Agree to the $40, ask him to meet somewhere, bring police with you to meet location, take phone, he gets arrested


Title: I want to change my name but don't want my relatives to find out

Question:
Okay I'm currently living in Indiana and I want to legally change my name but I'm afraid my relatives will find out and continue to basically harass me (and that's all the more I'm going to say about that, as I am not comfortable going into detail). Is there anything I can do to prevent them from finding out?

(Also I can't afford to move out of state at this point in time)

Thanks.

Answer:
 > Is there anything I can do to prevent them from finding out?

You can petition the court to waive the publication requirement and seal the records as part of the process


Title: Just got a ridiculous ticket

Question:
I was driving down a busy four lane small town road. Suddenly I'm being pulled over, and the officer says it's because "he would have liked to see me give the pedestrian crossing the street more room. You gave him enough room, but, you know, it would have been nice if you gave him more."

Uhm. What? So I got a ticket for "failure to yield to a pedestrian." There are officers all over in town today, as I've noticed four other citizens getting tickets for who knows what. I called the local police department (the officer who gave me the ticket was from a city 40 minutes away) and they said a sting operation was going on today.

I am a homeless veteran who has zero income. I am really upset that he admitted I didn't do anything wrong but wrote me a ticket anyways. I have actual problems here, and now I have to waste my time going into court to contest this ridiculous ticket. I have no idea what my rights are because I haven't gotten a ticket since I was 17 (I'm 32 now). What do I do when I go in to contest?

Edit: Forgot location. I am in CA.

Answer:
 >"You gave him enough room, but, you know, it would have been nice if you gave him more."

"Please write that exact wording on the ticket, Officer."


Title: (OR) Do I have a legitimate BBB complaint against my former landlord/apartment complex?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 The BBB stopped being relevant around the time we stopped watching VHS and people carried pagers.

If you have not received your deposit, you may be able to go to small claims court to gain a judgement.


Title: Is it illegal to use camera or video in the locker room at the gym?

Question:
I am so tired of all the women that come into the locker room and take selfies in the full-length mirrors. I go to the gym every morning and I shower there. I walk around in a towel while I'm getting ready and I'm constantly having to dodge out of the way of selfies. In this day of facial recognition I really don't want to be tagged in the background on somebody's Facebook page. As far as I know it's never actually happened.
I asked the gym manager signs saying not to take videos or photos in the locker room. I told him I think it's illegal and he said there's nothing he can do because it's not illegal. I Live in Charlotte North Carolina. Is there anything I can do about this?

Answer:
 My gym (a well known 24/7 gym) has notices posted in the locker rooms, just after the VS model got her ass handed to her for snap chatting a naked older woman and making fun of her, that no pictures/cameras are allowed in the locker rooms. I am friendly enough with a couple of the overnight desk people to find out that more than one person was banned from the facility (and company) for violating the rule.

I’d make a complaint to whoever is at the desk, as well as escalating it to management and suggesting the implement the rule. If they don’t, take your business elsewhere.

So it’s not illegal, but you also don’t have to work out there if you are not comfortable with the culture of that specific locker room.


Title: Am I able to sue my school for wrongful punishment/potential dismissal?

Question:
I had retaken a course to which I recreated a new assignment. In the course description it said “one must not resubmit their previous work if they have taken this course before” I had my work from last year and my work form this year both under the same title and I accidentally submitted mine from last year: I emailed him right away and told him I accidentally submitted the wrong copy, he said it was fine and voided it. Then he sent a form against me stating I violated academic integrity, if you violate, you fail the course. I didn’t violate it I accidentally clicked it and told him right away; I’m not sure why he filed that against me. Now I’m dealing with some serious issues, they are threatening to kick me out... over something so stupid.. it was MY work that I accidentally submitted, I did my due diligence and now I’m being punished anyway..

My issue is - I broke my laptop and I don’t have both documents to back up my case, but I do have the document I accidentally submitted linked to my email, and I have all the email exchanges between my professor and I - they contain me stating I accidentally submitted the wrong file and him responding with “no problem, I will shift over the weight to your final instead” as it was past the deadline (not allowed to submit past the deadline).

Answer:
 Surely you realize the timing of a broken laptop and no way to prove you did the assignment after submitting your old one looks really bad.

Schools have broad rights to develop disciplinary policies regarding academic dishonesty. I am not seeing much you can fight here without you also immediately submitting the one you did this term. Was it not sent along with the message to disregard the last one? If not, why not? Answer #2: This is a school policy. You can talk to the Dean or provost. Chances are they have a way to dispute it.


Title: GA - I hit the car in front of me and may have fled the scene.

Question:
Here is what happened. Today when I was driving and approaching the traffic light I got distracted. My car is new and it has the collision mitigation system, so it automatically applied the brakes, pretty hard. I thought the car stopped and did not hit the car in front of me. After the light turned green the car in front of me started to move and I did not see any visible damage, I took a sign of relief. I pulled next to him and rolled down the window and asked him if I hit his car, I thought he said "no, I am fine". By this time cars behind me kept honking, signaling me to move on. So I waved at him and drove off. But after going home I checked my front side and I do see light scuff marks indicating that I did hit his car. After recollecting the scene he may have been asking me to stop ahead or something. I am positive he got my license plate as I drove off.
I have never been in an accident my entire life, today has been a very long and one of those days.
What are my options here, I genuinely would like to fix this. Do I need to call the police or get a lawyer? Will this be classified as hit and run??

Answer:
 Call the police immediately and report the accident.  In almost every state, this will mitigate your having left.

Also, in most states, having determined there was no actual contact is enough to justify leaving.  Learning that you made contact later is not the same as leaving the scene of a known crash.

However, you need to contact the police *immediately*.  Not tomorrow.

If the police open a hit-and-run investigation against you, they may ask you questions about the incident.  I am not going to lie to you, you risk opening yourself up to inquiry and offering the police statements they could use in an investigation.  However, because you are obligated to report the accident by law, that cannot be used against you in what is often termed *crash report privilege*.

However, you don't need to engage the police in a lengthy interview.  Make your report then contact an attorney if they want to ask you anything further.  You can actually mention this to the officer and he *shouldn't* take offense (no guarantees here).  Just tell him that you need to make a mandatory report but do not wish to answer any questions beyond what is needed for the report.  If he asks you questions, you can clarify with him that you are still answering for the report.  He should be well aware of why you are doing that.


Title: Is an Exile Contract Binding ?

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 IANAL. There's no way you can contractually force him out of the country, and frankly it's a ridiculous idea. You can terminate his tenancy in your home at any time after he reaches the age of majority as long as you give proper notice, and you can disinherit him similarly... no contract is needed for any of that.

Since he's under 18, support your darn kid. Answer #2: I have never heard of an "exile contract", but how do you plan to enforce him "leaving the country"?Answer #3: Why have we been cursed with so many shifty trolls ?, serious advice you can't create this contract cause he's under 18Answer #4: I vote this most amazing post of r/legaladvice this weekAnswer #5: How old is he? Where are you located?


Title: Girl I flirted with for one day who lives in Indonesia, while I live in America (GA) is sending me self harm photos and is threatening to kill herself if I ever leave her. Can I be held responsible for anything?

Question:
I (16M) flirted with a girl (16F) who lives Indonesia online for literally one day. She started asking for a relationship and I said that wasn’t a good idea due to distance. She’s now sending me self harm photos and is threatening suicide if I don’t “date” her or if I ever leave her. If she does something crazy, could I be held responsible for anything with her living in a separate country?
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer: This may even be a scam. She might start up a sob story about how she's this way because she has no money and start asking you send her some. Just block her and move on.


Title: My house was robbed.

Question:
Hey guys, not sure if I put the correct flair. My house was robbed a few hours ago. They stole a few items that I’m not really worried about. What I’m really worried about is that they stole a safe that had my SS card, birth certificate, and passport. I already filed a police report but I very much doubt they will find the guys. I just wanted to know what my next steps should be? Thank you.
Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer: Lock down your credit with the credit bureaus.  Visit [this website to report your stolen passport.](https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/433/~/reporting-a-lost-or-stolen-passport)


Title: California , can the supreme court file a subpoena for iphone text messages that have been deleted ?

Answer: Yes.


Title: Dog runs out of house and hospitalizes another dog on a walk. Uncooperative attacking dog's owner, what can be done? Location: California.

Question:
Asking for a friend "Snow" shown in this story. She's torn up right now about her dog who is injured, but recovering, and I wonder how she should best proceed.

Dog owner "Snow" is walking her 10 [lb] small dog "Happy" through their neighborhood.

They walk past "Regina's" house and Regina's 60 [lb] larger dog "Angry" runs out of Regina's unlocked door up to Happy immediately biting and breaking Happy's leash.  Angry then carries Happy a few houses down, throws her around like a rag doll, and leaves her unmoving for dead on a different neighbor's lawn.

Regina gives a ride to Snow and Happy to a vet. Happy had numerous broken ribs, receives a blood transfusion, surgery, and a number of stitches.

A day or so later Snow gets a vet bill around $7k, and asks Regina for reimbursement. Regina offers a few hundred, but is not interested in paying the full amount.

Snow has also since filed an animal control report and spoken with some of the neighbors. Although it seems there are no other witnesses. Snow's plan from here is to sue in small claims, though she's open to hiring a lawyer and suing in grown up court.

**TL;DR; Attacker dog, "Angry" runs out of open door attacking Victim dog "Happy" in residential neighborhood. Results in the $7k vet bill which Angry dog's owner is not willing to pay.**

**Questions**

1. I would guess seeing Happy as a "possession" she isn't worth nearly $7k (Happy is a normal dog, not a service animal, etc.). Can Snow sue for only the worth of the dog? Or the full vet bill?
1. It was a pretty traumatic experience for Snow to see her dog Happy torn up like that.  Any chances of suing for emotional damage?
1. Can we get Angry taken away from Regina, or put down?
1. Regina runs a dog rescue center, which we're guessing Angry is from. Is there some room to take that away from Regina for acting irresponsibly?

**Edits**

$7k was for the initial emergency services. Happy appears to be recovering well and though we can't say for sure, we aren't expecting significant ongoing expenses.

Answer:
 > I would guess seeing Happy as a "possession" she isn't worth nearly $7,000 (Happy is a normal dog, not a service animal, etc.).

Happy is legally considered property, and was property that was damaged. It's not unreasonable to expect to recoup the costs to return Happy to the same condition he/she was in before the incident.

> Can Snow sue for only the worth of the dog? Or the full vet bill?

It would be reasonable to sue for the full vet bill.

> It was a pretty traumatic experience for Snow to see her dog Happy torn up like that. Any chances of suing for emotional damage?

Snow can certainly sue for emotional damages, *but* those types of damages are very difficult to quantify, and many judges are reluctant to award them.

> Can we get Angry taken away from Regina, or put down?

Snow should follow-up with Animal Control to see what they're going to do. They would be the one to take Angry from Regina.

> Regina runs a dog rescue center, which we're guessing Angry is from. Is there some room to take that away from Regina for acting irresponsibly?

Again, this would be something to discuss with Animal Control.


Title: Maternity drug test

Question:
I live in Virginia and have three children. I am currently expecting baby #4 due this summer. My obstetrician does random drug testing but I've never given it a second thought, as I am not a drug user so it's never been a concern for me. I saw my doctor on 2/17. On 2/15 i took two 5mg Percocets for a severe toothache. The prescription was in my name that I had been prescribed a few months prior. I was talking to my sister the other day and she pointed out that I may want to contact the doctors office and let them know I had taken them, in case they had tested me at that visit. But the script was only for 10 and those were the last two so the bottle has since been thrown out. I'm sure I can get a copy of the prescription from the doctor or the pharmacy if necessary, though I'm not sure it would be considered acceptable proof. And I'm afraid to just call and ask the doctors office if they had tested me or not because I don't want to draw unnecessary suspicion by doing so. And I'm not sure how this type of thing is handled in my state. Like, would the doctors office call and tell me I failed?  Or talk to me at my next visit? Or call CPS?  I'm afraid they will call and open a case against me and it will be an issue even if I can prove my prescription. I have since had the offending tooth removed and can prove it was infected and I was in a lot of pain. But I don't want to deal with all of that if I don't have to. And I don't want them to talk about it at the appointment in front of my husband because he will not be happy I took them. I was prescribed them during my second pregnancy, as well, for a gallbladder infection and it was a huge point of contention between us because he thought I was harming our unborn baby. So I want to avoid as much drama as possible. Part of me thinks I'm panicking for no reason because I have never failed one through any pregnancy and I don't even know if they tested me or not. But I'm terrified CPS is going to show up at my door trying to take my kids. What should I do?  Call the doc and possibly draw suspicion where there was none?  Or wait and just see what happens? Or call CPS and see if any reports were made?  I just have no idea how to handle this. Any advice or relatable experience is greatly appreciated!

TL;DR: May have failed a random drug test at my OB and don't know how to fix the situation without possibly making things worse

Answer:
 So especially while pregnant, if you're in pain enough to need opioids you should contact a doctor and get a fresh prescription or a talk to your doctor about the pain for a prescription for something stronger than generic Tylenol but possibly a non narcotic. Technically you're not supposed to be taking out of prescribed date pills, even if they were prescribed to you originally. If your not a regular opiod user depending on the drug test and your body after two days it may not show up in a pee test but it could.

>What should I do?

Personally I'd wait and see if anyone ever mentions the drug test, one way or the other you'll hear about it from your doctor or CPS if you did.

>Call the doc and possibly draw suspicion where there was none?

If you fail a drug test, because your taking out of prescription date opioids, I wouldn't be surprised if they called CPS, or asked some questions about it at your next appointment.

 >Or wait and just see what happens?

Probably what I'd do. It's the least likely move for it to end up in CPS's hands.

>Or call CPS and see if any reports were made?

No. If CPS wants to talk to you they'll be at your next scheduled appointment or just come to your house. You may want to consider talking to your husband about the possibility that they may show up to be honest, if you don't want a shit show.
Answer #2: To clarify, I didn't post for opinions on if you consider my actions wrong. I posted looking for *LEGAL ADVICE* hence the sub i posted in


Title: Help please. 19F being stalked after Skyping for money.

Question:
Hi, so first of all I feel fucking horrible about this.
A stranger contacted me over Instagram and tumblr and email asking me if I would webcam with him for $850. He specified it would be morning sexual. I am a Uni student with no money and bills to pay so I accepted his offer.

The call started innocently enough until he offered me double and triple amounts of money to do more - take my bra off, bend over and show my ass etc. the call ended after about an hour and the money he said he would put into my PayPal account added up to over $2000.

Then today he emailed me and said he knew where I lived (the exact address) what car I drove, what car my mother drives. I am very scared he has taken pictures of me over webcam and will use them to blackmail me and try and get money from me.

His skype username is lolrawrlolrawr.

The email he told me to Request Money from him on PayPal is gore_love123@hotmail.com

And the address he emailed me from is l.mfao@live.com

I am so scared and disgusted with myself please help me what can I do?

Answer: Just curious, why is your age changing? You posted this yesterday: http://www.reddit.com/r/relationship_advice/comments/25ur2z/21f_with_my_boyfriend_22m_i_got_half_naked_on/


Title: Was denied car insurance by USAA today because I have recently been convicted of a felony. Is this legal?

Question: This occurred in Ohio.

Answer:
 Yes they can deny you if they feel you are a high risk. If you have a shakey legal history, that makes insuring you a higher risk.

What was your felony for?Answer #2: Sure.  Why wouldn't it be?Answer #3: It really depends on what the felony was. Any violation that is considered major violation (such as most felonies) can be grounds for denying or terminating an application for coverage. At State Farm I cannot write anyone who has had a major in the last three years.


Title: [NY] Brother shared sexually explicit picture of a minor, has some history with this

Question:
My brother is a piece of shit and recently shared a sexually explicit picture of a minor over social media (he is 19), the police were called and visited the house where we live with our parents but were not allowed inside. I was molested by my brother for around a two year period in 2010-2011 and told no one because I thought I was the only one he was harming but now I'm not sure and may wish to report this to the police.
1) How likely is it that the police will come back to my house? I don't know the details of what he did but I know the picture he shared was a teenager rather than a child.
2) Would my testimony help the police in any way? Would he get charged with another crime because of this?

Answer:
 Yes call the police.  He most likely will repeat offend.  The only way to prevent that is to expose him to the public.  There is a reason that there are  sex offender lists made public.

Also, a teenager is a child.


Title: Car broken into and lots of merchandise stolen. I’ve filed a police report what else can I do? They left behind a smoked cigarette...

Answer:
 Little know fact :

Renters insurance covers theft from your vehicle


Title: [Arizona, Gilbert] Job doesn't reimburse our cleaning supplies. Is that okay?

Question: My manager is the biggest victim of this since all of the cleaning supplies she purchases come out of her pocket because her bosses wont reimburse her. What we really need right now are gloves but we have yet to receive any and I get the feeling my manager isn't going to get some anytime soon because she is pinching her pennies (I don't blame her). I'm considering just buying them myself but not unless the company compensates me (I know gloves aren't expensive but it's more about the principle of the matter) and if they don't then I'm going to refuse to do any job the requires working with gloves (Cleaning up vomit, for example. Which happens more often than it should). How can I go about doing this, or, should I even bother?

Answer:
 Are you an employee or a contractor?

Are you part of a union or have an employment contract?

Could you at least generally describe what your job is?  Like are you  movie theatre attendant that sometimes cleans stuff or someone on a professional cleaning crew?

Now, I'm not certain all of these questions matter, but it's always good to get all of the facts out just in case one matters.  Ultimately (and as long as you are an employee) this is likely to come down to OSHA requirements to provide proper PPE for the job.


Title: Being intimidated with defamation

Question:
TL;DR: posted a negative review on behalf of a friend but now am unsure if the event was true

Florida. A friend of mine, who I consider family, went to a bar recently with at least one other friend. According to my friend, her friend was kicked out because someone was trying to drug her drink. I was texting her while this unfolded and she was livid about the situation. She suggested I leave a one star review on Facebook and Yelp. Being furious myself I give them a 1 star with a review that said "A close friend of mine informed me that her friend was kicked out because someone was trying to drug her drink. Fuck this place." (might be a word or two off).

Anyways the next morning I am greeted with a somewhat confrontational message from the owner? (as she later called it "my business"). The tone is set from the start with crap like "This is a very serious allegation" and what I believe to be a total lie "I am in contact with the *insert county* sheriff's office" with minimal effort to show any sympathy except to offer her contact number for my friend to call to "get more information on what occurred". I contacted my friend but she didn't want to be bothered with it (she's a very passive person when sober) and asked me to delete the review and ignore the woman. I then relayed the information to the woman and then removed the review (since I was asked to and technically I wasn't even there to witness it), although I was a bit upset because I knew she'd credit her scare tactics for the removal. No surprise that she felt the obligation to respond to me removing it by lying, saying that her 3k followers saw it while the page only has 2k something followers and it was down before 12 hours had even passed.

Then without missing a beat she claimed (within less than two hours of originally contacting me) she had already turned over video surveillance to the sheriffs department which I doubt for someone who seemed so defensive in her messages. She then said they would be contacting me to get more information, and that was about 24 hours ago and I have heard nothing.

A weird feeling I can't shake is what if it's false? I love that friend like she's my sister but what if she made that up while drunk and asking me to delete it was her backpedaling? The point of this post is essentially do I have anything to worry about? I have concrete evidence that the story I relayed in the review was from her. This means what I said in the review was true. In regards to the incident I cite, I've read that if the person relaying the information has good reason to think it's false then they are guilty of defamation. However she's a credible and reliable witness, being that she has a clean record and even graduated high school on their "honor council." It's been eating at me because on one hand I believe the owner is full of shit and just trying to rattle me up but on the other I think "Would an owner of multiple bars make this much crap up?" and "What if her confidence isn't an act and it's not true?"

Thank you for your time reddit

edit: Spelling

Answer:
 You deleted the review. Stop going back and forth with anyone about this unless you are sued. If sued, hire an attorney.

In the future, don't post negative statements online about what happened to your friends friend.

Bringing middle school type social behavior into real world statements about people's businesses as an adult is likely to result in lawsuits.


Title: FL husband just filed for divorce and now I can’t take children on Vacation?

Question:
Florida- my husband and I are calling it quits. I have had a plan to take our 2 kids on vacation to another State for about 5 months now. We leave Saturday. I have screen shots of him giving me permission to take them... My husband official filed for divorce last week, and today I got a letter form his attorney. Letter states that because we don’t have an official custody arrangement, if I take the children out of state, I will be guilty of kidnapping my children. It uses the phrase kidnapping my children. It also says it will look bad as far as negotiations for child support... Will I risk being arrested for taking my children to another state for 6 days, when he was well aware before and after I made travel arrangements??!? Is there anything I can do?
Topic:
Custody Divorce and Family

Answer: Do you not have your own lawyer?


Title: Pooled tips (California)

Question: I work for a small business in CA and my employer has recently begun pulling the cost of messed up food from the kitchen staffs pooled tips. They claim there was nearly $500 dollars worth of waste in the last 2 weeks(note; they do not charge at cost they claimed to give a 50% discount from what they charge for their food) and so took almost $250 in tips to cover that cost. My question is simply is it legal for them to cover the cost of messed up food by pulling from employee tips?

Answer:
 Neither the business nor any employee acting in a management capacity can participate in the pool, and only the pool participants can receive the pooled tips. You can file a wage claim to try to recover inappropriate deductions from your tips, including deductions for waste.

[Info sheet from the state DOL](https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/FAQ_TipsAndGratuities.htm).


Title: Apartment is charge $20 for the one way to pay rent.

Question:
I signed a lease in Arkansas in May. It states that the office accepts cash, check, money orders or you can make a payment through the online system by debit or credit card. In July they sent out notice that you'd only be able to pay via the online system starting in August. They will no longer accept cash, check or money orders. You can't come to the office to pay. You have to sign up through their system and pay. They added an addendum to the lease but added it as a statement on that sheet and didn't ask for anyone to resign anything. The only thing we signed was the old lease saying there were many options to pay and listing them.

The online payment system is easy and convenient but they charge $20 for pay that way. Debit or credit it is $20 to pay by online system. I've heard of and am use to my credit card sometimes incurring a small $2 to $7 fee for usage but $20 seems excessive.

So rent is $925 but now it is really $945.

They refuse to accept any other form of payment, even cash handed to them.

I am wondering if they can do that? And if not, are there any legal remedies?

Answer: Go to the office during normal business hours with your rent check and a copy of your lease and say that you are paying with a check which is in your lease and see what they do. Answer #2: Tell them you'll agree to the amended lease if the $20 fee is written in (so they can't increase it without a further amendment) and they reduce the rent by $20.


Title: My husband applied for a joint home mortgage without my permission.

Question:
I live just outside of Atlanta, GA.  My husband and I have been separated for 9 months. I found out today that he applied for a $300k joint mortgage without my permission. The bank ran and disclosed my credit to him.  The bank told me that because it was a mortgage for pur residence he could.  He also applied in person (the bank had my SS on file and used that).  It was also 3 different mortgages 1 for our residence and 2 rental properties.

 Is this identity theft? Can I take action against the bank and my husband? I also filed for divorce the same week this all happened.

Answer: If you don't already have a divorce lawyer, now you _definitely_ need one. Your lawyer should be able to help you make sure that your husband is not able to saddle you with this debt, for considerably less than $300,000 plus interest.


Title: Donated plasma but due to large number of donors, was not given saline flush. Located in CO.

Question: So nobody that donated this morning was given all, if any, of the required saline flush. The saline is to rehydrate the donor.  Is this legal?

Answer:
 Yes, at this point it is legal. The saline flush isn't required, it's just good practice. Answer #2: Saline is in short supply right now because most if not all of it is produced in Puerto Rico.  They are probably holding it so hospitals with truly sick people can still have access to saline.  Answer #3: >Is this legal?

Yes. Drink plenty of water along with some Powerade or Gatorade. You'll be 100% in no time.


Title: If one parent has no legal custody and 10 hours supervised visitation/week, is that considered 14% custody?

Question:
This is in the state of California in Santa Clara County. Bio-mother has 10 hours supervised visitation per week with two children (ages 7 & 4).  Father has full legal custody and the children reside with him in a neighboring county, but the case is in the county where mother resides. Her lawyer is asking him for $190/month in child support based on 14% custody and the dissomaster.

EDIT: Father is without representation due to lack of funds.  Children have been appointed their own counsel that father is now required to pay for, who is advocating for mother to have custody, despite mountains of evidence that does not support that. Father consults with a lawyer for proper paperwork filing, but represents himself.

Answer: Father needs to borrow money and hire an attorney. He should contact local men's/father's rights group and see if he can get an attorney on the cheap.


Title: Partner Refusing To Leave Once Fixed Term Tenancy Ended

Question:
Hello, (UK resident)

I’m currently in a joint tenancy with my partner for an apartment. This is a fixed term tenancy due to expire in early September 2018.

I was originally looking to renew the tenancy by myself, however she has proven to be difficult. She’s demanding to stay at the residence until late September, even though she won’t be contributing to rent or be a part of the new tenancy.

Now I’m wondering what can I do to:

a) get her out legally when the fixed term ends and I become the sole tenant
Or
b) limit my liability if she decides to squat. im sure she wouldn’t mess with the landlord’s time like she would mine, but just in case she would i wouldn’t wanna be liable.

Any help or questions is welcome

Answer: You might want to crosspost this to /r/legaladviceUK as they could give you more specific advice. If you were in the US though you'd have to evict your ex-partner which includes giving her notice and taking her to court. It's a pain. Honestly it may be easier to just try and find a new place to live.


Title: Can HOA put rat poison in yard?

Question:
I live in a townhouse complex where each is individually owned but it is governed by an HOA.  Today we (me and neighbors) awoke to rat poison traps that had been anchored down in our yards without our knowledge.  Can they do this?  Many of us have small children who play on those yards.  Can we get i trouble for ripping them up and throwing them away?

Thank you!

Answer:
 Do you own the yard or does the association?

We might guess that yes, they can likely do this. And if you’re concerned you might participate in the association to see the course adjusted.


Title: Someone with my same name and birth date is ruining my life

Question: A little back story... I live in Northern Florida and have a very common name (with no middle name). Back in 2011 I tried to get my drivers license once I became of age, but was turned down by the DMV since “I’ve been pulled over and received a ticket for driving without my license”. I was shocked because, i had my permit and drove with my parents.. Never pulled over at all. I later found out this ticket was given in Miami, FL. A place I’ve never been to.... Someone with my same name and birth date, who didn’t have a license ended up being tagged as me. I ended up getting it resolved after fingerprinting, months of calls to the DMV, etc... But now it is coming back again. I went to renew my registration on my tag and found out my license has been suspended since February because i “failed to appear to a court date in Miami”!! I never even received a letter from the DMV about this! I’m unable to drive, and I keep getting the run around. I may even lose my job over this because I’m unable to make it to work and Uber is crazy expensive for a 2 hour combined commute daily. Someone please help me!!!

Answer:
 https://services.flhsmv.gov/DLCheck/

Type your DL number in and check the status, also go to dade county clerk of courts website and record check your name. If you want to know who it is go to dade county jail website and inamte search you're name. The coulprit has more than likely been arrested before. The issue is more than likely he doesn't have the ID card on hand and LEO are running your name via name and DOB and not confirming the picture to person and issuing summons under your name. DHSMV in Talle directly can help clear it up and you can likely file use of personal identify information charges and also have DHSMV mark on your license FCIC return to verify identify for known DL fraudAnswer #2: Get a middle nameAnswer #3: Ever consider adding an unusual middle name?


Title: I got hit by a driver while I was in the car and he run away, I chased him, got the license plates and now his insurance is trying to denied payments.

Question:
[CONNECTICUT]
I got hit while waiting on a red light. The other car hit me on the driver's side doing damage on the body and broken left mirror. He then try to run a way. I chased him until I was able to get his license plate.

I called the cops and generated a police report.The policeman called me later that night after questioning the driver. The policeman said that the driver told him he was driving while talking on the phone and he knew he hit something but he thought he hit the curve. WTF!

 I created a claim with my insurance and they will try to get the drivers insurance (GEICO) to pay for the body shop work.

The problem now is because of the broken mirror, I can't drive my car to work and I had to rent a car. I was assuming that the other insurance was going to accept fault, based on the police reports and the other drivers' statement, and just pay but now I got a letter from them (GEICO) saying that 'Due to lack of sufficient evidence to support your version of events, we are unable to issue any payments to you.'

So, I guess my insurance will try to get paid for the body work but what can I do for GEICO to pay for rental? I may need the rented car for few weeks as body shops won't take anybody after 2nd week of December.

Answer:
 You pay your insurance co to handle this for you.

You can in fact drive the car with a broken side mirror.


Title: Working as an independent contractor for free

Question:
So I work at an bar, we are independent contractors even after working there for several years. This is in Georgia, but our boss requested we work cleaning bar for 8 hours for no pay but to be compensated with a free meal and drinks. The cost of meal and drinks didn’t even hedge close an minimum wage or an agreed upon wage. It was threatened that there would be strong repercussions for not showing up. Is this legal to do to employees even if they are tax considered independent contractors?

Edit: not directly bar staff but paid a set wage per night with no incentives.

Answer:
 If you were an actual independent contractor, there is no minimum wage.

But I can't imagine a bartender working regularly for one location would qualify as an IC.   You are being cheated and your boss is avoiding taxesAnswer #2: If they require you to be somewhere on a set schedule, you aren't an independant contractor. Contact your state labor board.


Title: (IA) Property management switched without notice; first call asks me if I want to renew...

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You have an active signed lease with the landlord I presume. A change in property management companies Doesn't affect the current lease.


Title: I got fired/laid off. For being too old. But I didn't realized before I was fired that I would be fired so I lied about my age as I always do.

Question:
I live in New York. I am over 40 but look young for my age. It's a casual workplace. Whenever anyone asks me my age I joke/lie and give a random age from 25 to 38 or whatever.

Last week the COO (who is 26 if it matters) asked me how old I was and I said 36. Like I usually do I joke; if she wants to know for sure she can check my records which are accurate. The accountants know my age, I figured she did or would check. So I assumed this was just casual banter, we were talking about Mad Max.

But then she took me into a conference room 5 minutes later and told me that they needed "young blood" in the company (40+ employees) to "market to millennials" and "only millennials know what their fellow millennials want" and so I was being let go "since your age is a factor, you are Gen X." I was stunned.

Being fired for being too old is illegal if you are over 40 which I am. But does she get a pass because I said I was 36? When she asked me my age I thought it was just a random make-conversation thing. If she legitimately believed that I was 36 then my firing wouldn't have been illegal, which is what I'm sure she'll argue that. But shouldn't she have checked my records? Or did I just fuck up? She could have legally fired me for a billion other reasons (like joking/lying about my age) but specifically told me what I wrote above.

What should I do now?

Answer:
 > But then she took me into a conference room 5 minutes later and told me that they needed "young blood" in the company (40+ employees) to "market to snake people" and "only snake people know what their fellow snake people want" and so I was being let go "since you age is a factor, you are Gen X." I was stunned.

Congratulations, you've got one of the vanishingly few cases where you have a strong case for wrongful termination. Speak to an attorney or the state labor board for next steps.Answer #2: Get an attorney. Prepare the Sue-a-tron.Answer #3: Tricking your boss into firing you for a prohibited reason... that's a new one. Sue the hell out of them.


Title: Pet sitter clause in lease agreement; can we get in trouble retroactively?

Question:
TL;DR: Can we still get in trouble in regard to our lease for using an unapproved pet sitter in the past, even if we get it approved going forward?

My SO and I live in an apartment in Wisconsin; we have one cat. We apparently did not read the pet policy which is part of our lease particularly closely when we first signed it (we’ve been living here for three years now), because we recently discovered that there is an item that reads: “Temporary or intermittent pet sitting without prior approval by the Lessor is prohibited.”

We have used a pet sitting service probably half a dozen times in the time we’ve lived here, and have not informed the landlord about it (at first, not knowing that we even needed to). We just got back from a trip during which we used a pet sitter, and while we were gone, there was work done in our apartment that required one of the property managers to let workers in. We had a note on the table for the pet sitter, and it’s likely that the property manager saw it, or figured out otherwise that the cat was in the house and there was someone coming by to look after it.

I chatted with her today about the trip and the work done in the apartment, and neither of us brought up the cat, indicating to me that either she still doesn’t know or she just doesn’t care. Though it seems to not be a problem, I don’t like knowingly doing something that is prohibited in my lease, so what I want to know is: if I let the property managers know going forward about our pet sitter and get it approved in accordance with the policy, is there still a chance of negative consequences based on the fact that we’ve been using an unapproved pet sitter previously? I wouldn’t explicitly mention that unless asked of course, but we’ve had the cat this whole time; it would be pretty easy to figure out that that’s what we’ve been doing. We have a good relationship with the management and are great tenants, so I’m not exactly worried we’ll just get evicted if they find out we’ve used a pet sitter, but I’m still concerned about what could happen.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer: I don't think that means you can't let a pet sitter come into your apartment. I think it means you need permission before you can have pets in your apartment temporarily or intermittently for sitting purposes.


Title: How much notice do I have to give ?

Question:
"...... termination by you will be one month's notice and by the Company, one month's notice, increasing to five weeks notice after five years continuous employment, and one additional week's notice for each additional year of continuous employment up to a maximum of twelve weeks."

I have 16 years with the company.
I'm in the UK, if that makes a difference.
The way I read it the first time, I give one months notice. Everything after ,"by the Company..." doesn't apply to me.

The second time I read it, I'm not so sure.
Topic:
Employment Law


Title: My ex is Holding my laptop hostage

Question:
Hey everyone,

So while i was dating my ex i let him BORROW my apple macbook laptop for him to do his music since i invested in another computer. Now, this laptop is worth about 2K. we recently broke up a couple months ago, and i've reached out to him numerous times about meeting me to get my stuff. now i've offered him to mail it, and he ignored me and claimed he couldn't meet me to give it to me. Yes you read correct. i said MAIL not MEET. so we've been playing cat and mouse for me to get my things even after i MAILED him his stuff. he called me a few days ago to say that he could meet me yesterday to get my laptop, but of course as i'm on my way to the location, he calls me to tell me "he forgot" and that he was no where near me to give me my laptop. i tell him to mail me the computer, and he was making excuses about mailing it like bubblewrap doesn't exist. this has been going on for little over a month now, and i'm not sure what to do about it. I have a friend who offered to meet him (he lives closer to him) to get my computer, but i'm waiting to hear back about it. I'm not sure what to do at this point. this is ridiculous.

Answer:
 Time to involve the police.

What I'd do is offer him one more clearly worded chance, "Hey X, this has been a struggle to make happen for way too long and I feel that you are taking advantage of my good will to steal my laptop/things/etc, so, find a way to return it to me within Y days (3, 5, 7) or I am going to have to open a police report and do this the hard way."

Then, after your offered time, feel free to do it the hard way.

You can then use that police report to help sue him in small claims court if he still won't return it.

It's unlikely the police will get in the middle of what they may call a civil matter, but if you have other property that he wont return and is denying you access to they may offer to escort you to retrieve it.


Title: Relationship legality.

Question: Okay, so I met my boyfriend online when we were both minors. Now, I'm 18 and he's a year and a half younger than me, he'll be 17 this coming February. Before I turned 18 we were exchanging sexually explicit photos and engaging in Skype sex. My parents found out and are now tracking my phone and computer. I live in Arizona, he lives in Kansas. If we were able to, we could legally have sex there because he is the age of consent there. The age of consent is 18 in Arizona. I'm just wondering if it's illegal for us to be exchanging photos because even though I am an adult and he's a minor, there's only a year and half age gap, and is it illegal for us to have sex in Arizona? Also, is it even legal for my phone and computer to be tracked when I'm 18?

Answer: It's NEVER ok to exchange sexually explicit photos of or with a minor.Answer #2: literally any explicit photo taken of anyone under the age of 18 is child pornography. it is also illegal to travel across state lines to have sex with anyone under the age of 18. do not play with fire.


Title: Got a letter from police, is it legit?

Question:
So I got a letter from the police department of a neighboring village X. Oh no, this can't be good.

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It's a failure to appear notice!

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So wait what? This is literally the first I'm hearing about this at all, yet this letter claims a ticket was issued over a month ago, the final notice due date was 3 weeks ago and my $250 "fine must be paid within Twenty (20) days", a date it then claims is the same final notice due date of 3 weeks ago. Or I can appear on my court date in a month. Wouldn't be going to a courthouse tho, no no no, "Court begins promptly at 10:00 A.M. at the Police Department..."

A few other things I noticed that make this seem fishy. My first name is spelled wrong, just the last letter stuck right in the middle. My zip code was wrong, again extra number in the middle so now it's 6 digits instead of 5. Also, I know this means nothing, but the kerning is off, some of the serifs are touching and I don't like that (how do I counter sue for emotional distress?). Also Police Officer is capitalized when it shouldn't be, but so was Police Department hmm. But I mean, it's like this was made to seem unprofessional and shady, but I don't know.

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The letter reads "The Village of ... by its Police Officer, on oath, states that you, the defendant, herein did violate  Section 66I7B, FARE COLLECTION & BOXES - PAYMENT OF FEE REQUIRED". Tried googling, but don't know how to search for codes and laws and stuff well so found nothing.

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So even if this letter is real, I have no fucking clue what this is about. I have absolutely not gotten a ticket. Recently. From this city. Okay, I got one in a neighboring town about 3 years ago and it escalated to a fucking bench warrant from a typo before they would let me get my license back. But it all worked itself out in the end.

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The important thing is I don't own a car now so wtf is this? I do admittedly borrow a relatives car occasionally and I definitely remember going to this town at least once for indian food but can't remember when.

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Finally it says "If you have any further questions, please contact the PD at..." and then gives a phone number. You know I googled it and guess what PD has a completely different phone number? Same area code tho.

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Oops almost forgot my Brady. The letter was post marked 2 days ago in their correct zip code. And it has my correct zip code on the bottom of the letter so that seems legit. The letter says if I want to pay, not sure why I would since it says it was due 3 weeks ago, to make it payable to the right village and address like "Village of x, 123 police street" with the PD address. Unlike the phone number this is actually their address, same as the return on the envelope too.

Answer: Typically court isn't at the police department. But, Google the correct phone number, call, ask.


Title: Questions about my wife's liability and fear of retaliation in her mother's injury lawsuit.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 I can't see any way your wife would be liable; she didn't cause the accident or do anything to make the injuries worse. MIL can sue and harass, but she'd have to convince a court that your wife was responsible for the injury itself and/or the medical treatment for it, or that your wife is committing perjury.

Having a lawyer at her side during the deposition would be best, if at all feasible financially, but you'll be paying the attorney's hourly rate for the deposition, plus travel time. Has your wife considered calling MIL's attorney and telling them directly that her testimony is not going to be helpful? Answer #2: Just tell the truth. If you would like to retain a lawyer to help make sure your wife protected that would be a good idea. Definitely don't use the same lawyer or firm as either MIL or the defense.Answer #3: Lying and getting caught beyond the fact that perjury is a criminal act, her credibility in any further court proceeding for the rest of her life is going to be suspect. Past bad acts can be brought up to impeach her credibility etc.


Title: (IA/MO) Spouse Trying To Keep Me From Child, Not Sure Where/How To Start. Help?

Question:
Alright /r/legaladvice, I'm sitting here pretty scared and confused and need help. I’ll try to keep this brief:

My wife and I split several months ago, when, without warning, she said she would be leaving our apartment and getting a new one. Luckily able to get out of a lease I could not afford on my own, I only had two weeks to find a new apartment and was able to do so in Iowa only three hours away. She still currently lives in Missouri.

We had arranged for my daughter to go back and forth between us every two weeks while we figured out divorce proceedings. This was not done legally through temporary custody (I know I’m stupid) but I can easily prove she agreed to this with texts and messages she has sent.

These past two weeks, she has been refusing to answer messages I have sent her to arrange my pickup of our daughter, and has not answered requests to speak to my daughter. I was only finally able to establish contact yesterday, two days before I need to arrange pickup. I was told that my daughter had been enrolled in Pre K (without my knowledge) and that my ability to see her would not be able to go as planned.

I am now worried about my ability to see my daughter and believe she is maliciously trying to keep me from her. She has severe BPD and I feel this is her attempting to lash out to hurt me despite it being not in the best interest for our daughter. She has been very emotionally abusive towards me in the past.

I lack the residency requirements to file for divorce in Iowa or Missouri, but want to get this divorce on the road and develope a fair plan so I can apply for a temporary custody arrangement. I’d especially like to do this while she is in my care soon for extra safety (I have informed my ex I will be picking her up as usual as school is not starting yet). I don’t know where I should file, but I feel I need to take the initiative. She currently meets residence requirements in Missouri if this is helpful.

Three other things worth noting:

* While we were together, her family attempted to keep my child away from me at one point to the point I had to call law enforcement in order to get my child back. I am afraid a similar situation may happen now.

* I am a transgender parent. I am concerned especially if forced to file in a place as conservative as Missouri, I will be treated unfairly. If there’s anything in general I can do to keep myself safe regarding this during proceedings I would love the advice.

* My child WAS born in Iowa oddly enough, her birth certificate is from this state. Not sure if this helps me out or not.

So /r/legaladvice, how do I take these next steps, and is there anything I’m missing and need to think about?

Topic:
Custody Divorce and Family

Answer:
 Your spouse is a resident of MO. Thats enough to file divorce there. Your child lives there. That means MO is the proper custody state. You file in Mo. You can't change states for court just because you are concerned about discrimination.

 You need to talk to attorneys in the county where your child lives. ASAP. Once you get a court order, she can't keep the child from you without potentially severe penalties.


Title: (ON) Former employer threatening to sue my new workplace for "corporate espionage "

Question:
I quit my job not long ago to start at a new company. My position is the same but I get paid much more and the new place is closer.

I was not able to give a 2 week notice and instead had to let my former boss know of my departure with only a one day notice.

I left my work laptop and they noticed that i had sent an email to my person gmail some months before with a list of clients, they asked me to delete it and I did

I had sent myself this email since I was working from home that week and I couldn't access some information for whatever reason.

Now they are accusing me of sharing this information with my new employer and want to take me to court.

My new job has a legal team and they tell me to not worry about it. Since I didn't share the email with anyone and none of those clients have been contacted they don't really have a case or anything to really sue me for.

Even then I am still worried. Any one know what I could expect the coming months?

Answer:
 Listen to your companies legal team, they'll protect you on this.

I assume you left one job to a job with a competitor or in the same field, did your previous contract have any non-compete clause, and did you have at any point any kind of non-disclosure agreement?

As well what was the internal policy on moving information like that?

Again though, burden of proof is on your previous company, they need to prove that what you did constitutes corporate espionage and that you willingly passed on confidential information. It sounds like they don't have anything solid to go on so you should be safe.


Title: Issued a Failure to Appear

Question:
Okay so this is a long story but
I was scheduled to have court on the 5th, my alarm failed to wake me up, went to the courthouse the 6th to try and either get on a docket that day or just to pay the fines right then and there (for wreckless driving and no proof of insurance) they declined both of those options and had the Bailiff give me a new court date of the 10, even after I had warned them I wouldn’t be able to make ANY court dates after the day I was already there,(I moved to a very far away state) they basically didn’t listen and said “see you the 10th” so I was like whatever left and decided I would just get home and then handle it Monday (the 9th), well come Monday I call the court house “I have a court date set for tomorrow and there no way on earth I’ll make it I need to reschedule it preferably a few months from now” , the lady replies “only the secretary can change court dates, I’ll give you her phone number” “great! Thank you I appreciate it!” This is where it turned south, I proceeded to call the phone number of the secretary 15 times (no exaggeration at all) over the course of the business day, no answer, also no way to leave a voicemail because it was already completely full, come today “the 10th” I just called down there and told the lady same thing “court date today can’t make it need it rescheduled “ she gives me a transfer to a “DIFFERENT” secretary and she answers immediately I tell her what has happened she replies with “there’s nothing I can do you should’ve called yesterday the judge is going to issue a FTA” (also meaning there will be a warrant issued)
I feel like I got played by the system and idk what to do, how can I fight this what are my options, there’s the things I really want to do to these people but it’ll be lifetime sentence if I do.

Answer:
 > how can I fight this

You can't.  You appear as ordered.  These aren't negotiable things.


Title: Sold bike through Paypal, buyer filed dispute with PP for being double charged, Paypal took $ out of sellers account and won't return.

Question:
My boyfriend sold a bike frame through paypal for 540 dollars in September 2018. He originally connected with the seller through facebook marketplace and their communication was done through facebook messenger. The buyer paid my bf using friends and family to avoid paying the fee. My boyfriend transferred this money from paypal to his bank account.

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Not long after, the guy filed a dispute with paypal saying the credit card he used to pay was charged twice for the price of the bike. Paypal takes the 540 out of my bf's account, plus a fee that paypal automatically charges for a dispute because they don't have sellers insurance. Because my bf had already transferred the money, this puts his paypal account into the negative. My boyfriend assumed he would eventually get this money back since he's an honest dude, had sent the bike on its way, and none of these issues were his fault. So he continued to use his paypal account to sell shit, which paypal used to cover his negative balance. This wasn't an issue at the time because he figured he would later receive the $540 they took out once paypal and the buyer's bank worked shit out.

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He just talked to paypal who essentially said (if I'm understanding this correctly), that the buyers bank ruled in favor of the buyer (not exactly sure why or how that works). So they are keeping the $540 they took from my bf's account.

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My boyfriend has screenshots of his statements and his conversations between him and the buyer. The facebook conversations only show the buyers first name, but if you click his icon, it takes you to his page that shows his first and last name.

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It seems like this was a scam - that the buyer was actually only charged once, and then somehow finangled successfully disputing the charge, and also ended up with the bike frame. Is this a common scam or am I missing something? Is there anything that we can do to get his money back? If we were to go to small claims court, do we have any standing? My bf is in CO and the buyer is in Rhode Island.

Answer: I've been seeing more and more of these pop up, typically under slightly different excuses but all through paypal screwing the seller over and leaving the buyer with all the cash and product


Title: Roommate blackmail [Worcester, MA]

Question:
I currently live off campus with three other students in Worcester, Mass: one other guy and two girls, one of whom is my girlfriend. Despite the current weather, three of us (myself, male roommate and girlfriend) do not like to keep the heat on, since we frankly do not have money to pay a large gas bill. The apartment that we live in however has only three people on the lease, while my girlfriend is not on it (even though she has her own bedroom and pays an equal portion of rent / utilities). The landlord also knows about our over-occupation. Today I got home from class and found a written note of what I take to be blackmail taped by the other roommate below the thermostat which reads:

"If you keep turning off the heat, I will call the ISD, and [girlfriend] will have to leave the apartment, cause she's not on the lease; set temperature, do not turn off the heat"

My questions are basically, is this blackmail, and if so, is it a crime and should I report it to the landlord / police?

Photo of the note: (girlfriend's name blacked out)

http://imgur.com/eLIsbaz

Answer:
 Keep the heat on. If the pipes burst as a result of you not keeping the place warm enough, you're going to be paying a gigantic repair bill.

Also, this is not blackmail.


Title: A dog attacked my dad...

Question:
So Friday my father was on his daily morning walk in which he goes the same way every time. There’s a house that sits about a half mile away from my dads house that has two Doberman Pinschers, who are normally gated in. This go around they were out and happened to jump on my dad and bite him on his leg. The owner came out and got the dog off and my dad was left with a bloody leg and some bruises. He went to the hospital after reaching out to the police and was told that this animal control officer had been called to this guys house before for his dogs. The dogs weren’t taken or quarantined and the guy wasn’t cited even tho the officer told my dad that one of the dogs tags were expired. Do we have any legal action that can be taken? And isn’t it odd that the officer didn’t do anything to stop this from happening in the future?

Note- both my self and my dad are not against dogs by any means, I just feel more should of been done, especially since the officer was familiar with this person and his dogs from before. Thanks in advance,
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer: In general people can be held responsible for the actions of their dogs, and you probably have a case to go after the owner for your dad's medical bills. In this case, you'd want to retain a personal injury attorney. These types of attorneys work on contingency, meaning they take a percentage of the money you get as payment. Most PI attorneys will give you a free consultation, so schedule a meeting with one.


Title: Mailbox Hit

Question:
Hello, I am 16 years old and hit a mailbox today. I guess i was trying to be cool and pass a friend (we were both turning left, only cars around on the road) i went much too fast and went over the curb and hit a mailbox, it is completely destroyed. I went to the house and talked to the son of the owner (owner is away on business) and he was pretty relaxed about it and we agreed I'd pay for a new one. However, some lady called the cops and a cop showed up when i was about to leave. I told the cop the exact same story above, and then he went and talked to my friend and the owner's son. He came back and said he appreciated me being honest with him, and he could see i was a good kid (no tickets/record before this). However, he said he'd have to give me a citation for a land violation and negligent operation (both checked off as criminal offenses on the citation). The officer said I'd have to visit the house again tomorrow and pay the owner an amount (which we haven't come up with yet) for the mailbox, and that i should go to court in the next 10 days and tell the truth of what happened. However, I am confused as i thought you only went to court to argue against the accusations, and the officer told me to basically tell them i was being a stupid kid and tell them exactly what i did. Overall, i am just very new to a situation like this and could use help on the best avenue out of this as possible. Again, this is in Massachusetts.
Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer:
 Breathe. While serious, this isn't nearly as bad as it seems.

What exactly were you cited with? It should be written on the ticket.


Title: Custody and moving abroad. What to do when one party refuses?

Question:
This is probably way too complicated for this subreddit but here goes.

My best friend I'll call Jane, had a child with her ex boyfriend I'll call Dave. They were together briefly after the child was born but separated. When she moved out they decided that it was in the best interest for their child if he stayed with Dave during the week and Jane during the weekends.

Fast forward 8 years and this arrangement still exists, without any intervention from a court. The relationship between the two parents is civil. Jane is now engaged to someone who is a European citizen and has expressed interest in moving abroad rather than having her fiancee move to the US. This decision makes the most sense given her finance's profession. He simply cannot find a job in the US like he can in the EU as a musician (he has attempted to acquire full time work over the past 5 years).

Dave has outright refused to allow his child to leave the country by any means, somewhat stubbornly.  Jane is rather reasonable, stating she would allow their child to visit on every school vacation and all summer and pay for the cost of his flights back and forth. Dave still refuses.

Dave actually cannot support himself has a criminal background (and was incarcerated for a few years), making it difficult for him to obtain full time work. Essentially, his family supports the child at home during the week.

I've suggested Jane consider she is the one that considers having her child over school vacations, but she has only had him for weekends up until this point.

She doesnt feel like she would have a case bringing her ex to court because he's 'supported' his child up until this point and has spent most of his childhood with him.  She doesn't want to involve the court and negatively effect the relationship between the two but it sounds like that might be the only option.

What can be done? Does she have much of a case?

Answer:
 Honestly, after reading this, the child might do best if they stay with dad and the proposed visitation were reversed.

I’ve spent a ton of time in US courts over an international custody issue, US courts won’t be too keen on a child being taken out of the US and outside of their influence.

Since the child spends the bulk of the time with dad, I suspect the courts will side with him.

In my case, my ex wanted a summertime/holiday visitation set up after custody was given to me (I was the parent who remained in the US).  The court demanded ex leave a $10k bond if international visitation was exercised.

If the 2 parents trust each other, this can be an amazing opportunity for the child, if not, it will be an expensive mess.

Visitation never happened for our daughter, 10 Long drama filled years, LOL.

Answer #2: I agree with /u/s-dubya. Jane isn't being reasonable in this situation. Dave has been the custodial parent of the child for 8 years. Jane has seen the child on the weekends. Jane isn't choosing the leave the country to do something for the betterment of the child's life. Jane is choosing to leave the country for the betterment of her fiance's life. I imagine that the court would think that if Jane wants to make that sacrifice, then Jane should have to take the hit on her time with the child instead of uprooting the child's stable life she's known with Dave for 8 years. It's much less of a difference for them to modify Jane's 30% time with the child than it is for them to change Dave's approximately 70% of the time with the child.


Title: [ON,CAN]My landlord keeps adding new rules?

Question:
I live in a "friends" basement, I never signed a lease but online it said a verbal agreement is legal (not sure if that's true)

So my "friend" is my landlord and though she rents this house with her husband they made sure it was okay to rent to me with their landlord. I pay 600$ for a large room in the basement that has an unfinished ceiling. The 600$ covers laundry, electricity, water, and internet (though I'm not allowed to have my computer connected to it because it makes their internet slow). I moved in December 2017.

When I moved in she told me that the bathroom in the basement was mine, and then 4 months later told me it was "communal" even though nobody but me uses the bathroom downstairs. Can she do this?

She tells me not to do laundry on "on-peak" hours and not on Sundays. But this was told to me after moving in and was never verbally told to me in the beginning. Today she also turned off the knob for the hot water for the washing machine so now I can only use cold water. Is that allowed?

I only have 2 plugs in my room and everything that has power is connected by multiple extension cords. Is that safe?

My main light does not work. I use a lamp that's hers and it makes for a very very dark space. I asked her to fix it and she said not until the summer time. Is that legal?

I have pets, and she told me no more pets are allowed in my space. Is she allowed to do this?

I'm not sure where to go to find official answers, so I thought I'd try here. If you have questions please ask! I'd like to sort these things out asap.

Answer:
 Bad news: you're almost certainly either a lodger or a common-law tenant, rather than a tenant under the Residential Tenancies Act, because of the way this subtenancy is set up. At the start of your tenancy, did you have your own bathroom _and_ your own kitchen?

If you are a tenant under the RTA, then you have fairly strong protections. You can file with the Landlord and Tenant Board to stop your landlord from entering your unit without adequate notice or for an unlawful reason - and "your bathroom is communal now, deal with it" is not a lawful reason under the Act. Similarly, the rules relating to laundry aren't meaningfully enforceable: under the RTA, that's simply not valid reason to evict someone, and landlords may not fine or harass tenants over rules issues. You can turn the hot water back on (or file with the LTB if your hot water is not working and your landlord won't repair it).

If you are a common-law tenant or a lodger/roommate, then you have far fewer protections. In principle, the person you're living with needs to give you "reasonable" notice before making changes to your living arrangements, but unless you're willing to go to small claims over it, it's a moot point.

Realistically, you should look to move out as quickly as possible. Even if you are protected under the RTA, it sounds like your unit is unsafe and inadequate for your needs, and no legal proceedings can ever make your landlord cooperate with you if they really don't want to.


Title: Roommate works at a nursing home and I think he's being taken advantage of.

Question:
My roommate works at a nursing home and on several occasions now he's been asked to stay longer than his 8 hour shift, sometimes up to 32 hours straight. Here's the rub...

They have him sign paperwork that only pay him for 10 hours for a 24 period even though he can't officially leave. Some of the times he could say no, but he sees it as a net gain. Sometimes they won't let him leave because the next person who's certified to disperse medicine calls in and then he can't leave because its illegal to leave the tenants without proper acces to their meds. Now, that part I understand and he gets it too, but then they have him sign the paperwork again, stripping him of pay that he most definitely deserves.

All of this for $8 an hour.

Is this legal? Can he tell them no, he won't sign? And if they come after him for it, can he do anyghing to protect himself?

Thank you for your time.

Answer:
 This is NOT legal at all and not
Only is it hurting him but potentially hurting the people in the care home. I’m Canadian so I don’t know much about who you could call or what you can do in a situation and I hope that someone will put down some information for you. Help is needed for both your friend and the people in this dungeon. Answer #2: That’s wage theft which is generally illegal.

His recourse is going to be based on your location.