Title: Father sued VA for brain tumor, died. His wife pursued lawsuit. VA settled for 400k. I agreed to 20k. Lawyer took percent of fee from my 20k.

Question:
So, the title sums it up in as few words as possible My bio father died from a brain tumor. He sued the VA for taking so long to diagnose. His wife (not my mother) as the owner of his estate followed through with the lawsuit. The VA offered to settle for 400k. My fathers wife agreed to this.

This is where they call and tell me about the lawsuit. That's right they didn't even tell me there was a lawsuit until after the VA offered to settle.

They were pretty sneaky and tried to get sign the settlement telling me I was entitled to nothing. That they could continue the lawsuit without my signature. Then they offered me 2k out of the kindness of their hearts. When I called their bluff and said I didn't feel comfortable signing the settlement agreement they caved and offered me 15k. I countered their offer and we agreed on 20k.

Mind you no percentages were discussed. The settlement literally say $20,000.00. I signed and returned the paperwork.

It's now been six weeks and I've finally received my check. I was surprised when I opened it and saw it was for just over 15k. The lawyer was nice enough to include the math shown for me. It detailed how his fee was 20 percent of the settlement. That 20 percent was divided between my portion and my fathers wife's portion.

Settlement:
Fathers wife 95%
Me 5%

Attorney fee 20% of settlement = 80k
Fathers wife 95% of 80k = 76k
Me 5% of 80k = 4K

So, I didn't agree to 15k or 20k - attorney fees. I agreed to 20k. Is this right? Fair? Normal?

Extra info that might not matter... I live in Missouri. My father and his wife lived in Virginia. The lawyer is in Maryland. I'm an adult and my father paid my mother child support until I was 18.

Answer: Why wouldn't you have to pay your share of the lawyers fees, because your stepmom got more?Answer #2: Wait...why were you entitled to anything?


Title: My ex landlord charged me 430.00$ to paint a one bedroom I lived in for a year. The paint and place was already in worn quality and disrepair. How do I proceed to remedy this(USA/CA)

Question:
So I moved into a one bedroom apartment from March 1st 2018-2019 the property was painted poorly (the gas heater was full of paint and destroyed by the painters). The walls where all at least slightly off white due to what looked like a bad cover up job with white paint. The rest of the apartment was in useable condition but everything was continually breaking down. The wood cabinets and draws has been simply painted over and no longer opened and closed properly. My rent was 1400$ but due to bad credit I paid a 2100$ deposit. I made a video the day I moved in and one the day I moved out. I have tons of pictures all the year round. I decided to move out because of the stress of dealing with constant repairs, the drain line had to be replaced, the electric outlets and switches kept shorting out. The repairs where all done by the landlord using a good plumber but a strange handyman that brought his kid around 10yo to work on electrical stuff and minor repairs. The paint on the bathtub was chipped and they promised to repaint it but never did and by the end it was half gone. I always had to hassle them for repairs. My one neighbor had similar problems as well.

The point is that it was obvious that the owner didn’t refurbish much after buying into the property a year or two earlier. The sales listing for the property online shows a boarded up outside with the same inside minus the paint over. All the fixtures are seemingly the same. This was my first apartment after homelessness and I was eager to be out of the shelter home and hotels with my wife and son. I looked at the deposit regulations for Los Angeles and they seemed stern and straightforward, 21 day to send the check with documentation of work for reasonable deductions for non wear and tear damage.  Well I moved out March 1st. I reminded the manager at 21 days and he said it was sent. I received nothing for days and then threatened legal action. Promptly a picture of a certified mail receipt was sent just this past Saturday April 6th (16 day late). I received it today. There are no receipts from licensed contractors showing the work just a refund form filled out with deductions.The check has a 50$ deduction for a grease stain in the garage (which I suppose if fair). 100$ for cleaning even though I cleaned, but he claims the oven, fridge, and bathroom where still dirty. The most unbelievable and definitely undeserved is a 430$ charge for repainting.

To make matters worse I dealt only with a real estate agent as the property manager. My check including the deposit went into a trust account under his name and business name. He keeps telling me he’s not the owner and it’s not his problem. I had to threaten to file a complaint against his license and sue the owner to even get them to send the check out. The check came with the name of another holding company and no name for of the home owner.

Finally, I moved to Out of state to live with family so what is a matter I would usually try to litigate myself (nal but not legally illiterate) in small claims is complicated. I know the lease agreement caps recoverable legal fees around 500 but idk if I can get travel cost back as well. Also I’m not sure any lawyer wants part of my money to help, I assume it will cost me more than I would recover.

So my big question is first do I deposit this check? And second how can I get reasonable legal help with fighting for the rest of my money back?

I already told them I intend to sue unless they send me the 430$ for the painting cost. So far I have no response from them.

Thank you in advance for your help!
Topic:
Real Estate law

Answer: You wouldn't just be suing for $430. You'd sue for the total amount withheld that you didn't agree to before it was withheld ($580) plus twice the total deposit ($4,200).


Title: Our school is currently collecting all plastic bottle caps after students purchase them. It is not a choice for students to give them up, and they are forced to, despite the fact that they are the ones who bought them from the school. Do they have permission to do this?

Answer: Sounds like the school is selling you a bottle without a lid. There is no law that says that they can't sell a "lid-less" product. In turn, you are free to not purchase their "lid-less" beverage and instead, buy it from your local grocery store. Answer #2: Why are they collecting them?Answer #3: Are they taking your caps you bring from home?Answer #4: Are the caps being removed at the time of sale, or is the school demanding they be surrendered later? Answer #5: I don't really get it. Why are students buying bottle caps? Why is the school taking them away?


Title: Can I punch holes in documents to store them in a binder?

Question:
Can I [punch holes](http://thumbs2.ebaystatic.com/d/l225/m/mgZZ8n3dVlON7D3f3rDrTow.jpg) in my documents so that I can store them in a [binder](http://www.allprosoftware.com/A-ZTabs/fullpage/tabs.with.binder.jpg) or would it make them invalid? In particular, can I do that for bills, letters from various agencies and companies, bank account statements, etc?

I would *not* be punching holes in signed agreements. I live in the UK. By *invalid* I mean invalid in any possible scenario (as a proof of address, proof of transaction etc). Thank you.

Answer:
 I can't imagine that it would have any legal effect whatsoever. Lawyers punch holes in things all the time for that exact purpose. You might want to ask at /r/LegalAdviceUK  - i mean you wear wigs over there, so who knows what rules might apply to holes.

That said, this is the 21st century - so you might as well just scan them and keep the record that way.


Title: death certificate for missing person

Question:
Long story short, my brother is missing and presumed dead. After two months of searching, questioning, and police investigation, everything points to him being gone, but with no real idea where his remains could be (big, rural county; no solid leads). He had very few resources. If he were alive someone would have heard/seen something by now.

My question is regarding the process for a death certificate. I've tried searching on the procedure in my state (KY), but have thus far turned up nothing useful. There is currently a life insurance policy for him, but it ends on his 26th birthday (a few months from now) and is useless without a death certificate.

Before I go any further I feel the need to clarify that I am NOT trying to cash in on my brother's death. I adored him and am devastated at losing him. I would give anything to have him alive. But I also want to do right by him in his death. That money would be put aside for when/if his remains were found, to give him proper closure. And to hold a memorial service for a young man that was loved by many and lost too soon. Anything beyond that would be donated to help those who could be prevented from suffering similar fates.

I just want to know if there is anything I can do.

Answer: On the life insurance, review your policy. You may still be covered even though formal presumption of death can't be established until the policy has lapsed.Answer #2: I'm sorry you're going through this. Sadly, most states require *years* for a person to be missing before they can be declared deceased, not months. Typically, it's 7 years.


Title: Backing out of a parking spot, looked both ways (me and my wife) and backed into a car I did not see. The driver was a teenage girl, with no insurance. And pretty sure no drivers license. (She went a got her mother from the store after) We exchanged only phone numbers. Should I pursue this further?

Question:
Topic:
Traffic and Parking

Answer: You failed to see a vehicle that was there to be seen. Unless the other driver was speeding or distracted (e.g. on a cell phone) you don’t have much of a case. Further, many jurisdictions place a high onus on the reversing driver Answer #2: TN agent here. The other driver not having insurance or valid license has no bearing on your liability for damages you caused by not making certain it was clear for you to back out.


Title: Boyfriend's fling is still stalking us for more than a year despite multiple requests to stop. I am scared.

Question:
I got redirected from "relationships" to this sub.

this I have previously made a post about my boyfriend's fling interfering with his and my life. Feel free to read it if you want to. If not - main details are below.

So basically, my boyfriend’s (I will call him “M”) fling (“C”) hasn’t left us alone.After the moment I mentioned about in my last post, as in her making up false accusations about M, she decided to contact me through a, yet another, fake account and everything has escalated way too far once again...

**The backstory**

For those who don't want to read my previous post, this is the back-story: before meeting me, my boyfriend (I will call him M) met a girl (I will call her C) two years ago online.

At first, their relationship was purely platonic, but as time went by, they developed feelings for each other and took the relationship one step further - to sexually texting. Although they were never in an official relationship, but as C was finishing school, she decided to move from the US to the UK, to a city where my boyfriend is currently living, to attend the same university and faculty as he is. M tried to clarify multiple times if she is doing this because of him, but he was told "no".

As the spring break came, M came back to his home city in Asia (where we both live) and met me. After roughly a month we started dating.

M let C know, that he is now in an official relationship and would like to return to the way things previously were with them - to platonic communication. C didn't take the news quite well, asked for closure and within around a month they stopped communication fully.

As time went on, she contacted my boyfriend a few times, but got assertive declines for any sort of communication.As the year of 2017 ended, in early January, I noticed a girl watching my Instagram stories. Since she had the same university as my boyfriend, mentioned in her description, I asked M whether she was a friend of his. After I had asked he told me about her. It was decided that I ignore her looking through my social media, since she might just be curious, which is understandable.But as time went by - she started obsessively checking out every story of mine, liking my posts etc. It came to the point, that she started watching some of my friends’ and my family’s pages, so I texted her to stop. I blocked her main account as well as fake accounts that I thought to be her's. Things stopped. For a bit.

Just within a few months she reached out to me, through a fake account once again, with false accusations about my boyfriend, saying, that he made “verbal advances” on her.

**The new stuff**

**2 months ago: admitting to lie and stalk**

After the last thing I mentioned about in my last post, as in making up false accusations about M, my boyfriend and I decided to make sure that her current partner is aware of what is going on. We wrote messages, sent it to him on Instagram, but as we hit the "send" button, we thought that we might be doing a wrong thing. We decided to delete the messages and block his account, so that they didn’t go through. The choice of messaging her boyfriend was wrong, emotional and impulsive. We decided we won’t interfere with her relationship.

As soon as the messages were sent, unsent and he was blocked, C messaged both my boyfriend and I, claiming: “I know both of you tried to text my boyfriend (because he still got the notification of getting new messages, he simply couldn't open them, because they were unsent). Well guess what, he loves me even more now. I am so happy with my 6’3 boyfriend”.Her message was really strange and oddly specific.

Even though M decided to instantly block her, I decided to engage in conversation and explain one more time, why she needs to stop doing what she is doing. Although it was rough at first, the dialogue later on became more civil and she has confessed through text of the following things:

* that she has make up accusations about my boyfriend “verbally advancing” on her;
* that she just wants to mess his life up;
* that she feels betrayed, even though they were never official or never exclusive;
* that he never made any promises about their future in the UK and didn’t ask her to attend his uni;
* that she admits stalking me and agrees that it is creepy etc.

So, basically, my fears that M might have been dating her and then started cheating on her with me (like many on reddit have suggested) have been fully resolved. She admitted, that in her mind, she thought they were monogamous, although monogamy, commitment and being in an official relationship were never discussed.

I tried to be as reasonable and understanding to what she had to say as I could. At a point, it looked like we reached a conclusion. As a result, she apologized for her actions and promised to leave me and my partner alone for good.

**2 days ago: C calls my partner**

So my boyfriend is now back in the city where he studies for his last year. Everything was fine during the first week, but he got a strange call a few days ago.During our usual Skype call, his phone started ringing 02:00 AM his time. He was hesitant to pick it up, but did eventually since it might have been something urgent. It was C calling. Drunk as hell.

My boyfriend put the phone on speaker and asked her why she is calling him so late and why can’t she simply leave him alone. The conversation was following:

**C** \- I am calling to end things peacefully.

**M** \- End what peacefully? Anything between us ended more than a year ago.

**C** \- I know, I just don’t want you to hate me. Why do you hate me?

**M** \- Are you serious? You have been making up false claims about me and trying to break my girlfriend and I apart - that’s not enough?

**C** \- I still don’t get why you hate me.

**M** \- If you want my forgiveness or something - you have it. Please leave me and my girlfriend alone for good.

**C** \- I am not trying to get back with you.

**M** \- Pardon? I never said you were?

**C** \- You are such an ignorant piece of shit.

**M** \- Um... Ok, C, that’s enough. I am hanging up now. Do not contact me ever again.

**C** \- I hope you sleep very bad this night knowing that because of you I broke up with my boyfriend, am bulimic, am self-hurting and have huge trust issues.

**M** \- I am sorry to hear that. C, you need to seek help. Don't contact me again. Good bye.

At this point she started sobbing and threatening to cut herself, but hung up the call.

After this conversation, I asked my boyfriend to give me her number, so that I can talk to her directly.

I called her, asked if it is OK that I am contacting her - she said it is fine and she doesn’t mind. Basically, during the call, I was trying to calm her down, explaining, that even though she did a lot of nasty things to me and my partner, I don’t want the situation escalating to the point, where a lot of people will be stressing out and suffering. I made sure she wasn't going to harm herself. She said that now, after I called, she isn't, because she is feeling much more calm.

After that, I decided to get to the main point of my call - to remind her, that she promised to leave me and my partner alone.

After I managed to calm her down and have a very civil and peaceful conversation with her, I told her, that she needs to understand, that actions have repercussions. That she can’t expect my partner and I to be OK with this obsessive stalking behaviour for more than a year and that she should understand, that my partner intends on brining the matter to the university.

She started crying, saying she would hate that, that it would bring her to a very dark place in life. She explained, that she contacted M because she wants to be on “good terms” and not hate each other and that she does not have any feelings for him whatsoever.

She explained that she is struggling with mental issues and has no friends, because everyone thinks she is so “extra”. She said that her last boyfriend couldn’t handle her issues and left.

The result of the conversation was: I calmed her down, explained that if she ever reaches out to us, stalks us or mentions us in any way again, we are taking the matter to the university/police. She seemed to agree. Thanked me for taking my time to talk to her and promised one more time to leave us alone.

I thought it would end.

**Today: C’s instagram post**

Today I woke up seeing C’s Instagram post, saying: “I’m not going out ever again because I genuinely can’t handle the beverage as I highkey ruin my life whenever I drink too much. I love a toxic ex (who is not my last boyfriend), who wants me expelled from university”.

**Yesterday: I contant her ex**

I decided to contact C’s supposed ex an express my concern for her wellbeing and for my partner’s. Although I initially didn’t want to involve him in this, I though that having his input would help us if anything escalates any further.

He was shocked I contacted him, fearing that C did something to herself or M.

He apologized for her behaviour and said that he was aware of all the things she was doing, many of which were the reason why he broke things off with her.

This is what he told me:

* that C moved to M’s city to attend the university he does;
* that C once tried to get her ex to message us, saying horrible things and threatening to beat M up if he ever approaches her, but her ex thought it was crazy and didn’t send anything;
* he is aware that she is self-harming;
* he is aware that she has been stalking us etc.

I thanked him for his time and promised not to bother him again. He thanked me for reaching out and stated, that he wouldn’t want the police involved, because he isn’t sure how C might react.

**What do I do?**

What is this? What do I do? Do we contact the university and/or the police? And how to protect ourselves from any potential false claims arising?

**TL;DR:** Boyfriend's fling has been obsessively stalking him and I for around a year. She is making up false accusations about him, trying to get his attention through manipulation and always promises to leave us alone, but never does. What do I do?

Answer: Call the police. Seek an order of protection.


Title: Guardianship help

Question:
We're in Spokane, WA and my fiancés cousin gave birth to a baby girl and wants us to take the baby into our care.

However, the baby tested positive for meth so the mom was using while carrying the baby. CPS is now involved.

The mom doesn't want the baby and wants us to have her.

The baby is in the NICU and is scheduled to be released by the end of the week.

We just need to know what forms we need to fill out in order to get the baby in our care. The birth mom is willing to sign over all rights.

CPS told us to talk to a lawyer but they all want $$$ to talk to us. We only have 100 bucks on us.

Any help would be great.

Thank you.

Answer:
 Yes, a lawyer will want money because they provide a very valuable service. You can't take custody of a child without going through the proper legal process, and even without a lawyer you'll probably end up spending more than $100 just on court fees.

Common sense question, but if you only have $100 how were you expecting to purchase the crib/car seat/clothes/diapers/formula/pediatrician visits/and many other expenses related to having a baby? A court will expect you to be financially stable before granting you custody of a child.


Title: CA: Neighbor's dogs attacked my dogs; neighbors not willing to pay 100% of vet bill

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 >One of our dogs suffered a chewed off part in his buttocks, back, and several other parts. Our other dog suffered the same injuries, but replacing the chewed off butt with neck instead.

I'm upset, I feel like there is no way your neighbor did not notice his dogs had injured your dogs to the point of drawing blood when he called his own dogs in. I'm curious, is your neighbor being a jerk about this or is he basically saying "I'm sorry this happened but the money to pay you back just isn't there so you'll have to take us to court."  Did they contact their home owner's insurance?


Title: (Canada) My father refuses to give me money that belongs to be and my sister until we are over 18. Is this legal?

Question:
Hi!

I am from Canada, and recently I have been having a bit of trouble.

My father, who me and my family have always had difficulties with, had in his divorce contract that 30% of the value of the family cabin would go to me and my little sister if he sold it. He recently did sell it, but he is refusing to tell us how much he sold it for, and he is also saying that he will hold the money until we are over 18 and we really need it. My question is, is this legal?

I would like to get my hands on the money if I can, since I am 17 and looking to maybe buy a car soon. The money would also be really helpful for university funds. So I guess my question is pretty straightforward: Does he have the right to hold that money until me and my sister are over 18, or does he have to give it to us if we ask for it?

I just want to say: If this question sounds stupid, I apologies, I know very little about the law.

Answer:
 Until you're 18, he can do whatever he likes with the proceeds, or whatever the divorce decree says. If it tells him you can't have the money until you're 18, and wear an orange shirt for a month straight, those are the terms.

Please note that spending the money on a car is generally a bad investment. Cars cost a lot and they depreciate, as in they lose value. If you can't afford a car now, without the money, consider if you really need one. Bit of life advice.


Title: Failed pre-employment drug test, wants me to pay for it.

Question:
Throwaway account for obvious reasons.

I recently received a job offer that required a background check and drug test. I will start out by saying that yes, I had taken THC edibles a few months beforehand. I had bought a box of some THC testing strips and although it showed trace amounts of THC in my system when I started, it had virtually vanished by the time I had to produce a sample and would be a guaranteed pass.

Well after the background check, they performed a physical and I failed the drug test for marijuana. Now the company that was in the process of hiring me retracted their offer (fair enough), but also stated that I owed them for the physical. Now I don't have any money (since I was looking for employment). I signed some papers, but none said in case of a fail that I would be responsible.

What can I do at this point?

Edit Location: California

Answer:
 Businesses pay their own costs to recruit and evaluate hires.

unless you signed something, politely decline. Answer #2: If you took edibles a few months before a drug test and that was it, there is virtually zero chance that it would still be in your system.


Title: (MD) My mother falsely reported my husband to the police for domestic violence. He was arrested- I'm in a different state right now. How do I get him out?

Question:
I've made several relationships post about this- but the situation has gotten incredibly serious now.

I went no contact with me mother a few weeks ago due to the fact that she and my sister were convinced my husband was abusing me even though he never has.

My mother has stopped by my house several times and left notes on the door attempting to convince me to leave him. However- the notes stopped about two weeks ago.

I'm in Colorado right now for work. My husbands brother is staying with him to celebrate Memorial Day.

An hour ago, I received a call from my brother in law informing me that the police were at my house and arresting my husband for domestic violence! I am certain my mother was the one who called it in because she is one of two people convinced he is abusing me, and she's super crazy.

I have no idea what to do- I'm terrified for my husband. I'm guessing I need to fly home now.

My questions:
1. Why was be immediately arrested? Is that legal? Do they have to release him?

2. Will whoever falsely reported him get repercussions? Can we take legal action against them?

3. Does my husband need a specialized lawyer? One of our good friends is a lawyer and drove to the station and is there- but I'm not sure what type she is.

4. He is still at the station and hour after the arrest. How do I get him out? What will the process be like?

5. Can I file for a restraining order against whoever did this?

Answer:
 They arrested him on your mother's word that he abused you? This sounds really strange. He needs a lawyer and he will likely be released without bail later tonight. I'd start calling the police district and get to a captain and make your mother out to be "crazy" and making false reports.  Get it on record that no abuse is taking place. She is crazy.  Next file for a restraining order against your mother.  Answer #2: >I'm guessing I need to fly home now.

Definitely. The process will be a lot easier if people can see the two of you together and see that you're not terrified of him. Answer #3: Sorry for being off subject but I actually reported an assault  on an ex gf of mine a while back after she sent me pictures of her bruised and bleeding from her bf at the time. I was on the other side of the country so I called her local PD hoping to get her some protection. The cops refused to do anything because I was her ex and they assumed I was lying. IMO People who falsely report crimes should always be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law that way police have more incentive to investigate reports. I actually have no clue is she's ok at this point. I hope she's in a better situation. I also hope you get your husband out. Jail is a bad place for good men to be. I'm glad you're safe.


Title: [Boston, MA] Vibrations in apartment all night, every night, preventing me from sleeping. Landlord says there's nothing he can do, won't even try to find out what's causing it.

Question:
I've seen posts here about noisy neighbors in apartments, but I think this is different.

&#x200B;

My apartment has been vibrating/shaking at night, almost every night, between 11pm - 8am. Sometimes its constant that entire time, sometimes it stops and starts multiple times, sometimes there are waves of intensity. It's enough to prevent me from sleeping (in bed, on couch, on floor), but not enough to feel it if you're just standing around in my apartment.

&#x200B;

I asked every neighbor, that I share a wall/floor with, none of them feel it or admit to causing it. I had maintenance check all appliances and HVAC system. I tried turning off all my circuit breakers when it was happening, that didn't stop it.

&#x200B;

I told my landlord about it. He said there are no elevators, generators, trash compactors, etc. near my apartment. I have complained about it 3 times in the past 3 months, and every time he says something like "I'm not sure what I can do", "I’m sorry you are not happy in your apartment", "I'm not sure what to say".

&#x200B;

I've made an effort to try to sleep despite the vibrations. I use a white noise machine, a weighted blanket, I keep the temp between 60-67 degrees, I bought blackout curtains so its pitch black, I tried meditation, I think I've developed a tolerance to sleeping pills. Unisom, Zzzquil, natural stuff like melatonin and valerian root, sometimes I take them and don't even sleep that night. I sleep about every other night. I think the lack of sleep from one night allows me to get some sleep the next night.

Answer: What's your question?


Title: How to deal with a roommate who is not paying rent [Broward County FL]

Question: I've lived in a house for a couple of years now with two other people. To make the story short, roommate A has completely fallen off the face of the Earth. I constantly try to contact him and get no reply. He is now on his 3rd month of not paying rent and on his way to the 4th. I've gotten into massive credit card debt due to this as I cannot afford to pay for both portions of rent and roommate B isn't helping with it. Short of us stopping all payments and just leaving (which I'm sure tanks my credit) what other options do I have to compell this guy to pay? I know he sees my messages, he just ignores them. We live in Broward County Florida.

Answer: Assuming you have a joint lease (most are and it sounds like you do) you are all liable for the rent to the agency, meaning you and remaining roommate have to continue to pay their portion of the rent or the landlord will evict and it will tank your credit/make it impossible to rent in the future. If just you and/or other roommate is on the lease and he is subletting month to month, you can evict them and try to get a new roommate to take their place, which is probably your best bet if he is not on the lease. You have to go after them in small claims court, though if he has no money, you can't collect. How long is left on the lease? Has he not been back at all in these 3-4 months? If he is on the lease, maybe talk to the landlord about if your lease has a clause about abandonment and if it would apply in this case? IANAL, I honestly don't know the options besides evict if he is a subtennant or collect in small claims after the fact. I don't know of any options that can get them off the lease without them agreeing to it (though if they do, the landlord will usually be fine with them leaving and a new person taking their place) without getting all of you evicted.


Title: Neighbour won't return key

Question: My neighbour and I exchanged house keys a couple years ago.  I gave him back his key (we had an argument over his loud noise) and asked for mine back many times but he is ignoring my requests.  Is their anything legally I can do?  Thanks. R.

Answer: If you no longer trust this guy to have a key to your house, you need to change the locks whether he gives the key back out not.  You have no way of knowing if he made a copy


Title: About rape, when consent is given supposedly under duress.

Question:
A hypothetical scenario:  Say,  the CEO of a company asks an employee for sex, and she consents. But suppose she did it only because she was afraid of losing her job. Is it rape? Note that, the CEO never threatens to fire her. He never puts an ultimatum. If she had denied consent, had said no, the CEO would have just let it go.

However, the woman now says it's rape, because she "assumed" the threat of losing her job, when that threat may not have existed.
If  she had said no, and the CEO threatens to fire her, only then you have a case. But she says yes, assuming the threat of losing her job, and the CEO literally has no idea, that she said it under duress. He has no intention to rape. He just was attracted to her.

I personally think the intention is important to define rape. I want to know what's the norm and the social common sense about this,  and the legal aspect of it. Is the boss never supposed to ask their employee for sex ever, even if he/she likes them?

I saw a similar scenario in a TV show recently where a robber asks sex of a female hostage and she says yes. He repeatedly tells her that it's okay if she doesn't want to do it. But she assumed the threat of death, and had sex with him. He didn't know she assumed it. He even later proposes her for marriage. But in her opinion in the TV show, she calls it rape. Many on the subreddit of the show also call it rape.

Answer:
 Abuse of power can absolutely be considered duress.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape#Consent](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape#Consent)
Consent matters:

[https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/blog/updated-definition-rape](https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/blog/updated-definition-rape)


Title: Can you copyright/trademark an idea?

Question: I’ve been brainstorming about what I want to do with my life and go to school for- I’m currently going to school for music therapy and with it being a new field, I was curious if there was a way to copyright/trademark an idea I had for creating a business in it. I’ve seen a lot online about big companies taking local peoples work/designs to sell them and once I get the blueprint for how I want to approach it I wanna make sure a bigger company can’t replicate it once it starts getting traction and sweep the rug out from under me. Any suggestions?

Answer:
 Not really.

Copyright protection is for a piece of art and trademark protection if for brand identity. For example, let's say you:

* Make shoes and put Nike swoosh logo on it. You are infringing on their trademark by using their logo to pretend to be them.

* Make a painting of the swoosh, sign it with your name, and sell it. You aren't infringing on their trademark here because you are not inducing any confusion as to that painting potentially being a Nike product. You are infringing on their copyright (potentially). They own that piece of art, simple though it may be, you can't copy it for your profit.

* You copy the patented design of the Nike Air Jordan. Even if you don't put the swoosh on it and don't pretend to be associated with Nike in any way, you are not allowed to make the same product as them.

Copyrights and trademarks are irrelevant to your issue. The closest you would have to protect "an idea" like you want would be with a patent. But even then, you can't patent a business model. I don't know exactly what you want to do, but I don't think you can have legal protection for it like you want. Maybe it can be a trade secret?


Title: [MA] My dad has a few days left to live with advanced lung cancer. We only found the prognosis out today. How can we get emergency legal assistance to create his will over the weekend?

Question: He's apparently stabilized and the hospice-at-home nurse got a blood pressure from him so we hope he'll make it through the weekend. But it was very sudden and my parents, who have been married for 40 years and have joint everything, haven't got a will prepared. Obviously we'd like to have that drafted up and him to sign it before he takes a turn for the worse. Is there some sort of hotline or service I can use to get legal assistance on the weekend? My mom has left a voicemail for a local law firm but obviously they won't get back to us until Monday.

Answer: Not a lawyer. First of all this is a crappy situation and I'm sorry you're going through this. If you can't find a lawyer to draft up a will and your father dies without a will it's called intestate and the guideline of what that entails for your state can be found [here](http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/intestate-succession-massachusetts.html).Answer #2: Call attorneys. Many work on Saturdays. If you family has a personal connection to any (even if they don't practice probate), reach out. They may be able to put you in contact with someone ASAPAnswer #3: Terribly sorry for your current situation. If your father hasn't been married before, and he doesn't finish a will before he passes, Massachusetts law says his possessions and assets will pass wholly to his spouse as a result of the intestate laws in the commonwealth. If his end goal is to merely leave everything to his wife to handle and he hasn't been married before, it probably isn't worth prioritizing drafting a will in the few days you have left, considering that everything will go to the spouse to handle anyway.


Title: (CO) My wife and I had appliances removed from our housing.

Question:
My wife and I are moving out of an apartment and to a different state, so we arranged it in a way that we could move most of our things a month ahead of time and then come back to finish it up and do some cleaning and such before the final walkthrough. We had to double pay rent for July but that was fine with us.

We came back after about 3 weeks away to the apartment that was still in our name for a couple of weeks and went inside to get to work and we noticed a few things.

1) All of the lights, fans and AC were on despite us turning them off before hand.
2) The washer and dryer were gone altogether
3) The shower no longer had a handle to operate it
4) The door to our boiler room was open with a heavy mildew smell coming from it.

At first we thought that perhaps some people broke in or something, but as it turned out, the landlord and maintenance team thought we were gone and had abandoned the apartment (despite us renting for a couple more weeks and a good amount of furniture and electronics still there).

We're financially liable for the electric over the last month which, after 3 weeks of it being on 24/7, amounted to $250 for the electric. Not to mention they stripped out appliances and rendered our shower (which I consider vital) inoperable while we could have been living there but were not.

Is there any legal avenue for us to at least make them partially responsible for the exorbitant electric bill they've incurred us? I do have a video walkthrough that I did of the whole apartment before we left for 3 weeks.

Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer: Possibly, have  you asked them how they intend to compensate you?Answer #2: This is important: Is there anything in your lease about notifying management if you are gone for an extended period of time? I work in property management. Tenants don’t often realize that a lot of things can go wrong if they just up and leave for several weeks and no one is checking on the property. It appears that at least a few of the things done were performed out or precaution to prevent any major damage from abandonment.


Title: [NY] Last day of lease, tenants haven't moved out.

Question:
We gave the tenants several-months advance notice of non-renewal and explained to them that it was due to a number of recent lease violations. Because they have been long-term tenants, we opted for non-renewal instead of eviction to give them the time to find a new place. We had emphasized that we don't intend to push forward with month-to-month tenancy, seeing as how we have served the notice of non-renewal and accepting that rent money would nullify it.

It's the last day of their lease and they haven't heard word from their agent - tenant says they have been looking but won't hear any news (good or bad) from their agent until mid-October (after holidays), well past the end of the lease.

Should I take the rent money and hand over a new Notice to Vacate in 30 Days? Should I just go straight to the courts and file a Petition and Notice to Petition? They have a very small (one month) security deposit which would make deductions for repair difficult and the missed rent for half a month would make a dent in that deposit.

How should I proceed?

Answer:
 Getting tenants out once they're holdover tenants is a really long process in NY if they don't leave voluntarily. I would suggest moving forward with filing for eviction because if you don't now and reserve them with a new 30.days notice you've just given them 2 more month where you can't get them out and will possibly end up right back where you are now, with tenants who won't leave and an eviction case on your hands.

File the petition, get a court date, you can always negotiate after you serve them, but if you give them a new notice you just have to wait and hope they actually leave like they say they're going to do.

You can always sue them for damages and add the rent for October to your petition once you actually get before a judge, though collecting in another story.


Title: My cousin has a divorce case, but his ex wife is not reachable

Question:
Location: Toronto, Canada.

My cousin brought his wife over from Pakistan through sponsorship. Now my cousin is trying to divorce her and Sue her for fraud. Long story short, she ended up using him to get to Canada and tried to get my brother in jail by claiming he beat her, just so she can get some of his money. Apparently, she cut herself and put a drop on her blood on a mattress (blood looked fresh) and claimed he beat her two months ago. Cops caught on the act she was making because her story didn't make sense. Knowing that she messed up, she confessed that it was an accident to try and stay at our address. She was let go at a shelter. My cousin has a clean record, and there was no evidence to get him charged.

The issue is, she changed her phone number, is still using my cousin's name, has a health card and a sin card. We were also told not to contact her and she is living with someone who we don't know (she did damage control, told all our family friends lies to make our family look bad). His divorce lawyer can't do anything because there is no address we can send the papers to. What should he do?

Answer:
 Your lawyer could request permission from the court for alternative means of service - via social media comes to mind.

Failing that, if you/your lawyer can provide proof that you have exhausted all means of locating and serving her, you can ask to proceed ex-parte.


Title: My girlfriend was diagnosed with leukemia and is refusing treatment, can I force her into it in the state of Florida?

Question: We have a 3 year old together and we just found out on Friday that she has leukemia. She is adamant that she wants to die and does not want treatment. I think this is the depression talking. She has been diagnosed bipolar for sometime. What can I legally do?

Answer: Her next of kin (which isn't you since you aren't married) can talk to a lawyer and see if declaring her incompetent is an option.  It's a long shot.Answer #2: You're her boyfriend, you cant force her to do anything


Title: Doctor was arrested for overwriting prescriptions?

Question: Are patients liable if their doctor was arrested for overwriting prescriptions? Since I do not have health insurance I go to a local clinic to get treatment for ADHD. To be honest, the clinic is somewhat sketchy, very obvious pill mill. I am only prescribed a low amount 10mg a day of Adderall, as that is all I need to help relive my ADHD side effects. Just heard that the owner of the clinic (a licensed doctor) is possibly facing legal trouble for overwriting prescriptions. As a patient could I possibly be facing legal trouble too even through I received fully legal prescriptions? I know my information is in their computer system, so I hope they do not try to locate me through their investigation.

Answer:
 It is very unlikely you would face any legal consequences. Unless there's something really incriminating in those records (e.g., you both agreed you don't have ADHD, but he'll write the prescription because you're supplying him hookers and blow), you are not responsible for his legal issues. You MAY be contacted by the investigators wanting to know more about his prescribing practices; it is your choice whether to talk to them. Frankly, 10mg/day of Adderall is indeed a low amount and unlikely to be of much interest to them unless they have their eye on you for other reasons.

That said, you should probably start looking around now for another doctor; if they do get shut down, you may have difficulty finding somebody else willing to accept patients from his practice.


Title: I'm being sued by the off duty police officer that I bumped into..

Question:
Texas. Last year wasn't the best year for me. My car died. Canceled my insurance.  After months of riding the bus my mother let me use her car. She had non insured drivers in her insurance. Now to the wreck. It's typical 6pm traffic, stop and go, never going more than 10 mphs. Dude infornt of me slams in his breaks. I didn't stop in time and hit him. It caused a black scuff on his bumper. My headlights broke. Wasn't that bad. I was 3 months preganant. The baby and I were fine. He was fine but told me since he was in a govt. Vehicle he has to call the police. He didn't get in an ambulance. I got served papers yesterday saying I'm being sued for more than 1,000,000.00 but no more than 10,000,000.00. The list of stuff he is suing me for is insane. I have 20 days to respond. I have no money. Not one thing to my name.  I'm now a sahm. We living in income based apartments. I don't have money for an attorney. I'm freaking out. What do the courts do with people who can't pay? Am I going to jail? Will any judge make me pay that amount? Thank you in advance for your reply.

UPDATE: Farmer's is more than happy to provide me with an attorney. Thank you all very much for your replies. Sorry my post had so many typos.

Answer:
 Inform the insurance company ASAP. Answer #2: Contact your mom's insurance company and let them verify if they won't cover you. Normally insurance follows the vehicle; but if she was regularly letting you use the vehicle she should have let the insurance company know, so they could factor your history into her rates. But if they consider it an allowed permissible use, then your mom's insurance would cover you and provide you an attorney. Answer #3: Google "Texas Legal Aid" and reach out to the organization in your area, they may be able to offer you free or low cost services.

Some examples are [Lone Star Legal Aid](http://www.lonestarlegal.org/FAQ.pl), [Legal Aid of Northwest Texas](https://internet.lanwt.org/gethelp), [Texas RioGrande Legal Aid](http://www.trla.org/get-help/do-i-qualify), or the [Texas Legal Services Center](http://www.tlsc.org/contact/intakeform.asp) just to name a few.Answer #4: This is a case where you really can't afford Not to have an attorney. Find one who will take a payment plan and can, hopefully, get the ridiculous suit dismissed.

That's the best I can suggest given you don't mention where you are. Answer #5: I doubt you'll be fine liable for a million dollars, but we have no idea what the officers injuries are or anything. You need to do all you can to get an attorney, contact your loyal legal aid office.

You're very lucky you're in TX because they cannot garnish your wages for this type of debt, so it will be based off what you can afford.


Title: New York pistol problems

Question: Long story short my father passed away and had 2 hand guns. When he passed we had to surrender the guns.  we had a friend who has a permit pick up the guns and hold on to them for us and he wants to buy them. Which is fine but  Now he keeps avoiding paying any money.  Almost a year later he still won't give us any money. what do I do?

Answer: Whoever is the legal owner of the guns can sue the person who won't pay.


Title: Need help with interpreting prerequisite policy regarding a specific course.

Question:
As far as I am aware of, a course description (including prerequisite policy) is similar to that of a legal document. As all legal documents are written, they can sometimes be confusing to the layperson and I am having difficulty interpreting the following course outline (Course names and University name has been modified for privacy):

Conceptual foundations of object-oriented programming, including data types, control structures, class library usage, encapsulation, inheritance and other abstractions; the software development process, specification and implementation, with emphasis on software engineering principles. Three lecture hours and weekly laboratory sessions. Three credits. Prerequisites: One of (1) - (3) below must be met:(1) (New high school curriculum): Two 4U Math courses, including MHF4U (Advanced Functions), with no grade below 65%.(2) Completion of 6.0 credits from University MATH courses (not including courses with second digit 5), with a grade average of (C+) or better over these credits; (3) Completion of 6.0 credits from University mathematics courses whose second digit is 5, with an average grade not below (B+).

According to the above course description, as long as a student has accomplished 6.0 credits in Math (equivalent to two courses) with a C+ average (condition (2)), the student has met the the course requirements and should be admitted into the course.
Now university administration is telling me otherwise. Even though I have met the course requirement with two courses averaging greater than a C+, university administration is informing me that the average across all Math courses will be taken into consideration. In that case I would fail the course requirements. However, the course description does not specify this but rather explicitly mentions the completion of 6.0 credits in math.

With that said, is there anything that I can refute with regards to the wording of the course description? Another reason to why my course average is low is due to a medically related issue that went undiagnosed for quite sometime, is it possible that I can use that to my advantage and help me get into this course.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated. Also note that this is a university located in Ontario, Canada.
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 >With that said, is there anything that I can refute with regards to the wording of the course description?

It's not a legal issue, it's a university policy issue.  You can escalate it up the department chain until you reach the department head, but what they say will pretty much go.

>Another reason to why my course average is low is due to a medically related issue that went undiagnosed for quite sometime, is it possible that I can use that to my advantage and help me get into this course.

No.  If you asked for accommodations ahead of time, or the school knew about it that would be one thing.  But it won't fly to try to explain away bad grades now with the whole "I had issues and struggled yadda yadda yadda."  Well, maybe it may help sway a department head if they feel bad for you, but it is in no way a "legal avenue" that you can throw out there and the school has to follow.


Title: Friend Injured while Weed Eating Neighbor's property

Question: My friend cuts some of his neighbors lawns. Went over to one of their houses and began weed eating. About 20 seconds into beginning, he hit a rock and it hit him in the eyeball (no glasses). This happened about a month ago. Has no vision in the eye. Has no vision in it. Two 4 hour surgeries so far. Is he able to sue the homeowner/homeowner's insurance company? He wasn't representing his or anyone's company while performing the service. He's hesitant to because he says "he's not that type of person". However, bills are racking up and is unable to afford them. Thanks.

Answer: How is it the neighbors fault that he did not use basic, common, probably-printed-on-the-tool, protective Eyewear?


Title: Possible Pregnancy

Question:
I have a friend who last month had unprotected sex with a girl from tinder who was visiting his state for a few weeks. They didn’t really talk until she told him about a month later, that she was pregnant and he was the father. She planned to take the pill to abort the child (I don’t know what the name of it is sorry) this last Friday. However, when my friend reached out to her and see if she went thru with it, she stops responding/contacting him. Basically, he’s stressed about not knowing whether she is keeping it or not. My question is: is there anything he can do to find out whether she is pregnant or not, or what his next steps should be assuming she keeps ignoring his questions?

Thanks guys!
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 > is there anything he can do to find out whether she is pregnant or not

No.  Her pregnancy is 100% her business until the child is born.   He has no obligations or rights of any kind until then.

> what his next steps should be assuming she keeps ignoring his questions?

Consult with a family court attorney in whatever state she lives in, because he's going to need one to represent him in any future child support or custody disputes.


Title: Is it legal to create hate website of a friend?

Question:
A friend of mine stole a few small things and $200 from me.  I've tried for months to resolve it peacefully but I get ignored.  To put pressure on her I think Id like to start by making a quick one page website of her thievery.  I'm planning to include names of her brothers, one of which is a cop.  They'll just be named, not really spoken about to try to keep them out of it as much as possible. I plan on doing this so that the pressure she may get from her brothers not wanting to be mentioned will add some pressure for her to do the right thing.
Once the website is done, which wouldn't take long, I was thinking messaging all of her friends on facebook to let everyone know who she really is.  Maybe it'll help from getting their things stolen as her history seems to show that she's a klepto.
  I also plan on taking her to court, which I doubt I will get my money for but is it possible to speak to her probation officer about the issue and get something done there?

Answer: If she stole something file a police report. Don't make the website and **definitely** don't name people not involved.


Title: Is It Legal To Shoot an Attacker In The Back After Being Arm Robbed?

Question: I'm a videographer by trade, often times I find myself in a not so nice part of town with several thousand dollars worth of equipment. If someone was to rob me at gunpoint for my belongings, then turn to run away with said belongings, would it be legal to shoot?

Answer:
 Generally speaking, you can only use the level of force necessary to stop the immediate threat of your life/safety or someone else's life/safety.

If the perp is running away from you, the threat is effectively over.  Whether or not you are charged and/or convicted will depend on the exact circumstances, the investigators/prosecutors and the judge/jury.


Title: Not sure if I committed a crime or not.

Question:
I don't know if this is the right sub to post this is or not - if not, please advise me one to post to.

I've been really pissed at this person for about two months now and have intermittently sent emails from other accounts saying what a horrible person they are. The emails are really mean, but not threatening. Like, I'm not saying I'm going to hurt this person or whatever. Just that I think they're really selfish and are going to be alone for the rest of their lives for being so mean. Yeah. Non-confrontational issues.

In my emails I talk about how his own personal servers suck - the ones he uses to host online games on basically. I say stuff like, he sucks so much no one wants to hop onto his shitty servers and that they're easily hacked because of how shitty they're set-up, etc.

It ends up one of his work servers get attacked during the time I sent an email about his server, he tells his boss and his boss is trying to open a case with the FBI.

While I'm certain that the work hack can't be traced to the IP the emails were sent from, I'm wondering if the emails themselves were a crime? I live in Denver.

Answer:
 Sounds like harassment, which you should grow up and stop.

If you're investigated for potentially hacking a server, they'll find out it wasn't you and move on.


Title: Father-in-law was not on lease, but we were approved based on his income. He has passed away. In Illinois, do we have any grounds to break our lease since we can no longer afford the rent?

Answer: no


Title: No judging please...10 yr sentence...mtr...what now?

Question:
Ok so long story short.
I got a 10 year probation sentence.
I have 1 month and 18 days left till I have finally finished it.
I had to complete a drug class.
I did not complete it and when I go report tomorrow I will test hot on my ua.
What can happen to me? I mean as far as I know they can not extend 10 years in texas. And any program they have is way longer then 2 months you know.
So what are the possible outcomes for this.

Longer version.
I have had a very very long history with drugs. I have been in and out of jail through out my 10 years. Never caught a charge just failed drug tests. I used to be a giant pos. This go around I've been doing really good. Been clean over a year. Not just clean but really working on myself, holding a job, paying bills, everything. I had a moment of weakness. It happens. So please don't be rude ok. I feel like shit enough as is!

Thank you to anyone who takes the time to respond to this!

Answer:
 You should get a lawyer and see if they may be able to try and get leniency. Not really how considering you had 10 years to do this class?Answer #2: If you haven't been revoked yet, I've got a hard time believing you will be when you've completed 99.167% of your probation. It would take a really uncaring judge to send you to jail now. 10 years is a damn long time for probation, and they'll probably expect you to slip up every now and then. It being a *recent* slip up would be the issue. Getting a lawyer couldn't hurt. Answer #3: Former Texas PO:

Is this a standard Probation or a Deffered Adjudication.?

If it is a DA, they can convict you on the charge and give you another 10 years.  If it is a regular probation, the worst that can happen to you is you can be locked up for the rest of your probation, you cannot extend a regular probation past 10 years.


Title: (USA WI) I've been working since sept 5, on supposed biweekly pay but I was just told that my first paycheck won't come until Oct 26?

Question:
Hi! I worked two jobs for this place last year, and I never had a problem. I'm back working these two jobs for this place this year, I started September 5th. I was told I'd have to wait up to four weeks for my first paycheck while my info is entered into the system. I go to check my pay stub for this upcoming Friday (10/12) and I only got paid for one job. I texted the boss of my other job and he said I won't get paid for that one until Oct 26 (almost 2 months after I started working). Is this legal? What can I do?
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 The first paycheck being delayed is pretty normal:

- Week 1 and Week 2 = Pay period A, you get paid on Friday of Week 3.
- Week 3 and Week 4 are Pay Period B and you get paid on Friday of Week 5.

That being said, the law says you must be paid within 30 days of the time worked. You need to tell your boss this is unacceptable and that you need to be paid.  Your options are to file an unpaid wage claim with the Labor Department.


Title: Change first, middle, and last name after marriage (Texas)

Question:
I have always felt uncomfortable with my first name; I have a short,  3-letter boy's name as my first name, let's say it's "Joe." My whole life I've been assumed to be a boy, addressed as "sir" in professional emails,  and even recieve mail from my credit card company addressed to "Mr. Joe LastName." When people meet me in person,  I'm always asked if my name is short for anything. The only thing I've liked about my name is my middle name, say "Hannah," I feel it's the only part of my name that gives it femininity (and I'm pretty girly).
I'm getting married in a few months and will be dropping my middle name so my new name will be "Joe LastName HisName" and losing the only part of my name I like. Is it possible to change it when I get married to "Joanna LastName HisName" as a nod to my former middle name?
I've looked though tons of other posts but I can't see anything that really relates to this. I have also read that the new name has to be some combination of the names used on the marriage certificate. Since I'm combining my first and middle names, does that count?

Answer: No. You cannot change your first name after marriage. You will have to go through the court process to change that


Title: I have a summons for a misdemeanor for a false inspection sticker, should I hire an attorney?

Question: I live in NY and was pulled over for an expired inspection. Mine had expired back in 2017 but I couldn't afford the work needed to get a valid one so I came up with the genius idea of taking my moms off of her old car that was still valid. Anyway when I was pulled over I was honest with the cop about it, and he gave me a ticket for a fraudulent inspection and a summons for the end of January. He said that the judge would most likely knock it down to a violation, but I'm still nervous and have 0 experience with court/legal issues. I have a clean driving record, and no prior arrests or anything on my record. I spoke to an attorney I know and waa advised to provide the following documents with me :a copy of my driving record, my diploma showing that I have a master's in social work, and a receipt showing I got my car inspected (I subsequently had it done immediatly after this). Is this something that I can handle in court myself, or should i consider hiring an attorney?

Answer:
 You should be ok with the documentation of the current new vehicle inspection and pay the ticket for violation.

The $500+ it will cost for a lawyer will not be worth it because the violation fine should be less than $200 and the officer is on board and you have no history of trying this before.

Good luck.


Title: Need clarification on "False Exculpatory Statements"

Question:
Google is just not coming through for me.

Is it

1) An untrue statement that favors your innocence.

or

2) An intentional untrue statement that favors your innocence

In order to use it in court to argue "intent", does one have to prove the person lied? Or can it be used regardless of having proved they intentionally lied? Basically, we are not 100% sure but this is evidence to suggest intent. Seems to me if you can proved they lied, it would be obstruction of justice or some other type of crime.

Basically, I am having a debate about the Hilary Clinton email scandal. I am trying to prove she committed a crime and there was intent.

Answer:
 > Basically, I am having a debate about the Hilary Clinton email scandal. I am trying to prove she commited a crime and their was intent.

Have fun with that.  I'm sure you are an excellent legal scholar.


Title: Traded TV + cash for projector. TV apparently stopped working and now the guy is threatening to call the police and report it stolen

Question:
Hey guys I could really use some help. A couple of weeks ago traded my tv plus some cash for a projector worth about $2000. The TV was working fine then I gave it to the guy and the next day he’s like it’s not working I want more cash which I did not have. It’s now been a couple of weeks and me trying to get the seller I bought the tv from to replace it since it since I had bought it less than a month prior and they refuse to.
Now this dude either wants $300 more or he says he’ll report the projector as stolen.
Is this some type of scam or something?  Like the tv was working completely fine absolutely no issues and all the sudden poof it stops?

Edit:

Any help would be amazing thank you in advance

TLDR; traded tv + cash for projector, tv apparently stopped working despite being fine. Person wants $300 paypal or they’ll report the projector stolen.  What do I do?

Answer:
 So he's admitting that he would submit false police reports?

Tell him to go pound sand.


Title: [IL] Copyright laws regarding movie-themed bars

Question:
Hi,

I live in IL and I was wondering the legality of starting a movie-themed bar. Obviously, saying "This is the official bar of <insert movie>" would be illegal. What happens if it's satirical and you don't use any direct words/phrases?

For example, if it was a Harry Potter themed bar, and you called the drinks "Avodka Kedavra" (avada kedavra) and  the "Goblet of Fireball" (Goblet of Fire). Is that fine? I guess I'm asking how close you can get to using an actual phrase or line from the movie without getting in trouble?
Topic:
Intellectual Property

Answer: Parody is protected speech, but nothing stops Warner/JKR's lawyers from making you spend your last knut proving it.


Title: My friend commissioned an artist $1600 for a short animated gif - he never completed his work after 5+ months and lives in another country outside the US.

Question:
Yes, my friend has acknowledged that she made a silly, naive mistake paying the whole cost upfront, but he worked at an animation studio in the US — I called the studio today, gave his full name, and am waiting to hear back if they have any information — but I believe he’s just an independent contractor and not a full employee. I believe he lives in Chile or Portugal.

I think we have sufficient evidence and proof that this animator committed fraud (not quite sure what the correct legal term is?), and intentionally misled my friend for months so that she couldn’t dispute payment on PayPal after a certain period of time. Also, because he lives in a country outside the US, what is the best route my friend can take to get this resolved or reimbursed?

She simply wants to let it go, and even blames herself for this situation, but i feel like there is something that can be done since we know his name, a place where he works or used to work at, and a few personal social media accounts.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Answer: If you don't even know what country they live in it is going to be really hard to get that money. How was your friend put in touch with them?Answer #2: Unless he has a residence in the US, I think this is going to be an expensive lesson.  If you could find out exactly where he lived she could sue in small claims though it would be prohibitively expensive to serve someone in a foreign country.  Also, unless he has assets in the US, it's going to be hard to actually get money to satisfy the judgment.  This is the somewhat rare situation where the court case would probably be the easiest part because I assume he would just default as the judgment would roughly equal a round-trip international flight.  Recovering money is going to be a bitch though.Answer #3: Have they tried paypal? Even though it's out of their usual timeframe they may find in her favour due to the nature of the goods.


Title: Ex raped me 7 months ago, thinking about testifying but scared, story inside

Question:
I'm not even sure if this belongs here. It probably belongs in like r/TwoXChromosomes or something. I'm just really scared and I've been having a tough time regarding all this in this past half year. I need advice and honestly I guess seeking unbiased opinions here.

I'll go ahead and tell the story since this is what I'll be telling my lawyer and I'm sure the defense attorney will use anything he can against me. Me and Ex were together about 2 ish years. Our relationship was very rocky. We were on and off again a lot but always got back together in a day to a week, and always because he begged me back and I was too weak to tell him no. In December we broke up for the final time. I was sick and tired of going through this with him. I am an empathetic person and always feel sorry for others before myself. I knew he would inevitably beg me back so immediately after breaking up with him this time I start talking to someone new and making plans to start '*seeing'* them. Because of this I'm able to reject him each time he contacts me. Not the healthiest way to end things, but I'm feeling great at this point and realizing it's finally over with him. About 2 weeks after our breakup, I'm tipsy on a Friday night, and he is drunk contacting me again begging to see me 'one last time'. The usual spiel. I still have the messages from this night. He tells me he will leave me alone after we have sex one last time.  I tell him no countless times, I tell him I don't want to see him, don't come to my house, I will call the police, I reply 'no' literally after every text he sends. He comes over anyway. He finds a key outside of my house and comes inside then knocks on my locked bedroom door. I open it for him (my grandmother and child were sleeping in the living room and I didn't want to cause a scene) and he comes in, begs me, then forces me onto my bed and rapes me when I say no. I tried kicking him off and telling him I don't want to do this but he doesn't stop until he notices I'm crying heavily. I scream at him that he raped me and tell him to leave. I tell him to leave so many times. He then forces me to lay on his chest while he rambles and cries about our relationship. I fall asleep on him for a few minutes (at this point it's super late and I'm drunk). Upon waking I start yelling at him again that he raped me and to just LEAVE. But he would not. He just wouldn't fucking leave!!! At this point I guess he realizes how serious this whole thing is and says "Well I'm going to see why you're fucking acting like this" and gets on my computer. I tell him "stop, get the hell out now, you're not going to like what you see on there" (in regards to my messages to the new guy). He sees the messages and starts freaking out, threatening to break everything in my room. He calls his friend FINALLY to come pick him up, saying things like "I'm going to break everything, you're right she's a slut, I'm going to go to jail tonight if you don't come get me". I get really scared hearing this and start messaging new guy and tell him what happened. He calls me, tells me to go to the bathroom, and call the police. So I do. Ex gets arrested. I didn't get a rape kit done because of stupid reasons. I was extremely tired, I was drunk, and all I wanted was for him to leave. At the time I didn't want him to be in trouble or stay in jail, so I decided not to go to the hospital that night. I asked the new guy to come to my house because I needed comfort. That night was traumatic as hell for me and I coped the only way I knew how in that moment... I cleaned myself up and had sex with the new guy. And that was the end of that night. The only two people who know this last detail are me, new guy, a mutual friend of ours, and now this subreddit. I admit I feel a bit ashamed for it. How could I just have sex with someone literally hours after being raped? I don't know. I'm mostly scared this one last detail will just make my whole story above obsolete.

Ex was out of jail on bond after about 2-3 weeks. I've filed for and gotten a restraining order against him. Up until now I wasn't going to testify against him. I didn't want him to be in trouble and I just wanted to forgot all about that night, but now I'm having second thoughts. What he did was wrong and despite how I feel, he needs to know that and be punished. The last thing he said to me was when he was in jail and called me, and told me he "forgives" me for putting him in jail. It infuriates me remembering that and infuriates me knowing he's walking around as a free man after what he did. I also don't want him to think he can get away with something like this in the future, and he ends up raping another girl.

What I'm scared of is that I won't be believed, or worse that this will be turned on me and I will somehow get in trouble. I didn't get the rape kit done as mentioned, but he admitted that sex happened that night, however he told the police I had 'pity sex' with him. I guess I'm just looking for advice here from an unbiased person looking in. Thanks.

Answer:
 This probably isn’t legal advice: you know legally what to do. It belongs more in r/relationship_advice or something like that.

What he did according to your story was wrong, he also didn’t realise he was in the wrong even after you stating (he only stated he’ll go to prison if he stays there cause he will be violent), so I think it’s important he knows that, so I think it’s important you testify.

They will paint you to be a slut, especially for the last reason. You’ve just got to try and explain that your coping mechanism after being raped was to be in control of who you have sex with and that’s why you had sex with the new guy, as it made you feel in control again.

It’ll be hard and traumatic if you do it. But it may also save a lot of people in his future if he learns his wrong doings now.

Good luck


Title: (IL) Former employer sending threatening letters and requesting ever-increasing amounts of money

Question:
Disclaimer: I am posting this for a friend so I'll try to answer any follow-up questions the best I can but most of what I know will be in this post.

Backstory: my friend was working at a retail store and when she bought things at the store, her managers would ring up unauthorized discounts, as they did to each other and other employees. Eventually, Loss Prevention came in and fired the managers but told her her job was safe if she wrote down everything she remembered buying, its cost, and the total amount she believed she had been discounted, and signed the paper. She did this, and was immediately fired. She wrote down that she estimated owing $50; this was a dollar store, for context.

Current problem: The company has now sent two letters, via their lawyers, requesting $550 and $975 respectively. They allege she owes this amount based on as a settlement for "damages to company assets and a civil penalty component pursuant to 720 ILL. Comp. stat. 5/16-27" and elaborate no further.

I guess she just needs advice on how to proceed. Paying those amounts is fairly out of the question, it isn't anywhere near doable. What recourse is available? Funds for hiring a lawyer are... not available.

TL;DR Fired by Loss Prevention after agreeing to owe $50 from unauthorized discounts at retail store, store now demanding well over 10x that amount.
Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer: I'm not at all sure getting a discount that another manager authorized constitutes retail theft especially if this was a widespread practice. She was asked to pay X, she paid X.


Title: [NC, US] Client won't pay for completed website

Question:
***I live in NC, US the client lives in NJ, US.***

A few months back I completed a website for a client that was recommended to me through a friend of a friend. (I occasionally do some small webdesign projects on the side for some extra income.)

Fast forward to a couple months ago where we were discussing a time so I can walk him through how to use the wordpress installation, etc. At which point he'd pay me. He starts being pretty busy every time we go to schedule a meeting. I'm an extremely relaxed person and I'm not hurting for money so I was extremely patient with rescheudling. Then after this has been going on for about a month I say look - we can schedule the training at anytime but I'm just going to need to be paid this week. He agrees... end of the week nothing. He goes dark for about 2 weeks. No replies. He finally replies after several emails saying he was on vacation. OK great, fine, he said he'll pay me by end of day. End of the day - nothing. Now he has been dark for about 2 weeks and won't pickup any of my calls, respond to my emails, etc. Do I have any case for legal action here? I have emails stating our agreement but no physical contract. Through my company I have access to some kind of legal advice or something that I am going to lookup and call but figured I'd start here.

Any advice would be super helpful.

Thanks!

Answer:
 If you have emails where you discuss the terms of payment, as well as the work completed, yes you do. So long as you received authorization to do the work you have a case against him.

You'll first want to send a demand letter to his physical address where you lay out a timeline for payment, and if that deadline isn't met, that you'll be pursuing legal action.


Title: Real dad collects VA benefits on kids he has no contact with and messed up my sisters SSI

Question:
My real dad was in the military for quite some time. He didn't do anything noteworthy he was just a chair warrior who said if he was ever called for deployment he would get major oral surgery done so he wouldn't have to go. He hasn't paid child support for years other than what was garnished from his wages so he is also 18k behind. Obviously this isn't vital to the story but I feel it needs to be added. Anyway, he hasnt seen my siblings for at least 7 years (he lives in town) and he has very minimal contact with us. My mom gets a letter in the mail saying my sister (who gets SSI for her mental handicaps) is going to have her income lowered because of the help she is receiving from the VA. Which confused us because she hasn't seen any money at all from something like this. Come to find out, my real dad has been collecting money on the kids who are still school age. Why is he allowed to do this? We were told that there is nothing we can do about it either. Is that true?

TL;DR

My real dad is collect VA benefits for kids he doesn't pay for, hasn't seen in years, and has subsquently lowered my sister's SSI income because of his actions. What can we do to fix this?
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 The VA would love to hear that he's collecting benefits on kids that he's not involved with/distributing the money to - [https://www.va.gov/COMMUNITYCARE/about\_us/POI/poi\_faq.asp](https://www.va.gov/COMMUNITYCARE/about_us/POI/poi_faq.asp) \- you could also call the VA Office of Inspector General hotline, staffed weekdays between 8:30 a.m .and 2 p.m. Eastern time, at 1-800-488-8244.  Make sure to let them know that he's collecting for beneficiaries who aren't seeing the money.Answer #2: The first thing to do is to file a contempt motion to enforce the unpaid child support.  All VA funds he is receiving should be included in his income and you should give the court all the information that you have about that.

I don't know enough about VA benefits to help you out on what to do to possibly transfer your sister's share to your mother instead.

The most likely possibility is that your dad is getting VA disability benefits, (which does not mean that he has to be totally disabled, the military will calculate a percentage like maybe 30 percent disabled), and support for minor dependents is included.  Kind of like social security disability.  The term "dependent" in the military does not mean your sister has to live with your dad or even have much contact with him.   For obvious reasons, since a soldier might be in some foreign country for years during which time he still needs to support his dependents.

The next possibility is that he is collecting VA pension benefits.  I really don't know if military pensions include additional funds for minor dependents.  We will have to wait for someone else to comment on that.


Title: Can my employer take taxes out of my tips before they reach my paycheck? California

Question:
California

These are credit card tips that are processed and show up on my biweekly paycheck. Recently, I counted them up during my shifts and there’s some money missing. About %5. When I asked about it, I was told this

“Basically let’s say the tip is $300 divided 3 ways….that gets dropped on the tax the office pays overall as a business, and then your portion gets a tax as well. So 100 becomes 92 or so.”

That didn’t sound right to me. So I said this:

“But shouldn’t the tip amount we see on our paychecks be gross tips before taxes? Any taxes employees owe should be shown on our paychecks in the deductions section, right? I know the law says that all tips are owed to employees. -Company- can’t take business expenses like payroll or sales tax out of tips meant for employees. “

So he replied this:

“I’m just mentioning your tax, but yes, I believe your individual tax would be on your stub. But, the tip amount shown as “gross” to you, is still post-taxes from what the company has to report. I can re-confirm, but I think it’s essentially the way it works. They are pretty spot-on and up to date with HR, but I’ll mention it. “

What do you think? This exchange was over email.

Thanks!

Answer:
 Yes, taxes can be applied to any number of subsets of your income (and may be being applied here against your reported post-pool cash tips as well).

Your company absolutely can - and should - take out taxes against your tips. What the company can't do is keep a portion of tips for itself or management. But tips are income and must be taxed.


Title: So I got robbed at knife point,

Question: Let me start out by saying I live in NJ, I had an old friend hit me up for an ounce of the marijuanas. I’ve known him for years he wanted an ounce, so like I’m gonna help my friend out, whatever whatever long story short, he grabbed my phone and put a knife to my throat and started cutting and said I had ten seconds to hand him the weed or he was slitting my throat, so like obviously I gave it to him I was driving. Now if I decide to call the police and press charges, A is it even worth it, can they prove anything can he get in trouble? B can this come back and bite me in the ass? Can I charged with distribution? New Jersey was recently decriminalized so under 50 grams is just a fine, which I wouldn’t mind if I knew he would get charged with robbery. Oh and I forgot my son with in the car, but before you judge me I have my medical card for clearly medical reasons. Idk I just want to press charges but like not if I’m going to get in just as much trouble.

Answer:
 >Now if I decide to call the police and press charges

The DA/prosecutor decides if charges are pressed by the weight of the evidence and if they feel they can get a conviction. What you do is file a police report.

> is it even worth it, can they prove anything can he get in trouble?

Its possible, and that fear is what the person is counting on. Police and prosecutors tend to be humans, but to understand your risk of possible trouble you should consult a criminal defense lawyer who specializes in drug chrages in your area, they will know the actual chances.


Title: [MI] Does someone staying at a motel for an extended time gain tenant rights at any point?

Question:
The situation is happening in Michigan. Basically my sister is currently staying in a motel and likely will not be able to pay for her room as of this upcoming Thursday. She pays weekly and has been there for at least 3 months though she recently changed rooms to get a second bed for her child, who has since been removed from the hotel by family. I don't know if it would matter but she has moved furniture into the room and at least to me it looks like she's been living there for a while. I'm not sure if that would matter in terms of establishing residence but I figured I'd share the info.

I'm wondering if they have to formally evict her or if they can legally remove her the day she has to pay for her room and cannot.

I appreciate anyone taking the time to share their knowledge and offer advice.

Answer:
 No, they can remove her immediately.

I hope that she can get the help she needs.

Answer #2: No, in the long contract you sign with any hotel/motel, it precludes you becoming a tenant.


Title: Can I marry my girlfriend who has kids?

Question:
So my girlfriend had kids in the past with another guy whom she never married. The last one was 4 years before we met.
Baby daddy is still crazy for her, however. Him and the kids live with his mother (kids’ paternal grandma). She stopped living with them 2 years before we met. She visits the kids occasionally.

We are deeply in love with each other and want to get married and live together. Neither of us want anything to do with the kids. I have never met her kids or the baby daddy.

So, the way to go is voluntary termination of parental rights. If however, we do get married without going through that process, will it affect me negatively? Will I have to pay child support if the baby daddy were to die? Can someone force me to adopt the kids?

Answer: Termination of parental rights means she is no longer legally entitled to visitation or custody. She is still required to pay child support as that is a right of the children which she cannot give up herself. There is no way you could be legally forced to adopt children but if you get married you may jointly be financially responsible for them based on what she has legally agreed to.


Title: (California) Landlord is alluding that I won't get my security deposit returned.

Question: I'm renting a condo in California, my lease is up next month and my landlord hinted today that he'd be keeping my deposit ($1500) to cover utilities. Fair enough, you're right. But wait, there's more. When I moved in, I called the electric company to switch utilities into my name. It would have cost $200 for me to do it but only twenty for my landlord. I texted him and he said no problem, I'll switch it for you. I have screenshots of those texts. Problem is, my landlord's a bit of a flake and didn't switch the utilities. I texted every month when rent was due asking for him to put my name on the bill or at least send me the bill. I have those screenshots as well. Eventually, he told me not to worry about it that he liked me and my electric bill was always low so he didn't mind covering it. This conversation was in person. Cut to today, he came through with a contractor and made a passing remark about holding on to about $800 of my deposit. From what I understand withholding a deposit for unpaid utilities is legal but considering I'm not on the electric bill, he never made any attempt to have me pay utilities, and I have no idea exactly how much my bills were (I doubt he's trying to gouge me but still) is what he's doing legal and do I have any options?

Answer: Honestly this will depend upon how much documentation you have.  Your lease likely says you are responsible for the utilities, so absent of any written evidence landlord agreed to cover them they are your responsibility.  If you have made good faith efforts and have been unable to pay them you're supposed to escrow or hold onto the funds to attempt to pay later.  Absent of that landlord can easily deduct them from the deposit.Answer #2: I mean you would have paid it one way or the other anyway. The landlord should easily be able to get documentation for the electric bill for the duration of your stay there. He should only reduce security deposit by that amount and any damages. He can't just ball park it and say "oh, it was about $800 ish ". He should be able to calculate the exact amount.


Title: [PA] Dental Malpractice

Question: Before getting into the long details, I'd first like to know if a dental professional causing a patient to have a panic attack which lead to the diagnosis of panic disorder specifically due to the unethical behavior at the aforementioned dentist, for which the individual is being treated, is grounds for a malpractice lawsuit?

Answer:
 You can always speak to an attorney, but what you're describing (triggering an undiagnosed mental health issue) is something that couldn't possibly be controlled for, in most circumstances.

If you think they acted unprofessionally, you can also make a complaint to their licensing board.

But you've provided far to little information (for example, what the "unethical behavior" was, or even if it was a dentist or a front-desk employee) for anyone to say much more. Answer #2: What happened? What did the dentist do?


Title: UPDATED UPDATE: My MacBook Came Online. Police have the building surrounded and are getting a warrant!

Question:
Check my account for earlier posts.

Two hours ago my MacBook came online. I took screenshots and sent them to the local detective. They got here and are looking. My apartment manager could be heard talking frantically to the other people in his apartment.

If they find my things in his apartment is this legal grounds to break my lease? Is this grounds to sue my LL? This is not a safe environment and I want out. Not to mention the gang affiliation the manager has.

Edit: In California

Answer:
 Yes if you can prove that they entered your apartment without your express permission and there was no emergency that required them to enter yes you can sue your landlord. You might also be able to sue them under vicarious liability for hiring that apartment manager with the gang ties.

Talk to an attorney ASAP and let them know what your situation is!Answer #2: Links for the lazy:

[Original Thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/3bk8pa/my_apartment_was_broken_into_this_morning_is_my/)

[First Update](https://www.reddit.com/r/legaladvice/comments/3bp4ob/robbery_update_evidence_suggests_apartment/)

(if wrong links PM and I'll edit) Answer #3: I'm a bot, *bleep*, *bloop*. Someone has linked to this thread from another place on reddit:

- [/r/bestoflegaladvice] [Over two days, OP gets robbed, suspects his apartment manager, files police report, waits, finds that his MacBook has come online, takes screenshots, and calls police again. They come back and arrest the thieving apartment manager. My justice boner is ENORMOUS.](https://np.reddit.com/r/bestoflegaladvice/comments/3bqzzj/over_two_days_op_gets_robbed_suspects_his/)

[](#footer)*^(If you follow any of the above links, please respect the rules of reddit and don't vote in the other threads.) ^\([Info](/r/TotesMessenger/wiki/) ^/ ^[Contact](/message/compose/?to=\/r\/TotesMessenger))*

[](#bot)Answer #4: Yay, please come back and tell us how it went down. Also, I would contact the owner of the building. I'm sure they won't be too happy about their apartment manager being arrested for stealing resident's belongings. What I would be worried about at this point is personal safety. If the manager is related to gang, this could get messy.


Title: If a parent that applied for citizenship for his/her children and they all got it, but the parent then loses it due to a crime or the parent resigns to the citizenship, does his/her kids also lose it?

Answer: I can't think of any country that strips someone of their citizenship as punishment unless the citizenship itself was fraudulently obtained. And certainly one does not lose their own citizenship because of the actions of someone else


Title: Wife's position eliminated while she's on short-term disability for medical issue.

Question:
This is in the state of Wisconsin

My wife (an attorney) went on short-term disability in May 2016 due to a cancer-related medical issue.  In June she had surgery to remove the cancer (and 1^1/2 organs to boot).  Her Doctor estimated that she could return to work at least part-time starting Aug 1, provided that she work from home as much as possible.

At 3:30pm today (Sunday afternoon) her boss calls her cell phone and leaves a voice mail telling her that her position has been eliminated.  However, he tells her that they're not going to make the termination effective until her return to work date (he says this both on the voicemail and when she called him back in person).  He assured her that it was not due to any performance issues (she has glowing reviews on file) but strictly budgetary concerns.

**Question** - Can he do that?  Post-date her termination until she's off disability?  I understand "employment-at-will", and if she were working and told that her position would be eliminated at the end of the month I'd get that.  This seems shady to me.

**More Background:**  Last week it was announced that her company would be downsizing and that 10 employees were going to be let go (company employs < 50).  She is/was one of 2 attorneys on staff.   Although they both held the same title and position, she has worked there for 10+ years while he has only been there 3-4 years.  I mention this because all 10 employees let go this weekend were female.  Yes, I'm also aware that it means she makes more than he does.

The whole thing was handled very sloppily.  All 10 employees were supposed to be notified on Friday morning, but when the day came only 3 were actually let go and the Boss said he'd be notifying more people over the weekend and Monday morning, leaving the entire company to stew.

If it matters, my wife still has access to her email, network, files, and has her keys for both her office and the building.

Answer:
 > Can he do that? Post-date her termination until she's off disability?

That's not really "doing" anything. The date the employer considers an employee terminated doesn't much matter. The only thing it might do is keep her on the company health insurance. If they terminate her health coverage she has to be given information on COBRA.

She should file a claim for unemployment now. Get that out of the way. Once she is cleared to return to work, she should look for a new job and start claiming benefits.


Title: Noise Violations

Question:
Alright so making a long story short, I live in an apartment complex in Georgia where I am currently stationed. I live on the third floor of said complex. The individual living under me plays loud bass music from 9pm-2am (roughly) almost every Friday through Sunday while he’s home and not off doing some field training (this complex houses mostly young military officers going through their training).

At first when this stopped happening I tried to ignore it. After two weeks of it, one Saturday night around 11pm I tried knocking their door to ask them to stop since my schedule is pretty wonky and I usually wake up pretty early. They never answer the door. Ever. The next Monday, I went to the front desk to complain to the apartment complex manager about the whole situation. They said they would handle it and that every time it would happen to contact them so they can deal with it. Okay great, but the problem arises after they all leave for the day and on the weekends whenever they don’t work. I’ve brought it to their attention at least every week and the manager their assures me that every time I complain about it, they charge this individual with some sort of fine. I don’t know how true this is and even if it is the case, nothing comes of it as I’m still listening to this bass music at two in the morning. I’ve even contacted the cops and when they did show up and only opened the door up to them because the cops said “Columbus Police Department, open up,” fairly loudly, they continue playing their music an hour later.

At this point I’m at a loss of what to do. I’m trying to find a house down here but in the mean time I’m still stuck in my lease agreement and want to know if I can do anything legally at this point.

Any advice would be welcomed.
Topic:
Douche

Answer:
 Check your local noise ordinances.  If they are violating noise ordinances, call the police, every...single...time.

Other than that, that is apartment living.


Title: (Canada) Advice on how to talk to police about homicide

Question:
So I recently remembered a "repressed memory" I guess you'd say. Someone confessed to me, and at the time they were my best friend for years and I was in shock and pushed it as far from my mind as I could. It's been about 15 years, and I was just randomly texting another friend last week and it all came rushing back for some reason.

I now realize I need to inform the authorities. I wanted to wait a bit to see if I remembered anything else, I think I'm ready now. I wanted some time to calm down too and not go in like a blathering idiot.

What do I say when I walk in? Should I go to the "head office" in the city? I don't really trust the small town cops around where I think it was, they already have enough unsolved shit. I don't want it to get ignored because I'm a hysterical female or something you know.

Answer: Memories aren't really all that reliable, especially if it's a "repressed" one. Evidence shows that repressed memories aren't really a thing, and that often times people will remember things that didn't really happen. Feel free to talk to the police if you're that concerned, but if your only evidence is a repressed memory then most likely not much will happen.


Title: [USA] U.S Census Bureau survey, what happens if you don't do it/miss the deadline?

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 Failure to complete the survey is a $500 fine.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/13/224

However, it rarely comes to that.  The Census Bureau will send another form, call, and even sometimes send a census-taker in person to collect the data before resorting to legal action.  They want the information, not the money.


Title: CA: Just wondering the legal implications...a girl in my dorm called the cops because her roommate smokes weed and had an unregistered Glock in the room. She's claiming the school put her liberty and security at risk because the RA and administrative ignored her calls and emails

Answer:
 This is why when a crime occurs you tell the actual police and not a private organization.

The university wants you to call them if something goes wrong. That is *purely* to protect themselves from liability, and in a lot of cases that lines up with protecting students. But if they fuck up or it does not line up this way, you're screwed.

Now she's right and should be angry, but she has no damages and wont get anything. School policy will likely change though.