Title: I'm an idiot and destroyed property at my apartment complex while drunk, they are trying to collet an exorbitant amount. Can I request an itemized invoice?

Question:
This is California.

So, let me make this brief. I got shitfaced, like a fucking moron, and destroyed a very expensive piece of equipment at my apartment complex. The police were called, I was booked and a police report was made, but my criminal case was dismissed.

Today, I received a 3 day notice to perform covenant or quit, which includes as a requirement to make a payment for the total of .. let's say, $7,000, exactly.

I am owning up to this mistake and had already sent an email apologizing, as this is clearly my fault. I'm also pretty sure there's video footage. Anyway, I have doubts that the total of the damage caused/repair was actually the value they gave. Do I have any recourse to ask for an itemized invoice/breakdown of the costs, without putting myself in hot water for failure to comply with the covenant requested? I don't want to get evicted. I'd ideally like to keep living here.

I plan to contact an attorney in the morning, but would like to hear advice on how and if I can request a breakdown of the damage and the amount they are requesting, and contest it. I imagine the actual cost is maybe half of what they are asking, but not sure how to go about validating this.

Once again, yes, I am an idiot. This is about to be a very expensive and disturbing lesson learned. Go me.

Thanks mucho.

Answer:
 What was the piece of equipment?

Unless you're a professional working in the field that the equipment falls under, odds are your guess of how much the replacement will cost is worth slightly less than nothing.


Title: (TX) Theft case, I called 911 about someone stealing running off with my money. Can I close it? I was given the money back.

Question: So I went to buy something on craigslist last night, the guy said he wanted to check if the money was real in front of a apartment and ran. I'm stupid and didn't really realize it was a setup. The apartment was empty from what I can tell.  I was not able to catch him, I called 911 right there and tried to chase him in my car, no dice. I wasn't able to identify him at the time, I had his fake name and his real phone number. I did file a report on the scene. I did find information on him online when I got home and eventually got a hold of his father today. His father paid me back the money just now. This all happened within the last 16 hours. A detective called me while I was speaking to his dad and I tried to call back but he didn't answer. I want to drop the case, is this possible? What can I do to stop this from moving forward without getting myself into trouble? If I have to follow through, i will.

Answer: You can't drop it.  The police will decide how far to pursue the matter.  You can certainly give an update to the detective, and make your wishes know.


Title: Can I sue an app? [DE]

Question:
I have been using an app that can best be described as freemium gaming because you can pay real money for in game money which you can then use to buy clothes for your avatar and different room furnishings and such. Anyway, in this game there is a daily question which you get coins for answering. Your answer is shared with other users and you can read their answers and leave comments, etc. I never use profanities in my answers and I always try to keep my answers family friendly. A couple days ago the question was “What was something that happened to you in real life that felt like a TV drama?” I answered it with the time I was abandoned by a class chaperone on a school field trip to DC and ended up lost. Someone was apparently offended by my answer and reported it and my account has been suspended for two days. The only explanation I have been given is that I committed a “user violation”. The mods refuse to elaborate any further on what the violation was.

This is the 7th time this has happened to me over the past year. Each time it happened I asked the mods to tell me what I did wrong so I can avoid doing it again and they always reply “we cannot help you further in regards to this matter, as we cannot reveal any information in regards to the nature of the post that has been reported. If another user feels that one of your posts is offensive or inappropriate, they have the possibility to report it. Please note that multiple offences can result in a ban.” The only reason I know the post about me being lost on a school trip was the offending post this time is because it was the last post I made and when I logged in this morning I saw that it was gone. I do not even know what my 6 other offending posts were and the mods have refused to tell me. I have been a loyal customer of this company since the 1980s and I wanted to continue to support them since they launched this app and have tried to keep themselves relevant. Over the past year I have spent between $900-$1,000 total on this game.

TLDR: Since they have such vague TOS and will not tell me what my user violations are and I risk losing all of the money I have spent by being banned for some vague arbitrary violation they can’t even name, what are my chances of succeeding if I sue to recoup the money I have put into this game?

Answer:
 Assuming DE refers to Delaware and not Germany, you have no recourse here. They are free to ban you from their game for any reason they please.

When you make an account, the ToS or User Agreement will always state that they can terminate your access for any reason, and you agreed to those terms.Answer #2: If it has happened 7 times and they keep unbanning you, I suspect the secret they don't want to share is that reports triggering a ban is an automated process.Answer #3: Is that Delaware or Germany?

If it's Delaware, you're almost certainly out of luck.

If it's Germany, talk to a local consumer rights advocate. The EU has stronger consumer rights for electronic purchases. You won't get your account back, but you _might_ get a refund on some of the money you spent.


Title: Employer is making servers take a test to determine how much tip they can keep.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Probably in Oman this is legal


Title: Son hurt at Sonic Drive-in

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You can try for a lawyer, but I would continue on with their insurance and management.  It's going to be very hard to prove sonic was negligent in hurting your son when you as a parent were right there.  For the life of me I cannot recall any sonic ever having playground equipment.


Title: My highschool's security guard falsely reported me for suicide.

Question:
I live in Las cruces, new Mexico and I'm 16, this security has a thing out for me and nestly everyone hates this man, I have been suicidal before and its something I struggle with and he knows this due to a report made on me awhile back, anyways he asked if I'd like to come with him as he smirked knowing I'd be in trouble for skipping, I replied "I'd rather stab myself in the neck with a pencil" and he said so I guess I'll report you for suicide, I told him I wasnt suicidal and i was being sarcastic, 15ish minutes later the cops showed up. Is this legal? What can I do about this?
Topic:
Juvenile and Youth Law

Answer:
 You said something extremely stupid to a security guard indicating you'd kill yourself while you had a history of suicidal behavior.

Are you daft?


Title: I bunked school for 2 weeks, what do I do? [London UK]

Question:
I am year 13, doing A2 exams.

I am going in tomorrow as I my friends were told to tell me I was in big trouble. I in the 10 days I have had off, I did about 5 past papers per day.

I know what I did was wrong, but I had good intentions. What should I say to my school? What punishment should I accept. My parents said they don't care aslong as I do past papers when I'm bunking.

They said in the assembly we have to be in school until the end of this half term, even if we have an exam that day. They don't care about us. I have an exam next week a 1pm, and they want me to come in for lessons until the exam. I bunked to revise. I was stressed so I did loads of past papers. In school ( Year 13 ), we have literally been told by the teacher just to revise in class and bring some food to share. Waste of time.

Topic:
Juvenile and Youth Law

Answer:
 Check out /r/legaladviceuk.  We can't even understand what youre sayingAnswer #2: A. What is bunking? Is that skipping or something else?

B. /r/legaladviceuk


Title: [UPDATE] Coworker writes himself $2k worth of checks and cashes them.

Question:
Original post here: https://np.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/4kpq0k/coworker_writes_himself_2k_worth_of_checks_and/

Thank you all for the advice, I'm really glad that my boss did not report the car as stolen. That could have gotten... dicey, to say the least. So the coworker decided to show up to work, the day after my original post. We were shocked! We had thought that he would be halfway to Tijuana! It was a very awkward time for all of us, my boss had asked us to play casual while he called the cops. It was work as usual for me when my boss informed me that the cops would not be showing up for a couple hours. When they showed up, the officer seemed to be completely uninformed about the situation when he asked my boss for the checks. Boss could not give him the checks, but he could give him the perp. This came as a blindside to the officer, as he stated that he had no heads up that he would be doing any arresting. He seemed very hesitant to jump into arresting the guy, until we told him that he had a couple warrants. He was on it, he called for back up and went right up to coworker. We stayed in the office but we could hear him questioning coworker. Another officer showed up very quickly. Coworker knows his rights, I overheard him ask "Am I being arrested?". He most definitely was, after a couple calls to the station, they cuffed him and walked him off to the car. The arresting officer came back and told us that after doing a little research, the original officer with whom the first report was made never bothered to file the paperwork.... lol wut?
Turns out his warrants were for some DUIs.
Coworker called from jail, he was at a loss when Boss told him that he knew about the check fraud. He asked if he was going to have his job back... lot wut? He apologized and said he wanted to make things right. Boss dealt with it like a Man and told him he just wants him to get some help and deal with his problems. He was shortly transferred to a county in which he had those warrants.
We got a weird call from his mom today. She called to us that coworker won't be back until after June 8th. Boss was so surprised and confused that he just thanked her for telling him and said his goodbyes... lol wut? After a short discussion with Boss, I convinced him to call her back, she obviously has NO idea what happened. He told her that he had stolen and forged checks. She, like so many of us, was shocked. She told us that she was under the impression that he was being released from jail today, but for one reason or another he would not be getting out until June 8th. He's obviously committed a lie of omission, there's really no telling what he has or has not told her, not that it really matters, she lives a couple hundred miles away and was very quick to remind us that she has no influence on his choices due to the vast distance between the two.
What I would like to understand is.... now that the police report has been filed and the checks turned over, should we expect our local police to receive coworker again? We've heard nothing from them about the current state of the investigation, so we have no way of verifying whether or not his being released on June 8 is on the level. Would the police of a local county release an inmate knowing that a neighboring county is looking for him? Could he potentially skip town if he is released? It seems like that may have been what he did when the DUIs happened.
Sorry for wall of text, and thank you for making it this far.
My boss, my other trustworthy coworkers, and myself have never been in a situation such as this, so we are really only concerned with our safety.

Answer:
 The post could definitely use some paragraph breaks.Answer #2: Since you did bury some questions in that wall o' text:

1. Yeah, your boss filed a report, the police will now investigate and if the evidence supports it, the DA can file charges. This is completely separate from the warrants the guy already had that led to him actually being arrested. His current arrest at this time probably has nothing to do with the checks.

2. He could be released before new charges get filed. If charges do get filed though, and an arrest warrant is issued, typically the county jail will offer to hold him for the arresting county, and the arresting county arranges for a transport. This is common.

3. Yes, if released he could skip town, sure. If you really really want to, you could talk to your local police about keeping you informed about the case.

Side note: DUI charges and stolen checks, while potential felonies, are not typically "fear for our safety" crimes. For whatever that's worth.Answer #3: TIL "lol wut?" means "I believe that was an unprofessional course of action."Answer #4: Thank you for the substantive and ~~conclusory~~ conclusive update.Answer #5: lol wut?


Title: duty of care (is this basically how it works?)

Answer:
 Let's say, hypothetically, you have a crazy chocolate factory owner who has a reputation for being...eccentric.  He invites a small number of children and their parents (one parent each) to his factory for a tour. Except none of the machinery has safety barriers around it and it's all brightly colored with candy coming out of it.  The owner then watches as a series of children hurt themselves on his exposed machinery.

In my state, you'd be able to sue him for negligence by failing to maintain a safe premises for business invitees, and he could reduce his damages by the amount that the jury concluded that each child was contributorily at fault for his or her own injury (i.e. how dumb were they).

Now, in some states (and historically), ANY amount of negligence on the victim's part makes them unable to recover. So the "partial judgment" bit is jurisdictionally dependent.

On another note, I don't think this makes a good class action. Each victim has very different injuries, caused in very different ways, and the legal theories behind each case will not necessarily be the same.  I don't think they can get class certification. But I don't do class actions so maybe I'm wrong.Answer #2: Important point - do we assume the chocolate factory in question is in the UK? Because I imagine the relevant law might be different in the US.Answer #3: Game theory has a run down of all the OSHA violations in willy wonka and the chocolate factory. UK health and safety is basically comparable to American


Title: [WA] Employer has dropped mandatory 15 hour overtime on us and it's made us miserable.

Question:
I'm trying this again because I messed up the last post.

I was hired on at full time graveyards which means 7pm to 6am with an hour lunch. Then, they started implementing this "mandatory" overtime of 2 extra hours then 4 extra hours meaning I come in at 3pm and leave at 6am the next morning. I collapsed at work a few weeks ago and took an ambulance ride to the hospital then was taken off the graveyard shift and moved to a 1pm to 10pm shift. But now they are tacking on 4 hours so I'm coming in at 9am until 10pm and me and my coworkers are becoming very bitter about these extra weeks of mandatory overtime that was only supposed to be a few, now we are on a month and some change. Anytime someone opens up though they remind us that not meeting the hours will be met with disciplinary action and maybe termination. Is this legal at all? I'm already looking for another job but I just got off a long stretch of unemployment so I'm scared of going back there.

Answer: Yes it's legal so long as you are paid properly.


Title: Can Landlord Use Pet Deposit to Clean Air Ducts of Pet Hair (in PA)?

Question:
Landlord just did walkthrough of the property after 3-year rental. For context, we paid a $1500 pet deposit at the start of our tenancy.

She claims that her HVAC guy quoted $430 to clean the air ducts of pet hair. That sounds like normal wear and tear to me, since it happens just by virtue of the pet existing in the rental; it's not extra damage done specifically by our pet.

What's the opinion of the legal community?
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer: That seems like an extra expense that is directly related to having a pet in the property. The pet deposit is intended to cover these types of extra costs.


Title: Any legal recourse against mortgage lender

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Thanks to TILA-RESPA, yeah, they do have to disclose at least 3 days in advance of closing when there's changes like that.

Another concern is that with 20% down you likely would not be required to have mortgage insurance, but with only 5% down you would almost certainly be required to have mortgage insurance, which is another thing added to your mortgage payment (and yet another thing which must be disclosed to you).

A week should be more than enough time for them to order mortgage insurance and send your file off for mortgage insurance underwriting (assuming they don't have a delegated contract that lets them do the mortgage underwrite themselves), but it if there were hiccups it might take longer.

So it's not *necessarily* entirely on the lender why it was delayed.


Title: My boss fired me after giving me a few days leave to go see dying relatives, what can I do?

Question:
My boss just fired me after saying that it was okay if I went to go see my grandmother, whom was the closest thing I've ever had to a mother to me. He then  put me on the schedule the following week as reserve, then fired me though an email when I called in asking about when I worked this week. Is there anything I can do to fight this man who essentially is destroying my livley for being upset with my taking time to see my dying family as he'd preached me to do?

Mid-Iowa, USA

Answer:
 Unfortunately, absent of an employment contact, you can be fired at any time for almost any reason.  You can also quit at any time.

You should file for unemployment, work on your resume, and look for another job.


Title: [Texas] I used to make fake IDs in high school, someone messaged me saying that I scammed them and that if I don't make them a fake or give them money they will go to the police. What are my options?

Question:
Back in high school I used to make fake IDs for people. It became kind of known among people that I make them so people would text me asking for them. I've stopped all activity related to IDs.

This individual messaged me saying that I had taken his money for IDs and then stopped responding on snapchat. I have no idea who this person is, and have never used the snapchat he says I was talking to him from. I told him that, and he said that he thinks I'm lying to him, and that if he doesn't get an ID or his money "back" he will turn me in to the police and talk to his attorney. I panicked and said that I would make it for him since I didn't want any trouble with the police, but I don't have the ability to make them anymore. I don't want to face any legal consequences. There is definitely text message evidence from people doing business with me in the past, but that's the only evidence the police or anyone else would be able to obtain. If I refuse to comply with this person's demands and he goes to the authorities will I face legal consequences?

Answer:
 "I'm going to go to the police and tell them that I tried to buy a fake ID, but the person who said he would make me one wouldn't."

What do you think the police will say to that?Answer #2: Block him.  If you ate criminally charged say nothing and get an attorney.


Title: BC/Canada. Ordered something from a website advertising free shipping, now it seems I'm on the hook for customs and tax that I had no idea about. Advice?

Question:
So I ordered some sweaters from Rosegal.com for a pretty good price. I specifically ordered from them because they had free shipping to Canada. Living in Canada I don't often get to benefit from free shipping so I was excited to find this site. Big mistake. It was too good to be true.

This morning I got a text message and two voicemails saying that I need to pay $22CAD customs and tax on my package. Nowhere in the checkout process was I informed that I would be on the hook for customs and taxes. Now having looked at the site again, I can see there is a page about that linked all the way at the bottom of the page. It's very out of the way.

I feel lied to and I am not paying this. The delivery guy came and I had to refuse the package because I'm not paying this customs fee. Is it normal for the customer to have to pay customs and tax when the store advertises that the shipping is free? I paid with Paypal and I'm considering asking for a refund through them, but I want to make sure I have good reason for it, otherwise I'm out 80 bucks. I've contacted the site about this but I doubt I will get anywhere with them.

The other kicker is that the website packaged my order into two shipments meaning that I will have to pay the fees twice. So now for an $80 purchase I would spend $45 on shipping because of the customs fees.

Help?

Answer: It's your responsibility to pay import duties and sales taxes on things you import into the country.


Title: Landlord's parents may have a spare key to the property (UK/England)

Question:
Full disclosure: the whole tenancy has been a bit of a mess. We naively decided to privately rent with no agencies involved - the landlord wanted to do this because frankly he's awful at paperwork and such, and we were happy to do it because it meant no £500+ 'admin' costs and a chance to get a reference and allow my SO's credit rating some time to improve. We did insist on having a contract and I've looked closely to see if we've broken any of its rules before I post this. The only one is a "no pets" clause which we were verbally excused from by the landlord (we have a cat). In hindsight I know we should really have gotten it in writing. Other than that we're clear.

The landlord is predictably terrible when it comes to maintenance of the property which has been a pain, and last year we realised the contact number he gave us is actually his mum's phone. I don't know if it was originally as we did deal with the landlord directly using that number in the past, but she seemed to suddenly be really involved in organising viewings and so on (the house is for sale). Since the actual landlord's so haphazard we weren't too worried about the mother getting involved as long as she respected our privacy and so on. Last year we had a viewing (which we were aware of so that's fine) and the landlord's dad decided to let himself in unannounced to check that the property is in good condition. Now, I completely understand why the person in charge of the property would want to check the house, especially prior to a viewing, and we were under the impression that the landlord was aware that his parents were sorting out viewings. We did confront them about the lack of notice as we basically just got home from work and noticed some of our things had been moved around ("tidied up") and they'd thrown a baking tray out which had been left on the unit. Nothing was missing which was what prompted us to call the landlord's parents to check if they knew anything about it, but with things being moved we initially thought the people viewing the house had been going through our stuff. The landlord's dad sounded more embarrassed than anything but his mum absolutely screamed at my SO about the apparent state the house was in and wouldn't listen to a word he said.

My issue here is that we noticed yesterday that we have a water leak and my SO called the number to request that they send somebody to have a look. The landlord's mum answered and she was extremely rude, cutting him off to say "Nothing to do with me" repeatedly. He asked if she had the landlord's contact number since that was the only number we'd ever been given and hadn't been told otherwise before, and she just acted really dismissive, clearly trying to get rid, and then said "I don't have a number for him, bye" and hung up while my SO was mid-sentence. We did actually receive a text from the landlord shortly after so she obviously lied about not having a number for him, but I'm glad we do actually have direct contact now, at least.

However, it bothers me that she's just outright said that the house is nothing to do with her, and yet she probably still has a key to the property. She has demonstrated in the past that she has no problem sending her husband to let himself in while we're at work and move our things around, and I just don't like the idea of them having full access to a house they don't have anything to do with. Do we have any kind of legal right to request that the landlord only provides a spare key to people who are directly involved with the running and maintenance of the property?

Just to be clear, I'm well aware we were dumb to rent without an agency and we won't be making that mistake again. We're currently in the process of looking for a new place.


Title: [DC] Employer takes all tips and puts them in a fund for "employee appreciation events"

Question:
I work a minimum wage job in DC in the food service industry. We have a tip jar that customers often put tips in. The amount of tips that each employee would get likely translates to around an additional $10/hr over the minimum wage. However, none of them are given to us. Instead they are logged and given to our employer at the end of each day who claims to then spend them on things like a christmas party for all of us or something similar (bowling, dinners, etc.) I have no way of verifying that our employer is spending all of the money on these events but, even if they were, it's beside the point as I cannot pay rent in the form of Christmas party invitations.

Do I have any right to the tips I earn? I know employers can deduct around $5 in tips from my wage if they make that policy explicit - but they never have here. The amount of tips that come in are also definitely much higher than that.

I've asked to get my share of tips in cash and was told that it was not an option. Is this illegal? If it is illegal is there anything I, as a single employee, can do to correct it?

Answer: Illegal. The service employees get the tips.


Title: Age of Consent across state lines question

Question:
Legaladvice
I live in Indiana. AOC 16 I am 18
A friend of mine lives in ohio, AOC 16
I know due to the mann act, that she is not legal to come to indiana for -reasons- until she is 18,
However I'm not clear if I am in the legal okay to go to Ohio for those same -reasons-.

Thanks

Answer: Why the hell would you risk it?


Title: Weapons you can shoot in your back yard

Question:
I live in Texas damnit I thought I could shoot an airgun in my suburban setting with a fairly large back yard, however I had the cops called on me for pesting some squirrels with it.

Would i be able to use a bow? A crossbow? A slingshot? The neighbor was nosey and took a picture of me through my fence

Answer:
 It may have been because you were pestering the squirrels (I'm reading this as shooting them).  It may have stemmed from an animal abuse call rather than from the actual shooting.

You need to look up your town ordinances to find out what types of recreational shooting is allowed within the city limits.


Title: Boss is requiring employees to delete LinkedIn account

Question:
Boss is forcing all employees to permanently delete their LinkedIn accounts.  He’s threatening to terminate anyone who does not comply with this new policy.  He’s adding it to the company handbook and to new hire offer letters.  He’s offering a monetary bonus to anyone that voluntarily shows proof of account deletion.
He says he feels that employees that have these accounts are cheating on him.  He recently lost an employee and blames LinkedIn.

What legal protections do employees that do not comply have?  If terminated based on refusal, is there any legal recourse the employee can take?

This is in the US in a Right to Work state.
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 There are 28 right-to-work states, and 49 at-will states. Right-to-work has to do with unions; are you sure you don't mean at-will? But regardless, the state matters. Social media laws vary by state.

For example. Illinois, Michigan and Washington prohibit employers from requiring that applicants or employees:

* Accept a request, such as a Facebook "friend request," that would permit access to restricted content;
* Allow their employer to observe their restricted social media content after they have logged in (often referred to as "shoulder surfing"); and
* Change their privacy settings in a manner that would permit the employer to access their restricted social media content.

With respect to workplace investigations, Illinois, Nevada and New Mexico have no exception for workplace investigations. Arkansas, California, Michigan and Utah have what could be characterized as a broad exception (e.g., California allows employers to ask an employee to divulge personal social media content that is reasonably believed to be relevant to an investigation of employee misconduct). Colorado, Maryland, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin have relatively narrow exceptions for workplace investigations. The Colorado and Maryland laws, for instance, allow requests for access to employees' personal social media content only when necessary to investigate violations of securities laws or potential misappropriation of trade secrets.


Title: Can I deck a protester who's screaming in my face?

Question: Whenever I see protesters blowing whistles in speakers' faces or storming stages, I always wonder what they’re legally allowed to do if security or the police are just watching but not doing anything. I’ve been trying to find the answer forever. Thanks!

Answer: You may use self defense to prevent imminent bodily harm.  Are you ready to convince a jury that a reasonable person thought that idiot with a whistle was about to hurt you?


Title: Potential pre-employment drug screening? Yea or nay?

Question:
Over the past week I have gotten a new job offer lined up and have begun my onboarding and employment paperwork. I have accepted an "official offer" via e-mail already.

One of the onboarding documents I had to sign was a "Drug Screen Consent Form." At the top of this form is a checkbox I was forced to check-mark digitally, which reads: "I am not required to submit to a drug screen." However, below this line is a several paragraphs explaining the pretenses for drug testing and serving as an acknowledgement that I may be drug tested at any time.

I live in CA and have had a medical marijuana recommendation for the past five years, and I am certain I would not pass a test for THC. The mixed signals in this form confuse me, particularly the line quoted above. Does "I am not required" mean that I waive my right to deny a drug test, which is technically not required? Or does it mean that I will not undergo pre-employment testing, but perhaps at a later time due to a workplace injury?

I would really appreciate some clarity on what I can expect in the near future regarding drug screening. Thank you.

EDIT: I have already agreed to the document and am just crossing my fingers at this point. This is a contracting position and I don't believe the client tests, however I can't say for certain.

Answer:
 It is legal for employers in California to require a drug test as a condition of employment.

You can refuse the drug test.  You are not required in any way to take it.  As a result, they can choose not to hire you.

If you refuse the drug test and think you have a chance at being hired, you are naive.


Title: [Canada - Ontario] American currently living in Canada, in process of obtaining Permanent Residency, wanting to renounce US Citizenship

Question:
Hi all,

I am a 25 year old male currently living in Canada and working for a large, multinational tech firm.  I recently transferred to Toronto from our office in NYC, and plan on staying in Canada permanently.  I have received a two year work permit and am currently in the process of applying for Canadian permanent residency under the new [Express Entry](http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/express/express-entry.asp) program.

My main reason for wanting to renounce US citizenship is that I do not want to continue being liable for US taxes when I have no intention of living in the US at any point in my adult life.  I have always paid the taxes I owe and am fully in compliance with US tax code at this point, but do not want to continue being bound to this obligation.  I would like to save for a future in Canada, but the main vehicles for long-term savings in Canada, such as the TFSA (tax-free savings account), are considered foreign trusts by the United States, and subject to US taxation regardless of their status in Canada.

I am pursuing Canadian PR with the intention of ultimately receiving Canadian citizenship and subsequently renouncing my US citizenship.  However, this is at least four years away.

I am wondering what the consequences would be of renouncing US citizenship without holding Canadian citizenship, but only a Canadian permanent residency status.  Everything that I can find online indicates that becoming "stateless" is generally bad, but I am trying to pinpoint the practical reasons why this would be a terrible idea, particularly if the stateless party was a legal resident in another country (though not a citizen).

In particular, I am curious about two points:

1) International travel.  I know that I can apply for a [Canadian Certificate of Identity](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Certificate_of_Identity), which would enable me to travel to countries which provided me with a valid visa.  I travel often for work, particularly to the United States.  Would I be able to apply for and receive a valid visitor's visa with one of these documents for short-term travel in the US?  If the answer is no, this option would be a non-starter for me.  In addition to work, I'd also like to continue being able to visit my family in the US.

2) Student Loans.  I received federal financial aid in the form of student loans (both subsidized and unsubsidized).  Would renouncing US citizenship have any effect on my ability to repay these in installments?  I currently pay monthly towards my student loan debt, and am wondering if the government would come after me for the full amount immediately if i was to renounce my citizenship.  I'd like to continue making the monthly payments as I've been doing.

From all I've read online, there aren't a lot of examples of people who have renounced citizenship and voluntarily become "stateless".  Those who have seem to be (self-)labelled anarchists.  This isn't a part of any rage-against-the-machine, fuck-the-establishment sort of thing.  I totally intend to take on Canadian citizenship when it becomes available to me, but would rather not hold my US citizenship while I go through the process of Canadian PR and then citizenship.

Answer: IANAL but voluntarily making yourself stateless on the gamble that your 2 year work permit might be renewed and your glorified drivers licence might be accepted in lieu of a passport for international travel seems like a very very very very very very very stupid idea.


Title: Don't mow grass, pay rent

Question: On April 1, with covid, shelter in place orders, I was told by landlord I'm no longer his grounds man, pay rent. Now I can't go anywhere, need a new income, and have a new rent bill, and nobody cuts the grass. It's a foot high. So I refuse to pay, unable to make any sense at all, at least 100 units. Really can't pay or move or work.

Answer: So you're living at this apartment complex, and you also take care of the landscaping. The landlord is saying that he can't afford for you to do that right now, but you still have to pay rent. Is that all straight?


Title: Landlord sold our house. We made an agreement to move out early. 30+ days later, we have not received our security deposit. [California, USA]

Question:
Our landlord put our house on the market a few months ago. We live in Los Angeles county, where the landlord is required by law to give the tenant 60 day notice to vacate. However we made an agreement with our landlord, where he would compensate us to move out 30 days early. And after the house cleared escrow, he would return our security deposit.

We moved out within 30 days as agreed upon. Our landlord dragged his feet a bit, but sent us the compensation we agreed upon shortly after. Since then, he said the sale of the house fell through, and he is unable to provide us with our security deposit until the house sells.

He also said that he might not be able to refund the full amount, because he had to fix things that were broken. However, damages he cited were existing before our original move-in. I forwarded him an email that I sent to him upon us moving in that confirmed the damages were pre-existing and then he changed his story.

I've been researching this a bit, and it seems that the landlord had 21 days by law to return our security deposit. This is also reflected in our original lease agreement.

However, he's saying that since in our agreement, he said he would pay us after the house cleared escrow, he never guaranteed a specific timeframe. And he said he has to hold onto the security deposit incase any damages affect the sale of the house.

Do the laws listed on this page still apply in our situation?
http://www.courts.ca.gov/1049.htm

Thanks in advance for any advice you have!

Answer:
 The law is *super clear* as to the time frame for the return of a deposit. A "bad faith" withholding allows you to sue for your deposit back, and statutory damages of 2x the amount unjustly withheld. (California code 1950.5(l) )

Technically security deposits are supposed to be kept in a separate account and not comingled or spent on anything until move out, but California doesn't seem to *require* that in the statute. So, while the fact that he spent it on something looks really bad it doesn't appear to be illegal all on its own.


Title: Selling house, tenant not cooperating, lost 1st offer and about to lose 2nd - QC, CANADA

Question:
Please help! My mother is trying to sell her triplex in Quebec but one of her 2 tenants is not cooperating (mom lives in the 3rd unit). This tenant has been giving us trouble showing the unit to potential buyers despite us trying to accommodate his request of only scheduling visits during weekends and always giving him over 24 hours notice. He would either not let us or our agent in or he would lock his bedroom and sometimes his son's bedroom.

My mother already lost the first offer she got since the buyers decided they didn't want to deal with this tenant. It took 3 visits for the potential buyers to finally see the locked bedroom but then the tenant did not want to allow a visit for the inspection.

Now, there is another potential buyer who submitted an offer on condition that they get to visit and like the problematic tenant's unit since he didn't let them in the first time. My mother is happy with the offer and accepted it but now the tenant is saying he won't let anybody in for at least 2 weeks since he doesn't want to be bothered during the holidays! The potential buyer was hoping to visit the unit tomorrow (Sunday 12/17).

We don't know what to do anymore. My mother's agent told the tenant that he should cooperate or else we'll get him evicted but the tenant is not budging.

Also, this tenant is always late on payments with checks bouncing almost every month.

What can/should my mother do next? Is trying to evict him the only logical step? How hard would that be and how long can it take?

Really appreciate any advice we can get!

Answer:
 Start the eviction or buy him out of the lease or rental agreement Answer #2: >Also, this tenant is always late on payments with checks bouncing almost every month.

Just evict him ASAP. If he doesn't have a lease give him 30 days notice or whatever is required by certified mail. My lease had a clause that if they try to enter and can't because of the tenant they charge $50 or something. Was your mom just winging this?


Title: Michigan Tenant - How Screwed am I?

Question:
Friday my landlord came to my apartment and told my roommate that our lease was up and we need to be out by Monday. According to the landlord, he has been emailing myself and the roommate for the past month notifying us that the apartment was being viewed. I have not been receiving these emails but it turns out my roommate has (we don't really communicate very much). Going off what my roommate has said, there is no mention of the lease ending within the emails. I have requested my roommate forward me the emails so I can see them myself. This is the only form of written notice we have received.

I know I screwed up by not keeping up to date on the lease. I assumed that unless we put in our 60 days, the lease would convert to month-to-month as all my previous leases did. I'm currently trying to dig through the contract but I don't really see any stipulation that the landlord has to continue to rent to us.

Unfortunately, the office is closed and I have no way to contact him.

I am not in a position to be out on Monday. I have no where to go, no car (can't drive due to seizures). Am I just shit out of luck and going to end up on the street? Currently trying to find a place but there is no way I would be able to move in monday.

Advice appreciated. Washtenaw, michigan.

Answer: Landlords have no duty to renew a tenants lease once it's expired, nor do they have to give you an explanation as to why. As the tenant, you need to ensure in the future you keep on top of your lease Answer #2: OP, you do NOT want an eviction on your rental history.  I'd try to work with your landlord to get out of there amicably.


Title: [IL] Contest/Sweepstakes Not Honoring Their Rules As Written

Question:
Hello all,

I recently entered into a sweepstakes on Facebook that advertised two passes (~$400 each, $800 total) to a local music festival.

But in the for the contest, there was a typo. Without naming the organization, here are their rules:

>To win, follow the instructions below.

>❶. Tell us your favorite 2018 #NameOfFestival artist in the comments below.

>❷. Tag a friend in your comment.

>❸. Like + share this post. Like **NameOfCompanyMisspelled** on Facebook.

>Winner will be announced 7/5. Winner must follow all three steps to be eligible.

Noticing the misspelling, a week ahead of the contest ending I alerted the organization who flatly refused to acknowledge the misspelling. I then, two days before, restated the issue in their comment section and it went ignored.

Upon realizing they couldn't change the misspelling (due to FCC restrictions, I believe) I made a new FaceBook 'page' named **NameOfCompanyMisspelled**, liked it, and then completed the other two necessary steps of the three step entry process. Because I had taken this step on my own, I was the sole qualifier for these two passes.

Not surprisingly, the company rewarded someone else from the general pile of people who entered this contest--*but that person had not liked my **NameOfCompanyMisspelled** page, so they technically are not eligible to win.

The rules explicitly state "**Winner must follow all three steps to be eligible.**" Yet, I am the only person who created & 'liked' the misspelled version.

I wrote the Social Media team, and they pushed back and said I was the only one who 'misunderstood the rules,' which I responded to with a 'I read the rules exactly as they were written," and when they dismissed that I asked to speak with the next level up. They put me in touch with the General Manager who more or less said it was a 'typo' and that I was confused, and his hands were tied. They already awarded the prize, and that I was the only one who was confused. He offered me the vague possibility of maybe getting into a show in the future for their typo.

But this was $800 worth of Summer Festival experience, and I could show very clearly how the wording/rules were (and are) a contract between the company and the public. Violating the terms of that contract is illegal, I believe.

Some information I pulled to help,

[FaceBook clearly states in their policy:](https://www.facebook.com/policies/pages_groups_events/)

>If you use Facebook to communicate or administer a promotion (ex: a contest or sweepstakes), you are responsible for the lawful operation of that promotion, including:

>The official rules;

>Offer terms and eligibility requirements (ex: age and residency restrictions); and

>Compliance with applicable rules and regulations governing the promotion and all prizes offered (ex: registration and obtaining necessary regulatory approvals).

And the articles I read on the FCC guidelines suggest:

Post your rules online, and make sure they are easy to find and in a conspicuous place. **Once you have the giveaway rules posted or published, make sure you follow the “official rules” as written. Otherwise, any variation will be a breach of contract with your participants.**

Do I have a case here? The general manager has stonewalled me, and said "Please note, I am moving on from this discussion topic, if you have something new to discuss please do not hesitate to reach out, please understand this matter is now closed, and I will not be responding to anymore communications about this particular contest moving forward."

That's basically legalese for "so sue me," right? What would you do? Take the vague future ticket offering and give up, or take this to small claims court pro se?

Answer: This is not even remotely close to being worth pursuing.


Title: CA. Child death. Question about manslaughter.

Question:
Our neighbor's child died the other day.

She was at work and her boyfriend was watching the child.

The child was, purportedly, left alone in the bathtub, and drowned.

I have no idea what is going on with the investigation that followed, but all of the children have been taken by CWS and boyfriend is rumored to have been arrested.

If the story is true, is he culpable?

If they arrested him, is there likely more to the story?

Answer:
 > If the story is true, is he culpable?

Yes.  Leaving a child alone in a bathtub, and that child drowning is pretty much a textbook example of involuntary manslaughter in California (a death arising from a lawful act which might produce death without due caution or circumspection).  It might even be a second degree murder charge (a death arising during the commision of another felony-- to wit, child endangering).

> If they arrested him, is there likely more to the story?

No way of knowing. However, leaving a child unattended in a bathtub and that child subsequently drowning is enough to warrant an involuntary homicide charge and arrested on its own so its not necessary for there to be "more to the story".


Title: Disturbing the Peace? Can I counter for unlawful arrest?

Question:
New Jersey

This was around 2:30 am- 3am. After drinking casually (not drunk) went outside to have a nice friendly chat (very casual no yelling). We sat down on the sidewalk for a bit and we decided to talk. A few moments later a police officer arrived and told us we were being loud. (I began recording the incident in case something happened) I asked him whether or not there were complaints, he said no.(turned video off didn't think anything of this encounter) At that point we were all parting ways but the officer was very rude to me till the end, I told the police officer I had done nothing wrong and he just do his job. At that split second, he arrested me put me in the back of his car and we went to the station. At the station he handcuffed me to a bar and I sat on a bench where he took my things away. My friend arrived shortly after and the officer refused to let him in and told him to leave. A few minutes later, paramedics showed up to the station. The officer gave me forms to sign which i refused and didn't say a word. Then the paramedics and the officer forcibly tugged at me to get me outside in the ambulance. I kept telling them I was not drunk and that this does not warrant a trip to the emergency room. For the record I asked them for a breathalyzer test which the officer refused. The paramedics shortly left the scene. I asked when I could leave and there was no answer, frustrated I started tugging at my arm with the handcuffs. The officer gave me my summons and told me I could not leave unless a family member arrived. (Although my friend was just outside) I called my brother on my cell phone and he came and picked me up. The officer then told my brother, I was "technically arrested". My brother signed a form and we left.

I am actually furious because I felt so powerless and I felt as though I did nothing wrong. I still feel stressed and pissed off.

Any advice would be amazing

EDIT: location

EDIT: summons
http://imgur.com/nGJdQSZ

Answer: What statute were you charged with? N.J.S.A. 2C:33-2 for disorderly conduct? It should say on your summons. Answer #2: TL;DR:  Mouthed off to a cop, got cited.  Pay fine, move along.


Title: My aunt's car was stolen by a "friend," disposed of, cops & insurance won't help! Florida.

Question:
Sorry In advance if this is a bit long. I'll try to condense.

My aunt, M, has a very religious friend whom she has known for many years. She did state months before this she was acting strange but didn't think much of it. Let's call her D. D approached my aunt about borrowing her car one morning because she "lost the keys to her car" parked in a private parking lot and needed to get to and from work until her husband got home so they could go get her car.
My aunt agreed and had D drop her off at work the next morning so D could get around that day. Was supposed to pick her up after work and return the car. This happens Tuesday.

Turns out, D never returns. My aunt, idiotically, chooses to wait until SATURDAY to call police. She is found to be in a psychiatric facility being held for 72 hrs. She is claiming Jesus told her to dispose of all the vanities in her life and that included my aunt's 2 month old 35k car. D's car is still in the parking lot at this point but she disposed of her keys as vanities the day before as well (just didn't remember)

It is obvious she has mental health issues. Is it worth suing over? My aunt's car was purchased 2 months ago.

The police are not putting high priority into finding her car, as she waited so long to report it missing. They told her that because she waited so long anything could've happened to the car at this point.

Insurance also is not going to replace anything as the car was given to someone not covered under insurance and the vehicle has not been found.

It's been almost a week. Does my aunt have any other options? To add insult to injury, D's husband is undocumented from Brazil and therefore BEGGING my aunt not to take them to court. What can she do? Does she need a lawyer? Does the fact that D has mental health issues lessen my aunt's chances of getting paid her car's value back? She doesn't care about the money, just wants the car. However, D is not answering many questions and is refusing to speak with police as they investigate. She tells them Jesus told her to.

Edit : re reading this after posting I realize how crazy this really sounds but I promise I'm not trolling anyone.

Answer: Your aunt needs to recognize that she made a huge mistake here. She can file a stolen vehicle report, but the cops may or may not take it seriously given the circumstances. Her best bet is to serve this "friend" with written notice, rescinding her permission to use the vehicle, and demanding the return of it within a specific period of time. Once that period has past, if it's still not returned, she can then sue the friend for the value of the vehicle. Keep in mind that if the friend is batshit fucking nuts and stuck in a mental home, she probably isn't going to have the assets or income necessary to facilitate an easy reimbursement.


Title: (CA) Medical Marijuana - HOA requesting copy of rec

Question:
As the title states, my HOA is requesting that I produce my medical recommendation to verify that I am a CA legal MMJ user (I am). I have no real issue with showing them so they can verify that it is legit, however they wish to make a copy of it, and as I understand it, being a medical record, it is up to me who gets to have copies of my medical records.

I intend to refuse to let them make a copy unless there is a compelling reason for me to do otherwise. At the last board meeting it came out that the board intends to attempt to get 2/3 homeowner approval to ban marijuana and other drugs from the community, but as of now neither my lease nor any official HOA position prohibits it.

I worry that them taking a copy of my rec is more for use in their witch hunt to rid the neighborhood of ne'er-do-wells than for any legitimate "verification" purposes, but regardless of my reasoning, I understand that if I deny access to my medical records, that's the end of it.

Is my understanding off base?

Answer: How did this request for your prescription come to be? Are you living in a condo and the smell from your usage seeps into other units? Have there been complaints? Because that seems like more of a legit concern than you toking up in the privacy of your own home.Answer #2: What do the HOA rules say about drug use? If you don't play along they may very well be able to kick you out for drug related violations.


Title: Is it illegal to offer to pay a faithless elector's fine?

Question:
With the US election ending in an electoral college–popular vote split, people are now calling for electors to ignore their pledges. I've seen a few say they'll pay the fine of any Trump elector who casts their vote for Hillary, or trying to organize funding pools to that end.

I have a few questions about that:

* Is it illegal to pay another person's fine?
* Is it illegal to offer ahead of time to pay another person's fine if they break a law?
* Is it illegal to make such an offer publicly, to any member of a large group?
* Is it illegal to do any of those in the specific case of a faithless elector, or generally when it involves altering the results of an election?

If you want a specific state, I'll say Florida, but any Trump state would be interesting to hear about.

Answer:
 It is not, in the general case, illegal to pay someone else's fine, unless the court specifically bars it.

In this specific case, you would very likely be seen as [vote buying](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/597), which is illegal for federal elections.


Title: [PA] My sister threatened to kill someone

Question:
My sister said (both to me and several other people) she would kill her friend's husband if the husband mistreated his wife. Now he has, and my sister is determined to right a perceived wrong.

The husband is a drug dealer and has many enemies, some who want him dead.  I am worried that my sister will become the prime suspect if the husband dies,  even though I don't think she is capable of killing another human.

How can I protect my sister?

Answer: Tell her to cut all ties with these people.


Question:
*Beep Boop Beep Beep Boop*

---

[Report Inaccuracies Here](https://www.reddit.com/r/LocationBot/) | Data Sourced From [GitHub] (https://github.com/ianpugh/LocationBot2.0) | [Author](https://reddit.com/u/ianp)

---

Original Post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/5fr13c/update_georgia_neighbor_wants_to_call_cops_for/

Author: /u/KeepingHoes

#**UPDATE: [Georgia] Neighbor wants to call cops for leaves**

>
> Original Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/5f0jqn/usa_neighbor_wants_to_call_the_cops_for_leaves/?st=IVZNJ4HB

Answer: I just wanted to throw in here that our neighbors actually DID call the cops on us once because some grass blew onto their driveway while we mowed our yard. The cops showed up and called them children but just asked us nicely to sweep it up.


Title: (NY) Please help me understand a part of my dads trust

Question:
"In determining the share of this trust payable to any beneficiary at the time of settlor's death, any assets of settlor's which are payable or distributable to any beneficiary of this trust, shall be treated for purposes of calculating the distribution of the remainder of this trust as if such assets were part of this trust and were distributed to said beneficiaries as part of this trust. It is the settlor's intention that assets such as joint bank accounts, totten trust accounts, life insurance policies, IRA accounts and other retirement accounts and accounts payable on death to a named beneficiary shall be treated as passing to such named beneficiary as part of this trust for purposes of calculating the distribution of the remainder of this trust."

I was not named as a beneficiary of one of my dads retirement accounts, I am an equal share beneficiary of the trust. My sister, the executor, said because I wasn't a named beneficiary on this particular account means I don't get a share. Can someone please ELI5?

Edit: my dad would never intentionally leave one of his children out.

Answer:
 From what I understand, you don't get a share of that retirement account exactly, but this shouldn't reduce the total share you get from your father's assets.

That is, if your father's assets were 10k in an IRA (with your sister as beneficiary) and 10k in a joint account (with you both as beneficiaries), then you should get 10k (from the joint account) and she should get 10k (from the IRA). That even though the IRA was not part of the trust, it gets included in the calculation anyway, so that the result is equitable.

So you should be getting a compensatory larger share from the remainder of your father's assets.


Title: Being told my wife will have her car towed if she parks in the parking lot where she works

Question: Pretty much the title sums it up. Can an employer do this to an employee?  I feel like this is illegal but have no idea how to word it for an internet search. Thanks! (Btw employer is also committing wage theft and will not purchase adequate vacuum cleaners so the other employees have to bring their own but that's another story)

Answer:
 An employer can ban employee vehicles from parking on his property, or anyone else he wants to ban from parking there.Answer #2: > Pretty much the title sums it up.

Not really. Is she guaranteed free parking, in that lot, in her contract? Has she paid to park there and they are refusing to honor her pass?

> employer is also committing wage theft

File a complaint with your state labor board. If your state has one. What is your state?


Title: Stopped for a seatbelt, forced to wait for k-9 unit

Question: Hey folks. Hope you had a better weekend than me. I have a video of this occurrence. I was stopped on my way to work for not having my seatbelt on. Upon refusing consent to search the officer told me I was "legally obligated" to stay for the k-¶ unit. I waited for one hour the dogs came and searched.

Answer:
 Are you in the US. I thought SCOTUS recently ruled on this and called it 20 minutes. Let me look.

Rodriguez v. United States says that a 7 or 8 minute wait is acceptable. I think there is more, let me keep looking.

OP: /u/Citicop is correct, 20 minutes is considered reasonable, but longer times may be reasonable as well.


Title: Is it illegal in new york for my mom to log into my gmail account without asking me

Question: Shes also been verbally abusing me for some time, so i emailed a responsible adult about it asking for advice. I check my email to see if shed gotten back to me and I find that my mom had forwarded the whole conversation to herself. I never told her my password so she must have had it saved on her computer from the last time I logged in there. Is this illegal for her to do? (By the way im 14, if thats of any use to you)

Answer:
 Regardless, you should change your password and, if possible, enable [2 Factor Authentication](https://www.google.com/landing/2step/).Answer #2: Is it possible for you to meet in person with the adult you were trying to contact, instead of talking to them via email?

Your mom may have installed a keylogger on the computer, which records everything that is typed.

If you need help from an adult, if you go to a church or other religious service, you may be able to get help from a pastor or other type of religious leader.

Also, school will most likely be starting within a month or two, and any teacher or guidance counselor at your school should be able to help you if you need someone to talk to. Answer #3: Illegal? No. Psychotic? Yes, unless she has a serious reason to be concerned you didn't tell us about. (I don't know, maybe you're selling coke or something.)

Did she say why? Is there any particular reason why she's snooping around like that?

Anyway, sorry you have to deal with that. If this is how she always is, move out the day you turn 18.


Title: Got a ticket for doing 69 in a 50 - Know i wasnt going that fast, how can I fight it?

Answer:
 You were still going 60 in a 50, so you're still going to be paying regardless.

You can fight the ticket, make the argument in court that you weren't going 69 because you knew you were going 60.  Then the officer will testify he had you at 69.  And then the judge will probably side with the cop.

Prior to court though, you can try to talk to the prosecutor and see if he/she'll knock it down for you to something lower with a reduced fine.  That would probably be your best bet.


Title: Texas, at work I donate to a charity, and my work give parking spots as an incentive to donate. Someone parks in my spot.

Question:
I'm not sure if a tow company would actually tow them, but can I call to have that person's car towed? Its my workplace's parking lot, but basically I'm paying for the spot. It was assigned to me, all day, for the whole year. I have talked to management and they don't really get involved.

I feel like their intent is not only to get the spot without paying, but to take away my spot with kind of a "what are you going to do about it" attitude. I feel harassed.

Answer:
 IANAL

I doubt that you'll be able to get the car towed.  Your management is not going to be happy with you if you start towing cars on their property.

Go to HR, not management, and say that you paid with an understand that you'd get the parking lot.  Explain that they are basically engaging in theft, and that if you were getting benefits pulled it would be a significant labor issue, so they need to treat it like that. If they think you're gonna  call the workforce commission or something they may treat it more seriously.  But that's sort of a bluff, I'm not sure how labor laws would apply in this situation.Answer #2: My previous workplace used to do the same charity parking spot thing.

Is your place big enough that you can get a receptionist or an admin to call the tow company? This way it's still the company towing the car and your management chain or HR doesn't have to get involved.Answer #3: 1. Show up to work earlier.
2. Park in spot.
3. Use your extra time to plot against people that could have parked in your spot if you were not already in it.Answer #4: Have you told your manager or the security who patrols the lot? It would be up to them to tow the car.


Title: My stepmother won't let me be a vegan

Question:
I live with my stepmother and my actual dad. He re-married her a while ago, but I don't consider her a guardian or a mom, she's just like my dad's second wife.

Anyway, I wanted to become a vegan because I watched several documentaries about animal abuse in slaughterhouses and in the food industry in general. I told my dad this, and he was okay with it, but then my stepmother was not okay with it and got really mad for no reason at me, so she wouldn't let me become a vegan. My dad let's her make decisions, so then he changed his mind and was all like, "you know, veganism isn't healthy...". So I did research and veganism actually is really healthy, but I'm sure that's beside the point with him, and he's just agreeing to whatever my stepmother is saying.

I don't think this is legal because it's against my morals to consume animal products and my stepmother is currently making me consume animal products.

I don't know how the legal system works in these cases, but is there any way that I can legally make her opinion of me being a vegan not matter because she's not actually my mom anyway.

This is Maine btw

Answer: Oh, sweet summer child.Answer #2: How old are you?


Title: Wallet lost... found stolen? md

Question:
So to preface: I'm a dumbass.

I lost my wallet holding everything; my drivers license, cards and my car key (keyless ignition).

I thought I lost it in my own apartment but placed the cards on hold just in case.

An old lady found my drivers license in the grass so obviously someone picked up my wallet and ditched the license. (Which Im 100% grateful for because replacing that would have been a butt)

However, the problem now is that the person who found my wallet now has my car key in their possession.

I'm really scared they might steal my car. I moved the car a few streets down in a friend's neighborhood.

Tomorrow, if I can find a location open, I'm going to call my car's dealership and see how much it would be to get the whole keyless ignition system reset with a new key.... and until I can save up to replace it... I guess I'll just keep parking my car elsewhere...

Even though my own dumb ass lost my wallet, do I report the car key stolen? Is this it the correct subreddit about this? I just?? I don't know what to do and I'm so lost.

Answer:
 >I moved the car a few streets down

Smart move.   Car theft subsequent to burglary or purse-snatching is pretty common, especially because key fobs can easily search a block by pressing the lock button.

Since you evidently have a spare key, pop the hood and remove the ignition fuse and the accessory fuse, and take everything of value out of the car.    Check your owner's manual to see if you can remove a fuse that disables the keyless entry, especially if you have a car with a backup physical key system.

There's not much police could do about a stolen car key.   You can make a report (for insurance purposes) but it's not an emergency so look up how to make online or non-emergency reports in your jurisdiction.   Depending on the circumstances of the theft, renter's insurance might actually cover it.

Despite your assumption that you misplaced your wallet, once it was taken by somebody with the intent to deprive you of it permanently, it was stolen.

Last:  what kind of car key keyless entry device fits in a wallet ?


Title: Landlord charging me for a pet I never had.

Question: Moved out of an apartment a short while ago, during the move out inspection there was a ziploc bag of pet food underneath one of the appliances prompting my landlord to ask if I had a pet. I said I did not and thought that was the end of it. Received a letter via certified mail from our landlord asking us to pay over $4000 in fines for an unauthorized pet. I don't even have any pets, nor was there one in my apartment. I'm wondering what I need to do in order to fight this. Located in Idaho.

Answer:
 Ignore everything except an actual lawsuit.

Tell your landlord to pound sand

Then, send him a letter demanding your security deposit back (if you don’t have it) and then sue him in small claims court if he does not comply with the law.

This guide will help you to get your deposit back

https://www.idaholegalaid.org/files/SECURITY%20DEPOSITS.brochure.doc


Title: Custody case

Question: My husband and I are needing help as we don't know where else to turn. Needing advice for a child custody case in Colorado.

Answer: Post a question with details to receive advice.


Title: Wedding venue's maximum seated capacity is lower than promised size. New York.

Question:
My fiance and I recently placed a deposit at a wedding venue that we really liked. We were not sure if the reception hall was large enough to accomodate our party (550), but they assured us that they had indeed conducted even larger parties and that our guest list would not be an issue at all. However, we recently attended a friend's wedding at the said venue, which had 100+ guests *less* than we are expecting. Not only was crowding a huge issue, food came out extremely late, timing was extremely off. My table was served our entrees and later bussed less than 10 minutes later. Some food that was paid for was never seen. Passed appetizers were missing.

Needless to say, we now understand the venue is not well equipped or experienced with large weddings. Furthermore, we unfortunately for the first time noticed the maximum capacity sign, which read about 430 guests. Do we have any legal recourse as to obtain either a complete or partial refund of our 5k deposit?

Edit: thank you for all the replies. I now feel confident we should be able to obtain a refund.
Topic:
Contracts

Answer:
 You asked below how to handle this tactfully, so the first step is to actually communicate with the venue.

Since your contract explicitly states 550 guests  (according to your other replies) and the fire code sign says 430... here is how you approach it "with tact" as you requested ...

"I was recently at an event at your venue and noticed the fire code sign quotes a maximum of 430 people. We are expecting 550 guests, per our contract. Can you please explain this discrepancy?"

Assuming they can somehow explain that away, you follow up with the fact that you were underwhelmed by the service provided at that event and ask what happened/what they are planning to do for your event.

tl;dr You try communicating your concerns and see where that goes. Answer #2: Does the contract specify the party size for your wedding , or is there anything that they've written that guarantees accommodations for 550 guests?Answer #3: You can't exceed the fire code.  Is the party size in your contract?  If imagine it would have to be if you're paying for food per plate.Answer #4: Stupid question but do you know what exact space you rented? Some places solve the problem by adding extra rooms to the existing space. One layout for one wedding can be different. Do you know what exact space you rented?


Title: New subleasee housemates are trying to force me to rehome my ESA due to alleged life threatening allergies

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 They can't force you to get rid of your cat if you are abiding by the terms of your lease when it comes to pets. They can make your living situation difficult if they all are against you, just be aware of that.

Also, there's no such thing as a "registered emotional support animal." Unless you mean that you have a letter from a medical professional that is currently treating you, not a website that claims it provides ESA registrations (because they're scams)Answer #2: Your "emotional support animal" is a pet.

That aside - Your landlord can evict these people, not you. They will have to be legally evicted, meaning you can't just kick them out.

If I caught my tenants subletting without my permission, I would remove them as well. That part is up to your landlord, though.


Title: Thinking of filing a suit for workplace harassment. What do I need to do while I still have time?

Question:
Long story short is I started a job I've worked for years to get about 5 months ago. At this job is someone that I worked with at a previous job (at a business owned by my family, I'll refer to him as X). This other person was fired from the previous job and even though I had nothing to do with it (honestly I worked under him) he seems to hold a grudge against me for it. Now at this new job, since the day I started he has been trying to get me fired. He will go to the manager and question everything that I do, say that I'm doing it completely wrong, and saying that I'm doing serious harm to the company's relationship with the customer. At first, this wasn't a big deal as the manager knew me from a (different) previous job, knew that I was a good worker and that I was more than competent. Problem is, that manager got promoted and a new manager was brought in to replace him. This guy doesn't know me from Adam, and since X knows that, he has doubled his efforts to undermine everything I do. Now, I show up for work every day, I keep to myself, I mind my own business, do my job, and go home. I don't get involved in the drama and I'm not all about kissing up to X or the manager. My job performance speaks for itself and is basically the reason the manager can't fire me to make X happy (since X is technically higher trained than me, even though he is honestly terrible at what he does, probably because he spends all his time worrying about me). So basically my old manager came and talked to me yesterday and offered me a position in a different branch of the company. It's not doing something I have training to do and I honestly will not be happy working there, as like I previously said I worked for years to get into the position I'm in now. I told him I'd consider it but I'm not inclined to accept. About 2 hours later he came back and said the deal was I could either accept the position I'm being offered or they're going to let me go in 60 days.

Honestly, at this point, I'm inclined to let them let me go. However, I'm not about letting X ruin something for me I've worked so hard to get. I feel that if he is going to cause me to lose my job and force me to have to relocate to another city that something needs to be done about it. Do I have grounds for the suit? What do I need to do to build my case if I do? There's nothing in writing, of course, but I do have at least two (possibly three, maybe even more) other employees that will verify that he's been making great efforts to try to get me fired. Please help! Thanks in advance!

Answer: This would not be an actionable form of harassment. It is legal for him to undermine you and complain to management about you.


Title: My Co-Worker Assaulted Me and Destroyed My Contract. My COO May Not Re-Write a new one. Help!

Answer: Is this Dean guy on some sort of lunatic fringe?


Title: What happens if you sign a 10 year commercial lease [NY] for a store in say manhattan, but then 6 months in, you arent making money and want OUT?

Question:
say you signed a 10 year lease for a store in nyc. 6 months in, you realize the business isnt making money and want out.

Would you pay a penalty? what would happen? Would you be forced to stay there for 10 years? what if you cant make rent if you're forced there and dont have money? What happens if you just want out and cant bring in profitable money?

Answer: No idea. The answer would be in the lease.


Title: Could I be prevented from participating in PTA meetings at an elementary school if I don't have any children?

Question:
Hello,

I would like to be more involved with my community by joining my neighborhood elementary school's PTA (Parent-Teacher Association). Having no kids at this school (or in general) I would like to know ahead of time if there is anything I should know beforehand if there is anything I should be worried about happening to me in a legal capacity since I eventually want to be in an elected position at an elementary school.

Thank you.

Edit: location is Georgia

Answer: Why not contact the PTA directly and see if you'd be welcome? Some PTAs are thrilled when community members get involved.


Title: Prepping for separation/divorce, I’ve found several large personal investments I had no knowledge of. Implications?

Question:
New Mexico - Community property/No fault state

I’m just beginning to unravel all of this and I’m pretty sure I’m not able to do it by myself. My SO has handled the finances pretty protectively (controlling) from day 1.

But I overheard a conversation he probably wishes I hadn’t that prompted me to dig further and I’m still not at the bottom of it.

It appears as though he’s made at least 3 separate investments with our savings (cash) into business ventures of friends and family (one being his child, my step-child), all were in the tens on thousands of dollars.  While also setting a $200 max credit card limit for myself. Did I say controlling already? Sorry, I’m gonna stay on topic.

I’m sure you’ve gathered that I had no idea about any of it, not even the investments to our kids business.
I don’t see any returns or income from any of the investments, which doesn’t necessarily mean anything. He’s nothing if not a freaking wizard at hiding money.

Aside from downloading everything from the computer. Financial database, statements, etc. are there any other preparations I should be doing?

Are there legal repercussions for making solo decisions with large sums of joint monies? Or is it akin to the same decision he’s made to put his p in whatever v will take his (our) money?

Answer:
 >Aside from downloading everything from the computer. Financial database, statements, etc. are there any other preparations I should be doing?

You shouldn't do any of that.  You should go see a divorce lawyer and let them guide you on the best course of actions.Answer #2: >Aside from downloading everything from the  computer. Financial database, statements, etc. are there any other  preparations I should be doing?

When you contact a divorce lawyer for a consultation, ask if you should download those files. I disagree with u/JAG_Officer_03 \- my first thought is download those files because...

1.) Due to community property, they're your files anyway.

2.) Even if the data cannot be used directly in court, they can be used to find proof of what he's trying to hide.

3.) Copying the files doesn't change them on the hard drive, meaning a forensic analysis can still be done.

Whatever you do, don't make that call anywhere that he might hear it. And only give the file to your lawyer and no one else, and don't tell anyone other than your lawyer.

>Are there legal repercussions for making solo decisions with large sums of joint monies?

It depends on the reasoning. But if he does not disclose them during the divorce, there absolutely can be. There have been cases where judges force a party to turn over 100&#37; of hidden assets to the other party.


Title: My S/O was threatened with rape and is being sexually harassed at work. [VA]

Question:
My significant other is a 20 year old male, tonight he called me very upset after leaving work. He is looking for action to take to make this right, he suffers from anxiety and has issues with confrontation. For purposes of this post I will refer to him as "B" and her as "N".

A classmate of his at community college had made a comment about her friend thinking he was attractive, the girl who said this was later hired at the same chain retail store where \*B\* holds a somewhat high position. She immediately asked management where his locker was so she could be near him and told management he was attractive. The manager told her that he was "spoken for" and questioned her about her own boyfriend. She then winked and said they can still share a locker space.

\*N\* continued her her first shift asking \*B\* about our relationship, asking personal questions, and telling him that while I'm at my university I am cheating on him (I do not know this girl). His coworkers told him that when he would turn his back, \*N\* would make humping gestures and make oral sex motions.

\*B\* overheard her telling a coworker that she wants to have sex with him and if she were to ever work alone with him, she would rape him. The coworker she was talking to later came to \*B\* and told him that is exactly what she said "she would rape you." This coworker stayed with \*B\* after clocking out that night while he finished closing so that he would not have to be in the store alone with \*N\*.

\*N\* has been in legal trouble before, she has a restraining order against her from her ex boyfriend because she posted a naked photo of him on twitter after their breakup.

Again, \*B\* suffers from anxiety and even asked me to make this post for him for advice. Should he complain to HR and risk having the story turned around on him and possibly not be believed because he is male? Should he report the incident to a mandated reporter at their community college? Does he need evidence, if so what kind? Does he need a recording of the offending behavior to get help? Also, what further action can he take if the chain retail store declares this as a nonissue?

Thanks in advance.

Answer: So, B is getting all of his information secondhand? If B feels threatened, he should tell management, or the police. But if N has said nothing to B, how does he ***know*** that these claims are true?


Title: Someone might steal my beat.

Question: (Pittsburgh PA)Hey guys so I sent a beat around 6 months ago to this guy to use for his rap beat.  I heard nothing from him and today I randomely got a text from him saying "hey just want you to know for legal reasons that I'm making a song with your beat". I responded saying "ok just make sure the beat has my tag(which says my name for promotion on my beat) and you can use it for free".  After I said that he got pissed at me and said he isn't going to pay for shit and how sony(the company I guess he is working with) said that I can't use my tag.  I just want to know what I should do.

Answer:
 You could hire an attorney to send him a letter not to ummm use your beat.Answer #2: Legally, both he and Sony need your permission to use your copyrighted work, unless fair use applies. You don't necessarily need to tell him he can't, as that's the default position, but sending a firm letter saying he can't use it is a good first step.

Perhaps consider registering your beat at the US copyright office so you can claim statutory damages (on top of actual damages and injunctive relief) if this person goes on to use your beat without permission. You don't technically need to do this right now to sue him/Sony if they go on to publish a song using your beat without permission, but the potential damages (payment) you could receive is higher if it was registered prior to the infringement. It also makes it easier to prove that you made that beat.

Of course, registering a copyright isn't free, so it's up to you to decide if this person is likely enough to misuse your beat that it's worth taking preparatory steps.

Regardless of whether you register the copyright, it's a good idea to preserve all communications (emails, texts, etc), as well as any project files associated with your beat as potential evidence in any future dispute.Answer #3: 1. Save the communication where he acknowledged he's using your creation without credit or payment.

2. Retain an IP or copyright lawyer on a 5-hour retainer or less. Make sure you take up any free initial consult

3. Have the lawyer send a C&D

4. Price the beat at about the going rate for the same thing done by someone else and add a demand for credit on the usage rights.


Title: Potential employer contacted my current employer that jeopardized my current job

Question:
A few weeks ago I went for an interview at a big firm. Interview went well and HR rep asked if I wanted to provide him with my references. I mentioned I don't want my current employer being contacted as it will affect my relationship. As it happens manager who interviewed me along with HR rep is a really good friends with my manager. He obviously went on to mention it to my current manager. My manager didn't take it too well. I should mention I have been asking my current employer for a raise for a while and he has been putting me off. Now after this happened my manager told me that 'I am not loyal to the company and I don't wanna work here.' When I recently tried taking a day off for personal reason he asked 'Are you going for another interview' to which I responded by saying 'yes I am'. He has humiliated me on previous occasions and ever since this incident he has been treating me differently. All these recent events made me make the decision to quit the job.

Due to other company's negligence it made me unemployed. I am wondering if I can take any legal action against the other company or manager of that company as I clearly mentioned not to contact my current employer during the interview. I work in a professional environment and have professional designation.

Ontario, Canada

Answer:
 >All these recent events made me make the decision to quit the job.

>Due to other company's negligence it made me unemployed.

You made yourself unemployed. Answer #2: You quit your job. That is the reason you are unemployed. The other company is not responsible for you doing that.

Even if you had not quit your job, the other company was not negligent in calling your current employer and you have nothing to sue for.


Title: Can an undercover cop pretend to be a lawyer?

Answer:
 Yes and no.

Can an under cover cop pretend to be a lawyer as part of his cover?  Sure, I guess.

Could that cop talk to an arrested suspect while pretending to be his lawyer to get a confession?

Not so much...


Title: Check scam victim

Question:
Hi /r/legaladvice, I'm in the USA, Massachusetts.
I've recently been a victim of a check scam and am desperate for some help. I read that reporting a consumer complaint to the FTC is one of the steps to recovering lost funds, but I don't know what to do next. I don't know who scammed me, but I have the first and last names of the people who received my MoneyGram transfers, all reference numbers from the MoneyGram transfers, and the emails which started all of this. Yes, I'm the biggest fool to have fallen for such an obvious scam. But please, some help would be greatly appreciated.

Answer: The accumulated wisdom of this sub is that there is no way to recover the money. You definitely don't have the real identity of the person who sent you the check. You probably don't have the real identity of the people you wired money to. I'm sorry for your loss. This is a diabolical scam that fools many people. On this sub alone there are multiple victims posting per week.


Title: My ex just told me she wont let me see my child(3) until a judge forces her to do so...Very timely...(CA)

Question:
I'm in the State of California(San Diego). There are currently no custody orders but I've been taking him every weekend/holiday and days off since we split, so for about two years.

We got into a disagreement about money, as a lot of people do. And she threatened to not "allow" me to see my son or speak with him on the phone.

Now, I'm very confident once this gets to court it will go well for me. The mother has had...a storied past. But I wanted to say goodbye to him, on fucking Father's Day, and tell him it may be a while before I get an opportunity to see him. She decided to speed off and is now not answering the phone.

I'm completely broken. I cant believe I'm even in this situation. I am however listed as someone who can pick him up from Daycare.

I want to pick up my son tomorrow and just talk to him. I've heard stories about parents being charged with Kidnapping for taking their son out of school.

Is this accurate? What are my rights? I know typically the father has very little say in these situations.

And please, if someone knows a good attorney in San Diego, or the best course of action, please pm me or let me know. I'm trying to hold it together.

Thank you.

Edit: As far as the downvotes go, am I using this sub incorrectly? Is this something that comes up often, I tried googling and didn't see anything...

Answer:
 Not legal advice, but more of "make yourself look better" advice.

Do not take your child from the school. You may have a legal right to do so, but that is not the visitation standard you two have maintained. And if you do that the day after having a dispute with the mom, that could make it look like you were doing it out of spite and not for the child's wellbeing.

Courts aren't always as biased as some may think, but you want to appear in front of a judge with a lily-white history, not a "she made me mad so I took the kid" history.

Check the state bar website and find an attorney. California does have a self help website, and some counties have family law assistance offices should you choose to proceed without counsel.

The longer you wait, the more it could turn into her favor. Move quickly and get a custody order.


Title: [CA] An app that facilitates "betting" among minors: is it legal?

Question:
**Scenario:** Two minors choose their preferred football team going into The Superbowl. They agree that the loser has to record themselves eating 50 hardboiled eggs in an hour ~~[or pay fifty bucks to "buy out" of the agreement]~~. They formulate the stated terms of the bet via an app, which arbitrates the winner of the bet.
**Question:** Is the app in trouble for facilitating underage gambling?

~~If so, would removing the "fifty buck buy out" element of the agreement fix issue?~~

**Caveat:** the app doesn't purport to actually enforce the bet. The loser is not obligated to eat the eggs ~~*or* pay the buy out~~. They simply lose reputation [karma?] if they renege on the bet. Does this caveat affect the legality of the app~~, particularly the "buy out" aspect~~?

**Another question:** What happens if the loser somehow dies from eating 50 eggs in an hour (or another easily imagined scenario: drinking too much water in a short amount of time, etc.)? Is the app culpable for the terms of the bet leading to the death in fringe cases like this?

edit: I've added the strikethroughs to portions of my post because  answers have indicated that if money is involved, it's not legal.

Answer:
 > Is the app in trouble for facilitating underage gambling?

Yes, without question.  If money is changing hands as a result of a game of chance, it's gambling regardless of how you phrase it.

> If so, would removing the "fifty buck buy out" element of the agreement fix issue?

Probably not.  Almost all gambling statutes prohibit gambling "for value".  Value is a pretty broad term and covers an exchange of almost any good or service, or forbearance of a right.  Almost anything you'd *want* to gamble for, would fall into that category.

>  Does this caveat affect the legality of the app, particularly the "buy out" aspect?

No.  Facilitating gambling doesn't require "enforcement".  Also, if there's no actual benefit to using this app (it doesn't enforce, it doesn't handle the bet, it doesn't record), why would anyone use it in the first place?

> Is the app culpable for the terms of the bet leading to the death in fringe cases like this?

There are scenarios where it's possible, but it won't matter because it would get shut down for violating iOS and Androids TOS for the app store, violating state gaming laws, and generally being a bad idea.


Title: Would someone be opening themselves up to potential civil suits if they were to start a new line of kosher franks called Harvey Weinsteiners, with the slogan "These Weiners Will Make You A Star“ printed prominently on the package?

Question: Or would that be covered under satire?

Answer: I think putting the idea of rape in a customer's mind whilst trying to sell them a food that is phallas shaped is a bad idea. Personally, I would find it very off-putting and unappetising. For full disclosure, I am a victim of rape. Maybe if you're selling to frat houses and the like, it would go down well. If you're going to do this, pick your target market wisely. IANAL, so someone else will have to advise you on the legal aspects of this, I'm just speaking as a potential customer, warning you that many such as me would be put off by your selling technique in the first place.Answer #2: You'd be setting yourself up for a state level lawsuit for violating his publicity rights (using his name or likeness to promote your product)


Title: If you accept payment for a job and the company provides a "terms of engagement" contract and back dates it. Does this mean you have essentially agreed to it without signing? (UK)

Question: My girlfriend is contracting at a hat makers, she has been on and off since February. Today she has received a "Terms of agreement" to sign, back dated to February. She wants to make hats in the future as part of her own business and signing this contract would essentially mean that the company could sue. My question is (as she doesn't want to sign this) Will the acceptance of payment since February count as agreement to the contract she has just been presented with? (UK Contract law)

Answer: No. And she should not agree to sign this contract. By backdating, they are trying to get around a basic requirement of contract law - that there be consideration - by making it appear it was part of their original deal.


Title: Was T-boned at an intersection, the other driver claims I ran the red light and he had an eyewitness to support his statement

Question:
This is my first time visiting/using this subreddit.  Do I stand a chance with my case? I am a 23 year old with a clean driving record, and both me and my 11 year old passenger saw green lights straight ahead of us(we were not confused with the adjacent lights as the officer suggested, I went through the intersection 6-7 times and there is no way I could have confused them).  It was my first accident and I was not thinking clearly as I had just been hit by a car on my side of the car, and was worried about my passenger more than anything at the time.  It seemed like the easy thing for the officer to do, giving me the young kid a ticket, especially given that the other driver had a supposed eyewitness.

Should I post something to a more local subreddit to have an idea of the process, preferable legal seervices, etc.?  I live in Southeastern North Carolina.
Topic:
Traffic and Parking

Answer:
 You can go to court and provide your testimony as to the green lights.  We can't guess as to whether you'd be successful.Answer #2: http://www.amazon.com/Black-Box-G1W-C-Capacitor-Dashboard/dp/B00MIO2KRC

One of these is a great investment for the future. Good luck!Answer #3: depending on where you are there's a pretty good chance there are business/atm cameras around you.  see if you can get some footage.


Title: Banned sodas at high school football game - police enforced.

Question:
Went to local high school football game and they have a "No outside food or drinks" sign.  How can they have this rule in the first place (Taxpayer property. Not privately owned), and how come "Law" enforcement police officers are able to confront people and enforce this "rule".  U.S. not so free when you get harassed by police for having a soda.  Thanks.
*Edit*  A Reddit BOT told me to put my location, saying U.S. was not good enough.  It's a small town in Indiana.  The original was posted from a mobile, so sorry for the short entry.  The intent of my question is more oriented to determining the authority for this rule making, who would be petitioned to respectfully request a change to policy, and to determine the percentage of fellow Redditors who answer are OK with ridiculous rules and restrictions (Murder = BAD, Outside Soda = irrelevant and not worth even having rules on).  Thanks to all for polite/professional/respectful answers.

Answer:
 Tax payers paid for the property but it belongs to the school, not you.

It is their property and their rules. You can go somewhere else if you do not like their rules.


Title: Parents withholding gun

Question:
I am a 22 year old Marine stationed in California. My family and fiancee live in Florida. My fiancee is moving out here in a couple weeks and I'm having her drive some of my stuff out here when she comes, including my handgun.

 The issue is, my gun is locked in my parents' safe back home and my mother will not give it to my fiancee. She is claiming that I need to be the one that brings it out to California, but in reality she is trying to make things difficult because she's not getting her way, but that is a different story all together.

Everything is registered to me and I bought the gun. I'm having my fiancee drive it because she's already coming out here and I don't want to ship it.
Is there anything I can do legally to make my mom give the gun to my fiancee?

Answer:
 You may wanna check the legality of having her transport it. Also, the legality of having it in California. They do have some strict gun laws.

The safest thing to do is have it shipped to a gun shop in Cali from one in Florida. Answer #2: Are you sure that it's legal for her to bring your handgun across the country? Here in Michigan, you may not possess somebody else's handgun without them present unless you have a concealed pistol license. Check the laws of not only Florida and California, but all of the states she will be driving through to make sure that she will be transporting it legally. Your mother may actually be correct on this one.Answer #3: For a $30 fee plus shipping any gun store will have it shipped to a gun store near you. Answer #4: Not short of fighting a court battle and obtaining a court order, I don't think...Answer #5: Frankly, this issue is not worth a big fight with your mother, nor the potential complications of having your fiancee transport it for you.  It is certainly not worth the expense of a legal action *against your own mother*.

Sooner or later you are going to go home and visit your mother. Just let the pistol sit in the gun safe until you do.