Title: Apartment Maintenance lost my brother's cats

Question:
My brother is living in South Carolina in \_\_\_\_\_\_\_ and recently received a notice for his apartment that their maintenance personnel would be stopping by the apartments to conduct some work. They left a note asking that all cats be secured in the bathroom of the unit during their visit. My brother left his cats in the bathroom as directed and left for the workday.

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Upon his return from work, neither of his cats were in his unit. As a single tenant, and a decent human, he became very distraught as to what happened to his pets. He discovered that apparently the maintenance had enters his unit, left the front door open and, during their visit, had opened the bathroom door. The two cats then freaked out and bolted out the opened door. This all occurred yesterday. He's been frantically searching the surrounding area for his indoor cats to no avail. The front office of the units have also been attempting to help with an email to all the tenant, but past that, I'm not certain to what  else has been done. He has posted to a local Facebook Lost and Found group with photos of the two, as well as family sharing his post and concern. Still no sign of the two cats.

Answer:
 Not legal advice, but cat-catching advice: tell him to put some dirty clothes outside, along with one of their beds if they use them. He can also try searching outside at night with a flashlight - you can often see eyeshine in places you would never see a cat in the daytime. I hope his cats turn up.Answer #2: Best of luck to your brother. I lived on campus at my university and had my cat fall out the window and go missing for two weeks. I left the litter box out and he found his way back home and waited under a car near my window at night until I found him. Most often, indoor cats WANT to come home, they just get scared and disoriented, but they can smell their feces up to a mile away, so give them a beacon and keep checking!Answer #3: Unfortunately, as of about 2 years ago, South Carolina law would only allow him damages to the extent of the cost of the cats; it would not place any value on the loss of their companionship, or to the bond between owner and pet.  One exception would be for an animal that generated some sort of income, like a trained sideshow animal that did fancy tricks or something, or an animal that had a skill that raised its value, like a trained seeing eye dog.

If they don't turn up soon, your brother can come up with an estimate for what a cat would cost, including any needed veterinary exams, shots, local registration fee, and open negotiations with the office.  Ideally their agreement will include additional training for the staff.


Title: My friend (Minor) got in trouble with the school when he "threatened" to shoot it up

Question:
My good friend was texting another person. My friend made a joke about shooting up the school, which was obviously a joke. But the other person screenshotted it and used airdrop on iphones to send the message to other people. The police got involved and the school suspended him for it. It will be on his school record. I think it is violating his rights to punish him for making a joke, but I'm not sure because we are minors.
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer: No, threats fall outside the scope of First Amendment coverage.Answer #2: When you threaten the lives of others, or the lives of a certain group of people you basically forgo your right to the 1st amendment.


Title: Money went missing from nightly restaurant drawer; managers threatening to make potentially responsible parties pay equal portions of missing amount. Fair game? [NY]

Question:
I bartended the night shift at a restaurant, taking over from the day shift bartender at around 5:30. The daytime bartender took their drawer of money from the bar POS (Point of Sale Register) and, as per restaurant policy, swapped it for the night drawer from the designated slot in the waiters' POS. This drawer is accessible by entering the four-digit code of a specific employees (bartenders & managers). These codes are easily viewable by others when being entered, and are regularly entered by other folks when certain register functions (discounts, voids etc) need to be done quickly.

Come the next morning, all the twenty dollar bills are missing from the AM drawer, to the tune of about $200. The owners did some poking around and identified four individuals' codes, mine included, that were entered between 5:30 and close. The rumour is that should they be unable to figure out what happened to the money, they are going to ask these four individuals to each pay a fourth of the missing amount.

Do I have the right to refuse to pay? In addition, what do you suggest I do if I want to be a) helpful to the situation, or b) steadfastly defensive? Bonus question c) my significant other also works at this restaurant, so consider answering the above with that in mind.

Answer:
 >what do you suggest I do if I want to be ... steadfastly defensive?

You cite [New York Labor Code 193](http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/nycode/LAB/6/193), which only allows an employer to make deductions from wages that are:

* authorized by state or federal law (ex. taxes, social security/medicare, garnishments per court order, etc.); OR
* for the benefit of the employee and expressly authorized in writing by the employee (ex. fitness center dues, day care contributions, pension benefits, etc.).

This part is particularly important:

>No employer shall make any charge against wages, **or require an employee to make any payment by separate transaction** unless such charge or payment is permitted as a deduction from wages under the provisions of subdivision one of this section.

In other words, an employer cannot, under any circumstances, deduct from wages or make an employee pay anything back that is not authorized as one of those two things mentioned earlier.

Stolen cash does not fit either of those categories, so your employer cannot require that you pay for it or have the amount deducted from your wages.

>Do I have the right to refuse to pay?

Yes.  But your employer also has the right to terminate your employment and/or sue you for amounts that it alleges you owe, whether or not there is any merit to such an allegation.


Title: I witnessed a crime while also committing a (different) crime

Question:
Ontario, Canada

Throw away for obvious reasons

I guess to put it simply, i was doing something illegal when I happened upon what I know now was a rape. Basically the two of them were in a car, I didn’t get too good of a look, but the girl was kind of against the window so I could see who she was (small town).

About a week later, I hear that the girl I saw was raped that night. Haven’t found the guy yet.

The thing is, I saw the licence plate and have a vague description of the guy but I was leaving from the area where the crime I committed occurred, which was fairly close (the area I saw them/cut through to get away is a trail that’s not often used in the winter so if I come forward, I have no doubts they’ll ask why I was there and yeah).

Is there any way to get this information out without exposing myself? I really hate to sound like a self-absorbed piece of shit but I really would rather not go to jail.

Answer: yes, give an anonymous tip....and....uh... don't use your cell phone. If you have an organization like 'crime stoppers' just call them. you can remain anonymous and you may get a reward. Oh, and stop committing crimes yourself please.


Title: If someone bought a stolen organ, would they have to give it back?

Question:
Suppose I steal a kidney from someone and for some reason leave their other useful organs, and they survive. I then sell it to someone who needs a kidney, they undergo surgery, and the transplant is successful.

If my scheme is unraveled later, could my victim legally force my client to give back the kidney?

Answer: Removing an organ from a person would almost certainly constitute cruel and unusual punishment. Answer #2: Username... checks... out?Answer #3: No the law would not force them to give back the organ once the surgery had taken place. They could be charged with various crimes and sued with a monetary damage instead of returning the organ.


Title: Lost all of my personal belongings due to homeowner being immediately evicted due to a private settlement that I had no knowledge of.

Question:
Me and my mom were living with my stepdad in his house who he was fighting with his ex about. It was agreed that the house is to be sold and the profits be split. My stepdad did not follow through and he didn't evict the house either. Me and my mom knew nothing about this and an immediate eviction was ordered by the court. Only my mom was home at the time of the eviction. My stepdads ex is a total bitch and even though I haven't asked her yet I'm very positive she won't give me my personal belongings back. She threw out a lot of our clothes in garbage bags mixed with cat litter. Is there anything I can do in order to get my personal belongings out(mostly my desktop since my clothes are in garbage bags now) without having to go through a lengthy process?

This is in florida. I've spoken to a few cops, the sheriff office and an attorney and they all said that all the stuff inside the house now legally belongs to her.

Answer: While she can evict you, she can't take your property. The items that came with the house might belong to her, your personal belongings do not.


Title: Stimulus Check Fraud?

Question:
My wife went online and entered information for the stimulus to be deposited into an account that is solely in her name. She got the money today & I had been awaiting a paper check. She had no authorization to do this.

We have seperate accts due to her financial abuse I discovered in the last year and thousands shes got me in debt.

Any advise is appreciated

Answer:
 Get a counselor to work out your money problems.

You’re married, she has just as much authorization to do this as you did to receive the paper check.


Title: The US Department of Justice has officially sued in order to stop the proposed merger between AT&T and Time Warner. Going forward, how would both sides attempt to successfully prove their cases? What would each side have to do in order to win?

Question:
http://money.cnn.com/2017/11/20/media/att-time-warner-deal-lawsuit/index.html

https://www.bloomberg.com/amp/news/articles/2017-11-20/at-t-is-said-to-face-u-s-antitrust-lawsuit-over-time-warner

It was previously reported that the federal government would attempt to block the merger unless AT&T sold off or didn't purchase the Turner Broadcasting division of Time Warner, or if they sold off DirecTV. But AT&T does not want to do either of those things since Turner Broadcasting makes up a significant portion of Time Warner's revenues and earnings, and because of the fact that ever since they purchased DirecTV, they have been heavily pushing and promoting it.

EDIT: Here is the lawsuit paperwork: https://www.justice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1012896/download

Answer: I haven't seen the actual lawsuit, so I don't know what allegations the government is leveling other than "it violates anti-trust law". Which is almost as vague as saying "It violates contract law"; it's a pretty broad swath of issues that could apply.  Without that, it's really hard to guess at what either side needs to argue successfully.  Very very generally, the government will be arguing that this merger will "substantially lessen competition" in a specific marketplace.  AT&T will, obviously, argue that it doesn't.


Title: What extra trouble do you get in if you hit a teenager?

Question:
I see a lot of videos of emboldened teenagers doing messed up things to adults, knowing that the adult can not hit them. But, how true is that? Obviously hitting anyone will have broken a few laws and you can be arrested. What happens if I punch a teenager that is harassing me as a "ITS JUST A PRANK, BRO" video? What extra charges do you face compared to them being an adult?

I don't want to, nor do I have any plans to hit anyone, let a lone a teenager, but I just watch too many videos on reddit.

Answer:
 I doubt there is any jurisdiction in the US where the charges would differ if the victim was 16-17 as opposed to 20-21. Young children are often protected more strongly. For instance, in Oregon, in some circumstances the degree of assault is greater if the victim is 10 or under or, in other circumstances, under 6. But such laws do not typically apply to teens, especially older teens.

But, if the court has discretion in setting the sentence, the age of the victim is a factor they can consider, and there is at least a theoretical possibility that a teen victim would lead to a longer sentence.Answer #2: In my state (PA), simple assault from a second degree misdemeanor to first degree of the victim is under 12. No change for a teenager.


Title: Payday loan contacting my facebook friends in order to remind me to pay. Is this harassment? Is this legal?

Question: Title says it all, really. I think they're just trying to intimidate me into paying the full amount instead of the agreed on paymemts. None of the people they've messaged via facebook are even who I listed as personal references. Some of the people they're messaging are people I haven't spoke to in years, and some are coworkers and distant relatives. This is getting out of hand and embarrassing. Is this harassment, and is there any way to make them stop?

Answer: IANAL, but it is most likely violating the collection laws.  Take screenshots if you can.   Walk into your local police department and ask them if they can help.


Title: I was terminated with no reason, was never told I was on a probational period.

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You have nothing to take to court.  Find a new jobAnswer #2: You have no cause for legal action. You are (were) and at will employee and thus can be fired for nearly any reason or no reason, barring very few illegally discriminatory ones.Answer #3: It's legal to fire you for almost any reason.


Title: [NJ] Is discriminating against religion illegal?

Question:
I work as an assistant manager for a major retail corporation. I also recently went through a traumatic experience and have been going to church in order to feel better. Although my schedule fulctuates, it's possible to just take one specific day off a week. I decided to take Sundays off to continue going to church. I went to my boss and put in the request. She called me in, and began to press me as to *why* I was taking this day off. I ended up telling her it was to go to church. My boss got rather agitated by this, and began to lecture me about the evils of church. I told her I was feeling uncomfortable by the conversation. Then she told me that I could take every day off because I was now fired. Just like that. This happened last week... I filed for unemployment, and got denied for "misconduct", and filed an appeal but I have a feeling she will deny me again.

My questions are, is it possible that this situation is discrimination? Should I get an attorney and pursue legal action? What should I do if I am denied unemployment again? Is there anything I can do in this situation?
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 Assuming it went down like you said here, that was 100% religious discrimination and very illegal. Unemployment claims are usually denied the first time around, so don't worry too much about that.

You could speak to an attorney about a wrongful termination lawsuit if you wanted to do so. You can probably find some that will do a free consultation and give you a better idea of whether or not you have a case.


Title: [Michigan] My niece and nephew had an incestuous encounter that went out of hand. What charges could they face?

Question:
My 14 year old nephew admitted to his family that his 12 year old sister and him had been experimenting sexually with each other, and that one night he put her hand on his genitals briefly and left the room, she later attempted to do the same to him but more aggressively, with him telling her no and attempting to stop her.

This was 4 years ago, what type of charges would these two face? he is deeply ashamed of his actions

Answer:
 There is nothing actionable here.  Plus it was 4years ago.  Let it go.Answer #2: Seek counseling.

Unless it's reported by one party - and it sounds like it was a situation of mutual encouragement - law enforcement won't find out. And even if they did, the "deeply ashamed" part indicated in your OP tells me that he knows what he did was wrong and likely wouldn't benefit from punishment within the system.

So, again: Seek counseling for all involved. This is not the kind of issue that our judicial system is really well-equipped to handle for a number of reasons that I'm happy to dive into greater depth on.


Title: What can I do about the threats my girlfriend recieved from her father about false immigration claims?

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Immigration

Answer: Does your girlfriend have proof of sufficient funds to support herself while she's here? Are there factors that demonstrate she's not likely to stay (full-time employment, full-time education, etc.)?


Title: I want to turn off the software I made for a company that I never officially signed a contract for and start a company to support it

Question:
I was originally hired two years ago at a company to manage their CRM they paid over half a million dollars for, which they were very unhappy with.  It was a generic salesforce CRM that the other company did a terrible job at configuring.  I sold them on my programming abilities and within a couple of months I made them new software from scratch which they use until this day.  I'm working remotely and getting paid a lot, and I thought I was set for life.

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Unfortunately, someone realized at this company to pretend that the "system is down" whenever they don't want to do their jobs, and it spread everywhere else.  I get the same vague complaints and every single time, I ask for a screenshot or an error message, and I get no reply.  I've talked to the owner about this and he's told me he will not do anything about it.  There's nobody taking responsibility at this company and everyone just does whatever they want.  I decided to come in for a week and be there when they say "it goes down" and of course, nothing happened during that week.  Did this a couple times even with the same results.  They wait for me to leave and pretend it's not working so they don't have to do their jobs.

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While I'm still getting paid, and the owner isn't unhappy, I'm plain tired of being the whipping boy for this entire company.  I did sign an agreement that I won't give or sell the software to their competitors, that agreement does not contain anything about the maintenance of the software.  What I want to do is set up an LLC, turn the software off and quit, and ask him to sign a contract.  This is to protect myself because it's starting to get so bad that entire departments are claiming it "drops information", of course it does not, they just don't want to do any work.  To make this attractive I also thought I should offer to do it for a little less than what I'm getting paid right now.

&#x200B;

This isn't my only source of income, and I know it could be much worse, but I've been disrespected for an entire year by everyone in the whole company and I've simply had enough of it.  What are possible repercussions if I do this?  State is Oregon.

Answer:
 Hell. No. Not without speaking to an IP lawyer.

Edit: since you were hired to program they almost certainly own what you coded. Answer #2: Your plan sounds like a fabulous plan if you are hoping to get sued and lose.


Title: Apartment Signed Lease with Lower Amount. Can they legally change this if lease agreement has been finalized?

Question:
I would appreciate anyone/everyone's thought on my situation. I am not sure if I should discuss this with an attorney at this point.

My apartment sent a renewal contract by forgot to add a number (instead of $1500/month, they wrote $500/month). I signed it and sent it back to them for their signature. Management has now signed the new lease keeping this lower amount. According to the lease, any changes have to be done as amendment, in writing, signed by both parties.

Legally, does the apartment complex have the right to challenge this? Do you recommend I hire an attorney preemptively? I live in Texas. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Answer:
 I don't have a law degree, but sometimes I ask myself: Is this a dick move? Does it involve money? If so, it's probably illegal. Even if it isn't illegal, if something is a dick move, don't do it.Answer #2: You said this was a renewal. What is your current rent?Answer #3: For there to be a contract, there needs to be a meeting of the minds, an agreement on what the terms are by both parties.

If you both agreed on $500, in your minds, then $500 is what it is.  But if you both agreed on $1500 and merely typoed the contract, $1500 is what it is.

From what you write above, it's an error that the landlord made accidentally and they would never have agreed to it intentionally.  The rent therefore is the agreed upon amount: $1500.

Now, if you went into court and lied about the landlord's state of mind and used the document to back up your lies, you might be believed.  Maybe the judge would side with you and hold the landlord to the $500 amount, after you assured the judge that the landlord fully intended for it to be $500.  But you'd have to lie in court to achieve that.


Title: Woman wrestled me to the ground and held me at gunpoint (Florida)

Question:
Hello everyone, I hope this is the right subreddit to post this.  I'm a bit shaken by the entire experience.  This happened about 2 weeks ago.

I am a 25 year old male.  I am also black in a primarily white neighborhood, which may or may not be relevant but I'll mention it anyway.

I live in an apartment complex with my dad and stepmom, and we have an assigned parking spot. My stepmom's car stays there, and my dad and I park our cars on the street.

It was a Saturday evening around 9:00.  My stepmom realized she left something in her car so she told me to get it.  I grabbed her keys and went downstairs to the parking lot.  This is where I messed up.  She drives a different model car than me, and so I got confused with how to unlock the door and I guess I must have accidentally pressed the car alarm.  I was frantically pushing buttons trying to get the alarm to stop.

This lady (white, probably age 50s) came over and grabbed my arm and wrestled me to the ground.  Another lady (also white, probably 40s) was passing by and asked "what's going on".  The first lady replied "car thief!" The second lady took out her gun and pointed it at my head while I was still pinned down to the ground.  The police showed up in a few minutes, I'm not sure who called them.  Maybe the second lady did, but I was too scared to notice.

The police talked to the ladies and then to me.  They wanted me to verify that the car was mine.  I opened the glove box and got the registration, but it was in my stepmom's name and she has a different last name than me.  So they decided to arrest me because I couldn't prove that I had permission to open the car.  I told them to go and check with my stepmom, but they refused.  Thankfully, just as they were handcuffing me, my dad came out to see why I was taking so long.  The police told him that they needed proof that I had permission, so my dad went inside and got my stepmom, and she showed her ID and registration to the police, and they un-handcuffed me and let me go.

So I don't think I am facing any charges anymore, but this was a traumatic experience and I have several bruises and a bump on my head from when the lady knocked me to the ground.  I was pretty sure the second lady was going to shoot me so I closed my eyes, prayed and waited.  I just want to know if there is anything I can do legally to these two ladies for what they put me through. Also, did the police act appropriately in this case, and if not can I complain to anyone.

Answer:
 I would like to know why the police refused to check on OP's claim that he had permission (from someone steps away) to be in the car?
IMNAL
Thanks!Answer #2: OP, do you even know who these people are or have a way to contact them?

You can file a police report against the second woman for brandishing and threatening you with a weapon. Even if you were actually stealing, she had no reason to draw and threaten after you were already on the ground and not a threat.

The first woman did not break the law, really.  She had a legitimate reason to think you were stealing, because of the car alarm. She does owe you an apology though. Answer #3: At the very least you have a case for assault and battery. You might want to ask the police department for a copy of the report, because even if you didn't get the names involved, the police probably did.


Title: My workplace is blatantly and consistently altering my time sheets.

Question:
I’m a server at a restaurant in Utah. I’ve noticed that my place of work has been going in after I’ve clocked out and changing my clock out time to an earlier time. I have an app on my phone (DayforceHCM) that shows my time sheets, and notifies me when changes have been made to my times as well as other things. I just recently downloaded the app, and learned that my place of work has been consistently changing my clock out times. Since I’ve just discovered this, I haven’t collected any of my time sheets or other evidence. But I keep track of my hours on my phone, as well as have a decent memory so I know that they’re doing this.

What are my next steps? How long should I collect time sheets, and what other information can I collect to build a case? Should I go to the Department of Labor or a private practice lawyer?

Please and thank you!

Disclaimer: I am underpaid and over worked, so if I can get money out this, that would be ideal.
Topic:
Labor Law (Unions)

Answer: Contact the labor department and file a wage complaint. This is super illegal except to correct mistakes..


Title: What happens if someone bought a purse from me online and sent me a check to pay for it?

Question:
I have suspicion that it could be a fake check so I want to cash it at Kroger money services rather than depositing it in my bank.

Could I be in trouble if this woman sent me a fake check and I cash it ? Or is that on her?

Answer:
 FYI, some of those check cashing places will only do paychecks and the like, and will refuse to cash personal checks written by some random person.  This is precisely because if the check eventually bounces, it can be difficult for them to get their money back.  Theoretically, you'd owe them the money back if that happens, so you really don't gain anything by not using your bank.

I'd take it to your bank, and tell the buyer that you'll be waiting for the check to clear before shipping the purse.  That is, if you haven't already shipped it.


Title: Super Cut His Hand from My Trash

Question:
I live in an apartment building in NYC. We have a trash chute that I was told leads to a trash compactor (squeezes all the trash in it into tidy little cubes). The other day, we broke some cups/glasses, so I put the broken pieces in my kitchen trash. The trash bag was subsequently thrown down the chute several days later when it was full.

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A few days after that, I received an angry text from my super. Apparently he cut his hand from the glass in our trash. I am unsure how this happened since I thought the machine was supposed to take care of most of it. He sent us a picture of our opened trash bag with the broken glass visible inside. I am not clear if this was done before/after he cut his hand. Anyway, there was mail in the trash with our names/addresses and so that's how he knew it was us.

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I have a fairly good salary, which I am sure he knows about since I had to disclose my income statements and bank accounts to the co-op board when I originally signed the lease; furthermore, the building is not great, and I suspect the tenants make less money than I do (total speculation). Based on the tune of the messages he sent me, I am afraid he will pursue civil litigation.

&#x200B;

I'm not sure what the legal standing is, but by "mouth feel" it doesn't seem like I should have so much liability. Sure, I feel bad this happened and I have expressed my authentic remorse, but I think I should be exonerated from any financial penalties that he may want to pursue. I had broken glass, so I put it in the trash, and I'm not sure what other expectation there could be in this situation (unless I'm an idiot and people do something else with their broken glass?).

&#x200B;

Thanks.

Answer:
 First of all, I hope you have renter's insurance, since that will cover you for suits like this.

Second, assuming you don't (or else why would you be posting here), you have some homework reading to do.

>A worker who “confronts the ordinary and obvious hazards of his [or her] employment, and has at his [or her] disposal the time ... to enable him [or her] to proceed safely ... may not hold others responsible if he [or she] elects to perform his [or her] job so incautiously as to injure himself [or herself]” *(Abbadessa v. Ulrik Holding*, 244 A.D.2d 517, 518, 664 N.Y.S.2d 620).

Read the rest of this case here:  http://www.nycourts.gov/reporter/3dseries/2012/2012_06136.htmAnswer #2: You were made to understand that from the chute to the dump there would be no human contact, correct? I don't see how your super could make an argument that you should be accountable for harming him when you were under the impression that only big metal machinery would be dealing with your waste.

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Typically the way to disposed of glass for curbside collection is to seal it in a cardboard box and include it in the trash. Broken glass should not be included in regular recycling due to the hazard it poses to sanitation workers.Answer #3: What are the rules for the garbage chute?  My building expressly prohibits glass and recyclables.  They call-out risk of injury from broken glass or sharp items.


Title: Need advice on a bed bug issue.

Question: First off, this is in California. Here's the issue: we moved into our current apartment about 6 months ago. There were no signs of bed bugs and we did not have bed bugs. 6 months later we begin to find bed bugs and we contact our property manager. They inform us the owner will not be paying for treatment and it is our responsibility because he replaced carpets before we moved in. I've been doing lots of reading/research and I can't get a definitive answer on who is truly responsible for the treatment cost. Anyways, couple days later the landlord has a exterminator come out to inspect. Before he even looks around, he tells us "the bugs came from your neighbor next door. She's had them for a long time and doesn't want to pay for treatment. She wants me to look inside but I'm not going it. It's pointless. I know she still has the bugs." So now we know where they originated. Here's the part where it gets tricky. We signed a bed bug addendum when we moved in basically saying we understand the landlord believes there to be no bugs and we will not hold him financially responsible for treatment. Does that still hold up if we signed it under the impression there were none when the owners knew that there were? I want the place treated either way, but can the landlord hit us with the bill for treatment if it is known that they didn't originate with us? Do we need to go after the neighbor for the cost? Sorry for the long post, just trying to find answers before I start raising serious hell.

Answer:
 I don't know exactly how this works out in CA.  On the one hand, it's the landlord's duty to provide an environment free of health hazards, including infestations, etc.  But bedbugs are only disgusting.  They're not disease vectors.

If treatment is necessary, and if the landlord has evidence that you brought the bugs into the building, then he might be able to get reimbursed from your deposit or through other means.

In the case you describe, there's no way of knowing where they got in -- even if you got them from the neighbor, that doesn't mean she brought them in.

But I don't know how this actually plays out in CA courts, so don't assume you can push this off on your landlord.

And check out /r/bedbugs for information and resources.  When my wife and I had them, we did a heat treatment. Haven't seen bug one in over 14 months.  Pesticides are iffy at best, because bedbugs develop resistance at an alarming rate -- killing fewer than 90% or so with chlorophenyl-based chemicals just means the next zerg rush will be more resistant.Answer #2: Do you believe the landlord misrepresented the bedbug problem?  If they knew or should have known, and you signed based on their written assertion that he believed there were no bedbugs, then they didn't come into this with clean hands. You should have some recourse against them based on that alone.


Title: My boss makes me work off the clock.

Question: - My Boss constantly makes me clock out when I hit my eight hours- Then continues to ask me to work until we’re closed. I keep records and videos of it all. What do I do?

Answer:
 File a wage claim with your state department of labor. If you live in Florida or similar worker unfriendly states, you may have to file suit in small claims court.

You can wait until you find a new job. FLSA give your two years to recover unpaid wages. Keep good records. Write down any unpaid work hours in a journal that you keep away from work.Answer #2: You should just leave after you clock out. Location is not optional.


Title: Idaho has decided that I owe $300 of back taxes from 2013. I no longer live or work in Idaho ... what's the worst that can happen if I just ignore this?

Question:
They're probably legitimately right that I owe back taxes -- I guess I didn't pay state income tax on my unemployment income in 2013.

But I'm no stranger to just ignoring bills until they go away. Medical debt will do that to you. Debt collectors don't like me. I also live a zero-debt lifestyle, so I don't give a shit about credit scores.

But this isn't some random company where the worst thing they could do is try to sue me and garnish my wages. This is the Idaho state government, and they may have other options at their disposal.

My concerns:

- I still drive through Idaho occasionally. It would really ruin my day if I got pulled over and there was actually a warrant out for my arrest or something.

- Currently, I get my income through the VA from the federal government. (I live and receive this income in a different state now.) Can the Idaho state government take that income before it even gets to me?

- ... or is there something else I should be even more concerned about?

Now, I know a lot of people are going to be the law and order type and say I should just pay it ... but money is tight and to pay $300 to Idaho, I'll have to give up other important things. I'd rather just pretend I never received their letter ... if I can get away with it. My question is: what's the worst that can happen if I *don't* get away with it?

Answer:
 There are reciprocity agreements between the states. In short. Idaho will collect taxes from and enforce laws from other states if your state does the same for people who 'fled' Idaho.

Ducking taxes is really dumb and it never goes away. There is no statute of limitations of taxes. Answer #2: The worst is you get sued, a judgement for debt against you.  These are public records so anybody who did a public record search against you would see you were sued for failing to pay taxes and lost.

Edit: Forgot to add they can take actions to collect debt.  Rules for wage garnishment and bank account seizure differ by state.

https://tax.idaho.gov/n-feed.cfm?idd=410

Apparently they can garnish 25% of your wagesAnswer #3: I work in payroll and can tell you that they will hunt you down and garnish your wages. For a few hundred bucks, that's probably no big deal, but your name on the losing side of a lawsuit from the state of Idaho won't look too appealing for anyone who does background checks... like employers.Answer #4: A federal income tax refund you are due could be offset/reduced by the amount owed and the offset amount sent to the State of Idaho through the [Treasury Offset Program.](https://www.fiscal.treasury.gov/fsservices/gov/debtColl/dms/top/legalAuthrtyQkRef/debt_dca_quickref_index.htm#quickref_top)Answer #5: They can levy your bank accounts and garnish any wages or income you receive.


Title: Husband is 4 months late on Child support and Attorney says they can't help me

Question: My ex husband is over 4 months late on child support and the Office of the Attorney general has been literally no help. I contacted two attorneys to ask if he could be held in contempt of court and both of them indicated that it would be throwing money in the toilet. They also indicated that he can stay 4 months delinquent at all times and not face consequences. We have been separated for over a year and he hasn't contributed so much as a dime to support his daughter. What if anything can I do? The lawyers indicated that the Texas OAG is extremely unlikely to do anything until the arrearages is in years.

Answer:
 I don't practice in Texas, but I'm confident of the broad strokes of how they do things.

First, come to terms with the fact that there will be no immediate solution. This will take time, so you'll need to make arrangements on how to get by without his support.

Second, apply for the OAG services. They apparently haven't been much help yet, but once he gets past whatever amount of arrearages and/or missed payments that triggers their enforcement, you'll already be set to go. https://childsupport.oag.state.tx.us/wps/portal/csi/ApplyOnline

Finally, call the assigned case worker once a week. In my experience, the squeaky wheels get the grease. Remember that they're your ally, and that they have to answer to their own bosses/rules/procedures too. Don't antagonize them or make them dread working on your case. Hell, send them some cookies if you can.

The bottom line is that Texas WILL help you enforce the support order, but he apparently hasn't crossed over their red line yet. If and when he does, you need to have all the necessary documents in their office so they can begin enforcement procedures immediately.


Title: Distant Cousin Has Sold Family Property [Texas]

Question:
I have a distant cousin that forged his name in order to sale some family property. I have an aunt that is about 86 and suffering from dementia, and he took it upon himself to get a notary and go up the nursing home where she resides and have her sign over the land. Here's the catch, the person he sold the land to, is the husband of said notary. There's more...the DA in this small county is the brother of said notary! He's profited at least 15K on one piece of property and recently so the other as well. He's the thing...his name is RWW and he forged his name as WW on the first sold property and then RW on the second. So technically yes those are his names, but clearly they are not him. One uncle died in 1978 and the other [I'd have to look it up]. The second property is where is it would fall down the children, then grandchildren and so forth and so forth. He had no legal right to do ANY of this.

I'm currently looking up the death certificates of those names he forged, and he's even been in jail for something like this before. Lawyer is saying its going to take 10K to even start the process, and even then we could lose!

Any suggestions on where to begin? Thanks in advance.
Topic:
Real Estate law

Answer:
 This is going to be expensive to unwind. The proper owner, or someone else with an interest in the land, needs to sue the cousin and each of the purchasers to clear the title of the properties. Don't worry so much about the criminal side of it; the important part is to get the land back. The local press might take an interest in the DA purchasing fraudulently transferred property, but that's all a side matter.

You're going to need a good real estate attorney for this, it's not a do-it-yourself kind of thing. There's really no other place to start. If you think he's to expensive, ask around for cheaper lawyers.


Title: [UK]Handed in 3-month notice, shown the door.

Question:
Hi,

Sorry for using a throwaway. I work in marketing in the United Kingdom, and I've had nothing but positive feedback my entire time at my company, winning employee of the year twice in a row.

I've been wanting to move company, but I know I don't tend to do so unless there is a direct need so I decided to light a fire under my arse.

So I handed in my notice (I have a 3 month notice) figuring that within 3 months I'd find something else with no problem.

The company has immediately told me that I'd be working 1 week and then I'm gone. And only receive that 1 weeks pay.

I was under the assumption a 3 month notice works both ways, and they are not able to force me out early, at least without paying me for that time? Is this legal? What can I do?

Thanks!

Answer: Start by calling ACAS. http://www.acas.org.uk/Answer #2: Check your contract, i'm pretty sure this is illegal and they at least have to pay you. Have you spoken to your HR dept? They should be unbiased and whilst you are still an employee offer their support.


Title: Goverment office funds are being used for personal gain. Can I ask for a federal Investigation?

Question:
I made an internship with a goverment office and it was granted recently $7 million dollars in funds without reason and the directors have been signing contracts that have had no results and they all got new cars out of nowhere. When someone commented in the office about this a co-worker said I can't do anything because I would go to prison with them because of my internship giving me a relationship to the office contracts.

I believe this needs a thorough investigation.

Answer: OP do actually know what's going on with this stuff or do you think you know what's going on with this stuff. My bullshit meter is going off that an intern would know all the ins and outs of a 7 million dollar fund disbursement in a government office. Unless you have some actual knowledge of what's going on, you might want to keep in your lane. Throwing out accusations without proof is a good way to kill a career before it's even started.


Title: [WA] Middle school being built near my disabled client's house.

Question:
This is more of a feeler towards things we need to plan for rather than an immediate issue. I work for an agency that provides in-home care for mentally disabled folks.

The client in question is an adult male, and is severely developmentally and intellectually delayed. The problem is that he has zero concept of indecent exposure. We recently found out that a middle school is being constructed in his neighborhood, and that his home will most likely be on the school route when it's completed. I believe they're trying to get it done by the fall semester.

My question is, what's going to happen when he flashes a child on their way to school, and would the agency have any legal fallout from it we should be aware of? I'd like to know what I'd be in for if it happens while I'm on shift, since due to the nature of the agency, it would be an unauthorized use of restraint to keep him from exiting the house or to use any clothing he cannot remove.

Answer: If he flashes a child he will be charged and arrested. He can make a NGRI or competency claim. The agency has no liabilityAnswer #2: This would also be a good question to bring up with your agency, because they may have (or may develop) guidance for you in a situation like this.


Title: Why will no one answer this post???? My rights were violated.

Question:
I submitted this post four days ago and am patiently waiting for someone, anyone to comment. PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was injured at work 5 years ago with my left dominant arm involved. I never took a day off from the injury until this past January but did fill out the necessary paperwork 5 years ago. The injury waxes and wanes. The pain was so bad that my Physician took me out of work for three weeks. He then put me on light duty. Here is where the problem lies. I was told over the phone that there was no light duty and if I could not come back to work full duty, then I could not come back. I never heard of the interactive process until I started researching on the computer. Three weeks later, I was released to full duty. My employer (I have been a teacher in a clinic for this same employer for 15 years) did not hire me back, but instead hired a retired co worker (male and part of the "boys club") Our facility is contractural meaning at the end of the college semester, I must express an interest by writing to my supervisor requesting to be rehired. I live of course in a hired at will state. What recourse if any do I have? What rights of mine have if any been violated? I have been a model employee for 15 years with absolutely no problems what so ever. Would you file a complaint with the EEOC and what grounds do I have to file? I am very fearful for retaliation. The facility told me that if they needed me PRN basis, they would call.

Answer: What did workers comp tell you when you called them?


Title: Father seems to be in debt of millions, his so called best friend ran away and I'm lost. Please advice.

Question:
I am reposting this from r/personalfinance as advised from that subreddit.

So.. Before I begin I have to say that I was very very hesitant to post my problem out on this subreddit. I don't know if I should to be honest or if this is the right place but right now, I'm lost and I'm very fucking afraid.

I mainly use Reddit to pass time, engage in gaming subreddits and look at "other" things.

But I digress.

Some backstory before I get into it, I'm 21 and currently studying in University overseas away from my parents.

Last night I received a phone call from my father. Nothing out of the ordinary, normal family talk.

That is, until I asked about how's the family and how his business is going. You see, for the past year the business that he had been shareholding had been starting to go into debt and bankruptcy because there was a huge lack of work available in the local area (my parents are staying in Brunei Darussalam).

But he told me not to worry about the situation too much and just focus on my studies. Fair game.

That being said, you can imagine just how surprised I was to hear that the business is now in bankruptcy for god knows how long (my dad doesn't like to tell me things) and he and the other shareholders are now going into debt of about 3-4 millions of Brunei dollars.

When I asked where was his best friend, who was pretty much the owner of the god forsaken company and the person who convinced my dad to leave his job before going into this business years ago, apparently he had disappeared and is thought to have ran away from debt. No one can contact him.

Big Fucking wow. So much for a friend.

Some of the shareholders have also bolted off soon after according to my dad.

Now I'm scared and lost. My dad told me he has 2 options: a) go back to Malaysia (same country I'm in) to run from the debt (essentially a crime, we know it is), or b) stay in Brunei and try to pay the debt but have his passport locked by court meaning he can no longer leave the country until he settles the debt along with all the other shareholders that haven't ran away.

Whether or not the passport lock applies to my mom and myself (if I go back) I do not know. My dad wasn't certain either.

Reddit. I'm fucking scared. I'm lost. I don't know what to do to help. Last my dad told me was to focus my studies and try to finish before he completely runs out of money to fund my life.

What should my dad do? What should I do?? What should be done?? What can be done??

I don't know what my dad's plans are if he decides to stay and pay the debt. My mom's salary is about 1k max.

Some info to add
-Parents have been making ends meet barely via my mom's accountant salary over the past year ever since the whole problem started to rear it's head

-I have about 2 more semesters left in my diploma but I'm worried I won't be able to finish because of the current situation

-Parents have been using their life's savings to fund my university life. I don't know how much savings they have left. They don't like to share these things. We're Asian.

-Dad has considered running and becoming a fugitive but is worried that the Interpol might eventually be dispatched to apprehend him. These words were from he himself. For all my life I have never ever heard my dad sound so scared and desperate. It breaks my heart.

Answer:
 Your father needs to contact a bankruptcy lawyer in Brunei to handle this and follow their advice.

You also need to have way better communication skills than your father going forward in life, and realize the dangers of not talking about uncomfortable topics like finance until its too late.Answer #2: I'm not familiar with bankruptcy law as practised in Brunei. *Usually,* bankruptcy should not affect personal assets if the corporation has be structured properly but YMMV due to local law etc.

That said, if the attorney has given a recommendation that the best move forward for your family is to simply move, then that may indeed be the best move. It can be viewed as 'running away' but this is what his attorney has recommended so he should probably do that. There are probably very *good* reasons for that recommendation, which at a glance seems to be;

* Foreign citizen (free ability to move back to home nation)
* Limited capacity of Brunei/creditor to pursue foreign action
* No feasibility of resolving the local bankruptcy action

TLDR; it might not be the worst idea to simply move back to Malaysia especially since it has been recommended by your family attorney.


Title: Being sued for back rent and damages on property we haven’t been involved with for 10 years

Question:
Hello,

My dad recently received a letter stating that he was being sued for back rent and damages on a business property. However, my dad sold his half of this business to his his ex-partner over 10 years ago and has had no connection with that business or his ex-partner since then.

But the letter references a personal guarantee my dad signed 20 years ago when he first rented the property and it seems to imply he’s still on the hook. However, he was not involved with the business/property when the lease was renewed in 2008.

My dad can’t remember the terms of his personal guarantee and is looking through papers to see if he got out of it when he sold his half.

But I’m worried that might  not be the case and am just looking to see if other people have dealt with this before and have more information on how encompassing personal guarantees can be.

Obviously, he’ll also be getting a lawyer. But this all just seems crazy that he can be held responsible for a property he has no connection to.

Answer:
 > My dad recently received a letter stating that he was being sued

Was he sued, or was he sent a letter saying he would someday be sued?

> for back rent

Back rent from recently? Inside of your state's SOL?

> My dad can’t remember the terms of his personal guarantee and is looking through papers to see if he got out of it when he sold his half.

This will be critical. They have it.

> But this all just seems crazy that he can be held responsible for a property he has no connection to.

If he didn't extract himself from the business properly, he still has a connection to it. It's really hard to speculate beyond that. He hasn't been held responsible yet, he's just (maybe) being sued. Anyone can sue anyone for anything, practically.

Let his attorney handle it.


Title: tuberculosis

Question: My wife was diagnosed with TB and which they said she had it for four years. Doctor said that 4 years ago another doctor confirmed she had it but did nothing about it. And after many many doctor visits we finally found a doctor that tested her for it and received the results we have known for a long time. Can I sue for negligence or anything? We had no insurance at the time the last doctor confirmed it so I think that's why he never went ahead with his findings.

Answer: Not a lawyer, but I’m a public health worker.  Was it latent or active TB? That makes a big difference in how the doctor would be reasonably expected to respond.


Title: What happens when somebody dies with debt and their estate does not go through probate? [USA]

Question:
I know this may be state specific, but generally, what happens when a person dies with debt, and their assets get divided without probate?

Scenario:  Person A has $30,000 in assets.  They have outstanding medical bills for $10,000.  The family agreed to split the $30,000 of assets.  What does the medical company do?

Answer:
 If the family distributes the decedent's assets without going through a legally-recognized process, the assets remain property of the estate. They'd each be liable to the decedent's estate (and likely to the creditors, as well) for the amount they improperly took from the estate, plus interest, potentially plus legal fees.

There's no legal avenue to distributing someone's assets _without_ going through some variety of legal process. In some states, an estate with $30,000 in assets may qualify for a faster "small estate" process rather than having to be fully probated, but creditors still need to be paid before heirs.


Title: Can you get in legal trouble if you're a delivery driver and walk off your job abandoning the van?

Question:
Saw a tweet from an Amazon driver that of course I can't find again.  He walked off his job leaving the van with the keys in the ignition.

God knows Jeff Bezos is a letigious asshole, and would try to sue the company that runs the truck, but are there any legitimate lawsuits the employee could face?

Answer: Yes of course. When you are entrusted with someone else's property, even a company owned truck as in this case, you have a reasonable duty to keep it safe. Leaving it running (and presumably unlocked on a public street) would certainly violate any sort of duty the driver had.


Title: Adult adoption help in time for Christmas

Question:
I've had a stepmom since I was three that has taken care of me. My biological mother is an ex-stripper turned prostitute and has never been a positive part of my life. I have always considered my stepmother to be my mom. My biological mother has put my stepmom through hell and she never turned away or treated me any less loved than my brothers and sisters.  My favorite compliments in life have been people telling us that we look more alike than any of my siblings look liked her (despite me being the one not blood related). This woman is a saint and nothing would please me more to be legally her daughter after 19 years.

I called the local court to see where to find the paperwork and how to go about this. They refused to help me and suggested I get a lawyer. I really would rather not hire a lawyer for an adoption that really should have no problems.  I live in TN for school though I am a resident of MS, but my parents recently became residents of FL. I assumed the adoption would go through MS, but I'm not sure how to get this started. Any help would be appreciated as I'm trying to get this started in time for Christmas.

Edit: not trying to get it done in time for Christmas, just started. I'd need my stepmom to sign papers and things, so I just want to present it to her for Christmas.

Answer:
 Instead, for a gift idea, why don't you contact your local bar association and get a referral for an attorney (which yes, you really do need).  After you pick one, make an appointment with them (probably after the holidays), and for Christmas give your step mom the appointment card with a note that says something like "I've made an appointment for us with an attorney to begin the process of adoption".  Or something more sentimental.  I clearly don't write for Hallmark.

But that's something you can REASONABLY do by Xmas and gets you started down the right path.  Answer #2: Apparently we need a mega thread.

#Today is December 15, 2016.

#It is not possible to do a legal adoption in 10 days.

Where is step mom residing or did you mean her when you said "parents became residents of FL"?

Did you ever have a residence outside of school or your parents home?


Title: [Hypothetical] If a prescription drug kills someone, who is responsible?

Question: Patient is taking a drug made by company X and prescribed by the doctor. Patient is taking the following the instructions, heeding the warnings, and regularly taking them at the instructed dosage and time. One day, Patient dies. He followed the instructions and heeded the warnings. Who is responsible for his death?

Answer:
 That depends on, well, who was responsible for his death. If the doctor accidentally prescribed rat poison when he meant to prescribe advil, it might be the doctor. If the pharmaceutical company accidentally injected sarin into the pills, it might be the pharmaceutical company. If the patient just had a very unfortunate adverse reaction that nobody could have reasonably anticipated, then the guy just died and that's very sad and that's the end of it.

There's no one answer to your question.

Edit: Also, am I going crazy or do you post like a million questions here and then delete them all?


Title: When protesters block state highways or federal freeways, how liable are drivers in regards to avoid coming in contact with pedestrians on the road? What if the protesters start attacking vehicles?

Answer:
 You can't intentionally run people over with a couple tons of heavy machinery just because they're inconveniencing you or in your way, even if they're somewhere they're not supposed to be like a freeway. If someone is your way, stop your car so you don't hurt them. That has not changed in the last three years; the answer is still the same as in the megathread you linked.

If you truly have a reasonable fear of serious harm and meet the other [requirements for self defense](https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-criminallaw/chapter/5-2-self-defense/), some of which depend on your state, then self defense could potentially be involved. Even then, driving a car into people could well be deadly force depending on the circumstances, and the bar to use deadly force in self defense is rather high. That kind of situation is going to depend so much on every small detail of the incident, and may even ultimately come down to whether you can convince a jury.


Title: [CA, USA] My girlfriend and I broke up, and she was storing a painting she did that was a gift to me. She is now refusing to give it back.

Question:
California, USA

My girlfriend and I broke up a few months ago. I moved from California (where she resides, and where I resided when we were in a relationship) to another state. She is an artist, and during our relationship she painted a beautiful picture of me and my sisters' silhouettes as a gift to me. There are Instagram posts on her account confirming that the painting is mine: "[CApaintingproblem's] painting!" I also have texts from her acknowledging that the painting was a gift.

We broke up shortly after I moved across the country, but while I was moving, she stored the painting and a jacket of mine at her house. I asked for these things back, and she says that she will ship me the jacket but refuses to send the painting. I have offered to pay for the cost of shipping. She goes on to say that she wants to sell the painting and has gotten an offer for $500.

Is she in the legal right to do this? The painting is special to me (it's of my family!) and I would like to have it back. Would I have a legal leg to stand on if I threatened a civil suit?

Thanks for any and all advice!
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 This isn't legal advice so much as relationship advice.  Particularly with you not even living in the same state anymore, it isn't remotely worth the cost of pursing legal action that you may not win, when there's at most $500 at stake.   Consider this the cost of ending a bad relationship, and just move on with your life in your new location. Answer #2: Hey, the good news is that she told you she got an offer for $500 which helps establish value.  Because without that little slip up of hers, the value could have been pegged at $20.

You can pursue legal action in small claims court, for the value of the item, but you don't live in the state you would need to file in.

For general advice, I say cut your losses.  If it's really that important, your best bet is to make nice and ask what it would take (maybe the $500) to get it - because even a court can't order it be given back to you.


Title: Employer made me clean out a warehouse we use to park our cars in so she could sell it. Found out yesterday that she never intended to sell it and is just trying to avoid taxes.

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Report what? Your employer paid you to clean a warehouse.

Maybe you could...you know...elaborate on this tax avoidance scheme that you are implying is illegal.Answer #2: It's perfectly legal for her to make you clean out an empty warehouse and then not sell it.


Title: [US, Unknown State] Question about being called "Kiddo" in the workplace.

Question:
[This isn't my post](https://np.reddit.com/r/lostgeneration/comments/3pwhp3/being_called_kiddo_at_the_job/), but I ran across it today, and was curious about the hypotheticals.

Do you have a case for harassment if your coworkers are calling you 'kiddo' and they refuse to stop after you tell them you don't like it?

Answer: No, that's not harassment.  Whoever's post that was needs to learn how to sack up.  Answer #2: Good lord, have we really run out of actual problems to deal with in this country?


Title: (MA) My legal representation seems like they're not even trying. This CAN'T be how the system functions...

Question:
I had posted before about this, but some more stuff has happened, further clouding things. The first paragraph below this is old, everything else is new.  Sorry for the length, but I have NOWHERE else to turn.  Basically, I used to work for a service provider, and a former client of the company is suing myself and the company.  I found out in October 2015, and didn't hear anything more.   I'm destitute and can't afford a lawyer, so there wasn't much to do.  Eventually the insurance company for the employer provided me with an attorney, who finally got in touch with me 1/2016, and ever since then some really (in my opinion) bizarre things have happened.

I meet with him Jan. 2016, and tell him there were texts/phone calls/e-mails even, that would refute pretty much everything the plaintiff was saying.  I didn't have most of them saved anymore, but if he could work on getting them exhumed by the phone company, email service, whatever, it would help.  He said that would be a great help, and said he'd get on it.

Now, I'm not even sure it's possible to get stuff from as far back as they went (1-2 years), but I had hoped he'd at least try, or let me know.  He also said the insurance company would be covering any settlement/judgment, that there had been no reservation of rights letter sent (I think that's what it was called).   I also gave him some other leads that are very important, and could be looked into to effectively discredit the plaintiff (don’t want to post too much here).

I then didn't hear from him for 5 months.  I emailed him a few times to see if there was any update on the files/emails/etc.  No replies.  Then in maybe July 2016 he sent along some confidentiality form, and completely missed that it only asked for my signature. I pointed it out to him, he said that was odd, and that he'd get back to me the next day about it.  Two weeks later I hear from him, and the form now required everyone's signature. He said he would contact me at the start of September.  That was the last I heard until November.

In November, he calls, makes no mention of any of my queries, and then says the other side provided hundreds of pages of emails & a bunch of handwritten letters, allegedly from me to the plaintiff.  I'm apoplectic, I tell the guy there can't be, at least not legitimate stuff.  He says he's going to email me a pdf of the stuff after we get off the phone, and if the plaintiff is lying, it's a huge deal.  I receive nothing for 5 days.  FINALLY something comes through...only it's 6 pages; 5 emails and one letter.

I find a few issues with the emails that poke holes in authorship, etc. Nothing rock solid, but enough to cast serious doubt on them. The letter also has some VERY odd stuff going on, and I tell the attorney I can provide previous hand-written stuff to prove I didn't write it. It seemed at least somewhat important to me, probably not enough to end the case since it would be a he-said she-said still, but it would sway things in our favor.  I write to the lawyer about this, and ask him to email me the rest of the documents so I can go through them.  I don't hear back from him for 10 days.

He eventually replies, doesn't acknowledge anything I've said, and says that he's leaving the firm and this other guy is taking over the case, new guy will me at the start of December.  I don't hear from him until mid-January.  He says there's a deposition for the plaintiff in late February, and he hopes I can make it so I can potentially give him questions to ask the plaintiff. That's it.

I write him a couple times, bring up everything I already wrote here.  He writes back, doesn’t cover any of it, and only answers a question I had about the insurance company telling me the insurance company isn't covering judgment / settlements, even though the previous guy said they were and I had been operating under that assumption for a year.

I write him twice more, saying that I thought it was baffling that I'm being prevented from seeing what's being said about me, so that I can poke more holes in it.  I noted there's not nearly enough time now for me to review the documents the plaintiff provided, and that I still need the deposition time, location, how long these things take, procedure, etc.  No reply, it’s been two weeks.

Is this actually normal?  Mis-stating insurance coverage, missing weird stuff on forms I'm supposed to sign, ignoring every email for a year, preventing me from seeing evidence, not attempting to follow-up with me on inconsistencies I find, etc.? I get that lawyers are busy, but this seems insane to me.  What are my options here? I'm broke, but I'm fairly smart, and almost feel like representing myself would be better at this point.

Answer: OP I know you already claimed you can't afford an attorney but at this point can you really afford not to either? You are claiming that the plaintiff actively falsified evidence against you and you fear your lawyers are not going to protect you in this case. The least you can do is get a consultation and say "this is what's happening and this is how my current lawyers are handling it but they are not handling it right". Worst case scenario is your fears are proven but then you can actively work to receive better legal aid. If this lawyer really is mishandling the case you can't be a sitting duck OP.


Title: Can I be charged with drug pos. If cops get it after house fire?

Question: I had a house fire and I had a number of illegal substances that are no longer in the house and obviously didn’t burn but were taken. The police called me in for questioning too so am I fucked or what?

Answer: Yes, you can absolutely be charged under those circumstances.Answer #2: This is literally exactly how I got a felony conviction so absolutely. Get a good lawyer. Sorry.Answer #3: I certainly am not a lawyer, but dude- your post history!Answer #4: Don’t stress to much. Your 100% percent ahead of the game having not spoken or given them a statement. Most people in jail or prison tell on themselves hoping for some sort of leniency.  Also if your fire was very destructive but wasn’t caused by the illegal products then they may not be to stressed.  So did they recover the drugs? Answer #5: Hire an attorney.


Title: Is she faking it? What is my risk?

Question:
Edit:  Washington State

Was in a car accident in September 2013. I didn't even feel the impact, there was very minimal damage to either car...my car got the front license plate ripped off and that's it.  But she's claiming a compression fracture in her T1 vertebrae

Driver of car 2 has suddenly, 5 months later, decided that her back hurts and has hired a lawyer...allegedly this lawyer has done an "asset search" on me, which is interesting because I own literally nothing. My net worth today is about -$25,000 So far they are only talking to the insurance company...but the claims adjuster called me the other day "just to let me know" about the lawyer and the potential for litigation.

My hunch is that the woman is just trying to pressure the insurance company to pay her the maximum amount of my personal injury coverage, even though she isn't entitled to it.  There are pictures of her all over facebook having a grand ol' time in life in the months since the accident, including many pictures of her kids sitting on or leaning on her back. Not one photo showing a grimace, interesting posture, a back brace, neck brace or any other kind of indication that she was in pain.

I don't own anything...but my hunch is that she searched the property records on the house I live in (with my parents) and figured that I have something to get.  The property I live on is worth something, but I'm not. I don't own it.  She and her father (who came to pick her up at the accident) also saw the Mercedes I was driving (it's 17 years old and worth nothing)...he started babbling about "suing the guy in the Mercedes" the second he showed up to the scene..

So what's my risk here?  I suspect she has underinsured motorist coverage on her policy...and suing me makes no sense, I'm two years post bankruptcy and I literally have nothing...I don't even own the clothes I'm wearing. I was unemployed for two years, just started part time work again, and my wife hasn't worked since 2009. The only thing we own that we have been able to hold on to is a 7 year old Volvo that we own free and clear (on a rebuilt title).

Answer:
 > decided that her back hurts

While insurance fraud is a real thing, and happens more often than anyone would like to admit, it's worth noting that it's quite common for accident injuries to go unnoticed for days, weeks, even months after an accident.

Also, people usually don't post painful pictures to Facebook. They retake them showing them looking happier, even if the happy pain-free appearance is fake. That's not proof.

Just FYI...


Title: Being charged (19m) with reckless driving and other stuff for my friends (19m) injury (NV)

Question: All my friends were in town for the holidays so we all got together to go bowling. We get done bowling end up going into the parking lot and having fun just kids being kids. Running around hitting each other etc for fun obviously. Well one thing lead to another and one of my friends jumped on the hood of my car and we start driving around in the casinos parking lot slowly and he falls down and hits his head and has a seizure. The ambulance was called while we were taking care of him until they came and the ambulance called the police and they ended up arresting me for reckless driving and some other stuff (its a felony). I spent the night in jail and bailed out the next morning. Is there anything I can do other than lawyer up my friend doesn't want to press charges or sue. But the state is charging me not him. He is okay now and out the hospital right now and is back home. We are all 18-19 and I don't want a felony on my record which will ruin my life. When we were all just having fun and two mistakes lead to this. Is there any way I can get the charges dropped or at least reduced or should I just go and speak to an attorney?

Answer: It's not up to your friend whether charges are filed. You should only talk to your attorney about this. Expect at a minimum to be on probation for a while. Answer #2: 100% go speak to an attorney. Take this seriously. A felony can dramatically impact the rest of your life. What you spend to hire an attorney is a drop in the bucket compared to a lifetime of lower wages and being limited in your career.


Title: (BC, Canada) bought a car while married, my husband and I separated 6 months ago and now he's trying to take the car from me

Question:
So my STBXH and I bought a car in 2016 after 8 months of marriage. The loan and title are I'm his name because he has better credit but the insurance has me as the primary driver because he doesn't have a license. We separated in July of 2017 and he's been using the car as a stick every time he doesn't get his way. By that I mean he would threaten to cancel the insurance and take the car constantly. I'm the one who has been keeping funds in the joint account which pays the loan and insurance through PAD.

The insurance expires on Wednesday and I told him that we needed to renew it and add me to the title or I wasn't going to keep paying. He's blown up at me, going back and forth between saying that things can stay the same or he's gonna take the car.

Today things hit a boiling point. He told me he has someone willing to make the loan payments and drive the car and that he'd be coming to get it. I told him to get fucked. The whole day has been basically going around in circles about this. He's threatening that he's just going to show up and take it, that he'll report it stolen, etc. I've told him that if he won't cooperate with renewing the insurance and at the least keeping things the exact same, I'll stop paying the loan and put the car in storage until it gets repossessed.

My question is... Do we have equal legal right to the car? If he reports it stolen, will the police call him on his shit and say it's a civil matter or can I actually get in some trouble? Until a judge makes a decision about the car am I under any obligation to hand it over? Can one of us buy the other out and if we do, would we be obligated to pay half of the full cost of the car and loan interest, of just what's been paid? Do payments I've been making on the car since separating count as joint payments or are they a point in my favor?

This is all a mess and I wish I'd never bought a car this way but such is life.

Answer: You need a family law lawyer like yesterday. These are all things that they can advise you on. It will also reduce having to deal with your husband's threats.


Title: Guy publicly threatens community of people, sexually harasses female members, and makes people feel unsafe of going to events. What can we do about it?

Question:
I'm going to try and keep this short and comprehensive.

I am a member of a huge gaming community in Northern California, and there is an individual who recently got banned from attending events and posting on the discussion boards in our Facebook group, which has thousands of members.

The individual was banned because, like the title suggests, he has sexually harassed a lot of female players in the community through online messaging. He has also made threatening remarks including one that says (verbatim) "This community will burn one day... You took the one thing I loved to do away from me... I want everyone here dead... DEAD..." In addition to the threats, he once publicly announced that he was going to commit suicide and that he was hiding in a place nobody could find him, and our community rallied together to find where he was, and worked with the police until we found him hiding in a Starbucks and had him detained.

Long story short, he scares the hell out of a lot of us. It doesn't matter whether he means what he says or not, what is important is that people don't feel safe because of this person, and his behavior shouldn't be something that we have to sit around and tolerate. And plus, what if he made good on his threat and decided to harm people?

Is there anything we can do about this? Thank you.

Answer: Hi, I'm one of your tournament organizers and community leaders. We have already contacted the police and are submitting evidence to support our story. I promise you that are doing and will continue to do everything we can to keep our community safe.


Title: [Texas] School wants us to get "community service" to graduate

Question:
As said in title, my school (private school) wants us to get 5 hours of community service in order to graduate. It cannot be signed off/done for family/guardians and has to be something along the lines of volunteering at a homeless shelter. If we do not complete this, they will bar us from graduating. This seems very illegal, is there anywhere I can report them to? Is there any rights I have against this that would hold up?
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 > This seems very illegal

100% legal.

Five hours is not literally nothing, but it's practically nothing. This is a time-honored tradition (we had to do 200) and is completely legal for a private school.


Title: I was removed from the Board and as CEO of the company I have built over the last 30 years, I have a trademark on the name and my likeness. We are in other, unrelated litigation, can I send a cease and desist on the use of the name?

Question:
Long story short, I built this company from the ground up over the last 30 years.  The board removed me as CEO and from the board in a bit of a shady fashion.  We are currently in litigation over it.  However, I have the trademark for the name of the company and for my likeness.  They are still using the name and my face to do business.  Can someone point me in the right direction as to whether or not I can send a cease and desist order?  Do I have any ground here whatsoever?

&#x200B;

Thanks in advance.
Topic:
Intellectual Property

Answer: If you're in litigation, you should have an attorney.  You'll want to ask them, not only to see if you can legally, but to make sure that it wouldn't have an adverse effect on your case.


Title: (IL) Wrongful DUI?

Question:
I was driving 12 miles on a flat because it was dark and couldn't see  to change it.  A truck driver called me in saying I was driving on a flat. I park at my home, decide to wait until the morning to change the tire.  Home for about 45 mins-1hr and had six drinks.  Then I went to retrieve a case of water from my car that I had purchased previously that day. I unlocked my car (no fob), didn't even open the front door and proceeded to get the case of water from the BACK seat. A cop slowly entered my apartment parking lot.  He assessed the situation about the tire and tells me that he had received a call about someone driving on a flat. He asks me if I had been drinking and to take a field sobriety test.  I was honest and told him I had been here for an hour and had several drinks. I refused the field sobriety because I didn't think it was necessary because I hadn't been driving the vehicle, nor were the keys ever in the ignition.  He then tells me I am being arrested on the suspicion of driving under the influence.  They also asked to search the vehicle and I consented.

What are my chances here on fighting this?  I have already hired a lawyer but would still just like some general input for others that have seen this situation before.

Answer:
 > I have already hired a lawyer but would still just like some general input for others that have seen this situation before.

Be honest when you talk to your lawyer.


Title: Silly hypothetical; a company did an online contest. The fine print said you needed to use a particular hashtag. The winner did not use the hashtag.

Question:
I’m just annoyed. I wanted to win this thing. I read the Terms, it said to use a hashtag. I saw no one was, so I thought I had a good change.

I emailed them and asked for the winner name (which it said I could do in the Terms). They told me the winners name. I looked up there “winning” comment and they did not follow the rules.

So I called the company out in an email (a nice one) and they were rude back.

Can I say companies get sued over this kind of stuff? They are a big company so I know it won’t scare them, I’m just curious. Can I say the winner is not eligible? Anything I can say I’m not thinking of?

In California, USA

Thanks!!

Answer:
 >Can I say companies get sued over this kind of stuff? They are a big company so I know it won’t scare them, I’m just curious. Can I say the winner is not eligible? Anything I can say I’m not thinking of?

You can *say* anything you want to them.  You can say that it violates moon law, or that it's against your rights as a person who owns Spongebob DVDs.

If you're bound and determined to get the company in trouble, however, you would need to:

a) figure out where the company is headquartered.

b) read all the fine print of the contest to make sure that there wasn't a way of entering and winning that did *not* require the entrant to use a specific hashtag.

c) report them to the appropriate regulatory agency.

That won't mean that *you* win, it just might get the contest cancelled or the company fined.


Title: My Dad was just arrested for refusal to present my 15 year old brother to the police.

Question:
These events took place extremely early yesterday morning.  my brother is a 15 year old minor in the state of North Carolina who has been accused of providing alcohol for his fellow minors. one of these other minors got alcohol poisoning and had to be brought to a hospital, but was oked by the next day. The police arrived to confront my brother around 4 am and was turned away by our (read slammed the door in their faces) father because the police were being hostile. A hour ago they came back and arrested my father for refusing to present my brother. Do they have to right to arrest him for not presenting my brother? and if so what legal consequences do my father and brother face?

Edit- Also we believe my brother will be arrested at school tomorrow, what consequences does he face? he plans on getting arrested and then asking for a lawyer and our parents and saying nothing else. ( or just our mother if our father is still under arrest.)

Final Edit- Everything seems good. my Father got out without any bail and has a court date for a most likely going to be dismissed charge, and my brother has yet  to be arrested. Thanks a lot for all the commenters who helped out and gave advice!

Answer:
 Your father refused to comply with a (presumably) lawful police order, and did so knowing that he was obstructing a police investigation. The police definitely had a right to arrest him for that.

There's no way for us to know what consequences they're likely to face; that depends on a lot of inherently local factors. They need to get a lawyer.


Title: [US] Cameras ok in bedrooms to prevent false rape claims?

Question:
From the US.

Someone in another sub mentioned his friend has security cameras rigged in his bedroom because he had some run-ins with some shady women that accused him of rape. He never answered me if this guy told the women they would be filmed beforehand. Another user said that within someone's home you have no reasonable expectation of privacy, *which I understand*, but tbh its just a wee bit disconcerting, doesn't sound right & I'm incredibly curious about the actual legality of it all.

*edited for some clarification sorry

*edit 2 [link to our discussion](https://np.reddit.com/r/insanepeoplefacebook/comments/6nrvvt/what_the_actual_fuck/dkchg9u/)

Answer: Yeah, it's not legal to record sexual encounters without consent.


Title: California - Stepparent claiming stepchildren asset/property during divorce

Question:
Stepfather and mom owned a warehouse together; they each ran separate businesses within that space. Stepfather was discovered to be engaged in criminal activity including stealing from mom's business, and is facing criminal trial as well as divorce.
6+ years ago, mom gave OP money to buy a house. The money came exclusively from profits of mom's business. The house is titled under OP's name, and OP has been paying her back over time.
Stepfather is claiming that the money used for the house was marital property, and that this gives him a claim on the house itself. The timing of this is particularly inconvenient since OP was about to sell the house.
Questions:
Does Stepfather have a chance of prevailing on his claim?
Even if Stepfather can't win, can he prevent OP from selling the house while it is in dispute?
Separately from the property dispute, OP fears physical harm from stepfather. What can he do to safeguard himself and his family?
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Answer:
 There's a lot of information here that is relevant to your personal situation but not so much to your legal situation, and wading through that long post makes it less likely that you'll get a good answer. I'm not a lawyer and can't offer you insight on your legal questions, but I can give you a TLDR that might get more responses. If I've misunderstood any critical fact, let me know.

Stepfather and mom owned a warehouse together; they each ran separate businesses within that space. Stepfather was discovered to be engaged in criminal activity including stealing from mom's business, and is facing criminal trial as well as divorce.

6+ years ago, mom gave OP money to buy a house. The money came exclusively from profits of mom's business. The house is titled under OP's name, and OP has been paying her back over time.

Stepfather is claiming that the money used for the house was marital property, and that this gives him a claim on the house itself. The timing of this is particularly inconvenient since OP was about to sell the house.

Questions:

1. Does Stepfather have a chance of prevailing on his claim?

2. Even if Stepfather can't win, can he prevent OP from selling the house while it is in dispute?

3. Separately from the property dispute, OP fears physical harm from stepfather. What can he do to safeguard himself and his family?


Title: My apartment complex towed my car.

Question:
I moved into this complex March 2016. When I moved in I had to give them the info of my vehicle, make and model, color, licence plate number. In Dec the sent out a few emails stating they would be requiring residents to get a sticker for their car to park in the complex. I work all the time and was not able to get by the office during their hours of operation to get said sticker. January 17th my car was towed resulting in a $451 tow fee to get my car back. I expressed my anger with the complex and stated that while I did not have a sticker at the time I did provide all details about my vehicle when I moved in. I asked if they gave the tow company a list of known residents vehicles. They did not. They stated that the tow company comes in a takes any vehicle without a sticker, currently 2 or 3 vehicles a day. I am finding it hard to believe this is OK as I never signed anything regarding parking when I moved in. Do I have any recourse in this matter? Thank you for your help guys and gals.

Note: I live in TX

Edit: Well, shat. Thank you for the info redditors

Answer: No recourse. You were told you needed a sticker and never got one. You were told you couldn't park there without a sticker. You did.


Title: Do I need extra insurance to be a pizza delivery guy?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You need to ask your employer if they are providing any insurance.  You also need to look at your personal policy because many auto policies exclude business use.


Title: How do I get an ID/birth certificate if I have no info? KS

Question: Not sure if this is the right place for this. I live in KS and am moving into a new apartment with my fiance. I come from a bad background and my parents have gotten rid of all of my info. I don't know my social security, don't have a birth certificate, no photo id. Is there a way to start from scratch to gather this information again? I can't get a birth certificate without a SS# and I can't get that without an id. Which I can't get without a birth certificate. Any help is appreciated.

Answer:
 Your school has your info. Do/did you have a student ID?Answer #2: This definitely sounds like you'll need to sort this out in person.

[Link to Social Security Administration office locator](https://secure.ssa.gov/ICON/main.jsp)

You might want to shoot them a message first so they can tell you how they can help you and what they need from you.Answer #3: A driver's license may be used to get a new SS card.  Do you know your number?

If you know the hospital where you were born, and if you bring your license, or a utility bill with your name, or a paystub, they may help you get  the birth certificate.

This may be the way to start: [**How to Replace Your Lost or Destroyed Vital Documents**](https://www.usa.gov/replace-vital-documents#item-213436)


Title: Girls bf is sending me death threats

Question:
Long story short, bought nudes off a girl I went to school with, then posted them to a site. Now her boyfriend or guy friend is threatening to kill me and saying all this stuff about how he's gonna find me if I don't delete these pictures. Is there anyway for me to legally get in trouble for posting those pics? Since I bought them off her? I've been compliant and been working on getting said pics deleted because it is such a big deal to this person I guess. Could he get in legal trouble for sending me death threats? Help me out please. Indiana
Edit: I am aware that was a dick thing to do. And I am still working on getting said pics deleted. Site is hard to get pics removed for some reason, even if you posted them.

Answer:
 Seriously?  Yes, there is criminal liability & civil liability for posting these images.

Just because you buy something doesn't mean you have the right to publicly post it.

Delete the pictures, and stop being an asshole.Answer #2: You are an incredible douche bag, yes they can press charges on you, and I hope they throw the book at youAnswer #3: > Is there anyway for me to legally get in trouble for posting those pics?

Yes. The type of trouble depends on what state you are in though.


Title: Starting a business like Uber for cuddling. Friends are worried about safety.

Question:
The cuddlers are  contract workers just like Uber. And all parties involved sign a disclaimer saying the company is not responsible.

Would I be held liable if something goes wrong? How can I protect myself and the contract workers?

Location: Birmingham Alabama

Answer:
 As this goes to the core of your business model you will need a real life corporate lawyer to go through this with you in order to determine and then limit your liability.

Frankly though this strikes me as a bad idea, first off because you are requiring your "contract workers" to be in close physical contact with strangers in an uncontrolled environment. That's dangerous and if one of them dies you *will* be sued no matter what your contract says.

Second it's a poor business model. Whilst I haven't done the market research I highly doubt that there are enough non-creepy people out there who are so starved of human contact as to make this a viable business. Nor will you find many people out there willing to have their personal space so intimately invaded for a dollar. Not when they could enter the sex trade and have their space much more lucratively invaded in a controlled environment (even street walkers have pimps for protection, you aren't even providing that).

In short I'd give this one a miss.

Source: International business grad student.Answer #2: There are all kinds of liability that could come up, and there's no single magic waiver to fix that.  This sounds like a pretty terrible idea, but if you're actually serious you'd need at least one attorney to help you put this together, if not a whole team.  You're basically creating a placement service for rapists.  Answer #3: > Would I be held liable if something goes wrong? How can I protect myself and the contract workers?

You get business insurance.  Insurance companies deal with this all the time.  Well, except for the fundamental idea of cuddling.


Title: Landlord wants me out by august with no lease. What are my rights?

Question:
We moved in Feb 2018 to an apartment in Boston. Signed a year lease, never renewed. And now we've been living lease free for over 1 year. My landlord called me today to inform me that she wants us to move out in Aug. She insisted because we didn't renew our lease that we are automatically tenants at will. I read some places, we would be considered tenants at sufferance- which may or may not have different implications?  Bottom line I just want to know: What are my rights?

Under normal circumstances I would be more flexible about moving mid year. But with the current pandemic, I anticipate there being a shortage of vacancies, difficulties viewing places, and barriers to simply operationalizing a move (hiring movers, getting uhaul, etc.).

Any advice welcomed and appreciated.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 > What are my rights?

You need to move out. That's more than enough notice, and very nice of your landlord to provide it this early.Answer #2: She just gave you a 4 month notice.

What are your rights to what? Rights to force her to let you stay there?


Title: DE - Emergency Vehicle Runs Red Light

Question:
Hello /r/legaladvice, bit of a general legal question here.  I had an accident with a city emergency vehicle in Wilmington, Delaware last week.  I was roughly 30-40 yards away from an intersection, and was driving the speed limit.  The traffic signal switched from red to green, so I continued at my current speed.  As I approach the intersection (10 or so yards away), I see a firetruck running the red light.  I try to swerve to avoid contact, but still collided with the fire truck.

The vehicle did have it's lights and flashers on, but I was not able to hear or see the truck around the blind intersection. I believe the driver was reckless, and went through the red light at an excessive speed.   I have a witness stating that the light was green, but there was no camera at the intersection.  I was not cited at the scene of the accident by the officer, but was informed by my insurance that I am "at fault".  Thankfully, I sustained no injuries in the accident, but truly feel that this claim should be processed through the city's insurance and not my own.

I scanned the post history and FAQs regarding this subject, but many of the responses simply advised to file an insurance claim, which I have already done.

1. How do I file an administrative claim for damages against the city?  Does this action require an attorney?
1. What type of attorney would take this case?  Almost all of the car accident attorneys I can find are almost exclusively injury attorneys.

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you, and I hope you all have a great new year!

Answer:
 The blind corner does not explain you not hearing the siren.

Was the vehicle using a siren at the time of the collision? Answer #2: Contact the city and ask how to file a claim with their insurance.  If they deny you, you'd need to proceed to sue them.  You can contact your state bar association for referrals there.


Title: Traiffic Lawyer never appeared in court

Question:
Hi guys,

So a little background about my situation. I got a speeding ticket in December in California. I was told I was going 41 in a 25.

Anyways I get my ticket in the mail a month later. My payment date fell on a Sunday and the court was closed and it was the last day (was so caught up with school I forgot all about the ticket) I was worried and called a lawyer so ask what I should do. He said i have until Monday to pay since the court was closed he said that for $200 he’ll take the case for me so I don’t have to worry about anything.

After some questions I agreed. He said he would be updating me every step of the way. Months passed by and I never got updates back from him. When I would call the office they’d say they’re just waiting on the court. However I just got a letter in the mail for a failure to appear in court and that I have to pay $300 on top of my fine. I contacted the lawyers office but he never got back to me.

I was wondering what I should do? Do I tell the court about the whole situation and keep trying to contact the lawyer?

Answer:
 Complain to the state bar association. Unfortunately you are on the hook for this. However at your new court date the judge may give you leniency if you show proof you hired a traffic attorney. Answer #2: You are really going to want to hire a lawyer now. Call the state bar to complain about the that other lawyer and ask for recommendations when you call. Answer #3: Did you sign any papers with this attorney?  Have any written communications?  Did you pay by check or credit card?

Have you checked on the state bar website to see if he's licensed or has been previously disciplined? (cabler.org)

I'm asking these questions because your answers may have bearing on how you should proceed.


Title: Statute of limitations on racist comments from your landlord?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Lol what a special flower he must be. Answer #2: No. There is nothing he can do about a landlord describing someone as black.


Title: [NC] Landlord claims to have never gotten my check, wants a check for double rent this month

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You need to pay rent for every month you are there. The LL losing the check does not mean that you don't have to pay for that month. As u/OneRedSent said, ask the LL to pay the stop payment fee. Answer #2: You can ask her to pay the stop payment fee, but she'll probably refuse (as a landlord that has hard every story imaginable about where the rent check went, I probably would refuse too unless I knew that I personally lost it), and you will need to pay her the rent one way or the other.