Title: Does he have a case against me?

Question: 5 months ago I posted on the Nextdoor community app asking for quotes to clean my gutters.  Its a single story house.  A guy quoted me saying " I will clean every granule for $65"   I was expecting to be there when he did it so i could give him the $65 cash.  I imagine the nextdoor app to be like craigslist.  Someone will do the chore, and you pay them on the spot.  Well he did it when I was at work and said he would bill me.  I didnt think anything of it and said ok.  He then proceeded to bill me for $173.  I called and he said the quote was an hourly quote.  He never mentioned it before as his quote said.  EVERY GRANULE FOR $65.  I told him then I wont pay that price and I will only pay what he quoted me for.  Well fast forward to today and he handed my roommate another bill for the $173 and said If I dont pay he will take me to court.  How should I proceed?

Answer: Send him a check for $65.  He either accepts it or he doesnt, and he can come and see you in court if he needs to.  There's nothing for you to really do legally unless you were served notice of a claim.Answer #2: You’ll be fine just pay him the advertised costAnswer #3: Do you have email or text evidence of his initial statement?


Title: Holding people accountable for damages to hotel room? Legal Contract?

Question: I am traveling with a friend and two of his friends this summer to NYC. I booked a hotel through hotwire and have it paid for, however I am unfamiliar with my friend's other two mates. The nature of our visit is a wedding, so I imagine there will be alcohol involved. My concern is if, the other two guys I have not met before, were to damage anything in the room god forbid, I would be liable. Is there any type of contract I could implement and have everyone sign to share responsibility for any damages that occur(god forbid).

Answer: You would be liable to the hotel but you could sue them for reimbursement. A contract won't help you here.


Title: I got fired over the phone. What's next? Can I sue my employer?

Question:
Today, my boss fired me over the phone during work (he actually called me 2 times when I was busy working in middle of my closing shift), telling me I wasn't a good fit for his business.

I've been working as a waiter at this Japanese Restaurant in CA since 2014 and my relationship between my boss and I was good until he stopped giving me shifts out of the blue about 2 months ago. Things got awkward between us and my other job at my college and school kept me really busy to even ask him why I wasn't getting a shift, so basically I was still employed but just not working. But last week, he's wife (technically the restaurant's "manager") texted me if I was free over the winter break. So I started working again since I was left with nothing to do over the break and needed money to buy my textbooks for the upcoming semester.

Here is the curveball: When she contacted me, I asked to get paid under the table and my boss complied to my request. The minimum wage in CA is $10 an hour, but I was getting paid $9 an hour in cash. (This was the deal that my boss laid out. Me working and getting paid $9 an hour under the table instead of working and getting paid $10 an hour not under the table) I worked 3 days: this Monday, Thursday, and Friday (today) getting paid under the table.

I made a couple of mistakes during tonight's shift. I broke a wine glass and under and over-charged a customers debit card. It was just not a good day for me at work and getting the call that I was getting fired during my last 20 minutes of work made today a disaster. The boss's lady criticized my mistakes. Funny thing is she didn't criticize my mistakes before and would tell me mistakes happen. I was really confused on why she and the boss suddenly got all bi-polar on me. I've made mistakes before and they were completely chill with it because mistakes are common in a restaurant business. I don't think its a good enough of a reason for an employee to be fired. I apologized and recognized my mistakes after work when I was talking to her.

Any legal advices would be great and helpful. Please let me know for further information of things that may be helpful for my case. I want to know if its legal to fire an employee over the phone and if I'd be able to sue the employer/business.

EDIT: What steps should I take next? Are there any forms that need to be sent out to me or anything? I'm confused on what steps to take next.

Answer: Yes, it's perfectly legal for them to fire you over the phone. They don't need a "good enough reason" to fire you. You would not be able to sue the business. Well, you could, but you wouldn't win.Answer #2: They can fire you via carrier pigeon because your ears hang too low if they want to. Drop it (like a wine glass) and move on and find another jobAnswer #3: I have zero sympathy for somebody who asks to get paid under the table. Find a new job and this time pay your taxes. Answer #4: You want to sue your previous employer because they fired you over the phone? Did you expect to be wined and dined before they broke the news to you?


Title: Was there an update to the welder who had a neighbor kid trespassing while he was working?

Question: I can’t find the OP but IIRC, this guy was welding safely and privately on his property when a neighbor boy snuck in and watched only to receive eye damage from doing so. Does anyone else remember?

Answer: I don't recall the eye damage, but I do recall one post where a neighbor kid would wander in. Don't recall an update to that.


Title: Won't the abortion cut off be pushed back soon?

Question:
My understanding is the date of viability is a huge component of abortion being legal. Once that fetus is viable you're bringing it to term. We're pushing that date back significantly medically.

A few years back a lamb was brought to term in a plastic bag, from fairly early in development. It would be equivalent to about 23 weeks for a human. We should be right around when it's getting deployed for humans.

Also about six months ago Israeli scientists grew an embryo outside of the womb. I don't think this should lower the data of viability, but you'll have to pinpoint when we get legal protections. I'm guessing first trimester is free range, and second up will be a no no long term. You can flake skin off your arm, and theoretically grow another human. There has to be a point where we stop being a collection of cells, and become human.

When the bag technology is widely deployed will that push the date of viability back? At what point do you receive legal protection in development? Could women past the abortion point sell the baby to an orphanage? How does this stuff impact abortion rights?

Answer: I think the short answer is that abortion laws are based on what lawmakers want and judges rule favorably on, not science.     Science gets lip service though.


Title: Am I getting blackmailed for sending an unsolicited commercial e-mail?

Question:
A couple days ago, I resorted to some unsolicited e-mail marketing for my Canadian company, and unfortunately I am only realizing how bad of an idea it was in hindsight.

My target audience were Arizona based stores, and I was just informing my potential clients about the service we offer. I didn't ask for anyone's personal information or credit card number. It was an informative newsletter at best.

Initially, I received some new orders, some replies from people who wished to unsubscribe from my list, and then I received a quite worrying response to my e-mail.

It was a man who took some serious offense to my promotional stuff, and who, instead of simply unsubscribing from my list, threatened to bring the case to the civil court and report my spamming activities to my ISP, UNLESS I paid him 300 dollars. He even sent me a check, billed to my address.

My e-mail was in compliance with the SPAM-CAN law. It contained an unsubscribe link, a non-deceptive subject line, a physical mailing address, and all of the other requirements. Essentially, I do not know what part of my e-mail he could challenge in court, considering that sending an unsolicited e-mail itself is not illegal in the US.

Had he reported my spamming activities to my internet service provider, it would have been a justified course of action, but I feel like the fact that he is trying to squeeze some money out of me for the promise of not taking any further action is an unlawful twist.

What should I do? Should I give in to his demands to avoid the escalation of this predicament? Is he entitled to make such demands? Is there anything I can do about this?

Answer:
 This guy is most likely full of shit and you'd be best served by simply ignoring him.

While your emails may have complied with the CAN-SPAM Act, they may still run afoul of Arizona's [Anti-Spam Act](http://www.spamlaws.com/state/az.shtml).

Assuming that you sent a mail that violates that act, there are still a number of issues with the threat of a lawsuit.  For example:

* It's unknown whether an Arizona court would entertain personal jurisdiction over a Canadian company for a single e-mail directed into the state.
* Even if it did, there are no apparent damages.  Therefore, according to the Anti-Spam Act, this guy would be entitled to an award of $10 for the e-mail, plus costs & attorney's fees (which I'm assuming would be zero because no attorney would likely bother to take this case).
* Even assuming this guy won, he'd have to domesticate the judgment in Canada in order to collect from you.  The fact that doing so would cost significantly more in time and travel than the actual award pretty much guarantees that this whole thing will never happen.


Title: Forged my signature to get out the lease

Question: long story short...I sold a business a few month back and had the lease on the place for 3 years. I could not transfer the lease to the new owner because so some stupid rule the property manger had. So the new owner was subleasing the place from me. almost a year later I get served with papers that I have to pay damages and shit equalling over 20K. This is where is all get interesting... I look over the papers and there is another persons name on the lease who I don't know and have never meant. So essentially what happened was the person I sold the business to sold it again to someone else and forged my signature to sign over the lease to them. I have a copy of all the paper work that they sent me including the documents with my forged signature. What should be my best plan of action? Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Answer: This is far from the realm of not needing a lawyer, you should have called one immediately and make sure to tell them the truth about everything!


Title: Repeat client refusing to pay for photography services rendered, claiming the photos didn't meet his standards despite written proof to the contrary. Unsure of how I should proceed.

Question:
I'm a freelance photographer in California, and several months back I gained a new client who was looking for automotive photography. The agreement made was for a flat rate for a set of photos for each car, showcasing it from various angles and showing features it had (number of photos varied by car, but roughly 50 photos per car). I shot twice a week, uploading each set of photos within 24 hours of taking them to his website. The client continued to book me, and aside from the occasional adjustment, or missed feature, expressed satisfaction with my work.

This past month his business hit a downturn, and he began heavily nitpicking my work searching for something to blame. It got to the point where the small amount of money he was paying per car was no longer worth it. I wrote him a nicely worded email explaining that regrettably I would no longer be able to shoot for him as I didn't believe I could offer what he was looking for. I sent him an invoice for the completed work I'd done. He responded with some profanity, and said that he would pay me for the "completed" cars. The problem is he has an incredibly subjective definition of what constitutes a "completed" car. If 1/50 images is not to his liking he is refusing payment for the whole set. The work has already been rendered, and he has, and continues to benefit from having the photos up and viewable on his dealership website. I'd like to just get paid for the work that I've done, and am even willing to have him deduct a percentage from each car based on his perception of how "complete" the set is.

I've taken screenshots of my images still on his website, I also have emails and text messages of him stating prior to this that he really liked the photos. I'm assuming small claims court is my best option at this point, but I've never dealt with that before and just need some advice on how I should proceed. Does him continuing to book me confirm in any legal sense that he was satisfied with my work? Can he withhold payment simply because he says he doesn't like the photos?

Answer:
 He hasn't paid you, so the work-for-hire relationship isn't complete.

I'd play hardball and inform him of the penalties for willful copyright infringement and the potential statutory damages per occurrence.

Fifty cars with fifty pictures each is $375,000,000. Answer #2: I really hope you have a contract with this person.

Who owns the pictures currently? If they are yours until payment received (By terms agreed to, preferably in a contract) you can DMCA the photos on his site. This again assumes you still own and retain rights to those photos.

For the invoice you send him a second copy via certified mail with a demand letter for payment, preferably from your business lawyer. Then you sue him in small claims (or big boy court, depending on the amount) for the invoice if he doesn't pay up. Answer #3: Small claims court sees a lot of these kind of breaches, most definitely. Do you have a contract with him in writing? It might be helpful for him to review your terms of service, and then give him a warning by certified letter (or email, your choice) that failure to pay by <this date> will result in you taking legal action.


Title: Last paycheck kept by employer (independent contractor with possible employee misclassification)

Question: I was hired as an independent contractor in California, but I am not sure if I am properly classified as an independent contractor in the first place. In the contract, it says the employer may keep my last paycheck (even with a two-weeks notice). I submitted my intention to quit  two-weeks in advance and the employer is saying I will not get paid for my last paycheck. Is it legal at all that I am not going to be paid my last paycheck (I know its illegal with employees, but how about the independent contractors)?

Answer:
 >  In the contract, it says the employer may keep my last paycheck

Why in Sam Hill would you ever in a million years agree to this?

File a wage claim right away, or sue on your own.

https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/HowToFileWageClaim.htm


Title: Advertisements suck. Would it be illegal if I wrote a program to automatically crawl all advertisements on all pages I visited to make ad buyers pay more for polluting the content I want to see? How about if I made it publically available?

Question: I know click fraud is a thing, but if I write a program specifically to pollute my targetted ad IDs, and ad companies ended up losing a buck or two because of it.....is that outlaw stuff?

Answer: That sounds like a terrible idea.


Title: Being recorded without consent

Question:
Please don't upvote, can't give out much details but I'll try.

My significant other records me at home without my consent. There's nothing I can do about it, I know (I can't just unplug the cameras, that person is too aggressive and abusive). But my significant other's friend is ALSO recording me. That person doesn't live here but my significant other gave them keys. I was sleeping somewhere without cameras and woke up to that person pointing a camera at me, standing over me. My significant other is furious about MY reaction to what happened.

I'm really scared for my safety. I know there's nothing I can do about my significant other recording me, but what about the friend? Is this legal?

I'm in Texas.

Answer:
 Okay, INAL, but common sense tells me: A) Get the fuck out immediately. Go to family, friends, or a women's shelter *immediately*. Cut off all contact with your SO, and his fucked up friend., B) Possibly press charges (here's where legal advice that I cannot give kicks in, but please pay attention.). As I understand it, many states such type of voyeuristic recording is illegal., C) If necessary, given the abusive relationship, you may need to file a restraining order.

Bottom line: Get out, get help. I differ to the legal-type folks here that can better advise you as to the actual statutes in your state, and where to find help.  Best of luck.

Edit: Just because you may need it, https://hhs.texas.gov/services/safety/protective-services/family-violence-program


Title: Update: Mother being sued for over $10,000 by drug lab, now they want to settle (Fl)

Question:
My original post wasn't particularly interesting but I firmly believe that there is a special circle in hell for those who don't post updates, so here you go.

I shared all of the information and advice given to my mother, who had planned on dedicating today (Monday), tomorrow, and the following day to tackling the situation as she has these three days off of work and ordinarily works about 50 hours a week.  She had scheduled a consultation with a lawyer for Wednesday.

A couple of days ago my mother received a letter from the law firm representing the drug lab claiming that they would like to "resolve the matter between you and our client" and gave their number and my mother's file number.

She thinks the best route is to call the law firm and just settle the issue.  Personally, I'm pissed off at the situation in general and have a fantasy of at least annoying them by refusing to settle out of court.  I would like for her to contact the insurance company at the very least and find out the amount that she "actually" owes the company, which from the invoice they sent over should be nowhere near $10,000.  My default mindset is to assume that debt collectors are out to get as much money as possible and making nice with them is more convenient but not necessarily a good idea.  It also seems like a dick move or scare tactic to jump straight into suing someone without sending a bill or anything, and *then* offering to settle.

But I'm not a lawyer and have no knowledge or experience about this sort of thing, and it doesn't matter if I feel like the drug lab and lawyers are dicks.  So my first question is, How should she respond to this offer to settle?  Is my distrust misguided, or is fighting them on the issue generally a better option?  Or should she call the insurance company first before making the decision?

Also, how does this change her response to the lawsuit?  She has about two weeks (I think?) before the answer needs to be filed. If she does choose to settle the issue out of court how should she respond, or will the drug lab's lawyers somehow drop or cancel the lawsuit?

Thanks to those who gave their input to my original post, as well as to those of you who respond to this one.

5/31 update:  My mother got a phone call from the lawyer, who was super helpful.  She gave my mother detailed instructions on how to file her answer herself, and after that she should then ask for an actual invoice.  She said that at this point there was no reason for her to take my mother's money since she can file the answer on her own.  But if the case goes to trial, that's a different story.

Answer:
 >She thinks the best route is to call the law firm

This is a horrible idea. The other law firm doesn't work for your mother, they work for the drug lab.

Meet with the lawyer on Wednesday listen to what he or she says. Also, you should provide a link to the original post.Answer #2: you mother should not go to see any lawyers without a lawyer of her own. the basics rule of thumb is lawyer talk to lawyers. if they pull the lawyer card you pull the lawyer card there is no other way.Answer #3: Talking to the law firm is about the worst thing you can do in this situation, as others have mentioned.Answer #4: If they want to settle, they'll still want to settle Wednesday afternoon after the lawyer appointment. Remind your mom she's not losing anything by waiting 72 hours to make a decision. She can still give them all her money and the key to her house and some of her major organs if she decides to do that after taking to her own lawyer. (Um, I personally feel that the settlement the lab lawyer is offering will be unfair to your mom. Not sure if you can tell.)


Title: COO refuses to raise my hourly pay, can I sue?

Question: Hello everyone, I know the title may seem confusing but please take your time to read this . I am a 20 year old currently working at a Swiss Company (in a Balkan country) as a german translator and have been working here for exactly 2 years now (since I was 18). I have been loaded with more work over the course of the last 8 months and do not do the only thing I did like when I started. I have talked to the COO several times for a small raise and she dismisses it (and last time threatened to fire me). Cannot speak directly to the CEO as he lives overseas. I am the only person getting paid almost 40% less than all of my colleagues, some of which are new and it is so frustrating to be in this position. I am planning on leaving soon but I think she is not raising my wage because I am young(the youngest in the company to be exact) (?) and may think that I do not need a raise as much as others. Is this on any ground plausible to sue for age discrimination or something related?

Answer: It will ultimately be a question of local laws in whichever country you're in. But it would not be actionable in the United States.


Title: [North Carolina] Just found out my employer has been recording conversations between my coworkers and me without our knowledge, I know NC is a one-party consent state for recordings but does the employee/employer relationship change things?

Question:
For some background, I work in an independent pharmacy as a technician and this conversation happened between myself, a pharmacist, and a technician that was recently hired but had worked at this location in the past.  Anyway, during our downtime, we were just chatting and the rehire mentions some things about how the owner was rude to her in the past and could be a taskmaster a lot, kind of an annoyed rant (not the best to do it while at work, I know), nothing inappropriate or slanderous was stated, just things that anyone who has worked for him would notice (he has some strange mannerisms and occasionally is a taskmaster, but otherwise was great to work for).

Anyway, after a bit, the new technician goes to lunch and I answer a phone call on the provider's line, it's the owner's wife and she's mad.  She tells me that I should let the rehire know to quote, "watch their smart-ass mouth, that she has hidden microphones recording, she heard everything, and that she will deal with this technician herself.

I have also just found out from that technician that they have been fired.  I am now very uncomfortable in my workplace and finding a job that'll work with my school hours is going to be a pain.  Is there anything to be done in this situation?

Also just to add, there was nobody that could have possibly overheard us and neither myself nor the pharmacist made mention of this to anyone, nor did we have the time or means to during the timeline between the conversation and the phone call.

Answer:
 With this being a pharmacy setting HIPPA regulations may be involved.... Just sayingAnswer #2: The thing about "one-party consent" is that at least one party to the conversation has to know of and consent to the recording.

It's possible that one of the people in a conversation did consent to it ahead of time, but it seems unlikely and I would imagine would require separate consent for each recording.

If no one in the conversation was aware of or consented to the recording, then it's very possibly a criminal act.

See:  [https://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter\_15A/GS\_15A-296.html](https://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_15A/GS_15A-296.html) which provides statutory damages for a civil claim.

See: [https://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter\_15A/GS\_15A-287.html](https://www.ncleg.net/EnactedLegislation/Statutes/HTML/BySection/Chapter_15A/GS_15A-287.html) which provides for prosecution as a felony.Answer #3: NAL it feels weird to me that the wife has access to these recordings?


Title: Can a parent kick out an 18 year-old before they graduate high school? [CO]

Question:
I'm a teacher in rural Colorado, and I've had a few students tell me that their parents are planning on kicking them out of the house as soon as they turn 18 because of their 'attitude'.  None of these kids have been in trouble with the law, and they are currently enrolled in high school with passing (good) grades.  They will still have a semester of high school left after they turn 18 (next year) and are worried about what to do should their parents actually follow through with their threats.

I've searched and read multiple responses, some of which say 'yes, as soon as you're 18 they can boot you', and others that claim parents cannot kick out their children (even at 18) until AFTER they finish high school.  I realize the laws differ from state to state, so I was wondering what the law in Colorado is.

So: Can a parent kick out an 18 year-old BEFORE they graduate high school, or do they have to wait until after graduation?

Thanks!

EDIT: I appreciate all the responses, but any word on whether or not being in high school still matters at all?

For example: In North Carolina, even after your child turns 18, you are still responsible for them until they either graduate high school or turn 20 (NC Gen Stat § 50-13.4) [source: http://www.avvo.com/legal-answers/can-i-kick-out-18-year-old-son-who-is-still-in-hig-1641574.html].

Anything similar in Colorado?

Answer: I used to work with crisis intervention services (runaways and lock outs) a lot and this was a common threat, "now you are 18, shape up or get out".  In my state, yes they can do this at 18.  Still, i'm willing to bet most are empty threats.


Title: [East Texas] "Stolen" Car

Question:
So we took my wife's old junker to a u-pull-it yard in East Texas around a year ago. The manager told us over the phone that he'd give us $150 - $200 for it. We dropped it off and told them we'd send them the title when we had a check. They were really friendly and seemed trustworthy. I called numerous times and they never did get back to me. They kept telling me that the guy who made those decisions was out of the office, but confirmed that they were using the car to drive around the yard and get parts. I have zero proof of any of this. I had completely forgotten about it until I was going through old paperwork yesterday and found the title to the car.

I don't really care about the money that much, it's the principle of it. Is there anything I can do to at least teach them not to scam people?

Answer:
 So you dropped the car off and said you'd stop back in with the title, never did and they never paid you.

Have you tried, idk, stopping in with the title and asking for your cash?


Title: Help! My boss is asking me to sign a new RSA (Restricted Stock Agreement) because he 'messed up'...

Question:
I didn't truthfully understand the first one I signed, but the new one is pretty different and the timing seems a bit strange since the company could potentially sell in the next year... Sketchy or no?

Obviously I am not well studied in the language of law so most of the contract could mean something completely different than what I've interpreted to begin with... Help!

Edit: I live in NY

Answer: He "messed up"? Yeah, that's a bit off. Take your contract to a lawyer: when it comes to agreements like this, it's best to ALWAYS get them reviewed.


Title: Got a ticket on the way to court for supervision

Question:
I am located in Illinois. I am an 18 year old drive with no previous offenses before these. I got into a crash and it was my fault. A month later I was on the way to court and I was running late so I was speeding and got pulled over for driving 61 in a 40 mph zone.

I thought the best thing would be to still go to court. So my current state is that I am under court supervision for 6 months and I received a speeding ticket 30 minutes prior to my court time.

What choices do I have? And what are the outcomes?

Answer:
 > What choices do I have?

You can either fight the Princess or you can marry the dragon.

> And what are the outcomes?

Entropy, Death and Decay.

You could also post your location so we have any idea what the hell you are talking about.Answer #2: >What choices do I have?

Sell your car.

>And what are the outcomes?

You'll no longer get in trouble for making bad decisions while driving.


Title: What's it called when all suspects are blamed as there's not enough evidence to convict one? [NY]

Question:
My friend (loose term) is involved in a CPS case where both parents are being blamed as they don't have enough evidence to prosecute just one of them.

Is there a name for this?

Answer:
 That's not really a thing. If you don't have enough evidence to convict an individual, you don't have enough evidence to convict the group.

It's likey in this case they have evidence that both parents did/didn't do something worthy of prosecution, and are charging both. They don't really care who was "more wrong"; if both parties had a duty to act, and neither did, they can properly enforce sanctions against both.


Title: Can I still get paid for my hours after I was fired?

Question:
So I worked retail at a knife store and I was in my 3 month probation period. The schedule said I worked 11-7 today (Tuesday the 19th) when I woke up at 8:30 I checked the online schedule and it said I wasn’t working anymore today. So I went back to bed only to wake up at 12 and find that the schedule now says I was working again. My boss terminated my employment with them saying it was my own fault. On top of this they took me off for the rest of the week which is 39 hours I should be paid for? But she took me off so they don’t have to pay me. Is there anyway to see if the schedule was changed? Is it legal to just pretend I didn’t have the other shifts and not pay me? Thank you
I live in British Columbia Canada. I don’t want the job anymore I just want the 39 hours of pay.

Answer:
 >On top of this they took me off for the rest of the week which is 39 hours I should be paid for?

If you are asking about hours you are scheduled for, but won't work because you were fired... No, they don't need to pay for those hours.


Title: [Illinois] I moved out of school district right before senior year and I want to stay. Any help would be appreciated.

Question: So I just moved out of my school district, I live about 12 miles away from my school now and I was wondering if I could talk to my school and ask them if I could finish there and graduate. Will this work or am I better off using my old address?

Answer: Using your old address is fraud; people have gone to jail for this. Talk to the school and see if they can accommodate you.


Title: Retroactive Intellectual Property Rights (Chicago)

Question:
Hi everyone!
I was one of the first engineering hires at an early stage tech startup, and when I joined my employer didn't have me sign an employment agreement.

Now that I'm leaving, they are scrambling to have me sign an employment agreement that would retroactively give them intellectual property rights over everything that I created while I was at the company.

Is there any reason for me to sign this?  Can my employer go after me if I don't?  It seems like I am potentially giving up something very big here.

Answer:
 > Is there any reason for me to sign this?

Are they offering you money?  I wouldn't sign anything like this unless it was in exchange for money.

> Can my employer go after me if I don't?

If they have the right to the IP then they don't need you to sign anything.  If they don't have the right to the IP then they can't force you to sign anything.


Title: Can I sue my sister for emotional damage?

Question: So my mom, dad ,older brother, younger brother, and me are all suffering from my sister who is 17 and I'm 19. Everyone is suffering from her bitchiness. She emotionally abusive to us for no reason. She makes us feel worse and almost brought me to suicide 2 years ago. Every day she bitches about our ball pythons for our breeding buisness. She hates them and demands money for the babies even though she does nothing to help. She is 90% likely to sue us for this bullshit.. can we sue her for all the abuse and terrible whit she has done to us for 12 years.

Answer: You should just move out. You're an adult now and you don't have to put yourself in a position to be bullied by a minor.


Title: Is it illegal to climb a fence into a school while its the weekends or summer?

Question: Basically when school isnt in session, can a police officer stop me if I am caught jumping the fence?

Answer: If you are trespassing? Yes, that is illegal.


Title: I'm owed $12 by someone in Delaware who involved me in a crime. Anything I can do?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 You can report the matter to the police.  They may or may not take action.

You could also try suing that person, but that's going to be way more expensive than 12 dollars.


Title: Wife and I are moving out of my MIL house. Grandma keeps threatening to keep our two boys when we move.

Question:
So we aren’t moving for maybe 6 months but we have already had a few little quarrels with grandma about our  two sons (6 and 9).

She keeps threatening my wife telling her that she’s not taking our boys. They argue and then we move on with our lives.

When the time comes for us to leave we know she is going g to make it as hard as possible for us to take the boys and we just want to know if there is anything we can do before we leave to make the transition easier mainly for the boys.

They love their grandma and know they are moving with us of course but still.

Grandma has taken good care of the boys before I came into the picture as my wife worked full time. (I’m step dad) so I know she’s attached to them and feel sad for her but ultimately they are coming with us, end of story.

Any ways any advice would be appreciated!
Thanks in advance.

Answer: Since you didn't mention anything about her attempting legal action to keep the boys, this sounds more like a relationship problem than legal advice. Answer #2: She doesn’t have custody and can’t keep you, the parents from taking them when you leave. You simply leave with the kids. Unless there’s something more you’re not telling. Answer #3: She has no legal claim to your kids. You just pack up and leave and there's nothing she can do about it. If she tries to physically keep your kids there, you call the police and then cut her out of your lives.


Title: What is actually considered false advertising?

Question: (Utah) So the other day I went on to a local stores website to make a few purchases and saw that a couple items I wanted were grossly mispriced. ($120 backpack for $0.06 and $150 rock climbing shoes for $0.09) I bought the backpack just to see if it would actually work. It got processed and shipped out within a couple hours. Then I bought the rock climbing shoes. I received a confirmation of the purchase via email and a few hours later received an email saying that my order of the shoes got canceled due a mispriced. From what I've read on the internet, a company can chose not to sell them to you if they can prove it was a simple pricing error. However, if there was a pricing error and the company did agree to sell it to you it becomes contractual. So my question is since I bought them for $0.09 and they sent me a confirmation, does that constitute an agreement on the price? Or is there some sort of grey area with it being online? And is there anything I can do about it from here?

Answer: An automated checkout system confirming a transaction is not the same as someone agreeing to sell an item. That was obviously a price mistake, and you knew it was when you tried to buy the items. You aren't owed anything, and it is not a gray area.


Title: Moved away from son, need legal advice.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Go to court and get your visitation and FaceTime court ordered.  You have no standing to speak to her oldest son though.

Right now she's pretty much free to do what she wants absent a court order.Answer #2: If you two cannot decide on custody/visitation, you will have to figure it out in court with lawyers.


Title: [WV/VA] Got a henna tattoo on vacation, place used wrong chemical, permanently branded

Question:
I live in WV but we vacationed to Virginia Beach a week and a half ago.

While there I went into a shop and got a henna tattoo. The sign said "Lasts up to 45 days". While she was applying the paste we talked, she asked if I was trying out a design for a permanent tattoo and I made it very clear I never intend to have a permanent tattoo. I've had henna before without any problem. The paste looked darker than normal but how was I to know? I went with a brick and mortar location (as opposed someone just on the boardwalk) to make ensure the people knew what they were doing.

On Friday, eight days after I received the tattoo, it suddenly became very itchy and started burning. I'm going to gloss over the gross details here, it's very similar to poison ivy at this point but in the shape of a fox tattoo. From research it seems the paste she used [may have contained PPD](https://www.fda.gov/MedicalDevices/ProductsandMedicalProcedures/HomeHealthandConsumer/ConsumerProducts/ContactLenses/ucm108569.htm). The black color has faded now but the design remains in a raised poison-ivy like rash. There's a chance I'll have this marking for life, and it takes up a good amount of my arm.

My boyfriend says I should look into suing the business as I got the tattoo on the understanding it would be temporary. Also if it is PPD then she is going against the FDA regulations. I don't think I have anything I can sue for, it's not like I can have this scar removed.

For discussions sake, do I have damage? Do I have tort? Is violating the FDA regulations like this illegal?
Topic:
Personal Injury

Answer:
 Being around henna enthusiasts, sounds like they used Jagua. Some people get bad rashes from it but it should go away in about a week and the actual stain will go away as the skin exfoliates within a month.
It's best to see a doctor, as always.


Title: [IN] Neighborhood woman let’s dog run the neighborhood free, and now it is attached to me

Question:
There was a dog roaming my yard who was soaking wet. I used pizza as a treat to lure it in so I could read her tags. I called the number on them and the lady said that “she always roams but always comes home” and to just let her go. I did this, but now the dog is crying at my porch door because I befriended her with the pizza. The woman is not concerned and will come get the dog, but it will just come back again.

If the dog will not leave, should I call animal control? Would they care that this dog is being allowed to roam the neighborhood like an outdoor cat? I have the owner’s phone number based on the dog’s tag. The dog is soaking wet from the rain.

Would animal control give the owner an opportunity to stop leaving the dog outside? Or would it be taken away to a kill shelter? I would like to keep the poor girl if the original owner can’t take care of her better. It is clear this is a normal thing for the dog and I would like to either make sure the owner is taking care of her or I would like to adopt her myself.

Answer:
 You can let the owner know that if you see the dog roaming free again, you will take the dog to a shelter because that is where people take unrestrained and un-monitored animals.  Taking the dog to a shelter usually forces an owner to pay to have the animal released, which will make her more carefully consider whether or not she should be allowing the dog to roam free (the answer, of course, is that she shouldn't be).

If she chooses not to come claim the dog within a certain amount of time (usually around 72 hours), the shelter will put the dog up for adoption, at which point either yourself or another responsible owner will have the option to formally adopt the animal.


Title: [REAL ESTATE LAW] Can seller's agent force buyer to use agent?

Question: Hello. I am selling a home (Texas) and a buyer has offered a price but wants to not use an agent of his own. My selling agent says he can't do this (presumably so that he can get that commision to). Is he right and is that legal? The selling agent is entitled to a buyer's agent fee (from me) even if the buyer doesn't have an agent?

Answer: You didn't list your state, but some (most?) states allow dual agency, so long as you agree and understand. This means your agent may be able to represent both of you. If not, then yes, the buyer likely needs to use his own agent, or Redfin, or similar


Title: My Former Employer Might Be Committing Medicaid Fraud, What Do I Do?

Question:
I used to be a pharmacy technician at a family owned pharmacy in North Carolina. I was fired today after what I suspect is a situation of knowing too much for my own good. I will describe the exact situation just so that I can be sure this is actually Medicaid fraud.

Last Friday I was filling a prescription for a mental health drug that comes in bottles of 30. The name brand form of this drug costs about $1,200, while the generic form of this drug costs about $200. I was told to fill a prescription for this mental health drug that indicated on the label that it was for the NAME BRAND version. On the receipt for the prescription it stated that Medicaid was paying around $1,200-1,300 to cover the cost to fill this prescription for the NAME BRAND version. However, my superior (one of the pharmacists) told me to put the GENERIC version of the drug in place of the name brand.

Now, it was normal practice for me to check if the pharmacy would be profiting from filling a prescription so that they could decide if they wanted to go through with it. So when I saw that the pharmacy would be profiting around a $1,000 from this swap, I became concerned. So I asked my superior if this was legal, I didn't know as I had only been on the job a couple weeks. My superior immediately said, "I am unwilling to answer that question as it was an order handed down to me by my superior, so you will have to ask her"

Her superior is the owner of the pharmacy, who is also a pharmacist. So I talked to her about this problem and told her it stressed me out. I don't want to be involved in any fraud or illegal practices, as I have just graduated college and was only using this job as a crutch until I found my real job. She says that I shouldn't be worried about any of this because it doesn't concern me and I won't get in trouble. She states that medicaid requires them to dispense name brand drugs, but then underpays them. They wouldn't make a profit if they didn't give out the generics instead.

The conversation ended with me being assured I wouldn't get in trouble and my shift ending for the day. Early this morning, I get a call from my boss saying that she thought about our conversation and felt that I should be pursuing my degrees, not working part-time at their pharmacy. She said she didn't want me to be stressed out and wanted me to pursue what I liked instead. So she essentially fired me, I suspect for knowing way too much and questioning it.

Here are my questions, is this truly Medicaid Fraud (I'm pretty damn certain it is)? Should I report this and if so, how? Also, will I face repercussions for reporting it? For example, I get charged for participating even though I had no knowledge it was wrong and when I caught on, I immediately questioned it. Also, can the owner of the pharmacy sue me for reporting her? Essentially, is this worth me reporting?

Just to clarify, I don't seek to gain anything, I just don't really take kindly to people stealing from taxpayers and the government. It actually really offends me.

Answer:
 My pharmacist spouse says it's definitely medicaid fraud.  If the bottle is labeled as the name brand version that's also illegal.  You need to report this to your state board of pharmacy.Answer #2: File for unemployment. Report what you saw and know. /u/z9nine liked the resources to report what you saw.Answer #3: Employment Attorney here.

You seem to have run across a scheme to defraud the government, and you possibly have been fired as a result. You should speak to an employment attorney about your rights, today. Specifically, I'd be interested, if I were you, in whether I have a claim for retaliation under 31 USC 3730(h). This is a claim your attorney can negotiate and settle directly with the employer. If imagine your employer will be highly motivated to settle that claim.

You may also be able to file a qui tam claim, as someone else mentioned, but I can't see how you would have knowledge enough to make it worth your or the government's while. This is a claim that the government owns and that you get a piece of if resolved. You can't negotiate it to settlement on your own, and if you try you might be guilty of extortion. In general, the government may not show much interest in the (civil) case if you can't point to at least a million dollars in fraudulent claims.

Speak to an employment attorney. Claims like this can be valuable, so do it soon.


Title: Pulled over for reckless driving in VA. What are my options?

Question:
I got pulled over recently and received a reckless driving charge going 89 on a 55 mph highway.  I was told that the repercussions can range from paying a fine to having my license suspended.  What are my best options for avoiding a license suspension?

Since I've been pulled over I've enrolled in a defensive driving course so that I can look better before I go in front of the judge, but should i get a lawyer to better represent me? Any advice is greatly appreciated!!

Answer:
 You need a lawyer. Reckless driving is a class 1 misdemeanor in VA (so a criminal charge, not a ticket or small infraction), which can carry a penalty of jail time. So lawyer, ASAP. Answer #2: VA has very (*very*) strict traffic laws. Reckless driving is a misdemeanor (a criminal charge). You need a traffic attorney to help you to minimize the repercussions. Answer #3: OP, please read [this](http://jalopnik.com/never-speed-in-virginia-lessons-from-my-three-days-in-1613604053). It will help emphasize your need for an attorney.Answer #4: Welcome to Virginia. You'll find that we love guns and hate speeders with about equal fervor. No, it doesn't make sense to me either.

You've been charged with an actual crime (not an infraction). Get an actual attorney. You cannot afford to be without one unless you want to spend some time in jail like that dude in the Jalopnik article linked elsewhere in this thread.


Title: [Virginia] Reckless Driving - 76 mph in a 55

Question:
I'm asking for my boyfriend, since he doesn't have a Reddit account.

He was charged with reckless driving in Virginia (I'll have to check with him what county it was in), going 76 in a 55. He's from Maryland, but was in Virginia for work. In Maryland, he's had one speeding ticket (64 in a 55).

I know Virginia is really serious about speeding, so my question is.. Should he get a lawyer, even though he was only 1 MPH over what is considered reckless?

I'm going to suggest he get his speedometer calibrated, since even a -2 MPH difference could help his case.

Any other advice or input is greatly appreciated!
Topic:
Traffic and Parking

Answer: That's a criminal offense. He absolutely wants a lawyer.


Title: Is it legal for a camera above my door apartment to possibly hear my inside conversations?

Question: I live in rhode island and my land lord has put a camera I believe records audio right above my first floor  apartment door pointed at stair well to see who goes upstairs through main entrance of his apartment building. I heard comments that he can hear loud music being played on third floor from camera on first floor so I suspect he can hear everything through my door which is closer to camera. What are my options?

Answer:
 Rhode island is a 1 party consent state. So if he has consent from one person it's ok.

But since he is recording your conversations, in your apartment?, with no consent, on accident or on purpose, he's running afoul of wiretapping laws. Now, who do you report this to? I'm not sure. Maybe call the police non-emergency line and see what they have to say about it?


Title: [NY] Can I remove a barrel from the road?

Question:
Someone in my neighborhood apparently recently decided the traffic was going too fast on our street and put a big blue barrel with "Slow" and a smiley face on it with reflective tape smack dab in the middle of the road. I already called the police nonemergency number and they came out and didn't do anything. Am I allowed to remove the barrel from the street and put it in my basement?

ETA:

http://imgur.com/a/Um8Ji

pulled to the curb in my car.

Answer: Ok, thinking about this more, you are not stuck. The police are the wrong agency. The city road and highway department is who you call. And email them the photo. If they reply in the email with a request to move the barrel, then you are good to go.Answer #2: Where is the shitty MS paint drawing? We need context here... It's hard to imagine how big of a issue this barrel is if we don't know how big it is and how big of an obstruction it is


Title: Customer wants me to notarize and give them an active confidential document after the fact or they are withholding payment. What are my options?

Question:
"Whiskey's for drinkin', water's for fightin' over." - *unknown.*

The work being done is in North Dakota.  Here's the jist of it:

My company has an agreement with Landowner for access to surface water out of a creek.  I market this for end use and take a middleman cut.

I have separate agreements with Landowner and Customer. Those two don't talk and don't know each other and I have confidentiality with Landowner regarding Landowner's agreement.

Customer is requiring notarization of Landowner agreement showing that I have the right to accept payment on Landowner's behalf otherwise they will send the full check to Landowner and they say Landowner can pay me out my cut at that point.

I emailed Customer a severely redacted version of my Landowner agreement explaining the bare bones of what they need to know with mine and Landowner signatures attached.

Landowner gave permission to me to apply for the water permit.

Permit is under my company's name, not Landowner's name.

Landowner has no permit, telemetry, meter, or right to a point of diversion.

Customer signed an agreement with me for use of the permit, not Landowner.

Customer signed an agreement with me for payment terms, not Landowner.

Paragraph 4 in Customer agreement details my interest to full right, title, authority and interest to the permit and real property, as does the agreement between myself and the Landowner.

Customer has enough proof and documentation that Landowner has conveyed those rights without having it notarized as well...

This wouldn't be a problem if Customer didn't ask at 4pm last Friday and demand it by 5pm that day.  Landowner is 81 years old and lives 1000 miles away from the work being completed and I'm not going to overnight a document to him and force him to sign it just to appease these guys.  I'll drop the whole job if that's the case.  Obviously I charge Customer one rate and pay Landowner another rate (that's how business works) but for the amount of physical time and effort I've spent on this deal (think hours, not weeks) ANY payment over a few thousand would seem ridiculous right?  If this deal goes through I stand to make double what Landowner does... and he's happy with the six figure check he's getting out of the deal.

I need help with what the new text should say that needs to get notarized - here's my idea:

I, Landowner, signed an agreement on xx/xx/xx with *my company* stating that *my company* can receive payment from Customer on behalf of the Permit and distribute it accordingly as per the terms of the agreement with no changes to the agreement taking place.  Signed and notarized, Landowner.

In four years I've never had to do this with a Customer before, so I already told him to go piss up a rope... But if I ever want to do business with Landowner again I obviously can't have him seeing that total amount.  Can Customer even do this without an agreement with the Landowner?

Answer:
 > I have separate agreements with Landowner and Customer. Those two don't talk and don't know each other and I have confidentiality with Landowner regarding Landowner's agreement.

> Customer is requiring notarization of Landowner agreement showing that I have the right to accept payment on Landowner's behalf otherwise they will send the full check to Landowner and they say Landowner can pay me out my cut at that point.

> Can Customer even do this without an agreement with the Landowner?

Probably not if your contract with Customer requires Customer to pay you. *However*, water rights being a Big Important Thing in the western US, I can't rule out the existence of a statute that might apply; for example, giving a landowner a direct right of action against a party who takes water - in which case, there might be a statute subsection (or interpreting court case) that allows Customer to pay Landowner directly.
Answer #2: Non of this is a **legal** issue. Legally you don't have to show Customer anything. You have your permits, you have your contracts. This is just a buisness question of "how can I appease this customer?"

Well we can't tell you what will/won't appease this customer. We can't tell you if you should appease this customer or go find another. We can't tell you what language will or won't appease this customer.

What I can tell you is, your giving up alot of info to this customer. Info you wisely took correct steps to keep secert. What safeguard do you have that keeps someone going to Landowner with a better deal? Do you have an exclusivity deal with landowner? Are the penalties for breaking that sufficient to really stop him from doing so?


Title: Came back from vacation to rat poop all over apartment - what are our rights as tenants?

Question:
We came back from vacation to essentially an apartment scattered with rat droppings. The couch, clothes, counter etc.  They had gotten into the dog food bag in the laundry room and the butternut squash we had on the counter and apparently were just having a grand old time while we were away. Nothing in the pantries seemed to be disturbed.

We contacted our landlord and they have set up an exterminator for today so they are being proactive about the situation.

We aren't concerned about throwing away and cleaning house on all the pantry stuff, but we are a bit more concerned about the cleaning and the damage to our couch.  I would assume the couch is probably a lost cause at this point which I can live with, but is the landlord responsible for cleaning the apartment to a livable standard? As it stands, it is definitely not "safe and inhabitable."  It was about midnight last night when we found all of this and we had to stay at a hotel, and likely will for a couple days while the exterminator gets it under the control.

They were aware of rodent issues and apparently the HOA was doing something in the basement a couple weeks prior.

I can provide any additional info as needed.

Thanks in advance!

Answer: I don't see a location here, but it's quite possible that you may have some liability for having left food where the rats could get at it. You're presumably responsible for keeping the property in a reasonable state, and going on vacation leaving a butternut squash on the counter and a bag of dog food in an accessible location could be seen as attracting vermin.


Title: [US] My trademark is being opposed. Do they have a good basis for doing so?

Question:
I have filed for a trademark with the USPTO for the logo of a product that I have sold online to all 50 states.  My trademark is of the logo, not a word mark.

I don't want to specify the name of my product here, but let's call it "Purple Pops," which has a similar structure as my name.

Someone filed an extension to file an opposition, meaning I will probably get a notice of opposition soon. They have a word mark for the name of their product, "Pop!," which is in the same category of product as mine. I'm not sure if they actually sell it because I don't see it online.

So again, mine is "Purple Pops," and theirs is "Pop!" (note how theirs is not plural and has an exclamation point). They filed theirs first.

Do you think that, under these circumstances, they have a good basis for opposition?

Note: If I receive the Notice of Opposition (which I fully expect to), I am going to seek the help of an attorney, but first I just wanted to get feedback here.

Answer:
 Without knowing the exact details of your case, it is impossible for us to judge the merits of their case.

You need to get a lawyer, as you've already identified.


Title: [TX, CA] My wife and I bought a house, my wife's father cosigned on the loan. Her father passed away without writing a will. My wife has two sisters.

Question:
The House is in Texas, my wife and I live in Texas.
My wife's father lived (and passed away) in California.

My wife's father never made a will. He cosigned the mortgage to help my wife and me pay for the house.  I paid the downpayment, and every payment on the house has come from my personal account.

Here's the issue.  My wife has two sisters.  My wife and *one* of these sisters have had issues with each other for years.  Is it possible for this sister to effectively claim a portion of our house?

If so, is there anything we can do immediately to protect our house?

Answer: Firstly I'm in Mi not TX. But how is the house titled,  tenancy in common or  joint tenancy?   You can title a house so that when one person dies their share goes to the remaining owners not the estate of the deceased. Answer #2: Is he on the mortgage only, or also the deed/title to the house?


Title: Neighbor left dog unattended on balcony, Dog jumped got badly injured, What can I do to make sure she gets in trouble for neglect? FLORIDA

Question: This is the second time, The neighbor left the dog on the balcony and the dog jumped 4 flights. The first time the dog landed on a car and she was sleeping. This time the dog landed face first into the ground. I would like to make sure justice is prevailed for this ignorant and irresponsible dog owner. What actions can I take? Since this happened multiple times, can we get her in trouble for animal abuse?

Answer:
 You can report her to the police and/or animal control.  That's it.Answer #2: > The neighbor left the dog on the balcony and the dog jumped 4 flights

You're saying this dog has twice survived a 4 story fall?  I'm calling at least exaggeration, if not troll.  Sorry dude, dogs can't fall 30-40 feet without basically exploding on impactAnswer #3: Report her to whatever Florida's version of animal control is, for abuse and/or neglect.


Title: I don't know much and I just need to know whats best for my child

Question:
I have been divorced for about 2 and a half years and my ex wife and I have a 4yr old daughter at the time of the divorce I WILLINGLY signed away legal custody to my ex based on my own metal health and living situation and because I really believed that we could work together and compromise on raising her the best we could or knew how( based on what we both believed) regaurdless of legal statis and it really went well for a while,i was supposed to be allowed over night visitation for two days a week and my daughter now stays with me 4 nights a week my life problems have improved greatly I do not work still but provide for myself through gov.assistance and living with my mother and father who have even arranged with me that I will hold off on getting a job and be the sole care provider for my daughter when she is in our home and I LOVE it it means soooo much to me to be able to spend more time with my daughter than anyone in her life really she is my whole life apart from the few days she spends with her mom,but lately ive been hearing and seeing some not so good things from her other family her mother lives in a tiny apartment with like 5-6 other young people when I go over there to pick my daughter up the house is always filled with smoke( I like to relate the haze to a poker game) and im a smoker but I smoke strictly outside at all time wich is something we had agreed to always do when we were married a while back I went there and knocked on the door(at the appointed time) and I couldn't get an answer for like 10 mins the whole time I stood there I could here a bunch of guys and girls my age VERY clearly talking about how they are dealing drugs and trying to "cut out the middle man" and make there "product"more pure and I will state that I may have lived a life like that in the past but since my daughter was born I have never stopped trying to better myself and I am proud to say I do not associate with anything of that nature,the most I do is drink a couple beers at night after I put her to bed,and maybe quite a few more with my brother on the weekends here and there when my daughter is not with me and he has bbq's and things like that(mostly hanging out with other parents who had some free time from parenting) but I let it go for a bit just trying to understand that she WILL be exposed to harmful things in her life dispite ANY effort I can make to stop it and on the hope that it will only help her to decide for herself that something may be wrong with some of these actions but in the recent week her birthday came and one of the presents from my ex-wife's father (her pa-pa((grandpa)) was one of these new cell phones for children wich on one hand I strongly disagree with but it is definetly up to them what she does at there house so when she came back to me thety brought it with her and told me to keep it on her at all times and have her call them at night which for me was a bit much but I decided to "pick my battles" and that it was something that compromise on but what they didn't tell me or my parents who's house I live in is that when they call it they can make it answer itself and by there choice can basicly open a speaker phone conection without us even knowing it AND can track the watch using Wi-Fi which is alright except we don't have wi fi and it tells them that she is a few houses down the street(the closest wifi signal) they ended up calling my mom and clling her out(unjustly) for not having her at the appointed address and now they keep calling and listening and im starting to realize that they did not get this phone to give her independence or even just for a way to talk to her(which we have 4 phone in our house all of which they know the number)but rather because they don't trust that im not doing all the things that her mother is doing because obviously if she cant change then I cant...
I don't want a legal battle at all because I believe it will hurt our daughter more than anything all im hoping to do is just tell them that the phone is not welcome to come back with her next time....long story for short question,Am I within my legal right and how should I prepare myself if they try to fight me legaly?

Answer:
 TLDR for everyone:

-Divorced 2.5 years

-Gave legal custody to ex at the time but ex has been compromising. Had 2 overnights per week per the order, and has expanded to 4 nights a week based on verbal agreement.

-Does not work, has state benefits. Lives at home with parents. Ex has an apartment with 5-6 other young adults.

-Is concerned about smoking in the apartment while child is there, to the point that there is a haze in the air. Is concerned about overhearing clearcut discussions of dealing drugs.

-Is most concerned that ex's parents got the four year old (wtf) a cell phone that is not for the child's use, but is being used as a remote spying device when child is in his home. Cell signal also being tracked, but falsely reports the child's location as a few houses down. Grandparents are making a stink to him and he is concerned they are trying to build a case for custody. He believes they don't trust their own daughter to care for the child and by association do not trust him as the father.

-Sounds like he has a past history including drug abuse but is clean now.

-What are they planning/ How can he stop it/ Is he allowed to tell them to go to hell about bringing the phone since it's being used to spy and track.


Title: I f(19) in CA have had multiple numbers calling my phone with a man asking for me. The most resent one had the same area code as my last residence.

Question:
Made a throwaway for reasons I will now share.

So- when I was a teenage (14-17) I made a lot of stupid decisions. I chatted to a lot of guys online to help deal with lonliness/depression and the fact that I was constantly moving/homeless for a short period of time.

I mostly did this through reddit and omegle. Completely stupid- and in hindsight one of the worst things I could have done for myself.
 I have currently made to the west coast and I am finally living a normal stable life. I havent thought about my online activity for at least a couple years.

Recently I got a call from across the country. I answered and a man (Jo) on the other end said my name and that he wanted to catch up with me.

I told him that if he knew me from a few years ago it was when I was very underage and naive, and for him to please not call me again. I thought that would be the end of it.

Another man ("Jeff") just called me again from a different number that has the same area code as my family (my old address from a year ago) He continued to ask for *my name* but increasingly became more aggressive.

I asked him why he was calling me and from where. He said that Jo gave him my number and then hung up.

I dont know whether to be scared or not. Or what I should do in this situation. He keeps calling from different numbers so I dont think blocking the current ones will help. And I dont believe authorities can do much.

Is there anything I can do other than change my phone number? What can I do?

Answer: Change your phone number


Title: Mom paid for an aunt's mortgage. Now they want to transfer ownership. They are in good terms.

Question:
A long time ago, an aunt had an apartment which was acquired through a loan. My aunt couldn't continue paying for it and they made an agreement that my mother would continue to pay until the end of the debt (20 or so years) and she would "own" it.

So, this happened but they never cared to do the actual transfer of owner or whatever. My mom made all the payments as if it were my aunt and my aunt is currently the legal owner of the apartment. Now they want to settle things and transfer the property to my mom.

They are in good terms and want to do it in good faith. Apparently you can't sell an apartment in $0 dollars, so they talked with a notary and he told them that they could structure this as a donation, however, my mother would have to pay income tax on the commercial value of that, and that's a lot of money. The notary also told them that something could be done if they were able to prove that my mother was the one making all the payments this time. We do not have any idea on how one proves this, by the way.

Any ideas on what could be done?

Answer: Your mom and aunt don't need to be taking legal advice from a notary. A notary shouldn't be giving legal advice. Your mom needs to get advice from a CPA and a real estate attorney.


Title: Was "forced" to clean up unknown chemicals at work.

Question:
To begin, I deal cards at a casino in Michigan. When starting work today, I had to open a table to start the day. Once I began, I noticed a chemical smell coming from the table/chip tray. Then, me and my supervisor noticed that a few of the racks where soaked in this unknown chemical. I was then told to remove the chips from the tray and clean then, without knowledge as to this foreign chemical in the tray.

I was not given hand protection until I requested it and the staff seemed more concerned about getting the game in motion rather then the safety of their employees.

This same casino has required dealers to also continue dealing while bio-hazard conditions existed on their game. Examples include blood on the cards/chips and tobacco spit on the game.

I'm not sure that this is enough to take legal action or even, at the least, file a complaint with HR. Looking for some advice on this one.

Edit: for location

Answer:
 Do you have any reason whatsoever to believe it was any dangerous chemical and not spilled booze?Answer #2: It's *possible* OSHA might care.

They would definitely care about requiring employees to come into contact with other peoples blood.  Not so certain about the saliva but it's likely.

*Edit to add: If it's really a common occurrence your employer would need to look into OSHA's BBP standards, which will involve yearly training, offering Hep B vaccines, and having a protocol in place.  Otherwise having the regular janitorial staff trained to handle blood remove it a better option.

Personally, you have no legal ground unless you have specific damages.  And it doesn't sounds like you have any


Title: Can my boss refuse to pay me for overtime but dock me for taking days off if I am being paid a salary? (IL)

Question:
r/personalfinance sent me here.

I have been on salary since I started this job about four months ago. Overtime (between 6-10 hours each week) was never paid but holidays off (Memorial Day and Independence Day) were. I had to take two days off last week and was not paid for them.

My pay stubs all have me categorized as Hourly instead of Salary-Employee in the Earnings and Hours section. The Hours section always shows 40 besides today's stub, which says 24 (two days off).

Am I right in thinking that I have been short-changed? Can he refuse to pay me overtime while docking me for taking days off?  Should I have the payroll person look up my sign-in sheets and add up all of that overtime and request payment?

It is a small business (just the owner and three employees total) in Illinois.

Also, I just quit this job when I picked up my check, if that matters, and didn't notice the numbers were off until I got home.

Answer:
 If you're probably categorized as exempt then you don't get OT, whether you work 41 hours or 81 hours in a week.

In *general:*

1. You can't be docked for a partial day
2. You CAN be docked for missing an entire day

Read up here to see [if you are properly categorized as exempt](http://www.dol.gov/whd/overtime/fs17a_overview.htm). Answer #2: I've never heard of a *salaried* mechanic, so considering that and the fact that your check actually says Hourly, I'm going to go with he was trying to short-change you.


Title: Just finished watching Hot Fuzz. Can an entire town, and their police force be arrested and tried? Would there be any major hiccups?

Question:
Hello!

So, really dumb question that I am sure the answer to the inital bit is yes. I just finished watching Hot Fuzz for the first time, fantastic movie BTW, but it got me thinking.

Could an entire town, and most of its police force be jailed and tried? What would the legal implications for that even be? And would there be any major legal hiccups along the way in that case?

Answer: Not quite the same thing, but the closest thing that comes to mind is when the country of Georgia [fired around 90% of its police force](https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4849472) (over 25,000 officers) due to corruption - and things got better.Answer #2: The Sheriff of the county, or next-highest office with jurisdiction(maybe Staties?), can initiate arrest on local PD's. I assume it would go through the jurisdiction's DA. In the case of the sheriff/state cops being disbanded/corrupt, then I believe the Federal DOJ has jurisdiction.


Title: Collection agency won't stop calling.

Question:
I hired a company to do a job and it was so horrible, I could not bring myself to pay them the full amount. I paid them half and considered it done. I never signed a contract or filled any forms out specifying the amount, but I did verbally agree.

They sent it to collections. I sent a verification letter, certified. In the letter I also requested they stop calling. Despite this request they continue to call, weeks after the first letter.

If I decide to file in small claims against the collection agency, do I file in the county in California I made the transaction in or my county in Oregon where I reside? Does anyone know the amount one should file for?

I see the law in the Fair Debt Practices but nothing specific showing the consumer an appropriate course of action. Does anyone know a good resource on the matter?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Answer: Contact a consumer protection lawyer in your state.  A quick conversation to determine whether you have a case should not cost you anything.


Title: My neighbor won’t stop shooting his firearm! 😡 😤 😡

Question:
HELP! My neighbor (two doors over) shoots multiple clips with his handgun in their backyard all the time. I’ve called Florida law enforcement & they are allowed shoot guns with a proper backstop. They are using a small lake as a backstop. There are multiple nesting birds in the lake. All of my animals go crazy when he shoots. He sucks at shooting & clearly angry. And he always does it when people come over to our house. It’s insane. Even for a water delivery, this guy shoots off a box of rounds. How can I dissuade this asshole?!
Topic:
Douche

Answer: If they aren't using a proper backstop you could escalate within the local PD


Title: Valet took my car for a joyride, how can I sue (If possible)?

Question:
Left car with Valet in a Hotel in Miami.

Valet took my car on a joyride (Caught on Dashcam) and took photos with it ,did crazy accelerations (Reckless Driving) and just drove my car all around Miami.

What can I do to get compensation, if any, from the Hotel / Valet / Person involved?

Any help / advise is highly appreciated!!

Answer: Have you called and spoken with the hotel, and clarified that you caught this on video?


Title: Advice needed - seeking a refund from our wedding coordinator - signed contract in place

Question:
UPDATE (it's good news!!): I sent the coordinator this message along the lines of.....I wish to terminate our contract upon receipt of a full refund, here is a timetable of the emails where we had discussed what duties you needed to fulfill, what hadn't been done by these dates, what she had agreed on, etc. I said that I believe the contract could be deemed null due to her failure to fulfill her obligations. I offered the option of payment installments and gave her a deadline to respond to me by (7/31/15). I threatened legal action and to "doc document my experience with your business through various forums, including social media, online reviews, bridal groups, etc." if I did not hear back from her by then. She confirmed receipt of that message, and three days before 7/31, I received a refund for the full amount!!

I was nervous that the check would bounce, so when I brought it to the bank, I explained why I thought it might bounce. Turns out, she had drafted the check from the same bank chain that I go to, so they were able to do a transaction directly from her account, and it was all settled. I'm so happy to have that resolved!!! Thank you all so much for all of the advice and support. :)

ORIGINAL POST:
Long read: We are trying to get a full refund from our wedding coordinator, who has failed to complete any of her responsibilities per the contract. The contract states that the deposit of $400 will not be refunded, but I am arguing that since she verbally agreed to issue a full refund, and since she had not fulfilled any of her contracted responsibilities in the timelines that we discussed, that the contract is null. A little background....

We verbally hired our wedding coordinator in January 2015 and signed the contract and made full payment on 3/18/15. This was confirmed via email. According to our agreement as of 3/19 when she processed my payment, she would begin assisting with wedding planning. On 3/18 I had requested via that she begin by working on a floor plan and making contact with the service providers, whose contact information was made available via e-mail. We also spoke on the phone, at which point she agreed to begin working on the itineraries for the rehearsal dinner and the day of. June came around, and I hadn't heard from her, so I went to her website only to find that she no longer even owns the domain, meaning her business email was down, too. So I go to her business Facebook page, which hadn't been touched since May 1. I message her on that page and on her personal page, several times stressing that I was anxious that I wasn't hearing back from her, before I finally got a response. This was on 6/10/15.

I spoke with her on the phone later that day, and I learned that she had not began any of the work requested thus not holding up to the contract we both signed. I asked her to issue a full refund because no work had been performed and because I didn't feel like she had held up to her end of the contract. She agreed and said that she would be issuing a check to me. I messaged her twice after that asking for an update and didn't receive one. The third time I messaged her was on 6/28, where I threatened to expand the conversation beyond our private discussion if I did not receive an update. At this point, I learned that she was waiting to hear from her "adviser" as to whether or not she had to issue us any sort of refund. This is obviously bad business practice, and I was furious that she had changed her mind because I had gone ahead and booked and paid a DJ knowing that I was getting that refund back. So I asked her to respond to me with her decision after consulting with her adviser by 7/1. I didn't hear back from her that day, so I messaged her on 7/2, and she replied that she would get back to me shortly. I asked her to confirm that she would get back to me that day, and if not, to give me another day, and as of today (7/6), I still hadn't heard back from her, so I reached out yet again. The jist of it is that we had a contract, she needs me to provide a written statement cancelling it, and she will not refund the deposit.

Can I threaten legal actions, and do you think I would have grounds to get my full refund back? I'm not over budget on my wedding, which is 9/12/15. It's the fact that she had agreed to issue a full refund and then changed her mind, even though she hadn't fulfilled any of her end of the contract. The full amount is $600. Not a lot, but it's the principle at this point. Here's what I'd like to say to her:

"According to our agreement as of 3/19 when you processed my payment you would begin assisting with wedding planning. On 3/18 I had requested you begin by working on a floor plan and make yourself point of contact with the vendors, whose contact information was made available via e-mail. As of our discussion on 6/10 you had not began any of the work requested thus not holding up to the contract we both signed. Because of this, I'm holding the contract null due to your failure to fulfill your obligations and require a full refund of the amount I paid to you." x-posted in /r/weddingplanning

**TL;DR:** Wedding coordinator was fired, agreed to issue a full refund, and is now saying that she will not issue a refund for the deposit as it is stated that it is non-refundable - I think the contract is null. Should legal action/small claims be pursued?

Edit: This is in New Hampshire.

Answer: You can sue her in small claims court if she refuses to refund your money. You could meet with a lawyer and have them send a strongly worded letter requesting the full refund before you take her to small claims. You will not need a lawyer for the small claims court. The contract might say nonrefundable but that doesn't mean she can take your money and quit.


Title: Child custody

Question: So I'll try and make this short, I have r children 17, 15, 12 and 7. Got divorced from their abusive father, he threatened me and kept the kids, I got remarried and 2 youngest called him dad on their own, the father passed away 2 years ago, oldest had issues and was mean to my 12 year old so I sent him to his aunt in Arkansas. Now the next to oldest didn't like my new husband so she asked to stay with the aunt as well. Her dad told her before my new husband came into the pic if she don't like him to holler sexual assault. Now the aunts on father's side didn't like the 2 youngest calling my husband Daddy. So over this last summer the 2 went to visit their siblings in arkansas, while there I had contact all the way up to my daughter's birthday in aug., after that day the aunt cut all contact,I didn't know what was happening,  but found out via Facebook by my mother that the aunt filed for an emergency custody of my kids and the court date was the day before I was told, so I missed the court date and the judge granted the custody on grounds of abandonment, I called around till I found when the next court date was, which was 18 days away, I could not find a lawyer to make payments to represent me. So i show up and tell the judge i was never served and the judge said that's in the past!!!! Then I found out that day that my oldest said that she was afraid that my husband was going to have sex with her and trying to make her smoke marijuana, so he marked him as a sexual predator and put a no contact order with the kids!!!!! And put me as unfit and gave her custody of my kids and said I have to have visual and audible visits! And at the aunts discretion! I have protected my kids and done without for.my babies! All this was done to keep my husband away from MY kids, I don't know what to do to fix what has happened, I'm afraid that the aunt is friends with the judge, and she is friends with cps worker in her county! Now she will not let me talk to my kids on the phone, and I live 9 hours from their county. I can't afford a lawyer and can't find one that will let me make payments! Please help!!!!!!!! I have proof to dispell some of the lies but the judge would not look at the papers I brought to court.

Answer:
 There is more here that you are leaving out.

You sent two kids to the aunt because they didn't like your husband. So it is right that she has custody. You picked your husband over your kids. Your choice but then she gets custody.

So I am guessing your younger kids also have issues with him and just don't want to try you or maybe something else.

So the easiest answer is to get a divorce and get your kids back.

Or hire an attorney and fight


Title: I was served papers for eviction and a civil case was filed against me (New Jersey) for nonpayment of rent. I willingly left. Am I still on the hook for back rent?

Question:
This was several months ago. I owed over six months back rent and the landlord filed a civil case. I didn't show to the hearing and was eventually served papers for eviction. I worked with the landlord a bit and willingly left rather than be forceably removed.

Do I still owe the back rent? I didn't pay for several months;not one cent. I lost my job and couldn't replace my income. I had to move out of state and have currently two lower paying jobs. Will this affect me in any way in the future?

PS-I just received my old mail from my building. I've gotten nothing from the state regarding this since the notice of a hearing in June, nor has my landlord contacted me since via email. I did call him once since I left and we had a friendly exchange;no back rent was mentioned (he knows I was broke at the time).

PPS-I never signed a lease

Answer:
 > Do I still owe the back rent?

Of course you do.  You agreed to pay it, and didn't.

> Will this affect me in any way in the future?

It will certainly affect your ability to rent.  They can also eventually take the money from you forcibly.


Title: Doctor’s office won’t tell me if their employees are vaccinated, citing HIPAA. What happens when my right to be safe comes up against their HIPAA rights?

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 >...how can I protect myself?

Your options are limited. You can:

Ask if the tech is vaccinated and leave if they're not

Wear a mask (including ones rated above n95)

Wear multiple masks

Carry a portable air filter

Ask that windows remain open during your appointment

But no, no one has to disclose private medical information to strangers. Since you can't control others, your only option is to control the risks on your own end by making your own choices.Answer #2: I mean they cannot disclose health information. It sucks but that's that.


Title: Book published through a press. I want to leave the press but there are financial issues.

Question:
(US, NJ but publisher in another state)

I wrote a book that was published about a month ago. I have been having issues with my publisher since day one. She is incredibly unprofessional and uncommunicative. Promises and reassurances were made in the publication process that were not fulfilled. Instead, the publication ended up being rushed to the point where not everything was finished by the time I started my tour.

Additionally, she has made it abundantly clear that her own writing career and personal life take priority over her press.

It's obvious to me that I should have left before publication. Regardless, I'm concerned about the ramifications this will have financially and professionally.

My publisher says I haven't been doing that well with sales which is totally understandable as I'm a new emerging writer. However, two things:

1. I spent a large sum of money to buy books from the press. I paid her her share of the royalties along with the cost of printing and shipping the books.

2. I sent her an email saying I'd like to leave the press and she said that she paid two artists to work on the book so she'd now be in debt if I want to leave. One artist told me they have not worked on the book at all. The other said he has not been paid.

The contract has no stipulations about how long I have to stay with the press. Additionally, I retain all rights to my work according to the contract. The only rights it would appear the publisher has in the contract is that they are the first publishers of my work.

Legally, will I have to buy myself out of this contract? Or will this just be me burning a professional bridge? What are my options?

edit: didn't follow a rule, my bad
Topic:
Contracts

Answer:
 > I spent a large sum of money to buy books from the press.

umm....why? Now I fear your in a MLM scheme.

> 'd like to leave the press and she said that she paid two artists to work on the book so she'd now be in debt if I want to leave.

Why do you care? Just review your contract. If it says you can leave, leave. If it says theres a penalty for leaving, pay the penalty. Her books are of no concern to you. Her artists are of no concern to you.

> Legally, will I have to buy myself out of this contract?

On one hand you say the contract says you can do what you want, then you ask this question.

Hire an attorney to review your contract. There is clear confusion here.


Title: [Tx] Someone close to me was raped continuously 4 years ago. Is it too late to press charges?

Question:
I'm not too sure on the details but someone close to me was raped around 4 years ago with the person that they lived with. From my understanding the rape was never violent, but the attacker was repeatedly told no and to stop during the attack. Also the attacker would regularly use alcohol to the extent where my friend would be drunk to the point of passing out (so unable to consent) repeatedly. Attacker has also been slightly violent during arguments (old scars to prove it). Is there anything that can be done?

Also my friend had filed a police report years ago but nothing came of it, my friend believes the police were too lazy to investigate and she never tried again.

Answer:
 How old was your friend then and how old now?

If she wants, she can go back to the police and follow up.  She should also seek counseling if she has not already.


Title: Someone is threatening to expose my real name to my username

Question:
Hi, this is an alt and I’m writing this post because long history short is this person is obsessed with me and threatening to expose personal info on me along with writing exposing bits of our conversations without context to paint me in a bad light all in the name of making me ‘fall in love’ with here

I’m not sure if this is the best place to ask for help and advice

Answer:
 On reddit specifically? Send a message to the admin team (contact@reddit.com, modmail r/reddit.com) or you can click the "report" button on the PM on the message you received, which also sends it to the admin queue.

Additionally, it would be smart to block the user


Title: College dorm legal advice

Question:
Edit: lubbock, Texas

Hello, I haven't been on this subreddit before so I'm sorry in advance if I mess something up.

I live in a dorm, over the last 3 days my roommate and I have ran into several problems and possible safety concerns within our dorm room. For some context, this building was built in 1966 and it doesn't look like much has been done to maintain the building.

3 days ago a pipe busted on the floor above us, which concequently caused our room and the room directly below us to have pretty noticeable water damage. We called our dorm administration and they told us they'd get it fixed. The next day, the cleaning lady came in and asked if anyone had been by yet, which they hadn't. We did let her know that water was coming out of the light switch (not exactly sure how that's possible) because when we flipped it on there were pretty loud sparking noises. The cleaning ladies put dryers in the hallway and in our dorm to help prevent mold, but we can hear water dripping down the inside of the wall so it's not really helping anything. We contacted administration again because my roommate found smelly black water coming out of the sink drain, which ended up overflowing and once again spilling all over the floor. Finally a maintainance worker came by and told my roommate that it 'happens all the time' which us worrying. He told us to just pack towels around all the spots that are leaking and they'll take care of the problem. That was 2 days ago and I haven't heard anything. Water is still flowing down the ceiling, we can't use our light without risking an electrical fire, and the only thing that has been fixed is the sink.

I've never dealt with anything like this, I don't know what I need to do to protect myself from any possible repair costs and/or legal recourse. I have pictures and video evidence of the leaks and I've contacted snapchat to get the pictures of the black water from my roommate's snapchat story.

What else should we do to protect ourselves? I just found out that this dorm is notorious for trying to take advantage of students for things like this.

Answer:
 IANAL

You probably signed an occupancy contract of some kind when you moved in. You should re-read it very carefully, and a lot of info about your responsibilities and theirs will be in there. Keep bothering the university. Submit a work order every day until it is fixed (often you can do this online). Find out where the Facilities office is and go there in person. Same with the Housing office.Answer #2: >I've contacted snapchat to get the pictures of the black water from my roommate's snapchat story.

dont hold your hopes up for this, take pictures and save copies yourself.Answer #3: If there are sparking noises coming from the switch when you turn it on, then there is a fire hazard regardless of whether the switch is on or off.

My suggestion, aside from talking to the people in the dorm administration chain-of-command like you already have been, is to talk to your dean of students.  That may not be their actual title - many schools have a dean who helps students with lots of different problems, and they will be the most sympathetic ear you can find on any campus.  If the housing department is stonewalling you, the dean of students is probably the best way to go over their helmet, by notifying the president's or provost's office, who will kick some ass until things get fixed.


Title: Michigan, Landlord trying to double dip pet fees?

Question:
I've lived in a few places with pets, and this is the first time I've ever come across this. I also looked into rental laws here but could find nothing about it, hoping someone here can maybe shed some light?

My apartment is requiring a non-refundable deposit for the privilege of having a pet, on top of that they also charge an added fee per month per pet of varying amount depending on cat or dog. This feels like an atrocious amount of double dipping to me. The $250 deposit for the pet makes sense on the basis the animal could ruin something and they need a way to recoup that monetary loss. The tacked on fees per month, that essentially equal out to that same non refundable fee /yr, is where the bad taste in my mouth starts to crop up and make me question if there is some underhanded BS being pulled.

Are there really no laws on the amount allowed to be charged for the privilege of having a pet for renters here?

Answer: Yes, there are no laws that prevent this.


Title: (NC) How can the victim go about dropping DV charges?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: No. She isn't charging him, the state is


Title: I was watching 13 Reasons Why, and there's an interesting legal scenario at the end of season 2 that I'd like to ask about

Question:
https://www.lifeandstylemag.com/posts/what-happened-to-justin-on-13-reasons-why-161731/

Read the article for a more detailed explanation of the events, but this is a quick summary:

**Jessica, one of the main characters, was sexually assaulted by this guy named Bryce. At the time of the incident, Jessica's boyfriend Justin tried to stop Bryce, but he was locked out of the room. When Bryce gets charged with rape, Justin also gets charged with being an accessory to rape because he did not call 911, or report this to the police afterwards.**

That's the part that doesn't make sense to me, from what I understand in order to be guilty of being an accessory to a crime, you have to actually aid the person committing the crime. Justin was certainly not guilty of aiding Bryce in any way(remember, he actually tried to stop him). So it appears that he was charged simply because he did not report the crime, but from what I understand, refusing to report a crime is not actually illegal in most states. I looked up laws regarding mandatory crime reporting in California(where the show takes place), and the law is very limited in scope, reporting violent crime is only mandatory if the victim is 14 or younger. Jessica is 17, so the law wouldn't apply in this case.

Was this simply an oversight by the show writers? Or have there been real-world cases of judges setting a *de facto* legal obligation to report crime by charging the bystanders(or any family/friends of the criminal that knew about the crime) if they fail to report it?

Answer:
 Honestly that show is ridculous. The way that they display mental illness is inaccurate so it doesn't surprise me that they would fuck up on the legal issues as well. That said, I am not watching season two so I am not familiar with what happens inside that season.

>it appears that he was charged simply because he did not report the crime, but from what I understand, refusing to report a crime is not actually illegal in most states

That is generally correct. People don't get charged for simply witnessing or knowing about a crime.


Title: When a civilian asks my name in a public area, am I commiting a crime by calling myself a made up name?

Question:
I was wondering, a friend of mine was being stopped by a woman at a protest and she kept asking him his name. Eventually he told her that his name is "Willie Wiener" and she told him that she will report him for invalidly identifying himself.

So, is my man in trouble or is she just another uninformed person?

Thanks

Answer: There's nothing illegal about giving a fake name to random people on the street unless you are giving that fake name to commit fraud.