Title: Got in a car accident as a passenger with heavy injuries

Question:
I got in a car accident in California over a month ago as a passenger in the car. The driver of the car I was in was found to be at fault.

I have multiple heavily fractured ribs, fractures on my spine, and internal organ injuries. I went to the ER and was hospitalized for a few days. Some of the injuries seem to be permanent. Medical treatment is not yet complete. I also have not been able to go to work and school because of this accident.

I've been occupied with recovering and may have let things slip. I don't know what to do about the legal issues. I have a few questions:

1.  I haven't contacted my own car insurance about it. Should I have done that? If so, is it still possible to, or is it too late?
2. The driver's car insurance contacted me and asked how things were going. I told them about my injuries and how I'm unable to do anything (which I now realize may have been a mistake?), and have also sent them my hospital discharge papers after a lawyer said it was fine to do through a free consultation session.
3. The adjuster(?) also wants to meet me in person. I don't think it's reasonable -- am I correct?
4. Should I talk to the driver's insurance adjuster any further at all?
5. Should I get a lawyer to handle this? I do want proper compensation for all of this trouble.
6. Am I missing anything?

Thanks!

Answer: It isn’t too late. You really should talk to a personal injury lawyer before you talk to the adjuster again. Serious injuries like you have will make it worth involving a lawyer. The lawyer can deal with the adjuster. There is no reason for you to talk to or meet with him once you hire someone.


Title: (FL) I came here from /r/treelaw. My parents' neighbor(94) died and her family requested that my parents keep the ashes and they plant a tree on top of them. But...

Question: [removed]

Answer: They could tell them to dig up the tree and plant the correct kind of true, and if they refuse, sue them for the cost of having somebody else do it. The ashes are irrelevant and have no value.


Title: [PA] My landlord is losing his mind and I think he's going to steal my security deposit. What can I do here?

Question:
I've been living in this place for about 6 months now. When I moved in I paid 2 months rent security.

He just started texting me telling me that I never paid a security deposit and that I owe him money. After I tell him thats not the case and to look at the lease he starts freaking out and calling me names. The dude seriously sounds like he lost his mind, I'm so stunned right now. I've only spoken to him a handful of times and he's telling me about how narcissitic I am and how I'm always looking for an arguement.  It's seriously crazy, I basically send him rent and never see him but he has all these opinions about me.

Now he's going through old texts and telling me that I sent rent a couple days late and that he wants late fee's and if I don't send rent plus the late fee's, then he's going to start charging me more late fee's.

When I signed the lease I never gave him my social security number or a copy of my drivers license. Can he actually come after me over this?

I've spoken with a couple of his other tenants and they all told me that he tried the same thing with them and that he tried to keep their security deposit.

I'm not sure what to do, I don't want to try to hire a lawyer for $1000 just to try and save $1000 but I feel like this guy has been doing this same thing to people over and over again and it really chaps my ass.

Answer:
 Some links for info:
http://landlords.about.com/od/LegalIssues/a/Pennsylvania-Security-Deposit-Law.htm

http://www.rentlaw.com/dep/padeposit.htm

- He has to provide you with a list of damages or the reasonthat he's keeping the security deposit within 30 days of ending the lease.

- If he fails to do so, he may have to pay 2x the security deposit back to you.

- You don't need a lawyer for small claims court. Just make your case that you paid the deposit (any receipts?) and be sure to take lots of pictures prior to moving out that have date stamps. Keep the texts as record.

- See if the former tenants will act as witnesses to this repeated behavior if it comes to court.


Title: The judge ordered my girlfriend to not be around my daughter in the divorce decree because my jealous ex wife did everything possible to make my girlfriend look like a problem. I need a strategy to get around this. My ex was able to control too much of my life just by being as difficult as possible.

Question: So, my wife at the time and I decided to get divorced. We both agree to see other people. Her boyfriend dumps her, she gets jealous and it turns into a malicious year long attack against my girlfriend. Calling Child Protective Services on her, Police investigations. Claiming our daughter said that my girlfriend hit and choked her and so on. Every investigation came back negative. My girlfriend was never around our daughter much anyways and was definitely never alone with her. My ex slandered my girlfriend on social media, spread rumors, the whole nine yards. The only thing my GF did was send a few nasty texts to her, asking her to stay out of her life and stop all the nonsense. My ex's whole argument was that we can't co-parent because of the "trouble" my GF caused. She spent $38K on a simple divorce, just to throw everyting at my GF and me(I spent $7500. Didn't have to pay a cent of her fees :D). In the end, the judge grants joint custody, Facetime, we split the profit on the house, and says that my GF can't be around our daughter. Divorce is over...ex still won't co-parent, denies FaceTime and makes every single thing as difficult as possible despite my GF being out of the picture. My ex has another boyfriend who is regularly involved in our daughters life and moving in with them soon. The only way for my GF and I to stay together is if she moves in, because of financial reasons. I know it's against the decree, but would it really be that bad if my GF moved in and was around my daughter? She's caused no harm, and my daughter loves her. She's an amazing woman, we've been friends for years and we want to be serious. Bless her soul for putting up with my ex. This woman really does love me! but we can't wait the 6 months just to attempt to remove her from the decree. Not to mention wasting the money. What strategy can I play here? Let her move in and show that she was never an issue to begin with when my ex brings it up? At the same time show that my ex is a malicious, lying \*\*\*\*, wasting the courts time? Will making her my fiance or marriage override the decree? Help! I love this woman and it's not right that my ex was able to abuse the system like this to keep us apart. : / My judge was a joke too... She only looked at our total income and not the bills that we were paying. I was left with $600 a month for groceries, misc, and to pay fror a lawyer... my ex had $2500 of expendable income for an entire year.... how can someone making six figures make such bad decisions?!

Answer:
 >but would it really be that bad if my GF moved in and was around my daughter?

Yes.  Your ex will find out and take you to court where you may be found in violation of a valid court order.

You need a lawyer.Answer #2: > I know it's against the decree, but would it really be that bad if my GF moved in and was around my daughter?

Yes, because violating a court order is bad.

There is no way to "get around" this.  Your lawyer can appeal or seek to modify the order.Answer #3: Do you want to be found in contempt of court? Wait for your ex to tell a judge you violated your custody order by living with your gf. That's going to go down like a ton of bricks and destroy your credibility.

You need a lawyer. Do not have her move in before you attempt to modify the custody order.


Title: (MD) Potential landlord (residential) refusing waiver of subrogation. Should I walk away?

Question:
For the most part, see title. I am looking to rent a detached single family home. The lease stipulates that the landlord will maintain homeowners insurance, but that I must maintain renters insurance for my own belongings. I requested a mutual waiver of subrogation, but the landlord's insurance company advised them against signing it.

I have basically two questions:

1. What happens in the event of say, an accidental cooking fire, without a waiver of subrogation? Obviously the insurance company **could** sue me, but would they have any chance of success?
2. Is there some kind of insurance policy that I can take out to protect myself against this kind of action?

Answer:
 You landlord would be insane to sign anything like that. If you cause a fire, you and/or your insurance should pay for damages. Same if you overflow the bathtub and cause the floor to be replaced.

Get a renters policy and make sure it has sufficient liability insurance to cover what may arise.


Title: Need help on engagement ring payment due. Divorced now. PLEASE HELP!!!

Question:
I rushed into a marriage. She is quite a bit older than me. She insisted on having a very expensive engagement ring. This being my first marriage and her second I was stupid at the time and co-signed on this ring. She is the primary person. There is about 4.5k left.
Backstory: She had a previous marriage with 3 kids that ended badly. She had a ongoing affair during our marriage which caused it to end. She also was waaaaaaaaaaay behind on her mortgage. I didn't find out any of this until about 6 months after we were married.
I am now recieving a court summons and I don't know what to do. She is in possession of the ring. Over half is already paid off from her from before. She will not sell the ring or let me sell it.
What is the worst that can happen? Please help!!!!!!

Answer:
 >  I was stupid at the time and co-signed on this ring.

You mean you co-signed on a loan for the ring?

In that case, you are equally as responsible for the payments as she is; that's what co-signing means.  How was this debt handled in your divorce proceedings?


Title: My wife and I are separated. I will owe $900 if she doesn't agree to file jointly with me.

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Tax Law

Answer:
 > What can I do if she doesn't agree to file joint with me?

You can file separately.


Title: Filming in patientless ambulance

Question: Is it legal to film in an ambulance that is currently driving with sirens on to a scene **without** a patient inside? For context, I am an EMT. Would like B-roll for a film I’m making

Answer:
 >I am an EMT

(USA) You're almost certainly not breaking any law, or HIPAA (if that applies), but your employer probably has a blanket policy against this.Answer #2: 100% it's up to your employer.Answer #3: That's a question for your employer.


Title: I got a speeding ticket far away. Do I have to go to the far court or can I go to one by me?

Question:
Hi all, this is kind of a long post and I'm not exactly sure this is the right sub, so I apologize in advance.

&#x200B;

On Aug 31, I got pulled over about 9 hours from where I live and got a ticket for doing 26 over on the freeway. Stupid mistakes that led up to it but that's beside the point. It turns out that my registration had recently expired. This came as a surprise to me because I hadn't received anything in the mail, but I realized that it was because it expired at just around the time I was moving out of my apartment. (I know it's my responsibility to know without the mail.)

&#x200B;

 So the cop told me that I need to show proof of paying the registration by having a cop sign it within 30 days. First of all, what I'm confused about is who do I show that to? Do I have to go to court for the ticket and show that? Because the court listed on the ticket he handed me is 9 hours away which is really not an option for me. I work full time up until my college quarter starts. The court date on there is also after school starts during my second day of classes which is really not an option to miss. Do I have to show up to  that court? Can I do this at a court near me?

&#x200B;

One main reason I'm worried about the court issue is I haven't received the ticket with the fine amount in the mail yet, and I'm worried that if it doesn't come by the court date I will get fined more money or lose my license. Can this happen?

&#x200B;

Another issue is that I can't update my registration yet because I got hit by a car which took off my rear bumper. It was ruled as a total and has a salvage title now. Apparently I have to go to DMV and prove that the car is still driveable. This happened a long time ago and I've been driving it perfectly fine the entire time. I've been looking and trying to find if it still legally driveable without the rear plastic bumper piece. The metal bumper is still perfectly fine. AFAIK, the plastic is just for aesthetic right? I ask this because I don't think I can afford to put a new plastic bumper piece on right now. Also, the earliest appointment for the DMV I could schedule was September 15th where I'm hoping to be able to prove my car is driveable. The court date is the 20th and if I have to go to the court 9 hours away I'm going to be screwed.

&#x200B;

The ticket is also going to be very expensive I'm sure and I don't know if I can pay it all outright, do I have to go to the far court to try to work things out as far as paying in installments if need be?

&#x200B;

I just don't really know what to do. Any help or guidance would be much appreciated.

Answer: You have to go to the court where the ticket was issued, the local court has no jurisdiction


Title: Ez pass fine 75000 dollars. Help?

Question:
Hey everyone
I need some legal advice for my parents, I'll try to keep it as short as possible.
They had money problems for awhile, went into debt with bills, eventually foreclosed and we're homeless for awhile because they couldn't find someone who would rent a house to them with their credit, meanwhile my father works 40+ hours a week.  While we didn't have anywhere to live (we live in new jersey btw) I guess they went through ez pass without paying because we had no money but my dad needed to get to work to make money.  He commutes about 1.5 hours away.  Well, they just had to go bankrupt, their slowly getting back on their feet but they still have the ez pass bill.  The ez pass is supposedly is about $2500 but with the fine everytime you pass a toll they are billing her about $75000.  She's begged if she can just pay the $2500 since they're more or less out of the hole.  Ez pass said no and they're suspending the registration.  My brother had to put the registration of my dad's car under him becsuse they cannot have one.

Is there anyway to fight this and just pay the $2500?  Any advice will help and is appreciated, please no rude remarks.

Answer:
 > I guess they went through ez pass without paying

i guess so: there is a $50 "administrative fee" (fine) for each violation, which means they did this 1500 times to rack up a $75k fine

check online for lawyers in your area who handle traffic matters, they may be able to help or refer you to someone who can


Title: My course changed languages

Question:
Okay so this is a bit of a weird situation to be in, I’ll try to explain as best as possible.

I’m an Australian living in Iceland, I immigrated here to be with my wife who is Icelandic.

After living here for a year I decided to apply for a photography school. When I was applying I told the head master that I don’t speak much Icelandic, I understand a bit but nothing extensive. She assured me that the class was either all in English or a 50/50 split depending on teachers.

For the first semester it was that, it was a super nice mix and helped me picked up more Icelandic. With a month left in the semester one of the students complained about having English. Then afterwards all the teachers spoke solely in Icelandic without speaking with me stating that complaint and issue.

I spoke with the principal who said the course is Icelandic, in Iceland so therefore must be taught in the language. I completely agree on this, and I wish I could speak more. I would find it weird if I was in school in Australia and it was delivered in Chinese. My argument is that when applying and paying for the school I was told it would be in English to some extent. It even stated on the websites
“"Stærstur hluti námsefnis er á ensku."
The largest part of the course is in English.

Ever since speaking with the principal the website has been changed. There is no attempt to reconcile this on their behalf. The school itself is a private institution so it is unbelievably expensive.

Do I have an legal option in this matter? Any grounds for fraud or something of the like?

Answer: námsefni means materials such as books, not that the course is english itself.Answer #2: Have they offered you a refund? I mean, I feel like if you say you'd like to quit and pay for the time you took they should be open to negotiation. Right?


Title: dorm closet broke and landed on my foot. What can I do?

Question:
I am a very broke student and i live in a dorm on campus. My closet door fell off its hinges and I called facilities to come fix it. It broke again but this time landed on my ankle. it’s not broken but definitely a little sprained and it was bleeding. I have work, and my school has lots of hills and stairs so this actually affects my dad to day. Is there anything I could do? Could I get money from the school? I’m not really sure what to do from here.
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer: Ice and wrap it. If you feel the need go to student health center


Title: How to protect my BBQ sauce recipe?

Question:
I have a recipe that I have guarded very closely for years and I am thinking about trading use of it for a custom built smoker. How can I protect my recipe? I don't want this guy to claim it as his own and start selling it or whatever. Can I license it?

I was also thinking I could just bottle it for him in batches and agree on an amount to cover the cost of the smoker.

Thanks in advance.

Answer: Recipes generally can't be protected.


Title: Friend Being Blackmailed

Question: So, one of my friends that I work with who is a good guy and I want to help is in a bind and I’d like for your advice. His girlfriend broke up with him about a month ago and now wants to get back together with him. She told him that they have to get back together because she has videos/texts from when they were 15 (her) and 17(him) / 16 yr old (her) and 18 yr old (him) of having a sexual relationship. She told him if he ever messes up or pisses her off she will and I quote “Ruin his life.” If it helps we live in Wisconsin and are Military if that even matters or not. Thanks for reading and hopefully helping!

Answer: Your friend should cut all contact (as in, stop replying entirely, but keep anything she's sent him) and run, not walk, to your command's JAG Legal Defense office.


Title: [MEXICO] Neighbors messing with my right to peace and tranquility

Question:
I moved to a new house hoping to avoid such people, but my luck failed me. This morning my sleep was disturbed by the neighbors' loud stereo at 6 AM and their shouting. My room faces their backyard, which is separated by a cement wall that divides their condominium or residences and ours. I opened my window to see what was happening and I started recording. Some seconds later one of the two drunk women dancing next to a man from that house waves and says hello at me in a mocking manner. The guy quickly, stiffly raises his arm and shows me the finger and throws a low-sounding insult at me.

Their loud music and yelling and clapping has gone all day long and I find it really disturbing to my peace, my rest and focus. They seem to have been intentionally doing this and with even more intensity since what happened in the morning, between them and I. I've gotten to know a little bit what type of people they are these months I've lived in this house since I moved in. They're loud, obnoxious. They scream at each other and at nothing every day for any reason. I heard the "wife" yell obscenities at the phone the other day like absolute crazy. This situation is really intolerable and annoying. It pollutes my space tremendously.

I know by experience this sort of people can't be reasoned with, and are prone to respond in a hostile manner if confronted. My local police has resulted to be pretty incompetent in regard to conflict resolution or punishment in these situations, and available institutions within my state are more useless than anything. I don't know what to do because of the lack of civility and respect here and I shouldn't live a miserable life due to other people's idiocy.

I'm living in a new house (the one from this story) because my mother and I were forced to move out from a house where we were psychologically harassed everyday, mainly by the neighbors noisy dogs, which barked all day every day and really messed up our activities, sleep, rest etc. A very tense relationship developed between them and us due to that problem and their selfish lack of cooperation and understanding. I don't want to live such a nightmarish situation again.

Answer:
 OK - you do realise what the common denominator is in both these situations? Hint: it isn't your neighbors.

From a legal stand-point: you don't have a right to "peace and tranquility".


Title: Questions about LGBT asylum in Canada

Question:
I'm a transgender atheist living in Iran, i can't safely transition and i obviously can't just live here and hide till i die, and waiting till my mid 20s to transition will lower the success. i'm considering moving to Canada after university to have a shot at a decent life.

i wanna know how hard is it to actually get asylum in Canada as what i am? do you just go to Canada and apply for asylum? how long does it usually take to be able to live and work in Canada since applying assuming you get accepted? does the government help in any way or if you don't have enough funds you'll be homeless?(even loans or sth would be fine). even if you get the work permit, do you get to choose your own job? i'm hoping for Starbucks tbh because of the trans healthcare. can you choose which city to live in? because you can only fly to toronto from here and it's expensive as shit over there.
do asylum seekers need a lot of work experience and education to get accepted too? the best i can do is a bachelor's degree and 4 years of freelancing/part-time jobs.

what are my chances here? i don't mind poverty or living in a shoebox or working 16 hours a day, just as long as there's a path in front of me

Answer: I'm sure you know the situation better than I, but I was under the impression that Iran was actually pretty progressive for a Muslim country when it comes to transgender rights, to the point where the government actually subsidizes sexual reassignment surgery.


Title: Should I hire my own polygraph for defense of my case?

Question:
I'm wrongfully accused of indecent assault & battery (groping) of a person over 14 in MA.
Stage of the case is pretrial hearing. The entire case is based on one count, one complaint by one person, there is no witness, no physical or other evidence.  I never made any statement to police.

Should I set up my own polygraph test and pay for it?

Can this be admitted in court?
(I know the advice will be to ask the defense attorney but she hasn't been responsive). Would bringing in evidence of a polygraph showing innocence be helpful in pre trial process and/ or could it be admitted if it goes to trial?

Thx

Answer: Once you get your attorney tell him you want to take one.  My office often does this with polygraphs: if Defendant wants to take one, we use someone both sides agree on (we have a guy that both sides trust), both sides stipulate that the results are admitted at trial, Defendant cannot take a practice one, and if Defendant passes the charges are dismissed (or not filed, if pre-indictment).  edit: generally the Defendant pleas if they fail


Title: Company won't give me benefits because I'm too young, how do I respond?

Question:
TL;DR: Company contract promised 401(k) benefit, but I don't qualify. How do I seek compensation?
Hi all, I'm a software engineer for a tech company in San Francisco. I graduated college at the age of 19, and was looking to start saving for my 401(k) only to find out that my company requires you to be 21 to qualify.
My contract merely stated in the benefits package "All employees are eligible for a 401(k)." and did not mention the age restriction. Pretty bummed, and I don't feel like a real employee because of this silly issue. I really like this company, but this has been pissing me off because it feels terribly bureaucratic and I have no say.
How do people normally handle issues where your employer does not follow through with their contract? Apparently it will take months for me to finally get one. Personally I think I deserve adequate compensation, just like when people waive their insurance benefits.
Topic:
Contracts

Answer:
 >My contract merely stated in the benefits package "All employees are eligible for a 401(k)"

Is it an actual contract?  As in a written document that obligates you to work for them for a period of time, and obligates them to employ you?  Unlikely.

Exclusions from 401(k) plans for those under 21 or with the company less than a year are really common.  The company actually *can't* get you into the 401(k) because the plan was adopted with an under-21 exclusion.  It's part of the rules of the plan.

A problem with getting compensation out of the company is going to be that the 401(k) match probably has a vesting schedule.  Whereas if they just *pay* you money now to make up for it, you could run off with the cash any time.

Nonetheless, you could ask for a pay increase due to the misrepresentations in your "contract" and put the money in a traditional IRA.


Question:
*Beep Boop Beep Beep Boop*

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Original Post:

https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/5bcqo8/update_mi_do_we_have_grounds_to_break_the_lease/

Author: /u/leaseqsmichigan

#**[UPDATE] [MI] Do we have grounds to break the lease and maybe get some money back?**

> OP: https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/5ajdvt/mi_do_we_have_grounds_to_break_the_lease_and/
>
> The day I made this post, when we got home, our apartment was up to 85 degrees and we could not get it to go down, no matter what we did, even with two tower fans and an air conditioner running, and two windows open in 40 degree weather. We decided that we were going to submit maintenance requests for every day that our heat was broken until someone did something about it.
>
> The next day, we received an email from our property manager that effectively said they looked at the heat, the problem appears to be that the pipes in the building are set up wrong so our pipes must be hooked up to someone else's unit, and there's nothing they can do about it. They basically told us, "Yes, this is something we are responsible for fixing, but we aren't going to fix it."
>
> So I emailed the property manager back to provide notice that we would not be renewing our lease when the lease term ends (in August of 2017) and that we would be pursuing our legal options, including but not limited to constructive eviction for our apartment's violation of the terms of their own lease, as well as the violation of local city ordinances regarding heating and the broken windows that didn't lock (specifically stating which ordinances were being broken). I stated that we would be happy to amicably end the lease immediately with the understanding that we would not be held liable for the penalties of early termination of the lease, but we would pursue legal action if this could not be done.
>
> My partner and I then proceeded to leave reviews of our experience on apartments.com, Facebook, rent.com, apartmentratings.com, basically everywhere we could.
>
> Following the reviews, we got a response from our property manager saying she spoke to the property owner and we could give 30 days notice and move out if we would allow them to show the unit with 24 hours notice during the rest of our tenancy, and that we would not have to pay the penalties for breaking the lease early. She's preparing a written agreement stating same, but we have already verified explicitly with her in multiple emails that we are being released from our lease, the property owner has given express permission, and we will not face penalties.
>
> Today my boyfriend and I signed a new lease for a much bigger, much better apartment a few miles away... that's $100 a month cheaper. We move in next Saturday.
>
> Just wanted to give an update! I decided to put my foot down, and while I know most of the comments on my original post basically said there was little or nothing I could do, I decided to keep moving forward trying to get out of our lease and the results were better than expected.
>
> Thanks to everyone who took the time to provide insight!

Answer:
 Leaving bad reviews tends to be the solution when it comes to getting out of bad leases.

I was in an apartment that attempted to charge me for electric (not per unit, but split amongst all residents when I had no AC and wall mounted space heaters for heating/cooling) when I had written confirmation that all utilities were covered, took over a week to respond to a flooded living room (just a soaked carpet from rains all week leaking into my basement unit), and sent an electrician into the unit without notice for a non issue of replacing a functional outlet that overloaded my computer's PSU.

Emailing and sending letters to the management did nothing, but 30 minutes after putting up a negative review, the owner of the company called me at 9pm offering a clean lease break.


Title: [NV] Cox is actually terminating my internet connection due to multiple DMCA notices. What options do I have to not have them do that?

Question: [removed]

Answer:
 Likely it is too late to do anything. You should have stopped stealing music and / or movies before when the other notices came out. Your actions have consequences. Answer #2: You've had at least a dozen warnings: http://copyright.nova.edu/cox-communications/

IANAL but I'd suggest you read the agreement your next provider sends you.


Title: Legal ramifications for giving a "Not-completely-false" wage statement for a friend. (TN)

Question: I'll keep it short.  Wife and I run a small business.  A friend used to work part time for us until she moved and started her new job.  She asked if we would stretch the time she worked for us in a letter on company letterhead for the rental agency she applied at to get an apartment.  She worked for us for a few months, but needs it for a year.  The letter will say she started in July 2014 until July of 2015 averaging $200/week.  Legally, what is the worst thing that could happen to the company?  I laughed at my wife saying we could lose everything, but thought I'd get a pro's opinion...

Answer: So you want to know if there are any legal ramifications for *Fraud*?


Title: [Canada/USA] Found out my university was sending out an erroneous transcript with a notably lower GPA. I was a likely candidate for many large scholarships to my grad program, but did not receive any (and now it all makes sense). Can I get relief against them?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Before even considering if this is actionable you would need to have at least one scholarship say that they definitely would have given you a scholarship with the correct transcript. Possibly won't be good enough.

I'm sure that there are a lot of other hurdles to jump over but that would be the big one.


Title: [NY] Worth getting a lawyer?

Question:
I was at a golf course on Saturday and from the grass to the kart there was a side walk and on the edge I ended up rolling my ankle. Had to go to the emergency room, out of work for at least 3 weeks orthopedist believes I chipped the bone. Can I sue or threaten to sue and settle? They know I went to the hospital my friends with me told them and they came back and were allowed to golf again.

I normally wouldn't do this but I am not allowed to work until I'm fully healed to the point I need no crutches and that can take anywhere from 3-6 weeks.

Answer:
 What exactly do you think a lawyer will do for you? Is it in any way the golf courses fault you tripped? Like was the ledge covered in slick oil, did they blindfold you? If not, being clumsy doesn't mean people have to give you money. Answer #2: You can do whatever you want to do.

What you want to be asking is *what is the likely outcome if I sue or threaten to sue*? If you get a lawyer and have the lawyer threaten to sue, it's very possible they may decide to settle for less than the cost to defend the suit.

But before you do that, why don't you bring them your medical bills and see what they'll do for you?


Title: (VA) Employer won't let me vape or walk across the street to get something from a corner store, sometimes won't even give me a break on 8 hour shifts.

Question:
First off, I'm 17 years old and this is my first job. I used to be a smoker, but have taken up vaping to better my health and eventually come off of nicotine. I normally take the given 20 minutes for a rest break to eat a snack and go outside to vape.

However, they've recently (today) tried to make me stop going out to vape as I'm underage and its "illegal". The law for Virginia says that it is indeed legal to possess and smoke "tobacco products" under 18, and even though this isn't classed as a tobacco product, they still don't let me vape. They know it's only nicotine and not anything else illegal, so help with that?

Along with that, on the given rest breaks, they say because I vape, they will not let me leave the premesis anymore to run and get a red bull on a late shift. I realize because this is on the clock, they can dictate where I can go if it was mentioned in the agreement that I signed when I applied, but there is no such thing there.

And on the third issue, of not being explicitly denied a break, but rather being pushed back so that I cannot have a break. For example, I was the first person on in the morning, setup everything, and normally I'd be fine with that. However, the supervisor likes to make sure that I get my break last or even not at all, even if I havent eaten or am tired. They would let everyone else coming after me have a break, eventually stacking it up so that I cannot have a break at all, as they have me waiting for rushes of customers, or trying to make me sell the promotions program. This has happened NUMEROUS times where I just have not gotten 5 or 10 minutes to scarf something down pretty fast and get back to work, while everyone else that came after me (half of them not even on an 8 hour shift!) gets to use up the full 20 minutes without being yelled at.

I'm a very fair person and like to work my job, but this kind of stuff ruins it for me. There's a point where my perscribed adderall runs out and I do not have any energy for the life of me, almost falling asleep at a register.

Any help or advice?

Answer: You know what? Work is rough. Otherwise, it would be a hobby. You'll live.


Title: [North Carolina] Employer withholding last check due to "potentially in possession of company property"

Question:
I recently turned in my two weeks notice on 07/11/2017. I was asked to immediately leave the premises because I couldn't give them a reason why I was leaving. I left the premises without any issues.

We get paid every other week so my check was supposed to be in my banking account on 07/20/2017. I reached out to HR on 07/21/2017 and asked why I had not been paid yet. HR said that all my purchases made under the company American Express card had to be accounted for before my check was released and that I had signed a form stating such. This is true -- we had to sign a form before we were able to use a company card. I did not press more into the matter.

On 08/02/2017 I received a text from the owner of the company:
> I need you to return all the keys that you have for various properties. Return them to HR - you can reach them by cell phone or email. I also need you to confirm in writing (with your signature) that you have no company proprietary information. I can have the company counsel follow up if need be.

I did not reply to the text.

The next pay period was 08/03/2017. Again, I did not receive my check. I emailed HR and this was our conversation:

> **Me**: I received [owner of the company] text message regarding the company facility keys; I do not have any keys in my possession. Please let me know when the American Express card statement has arrived and my check has been deposited.

>**HR**: Yesterday [the owner] put a hold on this week’s paycheck based on the fact [owner] felt you had keys to other facilities. Are the keys here, in the office, that you used when you went to [facilities]?  If so, where.

>**Me**: All keys should be in the key box located in the records room.

>**HR**: [Owner] is still requesting a statement from you stating you are in possession of no company property, etc.  I am composing one up for you that will satisfy all.

>**HR**: This confirms in writing that you are not in possession of any equipment, personal property, identification cards and keys, etc. that belong to the company. If you agree, please reply to this email and it  will become your confirmation that the above statement, contained in this email, to be true.

I did not respond to the email. On 08/07/2017 HR followed up with an email:

>**HR**: Again, please review my previous email and acknowledge the existence of any/all properties in your possession that belong to the company.  This includes Adobe or any other program on your personal computer the company is paying for. Let me know if you have questions.

I do not have any programs under my possession and again I didn't reply to the email. Today I followed up with the following email:

>**Me**: Can you give me the status of my last check? I have yet to receive it.

I have yet to hear from them. At this point, what should I do?

Answer: Stop not cooperating and stop not responding to emails where they are literally telling you what you need to do to resolve this. You can file a wage complaint but just doing what they are asking will be a lot easier. Sometimes in life you have to choose your battles.


Title: [CA, USA] Received letter from EZDriveMA.com requesting for payment for using toll road in Massachusetts that I didn't do

Question:
Hi there,

Few days ago, I received a letter from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts stating in that I had used the toll road twice in locations in Massachusetts in which that wasn't me. The requested payment was $2.60. Even though the amount was very little, I do not want to pay for the amount for something I didn't do.

I was in California for the whole month of June and the date that was posted on the bill was only June 20.

So, I started googling on what I should do because I was afraid this was some sort of scam. I started reading articles about a lady who didn't know she was being charged and ended up owing $49,000 as a result. I started worrying about what I should do to resolve this matter so it doesn't come back to me again.

I apologize if this is not the right post for this subreddit. Could you please guide me to the correct one if that's the case? Thank you for taking your time to read my post. :)

Answer: If you weren't in MA at all, it's likely someone/something goofed while transcribing a plate number - we recently went to all-electronic tolling, so people without an EZ-Pass get billed by their plate number. I would contact MassDOT directly and hopefully they can clear it up for you without any sort of legal help.


Title: Fiance charged with theft under $5000 ON Canada. Best course of action

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Canada

Answer:
 > Would it be wise to retain legal counsel or should he go and plead guilty.

The first one.


Title: Ex can pay her student loan, but won't. I'm the co signer. Can I take her to court to garnish wedges or to force her to start paying?

Answer:
 You can make the payments, as you agreed to do by co-signing.

Then you can sue her for what you had to pay because she wouldn't make her own payments. Once you have that judgement, then you can look into the process for garnishing wages and other collection methods.


Title: [PA] Help, I my company is claiming ownership of something I developed.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: When did you patent this invention?  The maker of Bratz dolls ended up paying dearly for his off the clock invention.  Talk to a lawyer.


Title: FL - Nudist commuting in underwear?

Question: Hey guys, quick throwaway question.  I'm a nudist functioning in a non-nudist world.  There's just a certain freedom that only exists while nude!  So anyways, I have an hour commute to and from work every day.  Can I legally drive to and from work in my underwear? It covers just as much as a legal swimsuit would and it gets me much closer to my preferred attire.  I've also been told that in Florida there is case law supporting nudism as long as it's not done in a lewd manner.  Does that mean I'd be able to commute nude? Thanks for the advice!

Answer: If you wear something that looks like underwear when something that is functionally identical but doesn't look like underwear could be worn instead, then you are not a nudist, you're an exhibitionist.


Title: Daughter broke her arm at gymnastics class requiring surgery and 3 days in the hospital. Wife said she has never signed, nor been asked to sign, a waiver at this gym. What's the best way to reguest our out-of-pocket expenses be covered?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 You should ask the owner, they should have insurance. If he says no you should consult with a lawyer to see if you have a case.

The fact that a waiver was not signed isn't super important, waivers don't necessarily hold up. Gymnastics is also an activity with some inherent risks and to at least some extent you assume those risks by letting your daughter participate.Answer #2: Gymnastics coach here - I can picture exactly what happened. I see no negligence, but you can try speaking with the owner.

Not that it matters, but I highly doubt that no one signed a waiver. You or your wife probably did without realizing when you signed her up.Answer #3: Call the manager of the place on Monday and ask how to get their information so you can file an insurance claim. If they refuse, go through your own insurance, or speak with a personal injury attorney.


Title: My dad is a gun owner and facing a felony charge

Question: My dad owns some guns and may be charged with a felony. Since a felon cannot posses guns is there a way for me to keep his guns? I live in Colorado.

Answer:
 Mars has no gun laws that I'm aware of, so you should be fine as long as you're Martian!

Jurisdiction is important here. Where are you, and where's your dad?Answer #2: Just because he is charged with a felony doesn't mean he'll be convicted of a felony. You're not a felon until you're convicted.


Title: Pastor cover up

Question: Can I file a civil suit, if myy pastor  knew a deacon was having an inappropriate relationship with my 16 yr old daughter? Not physical(sex,), an emotional relationship. He has admitted to it and the church is giving him and wife counseling. While my daughter and my family were told either go to church with him or leave. We left. My daughter has suffered emotional distress

Answer:
 Inappropriate doesn't mean illegal. And you can't win simply because you have emotional distress, there has to be extreme and outrageous conduct intentionally inflicted (in states that allow such a claim). Further, the pastor isn't liable for the daughter's emotional distress because the alleged conduct wasn't between him and her, it was the deacon.

That being said, you can sue for any reason you like. Wining is entirely different.


Title: Is my ex [35M] stalking me [25F]? What is considered harassing or stalking behaviour? (Ontario)

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You can document the incidents.  As the police have told you, though, it's impossible to get charges or a restraining order without evidence tying him to the crime.  You have a list of weird things happening - you have no evidence he did them.


Title: My sister is being demanded to pay over 4000$ in damages for an accident that she had with a rental car last year. But she wasn't driving and was a passenger during the accident.

Question:
Is there anyway to reduce the charge or even stop them from charging her in the first place?( U.S California)
Edit: I am sorry for causing some confusion. What I meant to say was that she was in the passenger seat of a car that hit a rented car and now the car renting company is demanding her to pay.

Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 Did she own the car that hit the rental car , is she the parent/guardian of the minor driver who caused the accident? Did she tell the police she was the driver? Did the drive say "Sister grabbed the wheel and caused the accident"

 If none of these apply then it may just be an error but your sister needs to address this and must be sure to answer if she is sued.


Title: [AL] Who does the engagement ring belong to?

Question:
Someone I know (not me, I promise) has recently decided to split from his wife of three years. It turns out she has a boyfriend (so at least emotionally cheating, it's believed not physically yet, though I'm fairly sure that's irrelevant).

On to the point. He is in possession of the engagement ring. I know he did not force it away from her physically. He likely demanded it in anger and she released it anger. I told him to be careful of this, because my instinct was that the ring belongs to her and she can sue him for its return, or for the value. It was not given to her on Christmas, or any the other gift-giving days that can complicate the question in some states.

As I understand it, this is probably a conditional gift, the condition being performed when the marriage license was filed, and the ring is now wholly hers. His uncle told him afterwards that he *can* take the ring back because she "broke the covenant." That sounds like armchair lawyering, and he is not an attorney.

What is his position here, if she decides to try to get the ring back or get its value? There is no prenup. Does Alabama have any case law on this question?

Answer:
 [Phillips v. Phillips, 705 So. 2d 512 (Ala. Civ. App. 1997).](https://casetext.com/case/phillips-v-phillips-195)

This one was ruled on at trial, appealed, then affirmed on appeal.

Couple was married six months, wife asked for an annulment. Part of the divorce decree required the wife to either return the ring or reimburse the husband it's cost ($4,700). Messy case, though - lots of money changed hands, husband spent quite a lot of money trying to take care of the wife through the divorce process.

Core issue as involves the ring is the court found it to be a gift, thus not "marital property".

Husband sought the return of the ring due to the divorce; court ruled she had to either give up the ring or it's cash value as part of an overall property settlement.

The appeal order notes specifically that Alabama law had not determined if the ring was the spouse's separate property or martial property, and has numerous citations to where other courts in other states considered this issue.

---

More to the point, if "someone you know" asked for the ring, his soon to be ex gave the ring, and he received the ring, that satisfies the three-step requirement for giving a gift in Alabama:

* donative intent on the part of the giver
* delivery of the ring to the receiver
* acceptance of the ring by the receiver

It worked that way from him-to-her, and it works that way from her-to-him. I wouldn't recommend selling it 'til the divorce is final, mind you, as a court might see things differently, but my initial reaction is that "someone you know" is in the clear.


Title: (CA) Want to rent out rooms in my house, but I have two big dogs...

Question:
Location: CA

I want to rent out extra bedrooms in my house. I have a month-to-month rental agreement done, but I'm not sure how to include a section that waives any renters right to sue me if something were to happen to them because of the dogs (dog bite type thing I suppose).

They're golden retrievers and have both been living through my revolving door of roommates since they were puppies. They're not a threat to anyone, nor are they aggressive, but CYA you know?

Advice?

Answer:
 You can't always waive negligence and the [CA Civil Code](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=3342.) imposes strict liability for the actions of the dog on the owner.

In this case, your best defense is probably an insurance policy, not waivers.


Title: Refunding or Exchanging a Digital Product I can no longer access.

Question:
I lost an account for a game in which I bought a rank for on a server. I contacted the server's staff, asking if they could do a rank transfer (seems perfectly logical, an exchange). They refuse to do so, claiming that they "are not offering transfer services to prevent abuses and for other security reasons.". I then ask if they can provide a refund (also logical considering I no longer can use it), but they just say that they can't provide a refund because in the terms and conditions it says "This transaction is final and there are no refunds.".

Server is in US, I am in UK. What are my options for refunding or exchanging this product legally (preferably without having to purchase another copy)?

Answer:
 Is the purchased rank from the game provider or from a private service?

My guess is you bought an account through private means and lost access to it. That is your own problem and you don’t get a refund for it.


Title: [MO] I moved in with some friends Jan 3rd. I paid $300 upfront and was supposed to owe another $300 on Feb 3rd. I found out they were scamming me.

Question:
Moved in Jan 3rd with $300, I was then supposed to pay $300 more on Feb 3rd (I pay my rent in advance). I am not on the lease, I am just a roommate, one of five.

As it turns out these girls are scamming me. Rent was supposed to be split up 1/5ths, meaning I would only pay 1/5 of the rent plus utilities. They quoted me $300 for my share to cover everything (rent, water, electric, cable, internet, etc.?) It sounded reasonable until I casually asked to see the bills. They got madd instantly and accused me of trying to get out of paying.

Well one girl was kind enough to show me the bill. They are charging me DOUBLE what they should. I was told that the rent for the house was $1,000/m, it's only $500. Then the utilities are only half of what they say they are.

The nice girl who showed me then informed me that the girlfriend of the headgirl (lease holder) isn't paying a dime. I am in fact paying her portion for her.

I confronted them about it and they flipped their shit. They are now telling me I owe the $300 for Feb and want me out in 3 days. (That was January 25th) I wasn't even there a whole month and they want me to pay for next month's rent/utilities too even though I won't even be there AND I already overpaid by double for January.

Yes, I realize $150/m is ridiculously cheap, even $300 is cheap, but when you have 5 girls all paying ONE house payment of $500....$150 is normal, $300 for one person is not.

TL;DR Roommate lied and had me pay for another roommate's portion of rent/utilities, wanted a 2nd payment for a month I wouldn't even be there after illegally evicting me (3 day notice instead of 30). Am I entitled to my money back? I understand paying the utilities for the 22 days I was there, but do I still owe the other money that they over charged me for? (The doubled portion I mean)

Answer:
 Did you agree to pay 1/5th of everything, or did you agree to pay $300?

And think about what you actually AGREED to pay in the formal agreement, not what you were told before hand (technically that still matters, but practically it won't make a difference).

There's no law that says they have to charge you a "fair" amount. They could charge you $1mil for a $100 room if they wanted.Answer #2: I don't know if the law in MO would guide rents charged to subtenant a, it doesn't in my state. Here the lease names the tenants who, jointly or severally, pay the landlord the defined amount.

You are subletting so the people on the lease are your landlord. They decided to allow you to move in for $300/month including utilities which you agreed to. That is your rent. You owe that February rent.

It looks like MO has a five day period for the notice to pay or quit, they would need to give you proper notice in accordance to state law and if you don't then vacate within the five day period, they could proceed with the formal eviction process with the court.

They can also terminate your month to month tenancy with proper notice.Answer #3: Some states do not permit ~~The~~ roommates to live on the premises for free and require the subtenant to pay ~~their~~ the master tenant's portion of the rent. Is subleasing permitted under their lease?

You are a month-to-month tenant, and they cannot kick you out without 30 days notice.

Edit for clarity.


Title: Bait and switch apartment in Missouri

Question:
I put in an application and a hold deposit on an apartment after viewing a model unit. I was told that the model unit was almost exactly like the unit I would have but with 2 bedrooms instead of 3. I got my apartment number but since someone was living in the apartment until 3 days ago, they said I wasn't able to view the exact unit but would during the signing of the lease. Again, they assured me the unit was the comparable. And on the paperwork it assured me that it had an updated kitchen and bathroom remodel that I assumed would be the same as the model I viewed because they said that (although didn't say that in the paperwork -holding paperwork).

The holding deposit was $400 and the app fee was $100 so I waited the month to apply for anything else thinking I was getting what they promised.

It came time to sign the lease and I showed up to the apartment as planned. The unit is not updated at all. It looks absolutely nothing like the model, the walls are chipped, old carpet, not hardwood like they implied. The office manager is stating that this is the standard update and not the model update. The appliance are completely different than the stainless steel in the model.

I refused to sign the lease and told her I didn't plan to take this unit. She said that was fine but they'd be keeping my holding deposit. I can't find anywhere in the paperwork where it says the holding deposit is nonrefundable. It doesn't say it is refundable either. It just doesn't say.

Can I get my hold deposit back since they obviously were unable to provide a unit similar to the one they sold me on?

Answer:
 >I can't find anywhere in the paperwork where it says the holding deposit is nonrefundable.

Even if it did state it was nonrefundable, you signed paperwork based on that fact that your deposited model would resemble the model. It wasn't even close.

I would file a small claim against them. They'll likely cave before seeing a Judge.Answer #2: IF the holding paperwork stated that the kitchen would be updated and the bathroom remodeled, then you would have reason to sue for the money back as the leasing company did not hold up their end of the bargain.


Title: I need the Johnnie Cochran of divorce law in the Philadelphia area. Is it okay to ask for a recommendation here?

Question: This is a very complex case involving custody, child support, and disability fraud issues.  It needs someone who can see the big picture and is willing to stick with it for the long haul.  Thanks in advance.

Answer:
 >Is it okay to ask for a recommendation here?

Sure, you can ask. If anybody responds with a recommendation they'll get banned. See the sidebar.


Title: Illegal seizure of private property? (Houston, TX)

Question: I am a minor who had an electronic cigarette confiscated from me during a routine traffic stop, as well as receiving a citation for minor in possession of tobacco. As far as I can tell, the only regulatory legislation that has been passed in Texas was SB 97, which banned sales to minors, but not minor possession. Will this be easy to fight, and is it possible to get the confiscated items back?

Answer:
 [Here's the law](http://www.statutes.legis.state.tx.us/Docs/HS/htm/HS.161.htm#N)

> Sec. 161.252.  POSSESSION, PURCHASE, CONSUMPTION, OR RECEIPT OF CIGARETTES OR TOBACCO PRODUCTS BY MINORS PROHIBITED.  (a)  An individual who is younger than 18 years of age commits an offense if the individual:

> (1)  possesses, purchases, consumes, or accepts a cigarette or tobacco product

So, no. Not easy to fight, not getting the stuff back.


Title: [IL] I believe my in-laws are committing fraud

Answer: The one thing that I'd be immediately worried about is your husband's taxes.  Has he been paying income taxes on the money that he was 'paid' ?


Title: School Putting Wheel Locks on Students Cars

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 Why would it not be legal?

If you violate parking rules, you can get a boot...thought that was common knowledgeAnswer #2: Depends on the jurisdiction.


Title: My tenant owes $2000 in back rent before lease was up and now I have her Chapter 13 Trustee Contact Info...

Question:
My wife and I rent a condo in MO that we have had the same tenant in for the past 3 years.  In March 2015 the lease was up, and she stopped paying rent in January 2015, assuming that she'd be moving out anyhow.  We have a signed lease, but no forwarding address for her new home in IL.

One thing we knew going into the lease originally that because of a premature child birth, she had racked up quite a bit of medical debt, and had filed Chapter 13 restructuring.  Knowing that her debts were being observed by a court, and that she'd only be able to pay in cashier's check (no chance of bouncing checks), we took a chance on her.  2.8 years of a great tenant, very few issues, mostly that we could solve with a call to a service technician.  But, as the end of the lease neared, checks stopped coming in.

Multiple attempts to make contact since the end of the lease to collect have proved unsuccessful so my wife and I effectively wrote her off....UNTIL TODAY.  I was at the condo cleaning some things up before a showing this afternoon, and went to clear out the mailbox, full of coupons and undeliverable mail.  One of the items in the mailbox though, was a letter from a Chapter 13 Trustee's office, addressed to our tenant.  Pesumably, it's her Ch. 13 Trustee.

My question is this, since this debt has technically been accrued since she filed Chapter 13, but under the supervision of a Ch. 13 Trustee, is it worth reaching out to the Trustee's office in an attempt to be added to the creditor's list?

Answer: Um - did you open the letter?


Title: Trading work for equity in a start-up (contract review)

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You should consult a local business attorney; this is really not something to leave up to the internet.


Title: Relationship possibly ending

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 If she is assaulted she should call the police.

They have no obligation to pay for her college, and could evict her now that she is 18. She has no obligation to allow them to monitor her communication (although if they own her phone/computer they can confiscate it).


Title: Do I have to turn over my security camera footage for someone else? (Georgia, USA)

Question:
This post is likely going to make me sound extremely petty, and maybe I am, but I'd still like to have my question answered if possible. :) This happened in the past and nothing came of it, but I've still always wondered about it.

**TLDR: Basically I would like to know if I've purchased a security camera that I've aimed from my window to the parking lot where I park my car at an apartment complex (I had their permission) and it captures someone else hitting another residents car and driving off, is there anything that requires that I share the footage with the police or the victim? Normally I would in a heartbeat, but the victim/neighbor was the whole reason I had to get the security cameras in the first place, and tried to threaten me for having it. If you're interested in background and more details, you can read below :).**

&#x200B;

 I was living in an apartment with just myself and my two daughters (twins). There was no assigned parking and myself and the people who lived below me often ended up parking in spots fairly close to each other. I had just purchased my first non "beater" car so I was being very cautious about how I parked, not bumping into anything, parking too close to the line etc. The neighbors, however, constantly parked right on the edge, crooked, sometimes over the line etc.

One night I came home from work and all the spots in front of the apartments we lived in were empty. I remembered this because it was odd and kind of a "cool, I don't have to squeeze in or park a mile away" moment. The next morning me and my girls leave to go grocery shopping. My neighbors car is parked next to ours and there is a very large, noticeable  scratch and dent on its door. It honestly looked like someone had intentionally slammed their door into it repeatedly.

We get home and are carrying our groceries up the stairs (it takes a few trips). After the last trip I'm in the doorway and one of my daughters comes racing up behind me "Mom, there's a lady asking \*other daughter's name\*a bunch of questions even though she said she can't talk to her" (I'm big on the don't talk to strangers thing). So I head down and ask what I can do for her and the conversation basically goes as follows (**M**= me, **N**=neighbor, **NBF** = neighbor's boyfriend/husband):

**Me:** Can I help you?

**N:** I think your kid may have hit my car with your car door. Maybe she didn't but she refuses to answer me so she seems guilty.

**Me:** Well first of all, my daughter doesn't know you and she does not have to answer you. In fact, I'm going to ask you to not speak to my daughters unless I'm present or I give you permission. Secondly, my daughters are 10, I don't allow them to get into my car without me. I can assure you, they haven't hit your car. In fact, I always stress to them to be careful when opening their door because people often park close. When do you think this happened?

**N:** Last night. And you're not with your kid every time they open a door, no one is. It could have happened when they were getting something out of it.

**Me:** Well since I live on the third floor, I actually don't let my kids go get things out of the car without me. I'm just not comfortable being unable to get to them quickly if something were to happen. And last night we parked before you got home and remained parked all night until we left this morning for groceries, the dent was already there when we left, so it wasn't my car that hit yours, sorry.

**N:** Your car is white and the paint left on my door is white, it's obviously yours. Your kids did this.

**Me:** *\*I point out that there isn't a single scuff on any of my doors, including the inside that would have hit. I also open my door and show her that where my door would hit her car door is above where her damage was (I have an SUV and she had a small, low to the ground sedan)\** So even if you don't believe me that my kids aren't allowed in my car unsupervised, it couldn't have been my car that did this damage.

**N:** *\*Begins getting very angry and loud at this point\** I don't care! You're the only one around here with kids I see them almost hit other cars all the time! And you park too close to other cars! You need to start parking further away. If it happens again I'll get your insurance involved.

**Me:** Okay we're done here. Do what you think you need to. *\*I start to head up stairs and her boyfriend comes out and blocks my way\**

**NBF:** What'd she say?

**N:** *\*yelling angrily\** She's trying to say it wasn't them! She's trying to lie and say her kids don't get in the car without her.

**NBF:** That's bullshit! We seen them almost hit lots of cars!

**Me:** You need to move. I've explained to her that it couldn't have been my car. You need to get out of my way now and let me pass.

**NBF:** Nah! It was yours! The paint is white! You got kids! We seen em hit other cars!

**Me:** You literally just said you've seen them *almost* hit other cars now you're saying you've seen them actually hit cars. Neither is true. *\*at this point I simply move to the next stairwell over and start heading up\**

**N:** *\*screaming at me\** No! You're need to take responsibility for what your kids do! If you're not going to pay me I need your insurance information NOW!

**Me:** You don't need and are not getting my insurance information because I wasn't involved in any kind of accident or contact with your vehicle. You really need to stop screaming at me. We both pay a lot to live here, as do all of our neighbors, no one needs to hear irate screaming in the parking lot.

**N:** We saw your kids do it! We are going to call the cops and we're going to tell everyone here how your kids hit their cars too! Anyone who has a scratch is going to know to come to you. *\*At this point I turned the voice record feature on on my phone\**

**Me:** That was the first time you've said you saw my kids do that. You are literally making things up now. You cant go around door to door here, it's against community rules in the lease that everyone has to abide by. And you can't just go around lying because you want someone to fix your car.

**N:** You're going to take responsibility, or we will tell everyone you hit their cars!

I shut the door and called the police myself to explain the situation because after they lied and changed their story to that they actually saw my kids hit their car I was worried they would make that report (the apartment complex management wasn't there on weekends but I told them the following Monday. They assured me that they couldn't do what they threatened and told me not to worry about it and said they'd give them a verbal warning). The police came and I played the recording for them and showed them how my car had no damage and my door didn't even line up with their damage. The neighbors went inside and shut their door when they saw the police pull up. The police basically told me I had nothing to worry about and it sounded more like they were trying to get someone to cover their damage since they didn't know who did it and were trying to use intimidation to get me to cave. They knocked on the neighbor's door and explained to them that they cant physically stop me from trying to get into my apartment or harass me and that they were going to give me a report because it sounded like they may be trying to commit insurance fraud. They attempted to tell the officers that they saw my kids hit their car but they weren't having any of it.

After that, I started taking pictures and video of my car and theirs every time I parked. A couple times they came out yelling that I'm not allowed to "film their car without permission". I just blew that off. That got really tedious but it was clear they weren't letting go of their grudge against me and my kids so I invested in a cheap security camera. I put it in the window facing the parking lot below. I would skim it really fast overnight or if I was parked during the day for several hours (I just sped it up really fast looking for when their car parked etc.)

One day I pulled up and they were out on their porch. I started to walk up stairs and they made snarky comments like "oh you're not going to get out and video everything? I actually wanted them to know that my car was still being filmed so they knew they couldn't make crap up so I said in the friendliest non sarcastic tone I could muster "Nope. Don't need to. I have a camera in my window doing it for me." This was a mistake because they started flipping out demanding to know where the camera catches and ranting that I can't film them on their porch (the camera didn't catch their porch) and demanding that I show them where all was being filmed and that if I didn't take it down they'd have me arrested, blah blah. I mentioned that they'd already been warned by the apartment complex management to stop contacting me and that I really didn't want to have to report them but if they continued to harass me I would.

Fast forward a few months and a large service van backs into their parked car and drives off (it caused significant damage). My camera caught it all. They actually knocked on my door asking if it had. And honestly, had they been polite I probably would have helped them out but they basically just immediately started demanding that I check my camera and that if I wouldn't it was probably because it was me blah blah blah. I let them know that I would be deleting the footage and not to contact me again. They tried to say that if I did it was a crime since it was evidence of a crime and they were going to call the cops on me blah blah. Nothing else ever happened but I was always curious as to whether or not the police could demand I give them the footage.

Thanks everyone!

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Answer: Absent a court order or subpoena, you can tell him to kick rocks.


Title: How can I fight someone legally (Ca, Bay Area)?

Question:
If I want to fight someone, and they want to fight me, is there a contract or waiver that both parties can sign so that the winner is not charged with felony assault?

I want to know for reasons.

Answer: Why don't you both go to a boxing gym and put on some gloves? Or in an MMA gym which seems all the rage these days.


Title: Help

Question:
Help

My parents are undocumented immigrants in Texas, and I'm about to graduate and head to college. I'm so scared, if my parents get deported I lose my home, money for college, and most importantly my family. I have no idea the laws around what can happen, I heard that when someone gets deported that they take away all their property..my parents invested almost 20 years of their lives here, my dad worked from the bottom and with hard work he managed to do what he loves doing, my mother started her own legitimate business; we pay our taxes, don't do anything illegal whatsoever, we're members of a church, we own property, my parents worked for a shot at the American dream and now it's getting taken away. I was born and raised here, my whole life the possibility of deportation was always there but now..I can almost feel it going to happen..is there a law out there, something to help me in my situation?

Answer: Well, yes. The US Constitution says you are a citizen if you were born here. So you won't be deported. Your parents need to see a lawyer about how best to protect their assets, if that's possible.


Title: Should I get a lawyer for public indecency charges?

Question: *Title*. I live in Georgia and last year, I got drunk in Atlanta and had to go to the bathroom but since there are almost no public restrooms in atl, I decided to piss in an alley way. Mistake, I got caught and now have a public indecency charge. Then they failed to mail me the court date for this so I ended up missing the court date. Now that i have a new court date, does this charge warrant me spending a bunch of money on a lawyer for such a small crime? Thanks for advice in advance.

Answer:
 That's a really serious crime, not a small one. Of course you need an attorney. Like yesterday.Answer #2: Yes, without a doubt.

&#x200B;

I know in certain states, that can be considered a crime that makes you register as a sex offender. That is not something you want on your record at all.


Title: Texas. Pulled over for expired registration.

Question:
My friend was driving with paraphernalia (grinder.) He got pulled over for a expired registration, but got a ticket for just the paraphernalia.  Then was told he could drive home.  All that's on the ticket is the paraphernalia.  He's also being told by friends to take it to court because it's not properly filled out, since it doesn't refer to a reason for being pulled over. So my question is, is that true.

Sorry if my writings bad, I'm a terrible multi-tasker.

Answer:
 Simple clerical errors on the ticket do not invalidate it.

Your friend should update his registration before he gets stopped again.


Title: Wrongfully demoted/terminated.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Time to find a new job.


Title: Ex gave me money for unborn child and wants his money back now that we separated

Question:
My boyfriend and I accidentally conceived a baby a few months ago (condom broke, plan B was not effective). We ended up fighting a lot cause we couldn't agree on what to do with the pregnancy. He ended up moving to Georgia for work and I remained here in Florida. We broke up and he mailed me a check for $1,000 to "help" care for the baby that I wanted to keep and he wanted to abort and that was his way of letting himself out of the picture.

We got back together a few weeks later partially because I became more open to the idea of abortion (wasn't ready for a baby in many ways) and he told me to use the check he sent me to pay for the abortion because I couldn't afford it. He assured me I didn't have to pay him back and that this was his responsibility. I ended up using half the check.

He didn't stick around long after the abortion because he said im reacting "dramatically" to the abortion and so we broke up, but now he's demanding I give him his $1,000 back. I told him that was ridiculous and so now he's being generous and only asking for 700. Do I have to give it to him legally?

Answer: He can sue you in small claims court if he likes, but from what you've said, the money was a gift. He would have to provide some proof that it was not a gift. It would be up to the judge to decide how things went. If you want to give him money back you can, but if it truly was a gift, you don't have to give any money back to him.


Title: Hospital insurance bill - HIPAA violation?

Question:
Using a throwaway, but I'll try to give as much detail as possible.

I am a 20 y/o female living in Pennsylvania.

Last month, I went to the ER for sexual assault/to get a rape kit done. Before even getting admitted to the hospital room, I told the staff I did not want to use insurance due to the fact that my parents are the primary holders. I did not want any sort of bill or claim being seen by my parents for various reasons. They assured me that I did not have to use any insurance, and told me PA has a law that covers these hospital expenses (I believe it's the Victims Right Law).

Now today, I receive a bill in the mail from the hospital. It's telling me that my insurance has in fact been billed, and that I owe a deductible. I CLEARLY stated to several staff members that I did not want to use my insurance, ALSO I signed a paper saying that I was declining to use insurance.

So now - not only are they trying to bill me, but my insurance has also received the claim, and it will be on the next statement that my parents receive. I tried calling the hospital's billing department, but they aren't there until Monday; and nobody else in the hospital would help me with this situation.

I currently have a *rape advocate* who is walking me through the legal process of pressing charges against the rapist - but she and her boss both are appalled that the hospital would make this mistake.

Is this ANYTHING I can do? Can I sue the hospital? It's too late to get the claim taken off my insurance statement - I'm going to try my best to hide it from my parents (for various reasons), but I'm livid that the hospital would do this.

Note: The hospital is well-known around the country; its quite sizable

Answer:
 There was a question on here similar to this. A person went to a doctor for a mental illness and didn't want it going on insurance because he didn't want his parents to know. I can't find the link to it, but the general consensus on here was that it's not a HIPAA violation to bill an insurance company. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable than me will come along and explain this better.Answer #2: You are over 18, you should notify your insurance company to keep your medical claims off of your parents statements.

You should have done that long ago.

It should be easy to do, I have dealt with a lot of insurance companies and once someone hits 18 they (in my experience) can request to deny their parents all information.

With my kid I cannot access any of his claims or information through insurance at all period no matter what.

That way it will be addressed to you and not part of your parents statements.


Title: Nephew's passport was denied because of overdue child support payments. The problem? He's 10. (Michigan)

Question:
My 10 year old nephew's passport was denied. The reason they gave is that he is in arrears for child support. His parents are deceased and I have been his legal guardian since the day he was born. Obviously this is a mistake but nobody seems to want to help is fix it. The passport office said they can't do anything about it because they are just following the information they were given. They directed us to Michigan DHS but they have been unhelpful and say there is no mistake even though they acknowledged that my nephew is 10. I have also made several trips to the courthouse and they said they didn't see a mistake either and have told me there is an upcoming court date.

What do I do here? I don't think I can afford a lawyer and it frustrates me that no one will listen. If I just show up with him in court will the judge have enough sense to realize this is a mistake? Or do I actually need to get a lawyer?

Answer:
 I have already checked his credit and there was nothing. It was clean and exactly how you would expect a ten year olds record to look. I have frozen it just to be on the safe side.

I still think there is an identity theft issue going on. According to the paperwork with the case information  the children in question are teenagers. Yet according to the great state of Michigan my nephew fathered them before he was even born. Bureaucracy at its finest.

I will go the route of contacting my elected officials and if all else fails I'll bring him to court in person. Hopefully common sense will prevail because this really is a headache. Thanks for the responses everyone.Answer #2: I'm not in Michigan, but my state has a Legal Services organization for low-income residents. When I worked with them, it's not like I really had a lawyer going all out for me, but they did file paperwork and whatnot, and showed up at my court date. Having a lawyer at your side at your hearing, even a pro-bono one, will give your case gravitas. Again, they have income restrictions, but it might be worth checking out.Answer #3: California lawyer here.  File an RFO, request for order, get dcss to back you up (bring in the proof the respondent is 10), and get a judge to sign the order setting arrears at zero AND close the case. Order should also include stipulation thar dcss no longer is exercising jurisdiction.  You should be able to file and get your hearing by yourself at the dcss office. Good luck.


Title: Stolen car can't be reported - Police will take no action

Question:
Hello,

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Portland, Oregon resident here:

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Today I attempted to report my car stolen and was told by police department that the car could not have a report filed on it. Instead they informed me that the matter would fall under a "civil dispute" referencing Oregon penal code 630.61 for clarification. 630.61 states that:  d.  Boyfriend/girlfriend, domestic partner, roommate, family member or juvenile children of complainant. After 48 hours, a detective or sergeant may authorize that a report be taken. &  n.  The theft is a result of illegal activities such as drug transaction without mitigating circumstances (i.e., carjacking, armed robbery, etc.).

&#x200B;

The backstory being: I lent a car to girl that i had previously spent a good deal of time with and had considered a friend for some months. Furthermore, this person had also acted as a dealer to me of opioids and amphetamines. After some falling out we lost contact for a few weeks and then continued our dealings in a purely professional basis as i continued to garner narcotics from her. This relationship continued to strain until we lost contact completely saving for the occasional text from myself to her looking to acquire merchandise which was most commonly ignored completely or responded with a "fuck off i hate you" (or something to that degree.) - I then decided to attempt to change my lifestyle and entered rehab the end of September of 2018 after several relapses i am sitting at the current day 12.08.18 going on nearly one month clean from opioids and save a small hiccup of amphetamines about 2 weeks clean of those. - The previously mentioned friend had often talked about trying to get clean herself and it was something that, despite our differences, i had hoped she would end up doing. Having success in my own treatment i reached out to her several times to see if she had entered any treatment and even offered to give her a couple of my (suboxone) to help start the process and usually heard nothing in response until out of the blue she contacted me detailing her own plans to enter treatment. After chatting a little i agreed to take her to an enterprise location so that she could rent transportation to make appointments and a court date, and while i was not confident she would follow through with treatment i was hopeful she might find the same motivation that i was having and a path to her own clean lifestyle. I had lent her my car in the past several times, and while she was almost always late on the day, she always returned my vehicle without issue. It was a Wednesday night and she assured me she would have my vehicle back to me by 2:30pm the next day Thursday the 6th of December 2018. After repeated attempts to meet with her to pickup my car and repeated no shows by her i am at our current day 12.08.18 and informing her that while it was not my wish to report the car stolen if she did not make return my vehicle ASAP i would be proceed in doing so, I was met with no response after several attempted calls and text and decided to call my police departments non emergency line to file the report.

&#x200B;

When calling the Police i was met with what i sensed an immediate opposition to having my car listed as stolen and a report filed. I was bounced around many times with almost zero help if even a sentence from the before one officer was patient enough with me to vaguely describe why they would not file my report and instead would list it as "civil dispute" informing me zero action would be taken to return my car, to which i questioned "so if my car is sitting right in front of one of your cruisers in traffic no action will be taken?" and the officer responded yes. I was still quite confused as to why i couldn't file a report and why my car would not be listed as stolen but i could tell this officers patience with the subject was thin and decided to move on. He left me with a report number and Oregon penal code 630.61 for reference. After reading the code and some associated articles i was able to surmise that the police department has this procedure in place in part to save time and resources on rash decisions such as a person driving away in their spouses car which was not in their name. Reading directly from Oregon Penal Code 630.61 \[ d.  Boyfriend/girlfriend, domestic partner, roommate, family member or juvenile children of complainant. After 48 hours, a detective or sergeant may authorize that a report be taken.\] I can honestly say i do not frame my relationship with the alleged car thief in any of those terms and simply consider her "someone from my past...who there is no way in hell i will have any type of future with by i hope she still does well."

&#x200B;

At this point I called the police department back and was still met with resistance on the subject. The officers inquired if i knew certain details about her such as her: birthday, age and mailing address" and looking in my phone calendar i was able to supply each answer and by this they surmised we must be good friends. I pressed this matter explaining she really was someone from my past who i maintained very little contact with and was met with the question of why i lent my car to someone with such thin ties. I wanted the officers to understand the core of my concern and so i was very honest and straightforward with the them. I explained that this girl in the past had been my dealer, and that even though we were not close i was inclined to help her if it meant helping her into recovery, but i feared that, regardless if the treatment appointments and court date Thursday 12.06.18, were in fact real she might currently be using my car to deal drugs around town which was absolutely something i would not have her use my car for, and something i feared would have my car impounded or worse. Again i was met with more resistance and finally the most helpful officer from before was blunt with me (which at this point i couldn't have been more thankful for) and told me flat out that he was doing me a favor reporting this as a "civil dispute" and giving me that 48 hour timetable to call afterwards and inquire "whether they would do anything at all" he went on to tell me that if i want him to flat out say it and this person was "my" drug dealer the cops wouldn't even take the call but that if did as he told me to and wait 48 hours a supervisor might be able to find a way to help me. With my last plea i expressed that she wasn't "my" drug dealer and i would never have lent her the car for any other reason than a possibility i could be a help on her path to recovery. At this point i could tell this officer was done speaking on the matter with me and informed me that if i called the non-emergency line again with this he would send a car to my house to arrest to me; a sentenced that had most people listening on the speaker phone with their mouths dropped in shock (and a google search showed to be a bluff as that charge is saved for the emergency 9-1-1 number.)

&#x200B;

After all of this the advise I'm seeking is:

1. From a professional stand-point what is my safest option for swift return of my car?
2. This does not leave a good taste in my mouth and I would like to press the matter, obviously with the help of a lawyer, i would like to have this posted as a car theft ASAP and press charges on the alleged thief. The most helpful (from an informational standpoint) officer has made it sound as if they were doing me favor by not looking at the car theft as i framed it "was to my ex-dealer i feared had lied about her intentions about the use of my vehicle and in fact was using it to sell drugs with) and that i could face legal problems myself. - I will say that i am fully willing to take the stand under oath and if that results in my own incarceration i would gladly pay this price to see justice served and this criminal charged. What is my best course of action to have a police report filed for the car theft? What issues might arise for me? And most importantly that although i have texts of our agreement in me lending her the car an afternoon and to have it back on Thursday 12.06.18 at 2:30 pm, as well as, continual inquiry's and requests that my car be returned, and she is pulled over in my car I am aware she will most likely lie and make something up about a verbal agreement or something missed in the text and it could come down to "he said" "she said" what are my chances of a successful conviction looking at?
3. Do i have options outside of the police department that could lead to the return of my vehicle and subsequent legal charges?
4. And it is worth mentioning that this alleged car thief is the daughter of a retired and well liked sergeant of the Portland Police Department. - Would this have an affect on your approach?

Answer:
 Have you checked the parking lot of the courthouse she was going to? Depending on what she was there for, it is entirely possible she was taken into custody at her hearing (it's entirely possible she wasn't, as well). On the off chance she was, she would, clearly, be unable to contact you (doubly so if she doesn't have your number memorized). If you don't have alot of common associates, there may be no one to tell you.

It's a long shot... but unless you know for certain what happened at court, it may be worth a shot.Answer #2: On #3, do you know where your car is, and can you just go get it, and get the locks changed after if needed? If not, could you hire a private investigator to find it?


Title: My ex lended me a large sum of money years ago when I was in a tight spot and now that we're not dating he wants it all back

Question:
This is in Oregon. Posting on mobile, thanks in advance!

Back in 2014 I was working a minimum wage job and living at a place that was way above my income level, but I was a naive 19 year old with no parents so I took some bad advice and depended on credit cards. That obviously caught up to me in the worst of ways, and I wound up barely making it paycheck to paycheck.

At the time, I wound up dating an older coworker who listened to my story and gave me 1k in the form of a personal check to help me out. I gratefully accepted, and he mentioned me maybe paying him back when I was better off but we left it at that.

He wound up being a really awful guy, and I finally got out of our relationship October of last year. Today he just approached me outside of work and told me he wants all of the money back.

I'm not here to weave a sob story or ask for moral advice, but he really did stomp all over my confidence in my early twenties and did his fair amount of damage. I don't feel I owe him this money back. My question is before I discuss this with him and really turn his request down, is there legal action he can take? I want to cover my bases as best I can.

Answer: He can sue you in small claims for the money.  You admit that it was meant to be a loan, not a gift.


Title: So I was extremely blackout.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Vomit. Is sewage. Someone's gotta clean it up.


Title: A bank that I pay my student loans back to thinks I'm in school for another year. Will I get in trouble if I don't tell them I just graduated? [MI, USA]

Question:
I just graduated in May and started working at a job.  I was reviewing my loans (\~50k) and one of my accounts says that I have a graduation date of May 2020.  This account has both subsidized and un-subsidized loans on it.  This means that I won't start accruing debt on my subsidized loan until 6 months after they think I graduated.

&#x200B;

Will I get in any legal trouble if I don't contact them and let them know that I just graduated?

Answer:
 Yes, absolutely you will. Fraud remains illegal.Answer #2: I work with US student loans. Loan authorities have us confirm enrolment status, including graduation on a regular bases. Your plan will not work. I couldn’t say for sure but I would not at all be surprised if the loan authority retroactively applied late fees and interest for the subsidized loans.

You should just contact them now to get this fixed. Loan authorities are not the type you want to mess with.


Title: How much trouble would you get for cutting somebody’s hair off without consent?

Answer:
 Assault usually implies fines and/or jail time.Answer #2: In my state (Florida) that would be [battery](http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0700-0799/0784/Sections/0784.03.html)

> Actually and intentionally touches or strikes another person against the will of the other;Answer #3: In addition to criminal charges others have mentioned the victim will be able to sue for any costs related to covering up the damage until it regrows; that could means years of hair extensions and associated maintenance, which is not cheap.


Title: Libel Question. Virginia (really all of US)

Question:
If a person wants to write a book based on personal experience, which includes other real people, does this prison need to ask their permission? Change their names? Use a disclaimer?

Some of the people are well known, having their own Wikipedia pages. How about writing on these people?

Thank you, and if this is not the correct subreddit, I apologize.

Answer:
 > ask their permission? Change their names? Use a disclaimer?

No, no, and no.

The truth is a defense to a libel suit. If what you say about people is true they have no legal recourse against you.

That said, your publisher may object.


Title: My job won't pay me & Is stating I have to come in to fill out a ADP Termination Form to get my check.

Question:
I worked at a private preschool in Michigan with around 10 employees. I worked here for about two weeks, after requesting that I not lead the classroom by myself (as I was not qualified or wasn't certified, I quit.) Two days later I received a call asking where I was. I kindly told the women who owns the place that I would not be able to continue working there. And filled her in briefly why I decided to quit.

I asked if I would receive my check and I did not receive an answer. This check was supposed to be deposited on 7.7.2017.
I emailed her today stating that I would be taking legal action if I was not paid. She stated I have to come in and fill out an ADP Termination form. Though I am not in the area and this is going way out of my way to do this.

What should I do as I am already late on bills due to not receiving my check?

Answer:
 Go fill out the form and get your check.

You can file a wage complaint and get this money, but that is going to take longer than whatever nonsense they want will. Answer #2: 1. Great username.

2. ADP doesn't require anything from the employee on a termination form - no information, no signature, nothing.  (Source: personal experience, but confirmed this is still current via their website's fillable employment termination forms).  They are most likely using this as a ruse to get you into the office to sign some sort of private termination contract -- such as a non-disparagement clause, non-disclosure, liability release, etc.  It's possible they screwed up on some certification laws with you, but they might also want to yell at you for the timeline of leaving. I would be very wary of what they ask to sign.Answer #3: You don't list your state, and final paycheck laws vary by state.  But the path of least resistance for you is to go pick up your check, so I don't fully understand why you don't want to do that


Title: Work overpaid me by quite a bit and I'm not sure what to do as they're in no rush to have me pay it back

Question: To put it as succinctly as possible, my last commission pay was $10,000 more than it should have been. I was on vacation when this happened and let them know immediately upon my return almost three weeks ago. After a few days, payroll replied and let me know that they'd get back to me shortly with a resolution to pay them back. That was two weeks ago. I have followed up with no response other than that they'll let me know. I don't want this money in my account as it's not mine and I've done nothing to earn it (yet). Is there anything I can do to make them act faster? What do I do if they never get back to me and just brush it under the rug because someone doesn't want to own up to their mistake? Honestly, I'm really anxious over the whole thing because out of all of the problems I anticipated ever having, this was not one of them. I pride myself on my honesty and integrity and know I've done nothing wrong here, yet I still feel like I'm in possession of stolen goods or something. Am I? In the interest of keeping things vague but still giving you appropriate information to help you answer, I'm in Canada, but my company is global with hq in the US.

Answer:
 >  I still feel like I'm in possession of stolen goods or something. Am I?

Nope.

Just let it sit in your account and gather interest while your employers drag their feet. That's as close to free money as you're ever gonna get.Answer #2: INAL but that could have tax implications if it was recorded as income. If you just give them $10k back without doing it properly you may have issues when you file your taxes.Answer #3: No, you're not in possession of stolen property.  You'll have to give it back when they ask, but there's no harm coming to you for possessing it.  Just hold tight and cut the check when they ask for it back


Title: (Maine) Friend I subletted for agrees I deserve my security deposit back but spent it.

Question:
Hello folks,

I live in a college town and my friend asked me to take over the lease for the summer. We signed a lease and I bought out her security deposit of $600 so if I damaged the place she wouldn't be charged. I gave her the security deposit with cash with no receipt. At the time I didn't realize how much of a mistake that was. Anyways I moved in mid May and stayed there until August 15th. As was in agreement with the lease. There was some minor damage that I fixed with the landlords knowledge and blessing. It came out well and he said in an email to my friend that I was all set. She agreed with him and that I was all set.

Once I'm moved into my new house and things settled down I asked for my security deposit back and she tells me she doesn't have it. She says she will have to do payments of $50 a month. The other option was to get over it and wait until she has the money in January (due to financial aid). I agreed to the payments but she has missed the payments on August and September. When I told her she had to pay she refused to pay for August saying she didn't agree to pay me for that month. She has failed to pay me for September now as well. I suspect she is just waiting for me to drop it. I'm $600 in the hole, and don't know what to do.
Am I out of luck in small claims court because we had a text message agreement of a payment plan? Since she has broken that agreement by not upholding her end does that void the agreement? If I go to small claims courts, I have proof she accepted and owns me money thanks to the messages.

Any advice is deeply appreciated I'm in over my head.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 Yes, you can take her to small claims court.

Keep in mind that if she actually doesn't have the money, collecting from her will be difficult even if you do get a judgment.