Title: Maintenance guy keeps going into my dresser. Is this illegal? [WA, USA]

Question:
I’ve heard some horror stories from friends about what landlords have done in their rooms while alone, so I got a baby cam to keep an eye on my place while I’m away.

So far I’ve had submit two maintenance issues with my complex: first in my bedroom and second one in the bathroom.

For the first one, he came in and went directly to my fridge (maybe looking for a beer or snack?) which I thought was a little weird but whatever. Later, however, while working in my room next to my dresser, curiosity seemed to get the best of him and he opened the top drawer, looked in for a few seconds, closed it, and went back to work. It was strange and a little creepy, but nothing to get in a fuss about.

The second time, he spent the whole time (maybe 10 minutes?) working in my bathroom until he was done. He then came out of the bathroom, went directly into my bedroom, opened the first and second drawers of my dresser and looked in them, closed them, grabbed his stuff and left. This one was definitely creepier as he had no business being in my bedroom at all.

I don’t think it’s money he wants as I keep my wallet with some cash in it on top of my dresser. And still, it hasn’t been enough to push me towards reporting him to building management. But if he does it again I think I’m going to have to.

I have two questions: is this illegal, and does the answer change if he interacts with my stuff? He didn’t break into my place as he had a legit reason to be there. And he didn’t take anything; he’s just looking in my dresser drawers. So I would think it’s not illegal, but I don’t know. At the same time, what if next time he finds my girlfriends underwear and starts smelling it or being even creepier? Does that change the legality?

Thanks for your help!!

edit: Sorry for not responding all day! I expected it to be slow at work and boy was I wrong.

For some info, I am a guy but I’ve been thinking he may be a perv (hence why I’m wondering what he would do if he saw my GF’s underwear in there). And nope, no illicit drugs in my place.

Answer:
 It probably rises to the level of trespass since he's now doing things in your property without permission. If you're concerned about it, inform your landlord that you caught him snooping. Answer #2: Someone is paying this guy.

From a business perspective this guy is a terrible, terrible risk.  Odds are high that his employer knows nothing of this - or - without video proof - might be inclined to take his buddies side of the story.

I say take a copy of that video to the employer and or the landlord.Answer #3: He's casing your place. Report him.Answer #4: If you are female, chances are he was looking for your underwear. Answer #5: Report this to your management ASAP. Just email them if you’re more comfortable with that. Tell them he isn’t welcome in your home again and from now on you DO NOT give him permission to enter. Is he the only maintenance guy on site? Answer #6: Report it and they will fire him (I hope).


Title: I need advice on a very VERY minor legal situation.

Question:
Background information: I am 16 years old, I live in the state of NJ. The other person in this story “John” is 14 years old.

About a month ago I let him borrow $35. I told him he had to pay me $45 by the end of the month(Today)

He waited until the last minute to pay me, that isn’t a problem. As long as he paid me on time I didn’t care. I don’t know why he needed the money. I don’t care why he needed the money.

He messaged me earlier today and said

“Yo, I got your money. Let’s meet somewhere that isn’t your house.”

I said

“Ok, meet me at the local park near my house.”

He said

“Ok, be there soon.”

I then hopped on my bike and road over to the park. As I pull into the area. I see a suspiciously parked car. I look over at it, and see my friend John sitting in the passenger seat. His mother was in the drivers seat. She had her phone out and was recording the entire thing. He looked scared. He then handed me the money he owed me.

I got on my bike and said “thanks, if you need anything. Let me know.”

I went home and went on with my day. But within minutes I found out that his mother was trying to find my mom to “talk to her” and said that she wanted me in trouble because “he isn’t aloud to agree to interest”

As of now she hasn’t contacted my mother. As soon as I got home I told my mom about what had happened.

There were no illegal substances or drugs involved at all in this deal. All simply cash. Is there anything I have to worry about here?

Answer:
 Are you a loan shark? Charging @ 30% interest/month on a loan is usury and illegal in NJ. Answer #2: Ha! This is a pretty entertaining situation.

Both of you are minors, and cannot enter into contracts. Your verbal agreement was non-binding, that is to say that he didn't have to pay you back. Now that he has though, he is not entitled to his money, its yours.

You should not be concerned, you've done nothing wrong.Answer #3: Damn, that mom has soon issues.

IANAL, but I doubt anything would happen.  I can’t see any prosecutor wanting to go ahead with this case, even if you lent money to several people. I don’t think the lady is going to sue you and if she does, answer the summons and give her the $10.

I don’t recommend you continue to make money off lending money though. You’re not really making that much so you’re better off just getting a part time job. Answer #4: Check cashing places are able to charge what looks like high interest rates by making it a “fee.” A $35 loan with a $5/month convenience fee doesn’t sound as bad as a 30% interest rate.Answer #5: Any chance your friend is Muslim? Interest is not allowed in Muslim banking and is frowned upon, if not illegal in many cultures. Obviously people still make money as lenders, but it’s structured differently. Could have just hit a nerve with the mom.Answer #6: FYI,

Interest is generally expressed as an annual amount. If you charged $10 per month on $35, that is 29%x12 = 343% interest annually.


Title: [NY] My wife's car was totalled in a bizarre accident - am I SOL?

Question:
A month ago my wife lost her job.  These things happen, she's been catching up on her reading while applying for a new job and trying to figure out her future.

Three weeks ago her car was parked legally in the street and was hit head on by a car going fast enough to cause significant damage.  No one was hurt, and the car was towed away to the nearest body shop.

The initial estimate was for about half the value of the car, but upon further inspection they have decided it was totalled.  The other guys insurance has accepted full responsibility and will pay for the damage, which will cover the outstanding balance on the loan.  We bought the car in January so it's still new to us.

Now we're going to get out of the loan, but other than that it seems like we're SOL.  Without working she can't get another car loan, and without a car can't get a new job.

Anything I can do in this situation?  I feel like this random accident is having a negative effect on my situation.
Topic:
Insurance

Answer: Not really. You are made whole by then paying you the value of the damaged property. There is nothing they can do about her lack of employment. Answer #2: Your wife doesn't necessarily need to get a loan all by herself.  I suppose *you* could take out a loan, yes?Answer #3: The best you could try to do is settle a couple thousand higher than your payoff amount, and pay in cash for a cheap car. Of course, insurance will only pay you what the vehicle is worth - but you can ALWAYS negotiate what it was worth. And if you come out getting more than what you owe, great, buy something cheap and drive the wheels off of it.


Title: I think my mother-in-law is involved with a con artist...how to proceed?

Question:
So this is a long and complicated story. I'll do my best to summarize and keep it as succinct as possible.

My mother-in-law is a widow of 2 years now. She's in her late 50's and was married at 19. She's extremely vulnerable, stubborn, and simply not very bright. After her husband passed, she had no interest in dating. She was seemingly content to live out the rest of her life alone. However, recently, she informed my wife that she was talking to someone. She was at the hospital for some health issues and met a guy. He was working in the hospital on the computer systems. He is a business owner from Finland living in the US. He is also a widow with a daughter who normally lives with him but is currently overseas visiting her grandmother back in Finland.

As my MiL hadn't dated since the 70s, she was very reluctant. He pursued and she eventually relented to sending emails back and forth. After about 2 months of emails, she finally gave him her phone number and they started texting. Texting turned into phone calls. They are now at the point where they want to meet in person and start having a real relationship. At first, I was very happy for her. She's a pain in the ass and is essentially helpless as an adult so she relies heavily on my wife to handle a lot of things for her that she lacks the cognitive or physical capacity to handle herself. I felt this would be great for both her and my wife. She finally opened up to my wife and her sister about it and was willing to talk about it with about 5-6 people. My SiL, in her true spoiled brat fashion, freaked out and refused to accept this. My wife was supportive so my MiL opened up a lot to her about some things. The more I hear, the more I (and my wife) am fairly convinced that this is not kosher.

Now all of the following can be one big coincidence and he could be Prince fuckin' Charming. But, these are all the reasons I think this is a scam in some way, shape, or form. Individually, they all seem superficial and inconsequential but when you add them all up, something is off.

1. He was dying to spend time with her in the beginning but she wasn't ready. Now that she is ready, he's really busy with work. He said that as soon as he's done with this big project, he's going to take 2 months off and they'll have time to spend together, yet they haven't spent one day together from the day they met in the hospital.

2. He supposedly looks like "Jon Snow's father." I've never seen him before so I can't verify. But someone who looks like this, is several years younger than my MiL, and is a wildly business owner is unlikely to go for someone like my MiL...a frumpy half-assed housewife.

3. He played the fellow widow card. He claimed he was getting a divorce as he moved to the US and she stayed in Finland. Then, in the process of the divorce, she passed away. Details of her death are unclear to me and my wife.

4. My MiL won't give any information other than his first name. This is not his fault but I can't verify anything about this person without so much as a last name (RE: alias).

Here's the kicker that set this wheel in my head in motion.

5. He claimed that while his daughter was in Finland and supposed to come back home to America this week, she was in a severe car accident. The doctors told his mother that it was unclear as to whether she was going to make it through or not. My MiL was naturally very upset by this. She is about to go in for a breast reconstruction surgery this week (she's an inflammatory breast cancer survivor) and the timing is very convenient.

Now I could be reading WAY too much into this and I 1000% hope I am. But all of these things together make me 95% sure this guy is not on the level. Call it intuition. So my question is, with such little information to go off of, and with my MiL knowing as little as possible, how can I proceed to make sure she doesn't get hurt financially or otherwise?

TL;DR - My MiL is involved with a guy who I think is a scam artist. I have little info to go off of and I want to make sure she doesn't get hurt.

Answer:
 Has he asked her for money? Or anything else of value? Because if not, I think you may be over extrapolating.

TBH - all of the points you have made relate to your view that your MIL is not a "catch". It's possible that another person might see this differently.

Look - I'm not saying you are wrong but I am saying that there is sod all you can do about it if she has mental capacity. All you can really do (and this would be better placed in another sub) is be accepting and non-committal so that you continue to be kept in the loop.


Title: Hydroplaned, aggrevetated DUI

Question:
   I live in New Hampshire. I hydroplaned on 93, did not know the proper way to react, and flipped my Jeep. My girlfriend was not wearing a seatbelt, was thrown, and is now seriously injured. She might never walk again.
   The state trooper who arrived at the scene assumed I was impaired. No one asked me what happened. In the E.R. they did five separate blood draws then took me to jail.
  After being released I requested the police report and blood alcohol results from the state. The BAC result said .07, on state forensic crime lab letterhead. It also had four other results, .06, going down to .01. The date of analysis was May 8. I also have the E.R. results from the night of the accident that say "alcohol level 127."
   Public defender told me that the state was saying my blood alcohol level was actually .12. This past week a received a new letter from the state that says my blood alcohol level was .99. The date of analysis was May 21. I can't find any information online about similiar cases, with multiple blood draws and multiple BAC results. Is this normal? Does it seem like I might have any chance of fighting this?

Answer:
 You absolutely want an attorney.

That said, you've getting a DUI at a minimum. Whether you were over or under the limit is immaterial; the fact that you caused an injury while having any alcohol in your system is proof positive that you were operating in an impaired manner, as the state sees it. The exact number is interesting, but it won't help you in this scenario.


Title: Friend died, then I got hit by a car walking home yesterday. Didn't file a police report. May have to go to doctor, wondering about options [Atlanta, GA]

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Don't lie to a doctor, it's not their job to determine fault


Title: I have a great idea for an up-and-coming app to improve user experience, CAW

Question:
As the title states, I am a regular user of an app that is fast rising in popularity. I think this idea that I have can radically improve user interaction and overall improve the app greatly. How can I pitch this to the company in a way that can benefit me, and that I could be sure they won't just steal my idea? Should I call an attorney? If so, what kind? Should I expect to pay a retainer? Any advice is welcome, thanks!

*edit to include that I am geographically located in Southern California, and I believe the company is US-based, and possibly even SoCal-based, I'm not sure tbh

Answer: You can retain a lawyer, if you'd like.  The chances of your idea, alone, being worth enough to make hiring an attorney worth it is slim.


Title: [California] Is vacation time accrued or is it up to the individual employer?

Question: A friend was given two weeks of vacation per year at her place of employment. She was just laid off the day before her work anniversary and when she asked about vacation time paid out, her boss said that she didn't earn the time until her anniversary, so she was owed nothing. At every place I've worked, time off is accrued in small amounts per pay period so at the end of each year, you'd have accrued the full amount of time. If you were let go before the year was up, you'd have earned most of the time minus a small amount. Is accrued time required, or can her boss screw her out of that vacation time?

Answer: There is no law mandating vacation time at all.  So a company can have it accrue all at once at one time.  It all depends on their policy.  As long as the employer sticks to their policy, they're good to go.


Title: Job has continued paying me 6 weeks after I left, looks like they forgot to take me off the payroll.

Question:
I'm in Massachusetts.  Using a throwaway obviously, as I'm sure happens here a lot.

So I left my old job on October 5, got my last (legit) paycheck on October 21.  I then got another surprise paycheck on November 5 for a full 2 weeks pay.  Figured maybe I had more PTO than I thought or something (even though I knew I only had about 5 days of PTO, not 2 weeks).  Just got another paycheck from them on November 19 so it appears they just forgot to take me off the payroll.

So my questions is, can they later come back and somehow get the money back from me?  Should I contact them and tell them the mistake or just let it ride?

A few details about how pay there worked: I had to fill out and sign a timecard every week which was submitted to my supervisor.  Obviously I haven't done that since I left, so I have in no way been forging the hours.  I also can't access my online pay statements, but judging from the amount I'm getting they're taking money out for my health and dental insurance.  I had no retirement fund set up as I was there so briefly so they're not paying into anything else.  They were also terrible to me and I was only there for 3 months so I'm not looking for a reference from them or anything.

What are my legal obligations and what can they do once they realize the mistake?

Thank you!

tl;dr: Old job forgot to take me off the payroll, can they come back and collect the money later?  Should I tell them the mistake?

Answer:
 > can they come back and collect the money later? Should I tell them the mistake?

Yes and yes. They can ask for it back and if you refuse the can sue you, and win. And you ABSOLUTELY want to get this sorted out before 12/31 for tax purposes.


Title: Rental company threatening to send a bill to collections.

Question:
Good morning all,

A party rental company is threatening to send a bill to collections for my refusing to pay $150 for missing flatware.

Backstory:

I had a wedding for about 140 people. All items and food came from the caterer with the exception of the flatware. The caterer was out of the one my wife wanted so they found another company and did all the leg work and ordered it. The caterer sent me the invoice and told me I just had to pay the rental company, they would take care of the rest. The party rental company delivered the flatware to the caterer. The caterer brought the flatware to the wedding, set it up and took it back to their place of business afterwards. The party rental company picked up the flatware from the caterer. The party rental company emails me a week later telling me exactly 5/150 of each piece are missing.

I called my credit card company and blocked them from charging my card but otherwise I have ignored them for a few weeks but now they are threatening to send to collections.

I believe this is 100% the caterers responsibility as I never touched the flatware other than eating my dinner at the wedding. My name is not even on the invoice, it is made out to the catering company.

Where do I begin to get them to focus of the caterer and not myself?

Answer:
 So you were not a party to the contract with the rental company for the flatware?  What does your contract say with the caterer about missing/stolen items?  Five complete sets missing could be a wrong amount delivered, or possibly stolen by a guest or someone else.Answer #2: Honestly I feel like they have you here. Check your rental agreement with the party company, it probably says something about how you take full responsibility of the items once delivered. If you wanted them to focus on the caterer and not you, then you shouldn't have signed the agreement and allowed the caterer to act on behalf of you in receiving and returning the flatware.

&#x200B;

Either way, have you talked to the catering company? Are they at all sympathetic to this? They are going to go after the person they have a rental agreement with, so I would be prepared for them to send it to collections. You can also try and negotiate a lower price for the replacement of the items.


Title: I’m not allowed to wear Heelys but my friend is.

Question:
I am a high school student in FL. I got Heelys, shoes with wheels in the heel, for Christmas and started wearing them at school. I got in trouble for them, which is perfectly understandable and I get that there are safety concerns involved.
This all would’ve been fine, until my friend (J) also got Heelys. She wore them to school and did not get in trouble. In fact, the School Resource Officer said that he liked her shoes. So I decided to wear mine again. And got in trouble.
I mean, J is way more social than I am (I am a cliche anxious teen) and knows the administration. I’m wondering if this affected it at all. If it did, would that count as discrimination? Who should I go to about this?
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 i thought heelys went out of style a decade ago.  did they come back?Answer #2: Others are breaking the rules does not give you pass.

You can tell in your friend, in which case no one will be able to wear them.


Title: Never married father here, mother of my child won't let me be more involved as a father, and I don't know my rights (MO)

Question:
I'm on the birth certificate and I do get to see him at least once or twice a week. So far I've gotten to get her to agree to make a schedule with me every week but she doesn't really follow it and will, on most days, send me a text last minute with a reason why I can't come over. I had an argument with her in the past because I wanted my son to come to my house sometimes but she refuses and won't give me a reason as to why. She also taken to not telling me when he has an appointment with the pediatrician.  I told her, even before our son was born, that I wanted to do 50/50 physical and legal custody and she never agreed nor disagreed but considering her actions I can see what she's decided.

I also don't think that he's in a good spot with her. She definitely loves him and I don't think she would ever try to hurt him but she is neglectful. For example, I was with him today and when I changed his diaper it smelled like smegma, even though it was just pee. He was also being fussy and I said that he probably just needs a bath, because I assumed by how he was crying he was tired but wasn't comfortable and couldn't sleep. She said she didn't want to break his routine and that she'd give him a bath before he goes to bed later that night. Now I could be over thinking things, but an 8 week old won't really adhere to a routine. If they need something, provide it. I didn't argue though, because in the past I've been asked to leave before our agreed times for insisting on something that had to do with our son.

I would be more persistent if I hadn't found that I don't really get rights. I'm not positive because I've had 3 consultations and did some online research but the consistent information says that because we were never married, that the only right I have is to pay child support. What has me confused is that when I do take this to court, everything said I'd do a paternity test and that to create and have enforced a parenting plan, I need an affidavit of paternity. Thing is, I already signed an affidavit of paternity and my name is on the birth certificate, all done in the hospital the day he was born. I'm not sure if that means I actually have more rights than I think, and if I do, what are those rights?

Also, I've been turned down by 2 lawyers due to my income and the one I have found that will actually take me is a lot more expensive than I can afford in a reasonable amount of time, $2.5k and $100/hr. I only make $18.6k a year and my annual bills and living costs come up to just under $14k, and that's after cutting back on some expenses and quitting smoking. Are there any resources out there to help me get affordable legal representation or would I be better off trying to represent myself?

Answer:
 Get a lawyer, file for paternity if there's any open question about it at all, and then file for a formal custody and visitation order. What you negotiate with the mother has no teeth, whereas a court order can be enforced.

It's unlikely that you'll get 50/50 custody until your child is old enough to be away from the mother for any length of time, but you can definitely set that as a target. Unless you are demonstrably a danger, you should be able to get that fairly quickly.


Title: [OH, USA] How to turn pet into a service animal? Is that a thing?

Question:
Howdy. I know my information is probably misinformed, but I needed to make sure.

My therapist concluded that in order for me to continue treatment of various mental disorders, I get a service animal, or an emotional support animal. Said pet was a cat. She then told me later that if I don't improve with the cat I would need to get a dog, but that didn't end up happening because Bo was a lifesaver and pulled me out of depression, suicidal tendencies, etc.

So now I'm going into a new apartment, and since Bo was 'prescribed' by a therapist, does that mean he is a service animal? My therapist wrote a paper with official letterhead and all that fun stuff that the only reason why I got this animal was because of her suggestion. If not, what do I need to do to get him there? I read that service animals don't get charged pet fees and the like, which further piques curiosity since the entire point of this pet was for my mental health and not for just a frivolous pet.

Location: Ohio, USA. (If city helps, columbus)

p.s i can post a picture of Bo if it helps :p
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 Your cat is not a service animal. Your cat is an emotional support animal.

Putting aside what I think of that trend in the mental health field, there are different rules.  I'm sure someone in Ohio will be along shortly to explain how that difference is treated in Ohio.Answer #2: Here's a little light reading for you. It's just a bit I dug up because I found your post curious so as with anything found on the Internet, verify it before you treat it as fact:

http://www.disabilityrightsohio.org/service-animals

http://www.bazelon.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=mHq8GV0FI4c%3D&tabid=2

ESA's are a controversial subject. You should educate yourself on the federal and state laws if you intend to declare your cat as such.

Oh, and don't buy any of that "register your animal online" stuff unless you just want the cute collar or something. Those sites don't add anything of legal significance.  At all.

Edit:  forgot to add, glad Bo has helped you.  That's awesome.


Title: What does "must be tried mean" in court?

Answer: Context? The plain definitions of the words work.


Title: Can I sue a USPS office employee for negligence?

Question:
I mailed a small fabric item in regular letter sized envelope via certified mail. This small piece of fabric is worth a lot. The envelope got there, but the item did not. There was an opening in the bottom left corner of the envelope where it looks like the item was extracted. After speaking with usps reps, it points to the conclusion that the letter sorting machine does not allow items to be shipped in regular envelopes and rips the item out thinking it’s suspicious material.

I obviously was unaware of this process. Had I known about the machine I would have paid the extra $1 to send it in a yellow bubble package. But the employee who prepared my certified mail never warned me that this could happen. He even FELT UP THE ENVELOPE AND WEIGHED IT cuz he noticed the foreign “bulky” (his word) item inside. HE EVEN CHARGED ME EXTRA. And after all that, he never even thought to mention the possibility of the machine extracting it.

Please share your thoughts on this.

Answer:
 > After speaking with usps reps, it points to the conclusion that the letter sorting machine does not allow items to be shipped in regular envelopes and rips the item out thinking it’s suspicious material.

It isn't a matter of the machine "not allowing" objects to be shipped in letter envelopes. The sorting machines used for letters move letters around very quickly. Any envelopes that are lumpy or oddly shaped are likely be damaged in this process.

The USPS employee weighed the envelope and charged you extra because [postage for letters depends on weight](https://www.stamps.com/usps/current-postage-rates/), not because they had any specific expectations of what was inside. They are not responsible for your loss.Answer #2: Was it mailed by any of these particular services? insured mail, COD items, Registered Mail with postal insurance, or Priority Mail Express. If so, then see here on filing a claim. [https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/609.htm](https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/609.htm)

In general if something is valuable you should insure it.Answer #3: You have no recourse.

If it was so valuable you should have sent it as a small package, cardboard envelope or padded envelope Priority Mail insured.


Title: Is it legal to host a video game gambling site? [Ontario, Canada]

Question:
A few friends an I would like to create a website where gamers can come on and gamble on the outcome of video games.

Would this be legal to do in Ontario, Canada?

I have also heard from others that you can avoid the jurisdiction of local laws by incorporating and hosting in another country (like the Philipines for example or somewhere in South America), is this accurate?

Answer:
 Don't get into gambling online. You'd need lawyers and big money backers to set you up properly and legally. Doing it yourself you'd probably end up being bent over by the government and spanked until you begged for forgiveness. Especially since you could risk money laundering charges by running an illegal gambling operation through a foreign company.

Alternatively you could find and convince a First Nation band to invest and pay you to run the operation which they would own. There's very little chance they'd be interested, but they're probably the easiest way to get around gambling laws since they're sovereign and so can set their own rules about gambling.


Title: [Fulton County, Atlanta, GA] New apartment stinks of cigarettes. Can I break the lease?

Question:
I moved into a smoke free property about a week ago. I didn't see my unit before moving in because the previous tenants were still living there. I figured I didn't have anything to worry about, considering it's a smoke free property. But upon move in day, I walked into the unit and it absolutely stank of chemicals and cigarettes. I was told it was just new carpet smell and to air it out, so me and my roommate did that for a few days.

The chemical smell is totally gone, but the cigarette smell keeps lingering. They replaced my air filter in the HVAC, and that didn't make a difference. They already painted and replaced all the carpet, presumably because they knew the previous tenants were chain smokers (when I asked if they were smokers, the leasing agent said "I don't know"). Other than trying to clean the air ducts and replace or clean the ceiling fans/blinds, I don't think there's much else to be done and I'm worried I'm stuck with this place for the next year. I don't even want to be in the unit because it stinks and gives me allergies and nausea. And I also don't want to be subjected to a year of carcinogens from third hand smoke.

So, my question is if they can't fix the issue, do I have cause to ask to break the lease without penalty? The buy out is one month's rent plus the cost of the rest of the lease, which I obviously cannot afford. Relevant clauses from my lease:

>1. Smoke-Free Property. Resident acknowledges that, to the extent allowed by applicable law, the Community in which the Unit is located has been designated as a “smoke-free community”. Neither Resident nor Resident’s guests, invitees or contractors shall smoke (including inhaling, exhaling, burning or carrying any lighted cigar, cigarette, e-cigarette, vapor cigarette, tobacco product, plant, marijuana (legal or illegal) or other combustible substance intended to be inhaled or exhaled) in the Community. Resident acknowledges that this prohibition against smoking includes smoking in any areas of the Community including Resident’s unit, or any other indoor or outdoor areas on the property. Resident acknowledges that Resident is responsible for the conduct of Resident as well as Resident’s guests, invitees and contractors with respect to compliance with this Addendum.
>
>2. Smoke-Free Designation of the Property. Resident acknowledges that the designation of the Community as a “smoke-free community” is not a representation, guarantee or warranty by Owner, and Owner hereby disclaims all representations or warranties, that smoking will not occur in or around the Community or that the Community will be a smoke-free environment or have improved air quality. Resident further acknowledges that the smoke-free designation of the Community will depend upon the cooperation by Resident and all other persons residing in the Community. In Owner’s sole discretion, at any time during the Lease term, upon 30 days’ prior written notice, Owner shall have the right to remove the “smoke-free” designation in the Community and allow smoking in the Community or any building in the Community, including the building in which the Unit is located, to the extent allowed by applicable law.
>
>3. Standard of Care. Owner will have the right, but not the obligation, to enforce smoking prohibitions in the Community. Resident acknowledges that the Community’s designation as a “smoke-free community” does not in any way increase or otherwise change the Owner, or Owner’s agents’ standard of care to Resident or Resident’s occupants, guests, invitees or contractor’s with respect to the safety, habitability, or air quality of the Community, and the Owner’s standard of care with respect to these matters is not greater than the standard of care applicable to other rental premises where smoking is not prohibited. Owner specifically disclaims any implied or express warranties that any portion of the Community will have any higher or improved air quality standards than any other rental property where smoking is not prohibited. Owner cannot and does not warrant, guaranty or promise that any portion of the Community will be free from secondhand smoke. Resident acknowledges that Owner’s ability to police, monitor or enforce the smoking prohibition, and similar rules applicable to other residents of the Community, depends significantly upon voluntary compliance by residents, occupants, guests, invitees. If Resident or any of Resident’s occupants, guests, invitees and contractors have respiratory ailments, allergies, or any other physical or mental condition relating to smoke, Resident acknowledges receiving notice that the Owner and its agents do not assume any higher duty of care to provide a smoke-free environment than the duty of any other landlord under any lease for premises where smoking is not prohibited.
>
>
>
>e. Odors. Resident agrees that, to the fullest extent allowed by applicable law, Owner shall have no duty to make the Unit smoke-free or odor-free to Resident’s satisfaction, particularly where smoke, odors or smells are caused by others in the Community. Resident acknowledges that certain smells (to include cooking certain types of food), odors, and tobacco smoke caused by Resident or others in the Community have the capability of penetrating walls, ceilings, and floors and Resident further agrees that this reality is inherent in any multi-family living environment such as condominiums, apartments or any other multi-family housing communities. Resident agrees that it is impossible or unreasonably impractical for Owner to prevent odors, smoke, and other smells from entering the Unit from neighboring rental units and, except as provided by law, Owner has no duty to prevent odors, smoke and other smells from entering the Unit from neighboring rental units.

Clearly, they've done a great job of covering their asses in a legal document. But to me I don't think it's an issue of the smoking clause or odor clause, it's an issue that they obviously didn't give me a presentable or clean unit. I feel like all these clauses are written to cover odors caused by *other* tenants *after* you've already moved in. It would be one thing if the unit was fine upon move in and then my downstairs neighbors started smoking and I had to deal with the secondhand smoke, but from what I can tell it's just lingering smell from the previous tenants that they didn't fix.

Under normal circumstances I would just try and find new tenants for them to spare us all the legal issues, but considering the unit stinks like cigarettes I'm going to have an extremely hard time doing that all because the landlord didn't fix the smell completely. I feel like my only option would be to find smokers to take over the lease—which is an issue since it's still technically a smoke free property. It feels like I have to compensate for them to find a tenant all because they didn't take care of the unit the first time. I could ask to change units, but I've already seen a lot of people smoking on this supposedly smoke free property and would rather not risk this happening again. Getting out of my lease would be ideal.

Help?

Answer:
 Long story short, no:

>e. Owner shall have no duty to make the Unit smoke-free or odor-free to Resident’s satisfaction, particularly where smoke, odors or smells are caused by others in the Community.

I'd complain go the landlord about the smell, and be polite about it. There are excellent mitigation techniques for eating the smell of smoke, but most of the good ones aren't cheap. Your landlord, especially if it's a complex and not just one person, might be persuaded to drop $100 in materials to have their maintenance people treat your place if you're not confrontational. Or they may even let you move to another apartment.

You can try a few cheap solutions like ozum (don't use this while you're in there), but if the smell is in the cabinets / carpet padding / wood / etc, it's not coming out. Your best bet (if the landlord won't address it) is to move out at the end of your term. It's especially important that you let them know now, so they don't accuse you of causing the smell.

Failing all of that, if you really want to fight this, engage your state's Attorney General. You'll want to argue that the smell is so bad that it's disruptive, and you moved here specifically because it was advertised as a "no smoking" property. No guarantees, but as a last-ditch effort, it won't hurt.


Title: is it illegal to chargeback virtual purchases?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: Are you asking if it's legal to take something without paying for it?  No, it's stealing.  I don't know Turkish law, but I'm confident that theft is still illegal there.


Title: New tenant now requiring emotional support animal (MA)

Question: My friend just rented out her apartment in MA. The lease said no pets and they never mentioned one. Now they are claiming to need an emotional support animal and got a letter from an online therapist in another state. When asked for documentation from the breeder, they said it was unavailable because a family member's dog had puppies and they are keeping one of the puppies as the emotional support animal. They are pitbull puppies and it's a tiny 1 br apartment in a large complex that doesn't allow pets. Does my friend need to accommodate them?

Answer: I would require a formally written letter by their primary care provider ie MD/DO. A therapist online does not sound legit. Anyone could get a letter.


Title: I got a text message telling me to ‘cease communications’ with an online friend

Question:
[Nebraska] I have had an online friend for about a year now, we know each other pretty well. We started out talking on forums and eventually moved to talking on Snapchat but we’ve also done some text message exchanges as well. We’ve never talked about anything inappropriate or illegal, just conversations about hobbies and interests, etc. This evening i got a text from a random number, saying to cease all communications with -friends name-, that this person had a record of our messages, and had contacted the authorities.

Is a text message considered an official notice of this? I don’t know how exactly they got my number. I did ask my friend about it (not over text) and they said they had no idea what it was. I wasn’t sure if the text was official or not so i just talked to the friend anyway because i was scared. I’m not sure what i should do, the friend never gave me any indication they were in trouble or anything. I find this extremely strange. I need advice on what i should do. (friends location is currently California, by the way)

Answer:
 Law enforcement doesn't send texts. I'm guessing this is a jealous ex and/or stalker trying to scare you away.  Answer #2: >Is a text message considered an official notice of this?
>

Official notice of what? What is the official act that you think is being taken?Answer #3: Two things:

1) A text could be valid cease and desist but if your friend is not aware of it and did not request it, it is probably not a big deal unless...

2) Is your friend a minor, and did you have any conversations that you should not have with a minor?

A cease-and-desist is just a formal request. If your friend did not request the c&d this is typically not that big of a deal. However if any of the conversations you've had with your friend do include illegal/questional content you should stop that. You should also assume all future communications with your friend are being monitored.


Title: NYC: Repercussions of smuggling popcorn into movie theatres

Question:
What's the worst that can happen?
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 what the worst that could happen? they catch you and tell you to leave, you refuse and they call the cops because now you are trespassing....cops show up and you decide to fight the cops, you kill one of the cops during your resisting of arrest and while the State of New York doesn't seek the death penalty anymore you sadly discover the officer that you killed was a federal officer assisting local police efforts and the feds want blood....you are executed

finAnswer #2: They catch you and either have you throw it out or throw you out.


Title: Probation Drug Test

Question: Being drug tested by state of NJ tomorrow. Pretty sure it's a saliva drug test. I did coke Friday night before 8PM, only one line. My test is Wednesday at 10:30AM. Do you think I'll pass? What can I do to pass?

Answer:
 this subreddit is for legal advice, not advice on how to pass a drug test. Answer #2: Saliva - probably ok

Urine - maybe ok

Hair - no way ok

Stop violating your probation. You will be caught eventually.


Title: ID and driver's license?

Question: Are ID's and licenses connected in Texas. Say I had a couple of failure to appears and my license expired, would those show up if I were pulled over with the Texas ID that I just got?

Answer: You can't use an ID instead of a DL, and yes, they'll show up if a cop runs your ID.


Title: Seeking advice on how to provide for a child I'm unrelated to.

Question:
My ex adopted a child with a disability 1 month before we started dating. We dated 2 years - dealt with a lot of the emotional issues that entails. When we broke up, the child still identified me as "Dad".

6 months after we broke up all contact was cut off. Motive doesn't really matter.

I consider this child emotionally my own. Legally that is not the case. I completely respect the adoptive mother's right to control any sort of access, and have not tried, nor will I, to change that (I send Christmas and birthday gifts, occasional letters, and expect no response).

Now.

I've never had a will, but is that easy to set up for someone that there is no legal relation to? And make it solid, so my crappy family can't contest it?

What is a good financial vehicle to save for college for someone who may not ever know you or need it? Or any other sort of savings, I guess.

Is there any means for me to create a safety net for the child without involving the mother? Life Insurance? Insurance on the medical devices neede for the disability? Trust fund - I don't even technically know what a trust fund is...

I'm in NYC. And as per the rules, I'm not looking for specific advice. I'm looking to know where I should be looking for a lawyer to consult on this, and what questions to ask - more what my options are than what I *should* do. I'm clueless.

Thanks in advance.

Answer:
 What you want to do is absolutely possible and not even all that non-standard. BUT you would want to consult a wills and estates attorney to have the will drafted, to minimise and prevent your family from having (and/or making) some claim against your estate in the event of your passing.

This applies especially so if you're looking to set up a college trust fund, though if you trust your ex, that may be more of a financial matter than a legal one because you can make gifts to a qualifying fund that's managed by your ex instead of doing so through your will.

Trust funds generally for a person are also possible, although if you need one that's for the good of a minor and *not* allow the mother any control, *and also* make it effective despite your passing, you'll need to also consult an attorney, if for nothing else than to have someone actually to manage and/or take over management of the trust when/if you pass away.


Title: I am a named beneficiary in my recently deceased grandmothers will, but her POA is dodging contact - CA

Question:
Los Angeles, CA

Hi Reddit,

I'm new to this sub. I'll do my best to keep it brief.

My grandmother passed in January of this year at the age of 82. She was diagnosed with Alzheimers 3 years prior, and moved in with her goddaughter after it became unsafe for her to live alone. Her goddaughter(Dana) was eventually named power of attorney. My grandmothers only son(56 y/o) would have been named POA, but Dana(50 y/o) took out a restraining order against him for financial and physical abuse against his mother.

I (28 y/o) remained unaware of this drama, as I was living and working in San Francisco. And, no one felt the need to contact me. That is, until my father had the restraining order against him. He then began aggressively contacting me, and demanded that I obtain POA to secure his inheritance. I refused to get involved solely to protect his inheritance; instead, I began regularly meeting with Dana and my grandmother to ensure that everything was copacetic. Everything appeared fine. That was 1.5 years ago.

 January 2018 came and went. Then in March of 2018, I received an angry email from my father. He told me that my grandmother died, and that Dana didn't inform him ( which to him, only proved his suspicion that Dana was after my grandmothers money). His email made me realize that she didn't reach out to me either. At all. She didn't inform me of anything. My grandmothers condition worsened, she died, and then a small funeral was held. But I wasn't informed at all.

It was at this point that I contacted Dana, and she explained she didn't have my number. Which was false. She then agreed to pass over my grandmothers belongings and documents to me so that I could take care of her estate affairs. Since that time (March), she's been avoided my calls and texts. And, on a few occasions claiming to "not have anything belonging to your grandmother". Every time I reach out to meet up, and collect my grandmothers things, or ask a question about my grandmothers estate she claims not to know anything. She says she doesn't know where the will is, she doesn't know who the executor of the estate is, and she doesn't have anything belonging to my grandmother.

I know this is false.

But I have no idea how to handle this, or what steps to take.

Answer: POA expires upon death and has no relation to who is named executor of an estate. You should get in touch with an estate/probate attorney. If there was a will, it was filed somewhere and they should be able to track it down.


Title: [Colorado,US] I was fired with neither a verbal nor written warning. I'm not sure the reason given is legitimate.

Question:
Made a throwaway, I'm embarrassed about this situation.

&#x200B;

TL;DR: I'm pretty sure I was wrongfully terminated and I want to do something about it if I was.

&#x200B;

I was hired at a cafe 4/3, and was terminated on 5/29. Yesterday I was met outside the cafe by the owner. He informed me that I was being fired as I had been there 3 months and am slowing the store down due to not memorizing the menu. He said it had nothing to do with my personality, that they all enjoyed working with me.

\-

I've been a manager and have fired people. I would never go about it the way they did.

\-

I have a few concerns:

1. I have worked there less than 2 months, not 3.
2. I have memorized every recipe, and am able to serve in a timely manner. I've never had a customer, manager or owner complaint.
3. Per the job description I easily floated between taking orders, making drinks, making sandwiches and cleaning.
4. Stated in the employee handbook there are only a few ways to get fired, besides the legal reasons.
   1. Frequent tardiness will result in fewer shifts until the employee is consistently on time.
   2. No call no shows result in immediate termination.
   3. Leaving water running, lights on, office unlocked, doors unlocked when closing, and not arming the security system when leaving.

&#x200B;

\-Two weeks ago I asked one of the owners to switch one of my shifts, but no problem if it wasn't possible.  We communicate with the owners through an app and I never got an answer back. It was odd because all my previous texts had been met with enthusiasm and emojis. I worked with the same owner the next day. She was pretty cold with me despite my upbeat attitude.

\-

This past Thursday I worked with the other owner, the manager and a new hire. They were both acting cold towards me so I mostly talked to the training new hire. I helped him with learning the menu, latte art and the general flow of the store. I unofficially helped train my replacement.

\-

My last working shift was last Saturday. I had three days off where they had the opportunity to tell me I was fired. It feels like they knew for a while due to the coldness and the new hire.

\-

I know being Colorado means I am an "at-will" employee, and I think that means I can be fired for no reason at all. However, the employee handbook clearly addressed the reasons to be fired . I didn't even get a warning verbal, written or otherwise.

\-

Disregarding that I allegedly didn't know the recipes, I failed the menu test on my second day and they never made me retake it. They threw me into the trenches the same day. For my own sanity I spent the weekend memorizing and succeeded.

\-

A few people working there have connections with the owners. They recently hired more people than needed. This seems suspicious to me.

\-

I'm not sure if this is relevant, especially because I never disclosed this to my previous employers but I am not completely well. However it has never effected my work. I have diagnosed ADHD and peripheral nephropathy. Everyday is painful and overstimulating. Despite all this I have never been fired, I've turned down multiple advancement opportunities due to the added stress and I've never been treated like a pawn before.

\-

Is there anything I can do?

Answer:
 > Is there anything I can do?

File for unemployment and look for a new job.Answer #2: They dont need a legitimate reason to fire you, they dont need a reason at all. File for unemployment and move on.


Title: Noise complaints

Question:
I have a neighbor above me that plays an electronic drum kit with a bass drum kick pedal and NO HEADPHONES at random hours throughout the day. I work from home pretty often and find it extremely hard to concentrate, even with headphones on (the ceiling and walls are pretty thin and are literally shaking). I’ve tried speaking with him about the issue but his response is basically “deal with it”.

I am scheduled to speak with the leasing office about this issue tomorrow but I have a feeling that they won’t do anything about it since they’ve been pretty slack about other issues in the past (though it should be noted that our leasing agreement stipulates that residents can’t cause excess noise “at any time”). If they do indeed do nothing about it, what other courses of action can I take?

Answer: Complain to your landlord. If he is doing this during "quiet hours" (call your city/county to determine when these are), call the police.


Title: [NJ] Past employer lied about employment and costed me a job

Question: I'm writing this on behalf of my significant other. Long story short he was employed somewhere for the past three years. The owner has done many illegal things, especially regarding pay. My significant other left of his own volition months ago over the owner doctoring his checks and promising to "take care of you" regarding the missing money. He found new employment recently and was hired fingerprinted etc. When the new employer called former owner for a reference, the old employer blatantly lied saying significant other never worked there. He lost the job two days before starting over this. Is there anything he can do?

Answer: He can sue the old employer for defamation of character. That is why most employers will either agree to be a reference or tell you not to use them as a reference when you ask. They will pretty much never agree to be a reference if they are going to say negative things because they don't want to get sued.


Title: Bought new Toyota prius 2015, dealer tried to make me sign a different contract 10 days after my purchase by telling me it was promotional paper for electric cars (Quebec, CANADA)

Question:
Update : They offered me free tires and a sum of money, they also reprimanded the employee. I accepted the deal and resigned the papers. Thanks for your advice folks of /r/legaladvice

Native french speaker, my english level isnt top notch, please bare with me.

Here is the story, 10 days ago, I bought a brand new toyota prius 2015 from a toyota dealership (financed by toyota credit canada) with my wife, she is the buyer, i am the co buyer. Everything is fine, we sign the contract and then leave with the car.

The next day when I am leaving for vacantion, they call me in panic, saying i forgot to sign the papers for the electric vehicle promotion and i need to comeback.

I tell them i can only come to sign after my vacantions. Fast forward yesterday and 1100 miles on the car, I go to the dealership and they make me sign the papers, telling me its pretty ordinary stuff to finalize the sell of my car?!

When they flip the pages back, i realize its a whole different contract for the sale of my vehicle.

I already signed, but my wife, the main buyer did not, so we go back home and we compare both contracts.

Both contract are totally different. There is a 10$ difference in interest, 1 contract is monthly, the second is bi weekly and so on.

Its when i realize,the first contract, signed by my wife and I and the salesman (the contract we signed upon vehicle delivery) have an error in it and instead of saying

"weekly payments of 94$, it says MONTHLY PAYMENTS of 94$" the full vehicle price is listed, contract is in french but i will try to translate exactly how it is said  "363 MONTHLY payments of 94.84, first payment august 7 2015 and a last payment of 94.84 august 22 2022"

The salesman called me yesterday, then the director, then the general director called me, they all tried to bargain my signature with various stuff, from 1 oil change to free winter tires. I said no to everything because i am still pretty damn insulted they tried to make me sign another contract without even telling me.

Is the first contract valid? It has been signed by the dealership financing employee, my wife and myself.
the second contract only got signed by myself (co buyer) but when we realized they presented us a new contract we backed out and my wife(main buyer) didnt sign.
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer:
 This is an obvious clerical mistake on their part. since the amounts are the same whether you pay over 3 years or 30 years..I would settle for free oil changes for the life of the car. do you really want to be paying for this car 30 years from now when the car has been gone for the last 20 some years Answer #2: What you described is called "fraud in the factum." That is when someone misrepresents what they are asking you to sign and you don't realize you are even signing a contract.

The remedy for this under the common law is simply that the contract is voidable by the aggrieved party.

Your jurisdiction may have some consumer protection law that would allow you to get damages, but you will have to do some research into your local laws. Answer #3: Take the winter tires and go resign the paper.

A human error of that magnitude does not make the contract enforceable. Just think about what would happened if YOU made the same error, and have the dealership try to enforce that contract. Not fair and equitable is it?

That being said, it's pretty shady for the dealership to say different to what's actually being signed.

So long as the signed contract reverts to what it's supposed to be before the error (and the amount you agreed upon, also I'd take bi-weekly payments. It gets rid of the loan faster.), then it's fine. They're trying to work it out with you, in your favour with some goodies.

As of right now, Toyota Financial Services can easily revoke your loan. Then you'd have to take your car back to the dealer, or face repossession and damaged credit rating.


Title: four in the back of a cop car hands to genitals

Question:
ok so I get arrested on charge that was not quiet made up... and a technicality... but that's a another Issue.. when the cops took us from the arresting station to the jail he put four kicks in the back of his car. Two of us were on laps hands to genitals touching there is nothing we could do about. Not to menschen beating of my friend during the arrest and a no resisting arrest charge

my question for you guys is putting four guys in the back of your care endangerment?

Sense I was touching my friends nether parts would this not warrant a sexual charge agents the officer? or police department?

Next question who the hell do I call to make the complaint?

I wan to take legal action about this shit. I'm done being afraid.

Answer:
 Obviously you have some issues so I'm not going to beat up on you. But keep in mind that sexual assault is not incurred when people accidentally bump into you because of space limitations. It happens. If you want to make a complaint talk to the sheriff or chief on how to file a complaint. Answer #2: > menschen

Oh c'mon.

>Sense I was touching my friends nether parts would this not warrant a sexual charge agents the officer? or police department?

Really?

>I wan to take legal action about this shit. I'm done being afraid.

Afraid of what? What are you going on about?

***Stop committing crimes and you won't have to sit in the back of police cars.***

What's up with the self entitled questions today?


Title: First time on reddit. So recently I go into a minor car accident while delivering for my Dominos, very minor and minimal damage. I never disclosed to my insurance company that i was using my car to deliver. When I was hired at Dominos the GM told me it wasn't a big deal and that I didn't have to.

Question:
   So when I was hired the GM told me to just take my car topper and uniform off, also explain to the person involved in the accident to not mention I worked for dominos when they would give a statement to the insurance company. This way my personal car insurance would pay for it. However when I got into my accident I did everything mentioned they way i was supposed to. I tell the GM I got into an accident but it isn't that bad he makes sure I removed everything. After all the paperwork and ticket i returned to work and finished my shift. To avoid paperwork the GM told his supervisor that I wasn't delivering at the time, I was just running back to my apartment really quick. He told me to keep that story if anyone asked.

   Fast forward to the next day, I receive a call from my insurance company the next day asking for a statement. The other person involved told them i was working for dominos and delivering. So I told them what my GM told me to say.  I told them i work as and insider but was just running to my apartment. After that I told him what I said and he pretty much just said okay and hung up.

   The next day i get a call from the GM's supervisor asking me some questions about the accident because my insurance company had contacted them. He never asked me if I was delivering so I never told him. The GM then calls me a little later and says that i cannot return to work until I get something from my insurance company saying that they are going to pay for the accident. My insurance company ends up tell me they are not going to pay for the accident, and dominos has yet to tell me that they are going to pay for the accident.

   Do I have a case against dominos if the end up not paying for the accident? Again first time on here so I apologize if this is messy. I just thought I would try to see if its even worth the consultation.

Answer:
 Your GM is an idiot and encouraging you to commit insurance fraud. You should not do that.

Corporate may be interested in a GM encouraging employees to commit insurance fraud.


Title: Join us July 17th at 11 AM EST for an AMA with RAINN

Question:
**RAINN** (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) is the nation's  largest anti-sexual violence organization. RAINN created and operates  the National Sexual Assault Hotline (**800.656.HOPE**, [online.rainn.org](https://ohl.rainn.org/online/) y [rainn.org/es](https://rainn.org/es/))  in partnership with more than 1,000 local sexual assault service providers across the country and operates the DoD Safe Helpline for the  Department of Defense. RAINN also carries out programs to prevent sexual  violence, help survivors, and ensure that perpetrators are brought  to justice.

We will be joined by **Rebecca O’Connor**, who serves as the vice president of public policy at RAINN,  where she leads efforts at the federal and state level to improve the criminal justice system, prevent sexual assault, and ensure justice for survivors. She has more than a decade of experience as an attorney  working in the public policy realm and advocating for improvements in  the criminal justice system and victims’ rights. When not at work, she  can be found chasing her 5-year-old twins, who are usually chasing the  weary family dog.

The thread will open at 11 AM Eastern for questions, and Rebbecca will begin answering questions at 2 PM Eastern.

For those who wish to help RAINN in their mission, you can donate to them at [donate.rainn.org](http://donate.rainn.org/).

Answer: Thank you for facilitating this! I'm so excited.


Title: So I leave my computer to run to the store and a buddy of mine posts a classified ad to a facebook group for a small child. It was up for about 5 minutes before I got back and deleted it. Someone from the group called CPS on me, wtf do I do now? (NY)

Question: Picture of a baby taken from google images.   Friend thought it would be a good joke and we'd all get a chuckle out of it, but honestly I'm shitting my pants right now

Answer:
 While you're not required to talk to the police, this may be an excellent situation where you'd want to, if they were interested.

If you have children, cooperating with CPS may also be in your best interest.  Practically speaking, nothing is likely to occur.


Title: [tx] Can I legally give my employer an ultimatum between me and another employee?

Question:
After numerous harassment issues, all of which management has been aware of, I've reached a breaking point with a coworker of mine. This is a small, but very busy company, and losing one employee especially during this season could have a catastrophic affect on our workflow.

I like my job, my boss, and almost all of my coworkers. I don't want to put them in this position, or leave, but I can. Is it legal for me to pose the ultimatum of fire the other employee or I leave? Is it legal for the company to do so?

Answer:
 I mean it’s legal but if they are going to lose an employee either way, they are more likely to get rid of the one making ultimatums.

With the added bonus that by essentially resigning, you’ve made yourself ineligible for unemployment benefits.


Title: Student Loans - False Cert & debt collector harassment

Question:
I did not graduate high school (was homeschooled), do not have a GED, and never took an Ability to Benefit test. I managed to get into college and paid on the student loans for about 9 years before I found out I did not qualify for Title IV funding. I stopped paying the private loans and they were sent to collections. They've been passed amongst several companies. One company called me over 15 times at work after being told to not call me there. Then another company called the owners of the company I work for at their house and demanded to talk to me, telling them their home phone number was my correct contact number. I had to go to IT to have all the calls pulled because my boss wants me to send a cease and desist.

Separately, the federal loans were in administrative forbearance. The servicer has since pulled that forbearance and they are now due. I have previously sent False Certification paperwork and they refused to process the paperwork. They will not give me any other options but pay or default.

What do I do?

Answer: None of the reasons for false cert apply to you.... so... pay them?


Title: An offer to buy my domain has turned into threats of litigation.

Question:
Over a week ago I (NM) received a voicemail from someone out of state (SD), who shares my name and requested to buy my name-specific domain address (I've purchased this over a year ago through GoDaddy to use as a creative portfolio site). Things first got strange when, after I didn't call back that day, she called again at 10pm and left a more aggressive voicemail about how she is starting a t shirt and floral business and really wants to get the ball rolling and she needs this domain. At this point she even brought up the possibility of the two of us working out a business agreement to share the domain if I didn't want to get rid of it.

After a few back-and-forth voicemails, last night we finally talk business. We decided that I would sell her my domain for $100. She said she would talk to her lawyer to see what she needs to do and call us back in the morning.

Then - The lawyer calls, at 11:00pm, from the same phone number. He did not state his name or his law firm and had a very aggressive and condescending tone. He said that to "avoid litigation" I should sell at a lower price than what we agreed on. He reasoned that his client owned the trademark of her name and it doesn't matter if I own the domain and they can prove that she has been using this trademark and that we'll lose the domain in court.

From what I understand from a little bit of research, trademark laws would apply if my website was selling something similar to her product (t shirts and floral) because of brand confusion. It's also worth noting I can't find the trademark they mention when I look it up on  https://www.uspto.gov/trademark.

This whole thing seems sketchy. Am I really under threat of litigation if I don't "sell my domain at a lower price"? ~~It feels like extortion.~~ (Thanks /u/bastionfour) Am I under obligation to sell my domain, because they claim to own a trademark on the name, to avoid being sued? I'm literally losing sleep over this, since they're calling so late. Am I risking anything by ignoring their calls from here on out? Any advice is greatly appreciated.

EDIT/UPDATE:
I appreciate all the responses and thoughtful input and advice. To clarify; there is absolutely no way i'll be selling the domain to this person for any amount.

I've redirected the site to my etsy store (with items far from floral and t shirts) for the time being.

I'm anticipating a call from them tonight to ask them questions suggested by some of you; like the "lawyer's" name, firm name etc., to call their bluff.

Ill update again if anything happens worth sharing. Thanks again, all.

Minor Edit- forgot to mention thjs, this morning I masked my privacy with go daddy to prevent them further access to my info if they haven't already saved it.

Answer: OP, I sold a domain name for $10K about 15 years ago. Next time she calls add zeroes. Every time she fucks up, add zeroes. Don't be shy about it.


Title: Movers just won't bring my belongings to me. It's been two months.

Question: I've called them just about every other day. I keep getting put on hold and passed along. I've been told that they won't deliver my things because they do not have trucks that come this far out this time of the year (meaning the state, not my neighborhood.) They had no problem giving me a quote in writing saying that they could when I agreed to use their company. I've tried being stern. I've tried bringing up the insurance on my belongings in hopes that they wouldn't want to call with that. I don't know what to do. Should I be getting a lawyer?

Answer: Where are you? Where did you move from/to? Where is the company located?


Title: Legality of N.S.A Wiretapping

Question:
I'm a freshmen computer science student in the U.S., not a lawyer. I've been trying to figure out how government wiretapping is legal. 18 U.S.C. 2511(2)(d) federal law permits recording telephone calls and in-person conversations with the consent of at least one of the parties. I am confused on the N.S.A recording almost all of the phone calls in the U.S. has consent given by either party of the call.

NSA Whistleblower William Binney has stated “At least 80% of all audio calls, not just metadata, are recorded and stored in the US. The NSA lies about what it stores.” He is the author of the software used for wiretapping, and worked for the NSA for 32 years.

Source: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jul/11/the-ultimate-goal-of-the-nsa-is-total-population-control

So, my question is: Are the supposed actions of the N.S.A. legal, or is there just not enough evidence for them to be sued? If there were to be evidence of such wrongdoings, would a firm (such as the ACLU) be able to sue the government?

Thank you for your time!

Answer: This is so far beyond the scope of this sub that I don't even know what to tell you, man.


Title: Employer forcing me to buy shorts with company logo on them. California

Question:
I work for a moving company in California. My employer is forcing us to pay $15 each for shorts with the company logo printed on them which will be mandatory for work. From what I have read online this seems to be illegal.

One of the top employees at the company who has been there for years and is highly respected confronted the owner about this and got yelled and sworn at by the owner.

Is there anything I can do? I need at least three pairs to get by as i often work 6 days a week and washing is mandatory after sweating in them all day. $45 may not seem like  allot but it is for me right now.

I really appreciate any advice. The owner has a serious temper and bringing this up with him would probably mean being fired on the spot (hence the throw away user name)

Answer:
 While it might be illegal, are you willing to stir up legal issues and possibly lose your job over 45 dollars, if 45 dollars is a lot to you right now?

Think this through, sometimes battles aren't worth fighting. Answer #2: Pay for the shorts.  Later on, when you are in a better financial position (or ready to quit your job), demand reimbursement and threaten to report them to LWDA if they don't.Answer #3: Unfortunately, while your employer is doing something illegal, raising it may lead to you being fired.  That's illegal too, by the way.

Track this & other illegal practices, and when you find a new job, file a complaint.


Title: Lady agreed to NOT exchange information, changed her mind & I gave it to her. She says I hit & ran?!

Question:
I hit her fender in a parking lot, we checked the damage & both agreed to just let it be. But after I drove off, she follows me for about 30 seconds & says "NVM" so I just gave her mines & went on with my day.

WTF? Attorney ASAP? I don't think she even filed a police report as it's been over a month & no cops.

Located in Kentucky.

Answer: Just contact your insurance and let them handle it.


Title: Confused on if I should pay this settlement offer for a debt that is hitting 6 years next month or use it for a different debt.

Question:
DISCLAIMER: I am trying to do the right thing. I got in bad debt in my early 20s after my Mom passed away and I am just trying to clean it up. A lot of my debt came from helping my family as I had young siblings. Now I'm trying to clean it all up. Cleaning up your act can be so confusing sometimes!! I feel like I'm walking a battlefield here. Looking for advice without someone belittling me for my mistakes..

I live in Oregon and that is where the debt is from.

I'm working on slowly paying off my debt and I received a settlement offer for a $1300 account I had with Verizon Wireless many years ago to be paid off for $500 dollars by tomorrow. The account shows on my credit report as in collection. The settlement letter came from a third party company that the collection agency who bought my debt (Pinnacle) hired out. I called the third party company that sent the letter to ask if I paid it if it would be removed from my credit report and he told me to call Pinnacle and ask them as they own it and then call him back but he def was encouraging me to pay. He wanted me to ask for him by name when I called back, to get the credit for my payment I'm sure.

I thought I had at least another year or two until the statute of limitations came up so I gave pinnacle a call and asked them if they would remove it from my CBR if I paid this settlement offer of $500 but the very nice gentleman said that they would not remove it but just list it was paid in full. He said they do not offer "pay and deletes". But then he goes on to say the account shows it will be removed from my CBR on Aug 16th 2018 regardless if I pay or not..

I asked him when I went delinquent on the account and he looked it up and said Jan 2012, which that even confused him as Aug 2018 wouldn't quite be 7 years.. But he was really nice and he said that it was in my favor and the systems are going to remove it in Aug so I am "lucking" out.

I then asked him if I should even pay it and he didn't flat out say no, he did however hint that he wouldn't pay it since its so close to coming off.

I then asked what the likely hood of them garnishing my wages for it because I've had that happen with other accounts and that is the number one thing I want to avoid mainly just for the sheer embarrassment at my job over it.. And he said it would be very unlikely that they would garnish for this account as Verizon has already sold it off and the "type" of account it is.

I could really use the $500 to go towards my other debts so I don't want to just pay this one if it really isn't going to matter after Aug anyways. But I'm just confused on why they would have Aug listed in their system as the fall off date when technically it should be Jan 2019 if my last payment was Jan 2012?
And I DO NOT want a garnishment to happen.

Would you pay the settlement or use the $500 towards a different debt like my credit cards or one other small collection account on my CBR I have from 2014?
Thanks for your help!!

Answer: IANAL ~ What I did when I was so badly in arrears on everything and my credit report looked like a train wreck was dispute everything on your report with each credit bureau. Those who claim the debt are responsible for proving you owe that debt. If they can't, then it comes off your credit report. Then, I waited out the remainder of the 7 yrs and paid all my current bills on time and in full. At the end of that, you have either no credit at all as if you'd never taken out a loan etc, or if you have credit cards you are currently paying on time, then your credit rating will be good. It takes time, but you can clean it up. Then, it's best to just live within your means.


Title: I mailed some medical marijuana seeds to a friend living in japan. it was seized by customs and they're asking him to respond. how should he respond?

Question:
i'm in hawaii. i have a japanese friend (japanese national) who i met while i was living in japan last year. he often said he wanted me to send him seeds through the mail since it's not illegal to do so in japan (according to him).

a couple weeks ago, i procured some medical mj seeds, about 4 total, and put them in a small plastic container, about 1/4in. in diameter and maybe 2-3 inches long. i put the container in a padded envelope along with a christmas letter containing a short message ("how's it going? i'm doing well. hope you can visit soon." etc.) I didn't write my name down and i didn't write my friend's name in the message.

on the envelope itself i wrote my friend's name and address in japan. for the return address i simply wrote "santa claus" with no other information.

he messaged me today asking if i had sent him anything through the mail recently since he received a letter from customs. in the letter, customs is asking him if it's okay for them to open the letter to see what's inside, since (and sorry i wasn't sure what he meant at this point since my japanese is a little rusty) the postage was wrong-meaning the postage i used on the envelope is only meant to be for paper letters, and since there was a plastic container in the envelope it triggered their sensors or whatever. he also thinks they know there's some sort of plant matter or whatever which would also trigger their sensors.

he's worried about how he should respond to customs. since japan has really strict drug laws, if it was discovered that it was hemp seeds, he might have to face criminal charges.

* If he tells them to throw the letter away, they might be suspicious that he doesn't want to know what's inside - or they could infer that he does know that something illegal is inside and wants to get rid of it.

* If he tells them to open it, they might find the hemp seeds and he's worried he would get in trouble.

I told him that since he hasn't technically received anything yet, they couldn't possibly find him guilty of anything, but he's still worried.

What should we do?

Answer:
 Your friend should ask a Japanese lawyer what to do.  Answer #2: Few options he has:

1) Tell them to open it. Pretend like he wasn't expecting mail and is as curious as they are as to what's inside.

2) Tell them to throw it away as he wasn't expecting any mail internationally.

3) Tell them not to open it and to return it to sender (gift for Santa!)

4) Ignore the letter and don't respond.

Basically they are going to open it no matter what he chooses. I would go with option 2 or 4.

edit: Posting drugs internationally is a felony. I would avoid doing that.


Title: My roommate stole my cat and said she was abandoned.

Question:
Hello all!

I'm from California. I recently moved out of my place getting ready to move out of state.

As I was getting ready to leave my roommate locked herself in her bedroom with my cat and refused to open the door saying it was her cat now and that I had abandoned her. I called the sheriff who then got both sides of the story but none the less said I had to take her to court. Per the property law.

I'm an OTR truck driver and per verbal agreement she would watch my cat while I was gone. She had wanted to keep my cat but things have been going wrong there. She moved in yet another boyfriend who made a horrible mess of the house and she has all but stopped talking care of her other animals, but claims she takes good care of the cat which as far as I can tell is the case but I still don't feel my cat is in the best place.

She also works for the State in one of the law enforcement devisions. She went around and asked people how to steal my cat and that is what they told her to do. Yes, the law told my roommate how to steal a cat.

So what can I do? I have my adoption papers but just not on me. Is there a time frame?

Answer:
 > She went around and asked people how to steal my cat and that is what they told her to do. Yes, the law told my roommate how to steal a cat.

What evidence do you have of that?

Animals are property- your recourse is to sue her in small claims court for the cat or the value of the cat.Answer #2: Get your paperwork showing you own the cat. Adoption papers, vet biils, etc. Call law enforcement again and use the paperwork to demonstrate it's your cat. If that fails, sue for the return of the cat or the value of the cat in small claims court. Use your documentation to prove you own the cat.


Title: [KY] Getting a divorce, not sure what to do about the house

Question:
My [ex]wife and I purchased a house in February and she asked for a divorce in May. She moved out and I am keeping the house. We have already split everything and the paperwork demonstrates that.

My lender has said they will process a release of liability to have her removed from the mortgage because I qualify on my own. However, the release of liability requires that the divorce decree be submitted with it.

How do I properly account for the home in the divorce paperwork when the release of liability can't be approved until *after* the divorce? Technically, it could get denied. The lender says that's unlikely but it does still have to go through an approval process.

My ex had a lawyer help her out with the paperwork but obviously, that lawyer is not my lawyer. Everything is very simple and straightforward in the divorce packet except the house part.

Answer: Your divorce decree needs to say these two things, your STBX is relinquishing her interest in the house (and will sign quitclaims, etc to make this happen)  and that you will take the necessary steps within 90 days of finalizing the divorce to finance the house solely in your name, your ex should be willing to help you do this since it is about getting her name off the mortgage.


Title: I rear-ended a car and now their suing me

Question:
Miramar Area, California

I'm a college student that rear-ended a car recently. I constantly asked if he was okay but he spoke broken English but heard him say yes at one point. Highway cops had come over and one had a notepad but i do not know if he put both people were fine. He sustained mild damage with a medium cracked bumper that was slightly falling on one end. However, my car was totaled with the front of radiator pushed in and broken headlight. We both took pictures and exchanged phone numbers. I already talked to my insurance company about the accident. But yesterday his lawyer called and was suing for personal injury. I do not know hat to do now and need help. :(

P.S Thank you for any feedback and advice

Edit:I appreciate all your comments and I have talked with my insurance company, hopefully his $300k claim wont pass through. (This is my first time using reddit)  ^.^

Answer:
 Contact your insurance company and tell them you're being sued for personal injury.Answer #2: >But yesterday his lawyer called and was suing for personal injury.

You are under exactly ZERO obligation to talk to the other driver or his lawyer. Block their numbers. Inform your insurance company.Answer #3: He very well could have been injured. Somebody can "appear" fine to an untrained person. This is why you have insurance.


Title: [District of Columbia] High school teacher forces me, and only me, to wipe down boards or my grade drops.

Question:
My AP Calculus teacher is on good terms with most of my class, and he likes to tease the students, especially me.

It's almost always lighthearted, but this time it has gone a little far. Recently, he assigned us all classroom 'jobs'. All of my classmates were given responsibilities like door holder, line leader, or line caboose. Except for me. He made me the whiteboard wiper. When he first announced our jobs, we all rightly assumed he was joking and wasn't going to enforce our bogus duties, especially when he said we'd be graded on our performance.

So for a few days I played along, and did my best to erase the whiteboards in the most unhelpful way possible, mostly by getting up from my desk at random times, and erasing whatever was on the board at the time, regardless if he was done explaining it or not. He told me to knock it off, and I said fine.

At the end of class, when he ordered me to clean the board, I refused to. He said he'd dock me participation points. I dared him to and said I would sue him if he did. He said, "Like hell you will."

I checked my grades online today and the bastard actually did it. My grade in his class has dropped from an A to a B+. He followed through with his threat, so I suppose I should follow through with mine. I’m going to take legal action! (Not actually)

My plan for revenge is to craft a message from me and my lawyer. I want to hit him with every possible charge under the sun relating to unequal treatment, abuse of power, etc. But since I’m a reasonable person, and am seeking to avoid a drawn-out legal fiasco, I am open to dropping the charges if he a) releases me from all further board-wiping duties, b) corrects my grade, and c) reimburses me for my labor.

I need advice on exactly how to phrase and format this letter, and make it seem genuine. I want to be able to cite specific federal and local laws, and sound like a lawyer. I am also curious if I could potentially find myself in real legal trouble by claiming to have a lawyer, even in the context of a prank. I’m not going to take real legal action, and he knows it, but I just want to demonstrate to him that what he’s doing is wrong and I won’t stand for it, but in a way that won’t sour our relationship.

Facts about the case:
I reside and attend school in the District of Columbia.
The school is a public charter school, and my calc teach also happens to be the assistant principal.
I am seventeen.

Thank you in advance for your legal advice!

**Edit**: Well, jeez, I didn't mean that I would claim to be a lawyer! When said I wanted to sound like a lawyer, I said I wanted to sound professional! This letter would come from me! The fib would be that I have **legal representation**!

**Edit again**: I feel like I've just done a shitty, shitty job of providing context.
Our relationship is generally amiable, and he and I mess with each other. Hence my not taking him seriously, and doing the labor in a crappy manor. That's why the actual ramifications of my actions caught me off guard.
Another huge misconception that I should hear is that my retaliation is nothing other than a prank. I don't want him to take the letter seriously; I am only mildly pissed off enough to respond half-seriously. Seriously, as in I'm trying to make the point to him that he can't just do that to my grade, and not seriously, as in I'm ironically threatening to sue, because it would obviously be a major overreaction on my part.
I think there was another level of misunderstanding here due to posts on this sub generally being of a much more urgent nature than my inquiry in how to sound smart to a teacher. My intentions were misread as being in-ironic. I suppose I share part of the blame for that. Live and learn. Next time I'll just post to /r/advice.
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 Impersonating a lawyer or firm is a bad idea.

Did you ever consider your participation grade was dropped because you have a bit of an attitude problem? Maybe stop creating problems for yourself now. Answer #2: Grow up. Nobody here is going to help you commit a crime. Answer #3: Impersonating an attorney is a crime.  You would be far better off apologizing for acting like an asshole during and after class, and then not doing it again.Answer #4: You have no legal foot to stand on.


Title: Is a lawyer employed by a private law firm usually prohibited from taking cases on his own? (San Francisco, CA)

Answer: That's almost certainly going to be prohibited.  As others have mentioned, the firm isn't going to want the lawyer to compete with them.  But, also, that situation would severely mess up the firm's conflicts checks.  What happens if the lawyer agrees to represent somebody suing a big company, and the big company is already a client of the firm and wants the firm to defend them in the same suit?


Title: UC Police Interaction?

Question:
Hi, I go to UCSB in Santa Barbara. It's in California. US. I got the cops called on me because I was in the bathroom for a little too long and someone was worried about me. The cops asked me a few questions, whether I was using drugs, I consented to a search of both my self and my bag, they didn't find anything. They copied information from driver's license and student ID, and that was pretty much it. Is anything going to come of this?

&#x200B;

What report, if any, would be generated from an incident like this? Is an incident like this as minor as a speeding ticket or even more minor?

Answer:
 Do not consent to searches in the future.

There may not be any report associated with this.


Title: (California) Received letter requesting personnel of file for employee who has never worked for us for a company we have never worked for

Question:
Hi everyone,

My dad is a manager at a non-profit organization which I'll just call NonProfit. This morning, he handed me a letter and asked my opinion on it.

The letter is from a law firm and is addressed to him stating he is a manager (but that's not his title) and also lists out our non profit organization's name and has our HR manager's name on it too. But above that is the name of an auto service shop and their address.

The auto service shop is a few blocks away from our non profit organization that my dad manages too. Both addresses are listed out on this letter.

The letter is requesting that we send over a copy of "John Smith" (not real name)'s personnel file to them.

We do not know anyone by the name John Smith nor are we or have we ever been associated with this auto shop. Frankly, we've never even visited them for services.

So we're curious how we should go about this. Should we contact this law firm and inquire about the letter? Should we contact a lawyer for ourselves and have them contact the law firm or should we ignore this or should we do something else?

Thank you.

Answer:
 Best thing to do is contact the firm and let them know that you don't know anyone by that name and clarifying the items you mentioned.  Answer #2: Just reply to them, tell them you don't know who that is.

I used to own a business and I used to get stuff like this all the time.  People would use us as a reference even though it was a family owned business and literally nobody outside of my family and occasionally friends ever worked there.  I'd occasionally get calls from various government agencies and other businesses asking about certain people I had never heard of.


Title: My son was removed from home, sent away and traumatized after school and social workers could not identity autism.

Question:
My son, at 8 years old in 2013, was handcuffed and placed in the back of a police car in the front of his school. This happened on numerous occasions. His crime? Running away from too much stimulus at school. On this particular day, the principal threatened to "clean his clock". The school called social services on us, and the social worker said my 8 year-old was the worst child she'd ever encountered. While she was telling me I HAD to surrender my parental rights temporarily or she would get me for neglect, my poor baby was handcuffed and trying to sleep. Oh, how it still breaks my heart to think about. My son was taken for 6 months and put into a residential facility where he was exposed to other children's stories of molestation and physical abuse. My son was routinely restrained because he wanted to sit criss cross. I told them because of his documented sensory processing disorder, he needed the extra weight on his legs that sitting that way created for him. They didn't care; he had to have his feet placed flat on the floor. When I finally got my baby home, and in counseling over the ordeal, we discovered he is on the spectrum and now suffers from PTSD. We also discovered after the school told me he was faking chest pain to get out of PE that he had supraventricular tachycardia. The principal called social services on me again 2 years ago for medical neglect because I would not have my son evaluated at a sketchy mental hospital. I preferred to take him elsewhere (the principal wouldn't allow my son to return to school without a mental health evaluation because he said a cuss word). Fast forward to the current: I removed my children from public school and homeschool them. My son had heart surgery this past January and is thriving. We understand his different abilities and build upon his many strengths and talents. But sometimes I think of all we went through and it hurts so much. I can't give my baby back his childhood. All those visits I'd go to and have him beg me to take him home.
I know social workers are overworked and sorely undertrained, but they couldn't possibly understand the effects they had on my family. I am an only parent. My ex-husband is not involved with the children at all. My children are the reason for my existence and I let them down. I didn't protect them from this nightmare.
Is there anything that can be done or should be done to the school system? Social services? Local police department?

Answer:
 This is so fact-specific that you're going to need to talk to a lawyer about it.  It's waaaay beyond what we can handle here on the internet.Answer #2: You need to see a solicitor.

They will recommend and assit you with futher action.Answer #3: IANAL. Def talk to a lawyer, because there is lots of really specific information that we probably can’t help you with here. Also, on a related note, social workers can not diagnose autism... you usually need a psychologist or developmental pediatrician for that. They could have referred you to a psychologist though. Answer #4: Also please talk to a lawyer ASAP, there might be statute of limitations on certain things and since it was 5 years ago that some of these happened, the SOL may have passed or will expire soon.


Title: Medical Marijuana and the Second Amendment

Question: So, it's clear to me that you cannot purchase a firearm legally if you are a medical card holder. My question is, is this law enforced? If one were to simply lie about having it, would there be any repercussions? Has there been a case of this happening?

Answer: Do not lie on your gun application. Doing so is a crime, and yes, there are potentially repercussions like losing any chance of ever getting a gun and being labeled a criminal.