Title: School district wants to mediate our office of civil rights complaint, but will be represented by an attorney. Do you have tips on how to proceed?

Question:
I will try to be specific enough to be helpful, without personally identifying my family. My child has multiple diagnosed and documented medical conditions and a 504 plan with their school. Over the last two years, the school violated the 504 on numerous occasions by failing to provide the accommodations agreed to, including but not limited to accessible transportation, assistive technology, access to accessible bathrooms (she used a wheelchair), leaving my child behind from field trips and class excursions because they didn’t make proper transportation arrangements, and leaving my child behind during fire drills. For the first year of school, there was no access to a wheelchair accessible bathroom stall for any students in the school. Two were added the next year, but we have had to fight for things like getting them to adjust the tables in the classroom so the wheelchair will fit underneath (easily done with a hex key, but the school’s tactics have been delay, deny, distract, over and over again). The school staff member in charge of 504 plans acts as a gatekeeper for resources we know the district has (and we actually haven’t asked for costly accommodations, my student is a high-functioning honor student with mobility and physical disabilities). This person has lied about requesting things from the district, denied services saying my child doesn’t need them when the doctor has provided documentation that they are needed, and after trying to be nice, then complaining, and working my way up the chain, I finally filed a civil rights complaint. Portions of our complaint cannot be mediated  as the OCR has jurisdiction and they have opted to investigate, however there are some portions that can be mediated and the district (large) has indicated a desire to mediate rather than go through the complaint process. They will he represented by an attorney. I will not. I can’t afford it as a single parent with two children who have high medical costs. I had a brief (free) consultation with an attorney who suggested I try to find someone pro bono but the mediation would be sometime this month and I’ve not had luck.

I told this attorney that one of the issues is that my child can walk down stairs if not done often, but would need an adult to walk with them so other kids don’t knock them over and I’d requested this for fire drills and in the event of an emergency. The school’s plan is that my child will wait on the second floor (where most of their classes are) for the fire department in the event of fire or emergency and there have been multiple fire drills resulting in them being left behind. I checked with the fire department and they had no knowledge of a student with physical limitations or a plan for retrieval. That was the moment the very calm attorney got really angry on our behalf, but I’m still about to be in this mediation alone.

We even asked to use her accommodations to withdraw from standardized testing this year (straight A honor student but trouble regulating temperature and blood pressure in a school with no AC and she was having a lot of trouble during that part of the year) and we were told if we did, she wouldn’t qualify for honors. Found out later it was a total lie and manipulation.

It’s my understanding that if we come to an agreement in mediation that the district doesn’t uphold, the office of civil rights doesn’t monitor that, but I do have the right to file another complaint.

Do you have any advice for me? The administrator of the 504 is downright nasty. The teachers at the school and my child’s friends are great or I’d likely have moved them despite how hard it already is to juggle things as a single parent. We have one more year at this school, and then it’s high school in the same district.

I’ve met with one district leader who seemed appalled by what’s happened, but I’ve not seen evidence that things will change and the school leadership is awful.

Answer:
 If the mediation follows the typical format you're going to want to put together a quick page or two summary of what you think is going on and what resolution you would like to see. That should be sent to the mediator typically about a week before the actual mediation.

On the day of the mediation you'll most likely meet with the mediator and the school at the same time to all set the ground rules for how the day is going to proceed. One of two things will then happen, the the mediator will just facilitate conversations between the two of you or more likely, the mediator will break you up into separate rooms and spend time with the school then come back and spend time with you and go back and forth between the two rooms.

It is the mediator's job to beat up both sides to try to reach a compromise. They're not supposed to take a position but more of try to force people into the center. If a compromise is reached the mediator will generally put something in a bullet point type document for everyone to sign with the understanding a more formal agreement will be written at a later date.

If you cannot bring an attorney with you see if there's another family member that can come with you if anything just for moral support. Having somebody else there is also beneficial because if the mediator does take time with each side you're going to have a lot of downtime, it can also help make it that much more difficult for the mediator to beat you down in order to reach a compromise.Answer #2: Call legal aid, they may be able to help.  The legal aid offices in my area have school law attorneys


Title: Scotland: Property manager keeps walking in without prior notice.

Question:
My flatmates and I live in a flat in university halls of residence. Our property manager keeps walking into out flat without prior notice during the day to do various things and doesn't even wait for us to answer the door, rather they just hold the doorbell as they walk in.

Up till now we hadn't said anything, but this morning they walked in for an inspection that was originally scheduled for yesterday without informing us that it had been rescheduled. Their walking in happened only moments after one of my housemates had been walking around not fully dressed through the hallway. We tried to politely ask them if next time they arrived without notice by email if they'd ring the doorbell and let us answer, which we'd be happy to do, but they informed us that they had the right to enter whenever they needed without giving any form of notice at all.

Is this legal, because it certainly seems like it shouldn't be?

Answer:
 You must be given at least 24 hours notice if your landlord/property manager wishes to enter the property, they are full of shit. (Unless it is an emergency).

[You can probably find some resources to help you here.](http://www.cas.org.uk/bureaux)


Title: [texas/oklahoma] was just denied unemployment after having to quit due to non-work injury.

Question: I had to quit my job because I was assaulted (in Texas where my last job was) and I suffered a serious concussion (loss of memory, headaches, drowsiness) and broken teeth mainly. I was told to take time off the day after this happened since I came in and talked to the managers. I return to Oklahoma to get my teeth fixed, at this point I'm not financial able or obligated to return to Texas since I have no dental insurance and I have to pay that out of pocket, next I inform my manager I won't be able to come back to work and file for unemployment. I did not go to the doctor for the concussion as I didn't have the money. Is this an unfortunate situation and am I out of luck or should I try to repeal?

Answer:
 You can certainly appeal.  It costs nothing to do so.

But it does sound like you gave notice, rather than asking for time off for recovery from a crime/illness.


Title: Transgender Archdiocese Lawsuit

Question: URGENT: I'm a student at a Catholic high school, and one of my best friends is transgender. However, the Archdiocese of our area are looking to pass a law that will keep him from going to our school explicitly because he's transgender. As far as we know, there has never been a decision about this type of thing by another Archdiocese. My friend and his family are looking to do a lawsuit to put a stop to it. Is there anything that can be done to stop this?

Answer:
 Are they supporting a law or setting policy?

If the Archdiocese decides that this is inconsistent with the tenants of Catholicism, the school can then [file for an exemption](https://www2.ed.gov/policy/rights/reg/ocr/edlite-34cfr106.html#S12) from the statutes preventing discrimination on the basis of sex ([Title IX](https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/t9-rel-exempt/index.html))

Though the issue of whether or not gender identity is protected by Title IX in the first place is fairly contentious

Considering Oklahoma is one of the states that fought the administrative changes in 2016 (which have since been reversed), your friend should try reaching out to LGBT organizations to see if they can offer assistance, but also consider what they should do if this goes throughAnswer #2: It could certainly be worth consulting a lawyer, but the fact that this is a private religious school may grant them the right to expel your friend. He should also consider whether a school that is fundamentally against who he is is the best place for him.


Title: [LA] My deceased brother's girlfriend wants to sue me for child support

Question:
My older brother was 26-years old and had been in a relationship with his girlfriend for 2 years. She got pregnant, and they made plans to marry after the birth of their child. Unfortunately, my brother died in an accident and never got the chance to marry her or meet his child. Because they weren't married and the child hadn't been born yet, my brother's will has not been updated and everything was left to our parents who were his beneficiaries.

The girlfriend contacted me, and requested that I put my name on the baby's birth certificate when it is born. I refused her on the spot. She said that she would get a court order that will make me put my name on the birth certificate, and that she will be getting child support from me because I share DNA with my brother and the child. I told her to get out of my apartment, and thankfully she did without a fight.

I found another thread on here that is similar to mine, so I know that I need to lawyer up immediately and that I will need a special paternity test to prove that I am not the father. I am only 22 years old. My parents will be helping me through this. What else can I do to protect myself?

Also, what is expected of my parents and me in terms of child support? Could she get the court to order us to pay child support? Can she sue us and garnish our wages because we are my brother's estate? We had plans of creating a savings account for the little one, but now we want to make it a trust fund that the girlfriend won't be able to steal from.

Thank you for reading this.

EDIT: I just want to clarify quickly. His estate is not yet closed, and my family did NOT want to leave her to fend for herself. We all wanted to support her and help out, but it feels like she burned a bridge by trying to lie and frame me as the father :(
I think I phrased it badly by asking what is "expected" of us legally, but I only wanted to know what would happen if she did go through and try to sue me or my family for child support payments.

Answer:
 Not that this is any excuse, but she is postpartum and grieving. She may even have post partum psychosis, this sounds "crazy" enough.
Since this is the mother of the child perhaps your parents(who are also grieving) could speak with a family therapist about ways to bridge the gap with her and see if it's a mental health issue and not just that she is bitch.
I'm so sorry for the loss of your brother. I'm sure this on top of that is very unsettling.


Title: [CA] Police failed to return (legal) pocket knife taken from me when I was detained released without charges. They claim to neither have the item or a record of it.

Question:
A manager at Lowes called the police on me for refusing to leave the store when asked because (I found this out only after the police came) he wrongfully thought that I had entered the store with some people who had shoplifted. I refused to leave beause from my position I was being asked out of the blue to leave and when I repeatedly asked why the manager told me "you don't have to know why" / "it doesn't matter" etc.

That's not THAT important, but I'm just giving background about what prompted the police to detain me and how I was completely cooperative with them, yet extremely confused about why this was happening. I was just an average shopper.

When the police detained me they took my ID and my (legal) pocket knife "for their safety". The knife itself was never an issue during the detainment. I was obviously flustered and upset after these events because the manager decided to ban me from the store (for LITERALLY no reason other than refusing to follow his wrongful demands) and having the cop tell me that I "seemed more interested in arguing than being right" when I asked him if he would personally leave the store if asked to for seemingly no reason, and having the manager refuse to give a reason when asked.

(Sorry, I'm kind of venting over how frustrated this made me)

ANYWAY - since I was so flustered after all of this and knowing I needed to just leave the area or else I was going to explode with anger I wanted to get away as soon as possible. Once they released me I took a few steps before remembering to ask for my ID back (the officer didn't automatically return this to me either, thank god I at least remembered this). I got my ID and took off in my truck. About three minutes later I noticed that I was missing my knife  - this is a quality pocket knife with a cost in the $200s. As I had not yet left the shopping center where the Lowes was at where this took place I called the non-emergency number and told the person who answered what happened. They said that they would try to contact the officers involved and have them come back to me since they had JUST left. I waited and waited an received no call back and the officers didn't return.

The next day I called the non-emergency line again and told the person who answered this story and they looked into it and said that they found no record of this knife and that it wasn't in their possession. Knowing that that was a load I went over to the station in person and tried to speak to somebody there and I got the same story.

What, if anything can I do in a case like this? Are officers supposed to record items taken from people who they've detained? Shouldn't an officer be more aware of what they take from somebody since they have to return it? I find it odd that if I didn't happen to remember my ID and speak up on my own that I would have been dismissed without getting any of my property back. I know for an absolute fact that the officer took the knife off of me, that it was legal and being carried legally, and that it didn't come up as an issue any time during the detainment. He had to have left with it. How is it that there is no record of this knife ever existing? I mean, I of course personally believe that the officer decided to help himself to what is an expensive ass pocket knife - but I'm cynical like that. I just can't think of any other scenario though being that the knife never existed as far as the police force is concerned.

Am I just shit out of luck? How would somebody even prove that an officer took their property and didn't return it? It's my word against theirs - it seems as if I'm absolutely powerless in this situation and that police can literally just steal shit as they please.

Sorry for rambling on, as you can see this whole thing has me really wound up since I did literally nothing yet I ended up in handcuffs, banned from a store, and with my property stolen.

Answer: It sounds like there are not many options to you in relation to the knife - you would have to prove that it exists and that they have it.  However you are incorrect that you did nothing.  You refused to leave private property when requested - this is a form of trespass.  You could have been charged for this.  The manager is correct that they do not have to have a reason to ask you to leave.


Title: Kicking us off private property during a fire alarm?

Question:
I live in a big apartment complex (~350 units) in Denver, CO and the fire alarm went off around 2:00am. Everyone ran outside, and it was pouring rain and wind was gusting around 30mph, the “feels like temperature” in my weather app said 32F. The building is shaped like a big rectangle, next to the build on the sides are, another apartment complex about 200ft away, a construction site building a new office building, a main road that connects to the highway and a big financial companies headquarters on the last side. Everyone started running across the street to the financial companies building, they have a drive up area that is covered so people were standing under there to be far away from the apartment but out of the wind/ rain.

Then a single security guard comes out of the building and started telling people that he knows the alarm is going off but everyone needs to leave because it’s private property. Mostly everyone is slowly grabbing there stuff and leaving but there isn’t really anywhere to go as you can’t go in the construction site or stand on the main road. Apparently it wasn’t fast enough for him because he started threatening to call the cops on people for trespassing.

Can he do that? Is it legal for the financial companies security guard to kick people off the property while there is an emergency in the building next door?

Answer: He absolutely can do that. He was hired by the property owners and given the power to enforce their interests in the property. As you said, it's private property and it does not sound like the apartment complex has an agreement with the property owner to use the space as a shelter.


Title: Delta flight delay caused me to miss flight and have to buy new tickets for $1400. They will not reimburse me, anything I can do?

Question:
On December 20th I had a Delta flight booked from San Jose, Costa Rica, to Atlanta, Georgia.  It was supposed to depart at 7:38am.  We didn't get in the air until 9:30am.  The captain told us it was because a flight attendant had a too-large bottle of perfume in her purse, so she was detained in security.
From Atlanta, I had a second Delta flight to Orlando, FL that departed at 2:55pm.  My first flight didn't land in Atlanta until 2:17 pm, so I obviously missed the flight.  The next flight to Orlando was full, and Delta automatically rescheduled me for a flight that departed at 7:55pm.
From Orlando, I had a flight to Iceland with IcelandAir that departed at 6:00pm.  Obviously, this flight was missed as well.  As it was too short notice, I could not reschedule the flight, so I had to book new tickets(for myself and boyfriend) for the next day for $1400.  I also had to stay overnight in Orlando.
Delta said they will cover the hotel expenses but not the flight costs.  They offered two $100 gift cards as a "good-will gesture."
I've seen some things online about rights for air passengers that have experienced delays, but since Iceland is not in the EU I'm not sure where this falls.  However, Iceland participates in the Schengen Agreement.
Any advice is much appreciated :)

Answer:
 Did you purchase travel insurance with flight delay coverage? (Or have it available through the credit card you used to purchase the tickets?)

Generally; Delta would only be responsible if both tickets were part of the same PNR. If the Iceland flight was booked independently from them; that's one of the risks you take to get a cheaper reservation. Delta fulfilled their responsibility to you per your contract of carriage by getting you to the destination stated in your reservation. Answer #2: > The captain told us it was because a flight attendant had a too-large bottle of perfume in her purse, so she was detained in security.

This part of the story seems so unbelievable to me. Why would the captain tell the passengers the exact reason you were delayed, especially in such detail that points all the blame to one of the flight attendants *right before she gets on board?*

"We're 1.5 hours late because of a flight attendant who brought a perfume bottle too large. You'll know which one she is because she's going to get on the plane 1.5 hours late."


Title: Friend destroyed property, please help.

Question:
So a few months ago I went to Vegas for my 21st birthday with a good friend of mine. Lets call her A. Anyways in Vegas something comes up and A has to leave early. I was a bit upset seeing as it was my birthday but I decided to stay in Vegas alone for my birthday and get a flight home the next day (we drove to Vegas from California so she drove back by herself and I flew back the next day) she offered to take back half of my stuff because she was driving and would have more room. She said she would leave it in my car (which I had left at her place) when she returned home (I have proof of this in text).

Well when I get back I take my car and drive back to where I am staying in California (with a good friend, lets call her G) when I get back I realize that A did not in fact put any of my stuff in my car. I message her about it and she says that she simply forgot and that she would hold on to it until I was able to come back and get it (she lives about an hour and a half from where I was staying and I did not have enough gas or time to run back and get it that night) anyway a week later I try and contact her via snapchat and no answer. another week later the same thing. this goes on for a while until eventually I use Gs phone and send her a message. She replies back that she has thrown all my stuff in the garbage, blocked my number, and that I am not welcome at her house anymore (WTF) so thats why I was unable to reach her all those times apparently.

It was nearly $2000 worth of stuff that she discarded. I have receipts for the majority of stuff that I had borough. I am a professional makeup artist as is she and a lot of the stuff she "discarded" was makeup products including my entire professional brush set valued at over $650. I do not believe she actually threw a lot of it out because one of the items was a set of $800 hair extensions that she had BEGGED me to bring. I assume her plan the whole time when she offered to take my stuff home for me was to steal it though I have no proof of that except a few photos on Facebook where it looks as though she is wearing the hair extensions.

Anyway I do not want to take her to court over theft as I do not have proof BUT I do have proof of destruction of property as she admitted it all over text. (which I can link all the messages if you would like) she also stated in her texts that I owe her $600 (lmao what?) and when asked what for she claims she paid for all the drinks in Vegas (untrue since A) drinks are free and B) she was only 20 at the time lol.) I also have receipts to prove otherwise on this aswell. I think she got scared so she tried to make false claims.

Since I was also staying with G at the time of all of this she can confirm what I had prior to going to Vegas vs what I had returned with. I have already sent out a demands letter to A and had no response back so now i am just curious as to how to actually file a claim in small claims court. OH and one more important piece. I live in Canada but was spending a few month in the US. I am back to Canada but am retuning once again to the US for a few months for an event and to get all this bullshit taken care of. Thanks for all your help. I will link the messages if anyone is interested though there are quite a few. She also claims I was disrespectful to her on the trip so she was justified is destroying my property (wtf) and that it is "just stuff so get over it".

Answer: I can't see how it could do any harm to report the matter to the police.


Title: Can a 17 year old be charged as a minor if the crime was committed before they turned 17?

Question:
The title is all I’m looking for answers to as of now. A buddy of mine has a court date for a crime that wasn’t committed while he was 17 but is going to court after his birthday

This occurred in Michigan

Answer: Yes they can.


Title: Is it legal to charge for entry to Town Hall Meetings?

Question:
My state representative Steve Chabot is charging $25/ticket to attend tomorrow's Town Hall meeting. Is this legal? Why should I have to pay to have my representative hear me?

Edit: Cincinnati, Ohio

Answer:
 Legal but shitty.

I'm going to break our rule here and say a local reporter might be very interested in this.  I'm doing so because this is not a legal issue, and it's genuinely a matter of public, at least local, concern.


Title: Shop Owner sue kid for stealling 60000 worth of item

Question:
Sorry for my bad english. I really beed an advice on this case. I have a cousin who is under 18 years old. A shop owner ask him to work for a couple months and the owner pay my cousin cash. He already stop working from there for like a couple month already. But recently, the shop owner call him and his friend whose also under 18 and work for him for cash. The owner accusing them for stealing 60000 dollar worth of item. And if the family of these kid don’t pay him he will sue the kid. He also have a video camera of one of the kid stealing a couple lottery ticket. What could happen to the kid? What can we do ?

Edit:California, US

Answer:
 (This this is predicated on you being in the US. Location is important)

>  And if the family of these kid don’t pay him he will sue the kid.

Given that this would first be a criminal issue, not civil, and that I sincerely doubt this place is going to have 60k in value in it, this sounds like horseshit.

Ignore him. If you're sued respond. If the police question the kids say nothing and get a lawyer.


Title: The shoplifting alarms went off at Kohls but I kept walking?

Question: I made a stupid decision and decided to steal 3 pairs of earrings from Kohl’s. I ripped off the packaging and threw them in the shelves of some other aisle. As I was leaving the store, I think the alarms went off but I kept walking quickly and went home. No one stopped me or anything but I’m pretty sure the security cameras caught me. (I also heard sirens like 2 minutes after I left but it may have also just been a fire truck?) I’m not really sure what happens now. I feel really guilty and I’m 18 so I think that if I get caught, I’d face some consequences for sure. What will they do? What can I do?

Answer: Hi there! I used to work at Kohl's and at our stores we have an LP (Loss Prevention) Officer, with his very own office--kinda like a security guard, his office was riddled with pictures of people who had stolen before, because even if he wasn't there that day, the cameras definitely captured something. Not trying to scare you, but I would probably not shop at that Kohl's anymore. I don't know much, I was just a lowly associate, but I know this one person who got caught stealing had to pay full retail price for the goods she stole. Like she stole about $600 worth of clothes off clearance (?? From what I remember ??) and had to pay the full price of the clothes and show up in court. I wish for the best for you though, good luck!


Title: Car Towed in Private Property in Utah

Question:
Last night I had the unfortunate experience of being towed from my friend's apartment complex. I've never been towed and when I came to the realization that I had been towed last night, I couldn't believe it. I had parked my manual car and thought I had pulled the parking brake as tight as possible. The parking stall was on a slant and what had apparently happened is it had rolled back and was a "parking stall violation." My car had rolled back a few feet most likely due to the parking brake not being tight enough. I was unfortunately towed... This is something that yes was avoidable but I am more than anything bugged about the amount of money I had to pay for a complete accident. There is no sympathy from the University Parking Enforcement of Orem, Utah. I think I am basically screwed and that is about it. It had rolled back a few feet and about a third of the car was sticking out from the stall. I still feel like it wasn't justifiable by the apartment complex or the towing company to even tow me.

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Any advice as to what I could possibly do? I feel like I can't do much... possibly dispute the charge on my credit card? Even then I feel like I would lose and would be a waste of time. T

Answer:
 When parking a manual car on a incline you’re supposed to leave the car in gear in addition to pulling the parking brake. I do not see why they would be sympathetic considering this could have cost lives. This is going to be an expensive lesson for you unfortunately.Answer #2: In my opinion, it's even worse that the car rolled partially out of the parking spot that you parked it bad.

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This means the car could have rolled even further and either damaged property or hit someone.

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You are out of gas on this one, either way you parked the vehicle unsafely and the tow was justified.

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When I had manual vehicles I always put the transmission in gear (either 1st or reverse depending on the situation) in addition to setting the parking brake to ensure something like that never happened.


Title: [TX] Residential real estate seller lied on seller's disclosure form about age and condition of roof and other conditions of home. Can I take seller or seller's agent to Justice Court to recover $1,500 of inspection costs?

Question:
I put in an offer on a home in Texas which looked to be in good condition and was reported to be as such. The seller's disclosure form listed no major issues with the home and stated that the roof was seven years old and in good condition.

When I had my inspector look at the home he found that the roof was original to the home (\~24 years), had never been replaced nor showed any signs of repair. There were signs of water damage in the home visible to the trained eye, though he could not conclusively say it was due to the roof.

The seller also listed on the disclosure form that the A/C had been replaced in 2015, but in reality only the condenser was replaced, the rest of the system is from 2001 and needs to be replaced.

Due to strict windstorm requirements in my part of Texas, even if I wanted to I could not purchase the home because it wouldn't pass my bank's appraisal, and I could not insure it as required by law because of the current state of the roof – it appears that the home currently has no windstorm insurance according to the public Texas Department of Insurance website.

I exercised my option today with 36 hours to spare and am walking away from the deal. Provided they don't pull any funny business I will receive my earnest money back (of which I am not 100% certain, I also found out during this period the seller's agent was found guilty of real estate fraud in civil court in 2016 for not returning earnest money).

I feel that both the seller and the seller's agent entered into this contract to sell the home in bad faith and I would like to take them to Justice Court to recover the money I spent on inspections. I would not have entered into the contract if they had been honest as to the condition of the home and its current condition.

Is this a "caveat emptor" thing and why we do inspections in the first place; or do I have a case because of the untruths on the seller's disclosure form?

Thank you!
Topic:
Real Estate law

Answer: OP- If you get your earnest money back, I would say you probably have no case. This is exactly why you get an inspection(s) done before you commit to the purchase.


Title: NSFW. Help me explain to my friend how this is illegal. It has to be, right?(we live in USA, Missouri to be specific)

Answer:
 Get better friends. "This is so despicable I can't believe you'd say it, even as a joke, call me never" is a fairly good exit.

Having said that, it's almost certainly some variety of poisoning, tampering with food, assault, or sexual assault. If he does that to his own daughter, and CPS catches wind of it, they'll likely remove his daughter from his care while they investigate, too.


Title: [IA] How can I protect myself when landlord sells the house I'm paying way too little to rent?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 >  We are concerned that he is going to terminate our lease as soon as possible,

They can't. The lease carries with the property. But they can not renew or raise your rent after your lease is up.


Title: AR - Wife running on sidewalk, bitten by dog

Question:
Police and animal control have been notified but didn't know if the dog owner is responsible to pay for the hospital bill and rabies shot.

Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks!

Answer:
 > Police and animal control have been notified but didn't know if the dog owner is responsible to pay for the hospital bill and rabies shot.

Yes they are. Take them to small claims if they are unwilling to pay.


Title: [Alabama] Is my friend legally required to incriminate others?

Question:
One of my good friends recently got caught with alcohol at our private university. The school is charging him with both possession of alcohol, and underage possession of alcohol. They have also threatened to add the charge of "Disrespect" if he refuses to incriminate the people he was drinking with.
This is particularly problematic because three judicial strikes results in suspension. He essentially either snitches, or gets suspended.
Can he Plead the Fifth? Or can the school actually suspend him for not yielding information?
Topic:
Alcohol Related Other than DUI

Answer:
 1. The fifth does not apply to private colleges, only criminal courts.

2. The fifth is only about incriminating yourself, not others.

He can be forced to yield this information.


Title: [Ontario, CANADA] Charged, Passport Revoked.

Question:
I have been charged with an indictable offense (not terrorism related or murder) and received a letter from Passport Canada stating that my passport would be revoked/suspended. Although I was charged back in April of 2017, I was in possession of a temporary passport until June 2017, in which I decided to claim my official passport that was waiting to be picked up. After sending in the necessary swap form, I was hit back with a letter stating that because I was being charged with an indictable offence, I would no longer have access to my Canadian Passport. In the initial bail hearing, the Crown requested that I surrender my passport, but the judge decided not to require this condition as I was not seen as a flight risk. A challenge to this decision was launched through my lawyer but have yet to hear anything back. My question is 2 parts:

1. Besides waiting for a response, is there anything I can do to further challenge this decision, as a trial is pending and will most likely occur early 2019.

2. As a dual-citizen, I hold a foreign passport. I am able to leave Canada using my foreign passport, but I do not know how I would be able to re-enter Canada, seeing as how I am required to have both a Canadian and foreign passport when coming back to Canada. I thought about applying for a Canadian visa in Ecuador that would allow me to enter the country? These charges came out and blindsided me, and have seriously disrupted my business overseas. I need to leave the country on my yearly trip, now more than ever, now that I need money to cover current and future legal costs.

Any help would be really appreciated.

Answer:
 > Besides waiting for a response, is there anything I can do to further challenge this decision, as a trial is pending and will most likely occur early 2019.

Under the [Canadian Passport Order](http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SI-81-86/page-1.html), the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration may refuse a passport to anyone who is charged with an indictable offense. The Minister may also revoke the passport for any of the reasons by which he/she may refuse a passport.

You have the [ability to make an application for a passport](http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/passport/security/limited-validity.asp) under "urgent, compelling and compassionate considerations", if any exist.

You also have the right to challenge the decision before the Federal Court of Canada within 30 days (but based on what you've said, the decision is valid).

> As a dual-citizen, I hold a foreign passport. I am able to leave Canada using my foreign passport

That, simply put, would be stupid. While, sure you could get an emergency passport limited for a return to Canada if you made it out of the country, it would not look good for you. You may also be breaching bail conditions by leaving the territory.

If you really have urgent business abroad, make the court aware of it. They may or may not give you permission to go. If the court says it is okay, then Passport Canada would likely issue a limited validity passport to you.


Title: If I make an agreement with a physicist on the internet, that he'd look into my hypothesis, and if it's worth anything give me credit, and he didn't, would I have any legal recourse?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: You simply having a hypothesis means nothing if you can't actually figure out whether or not it's a working theory. Why would the physicists even bother with your theory? Are you going to pay him or her a lot of money to research it? Answer #2: Physicist here.  Let me save you some time:  your idea doesn't work.


Title: Wife was told she shouldn’t work where she does because of my job

Question:
Hello All,
We live in Montana and my wife works for a large wholesale grocery store and I work for a broad line food distributor. She was recently told by a manager not in her department that she shouldn’t work there because it is a “conflict of interest”. We both started these jobs at different times and both signed non disclosure agreements as they both have them in the hiring process. Is there any way my wife could be terminated for this? Or any advice on what to say to her manager?

Edit: I am in sales and wife works entry level production deli position.

Answer:
 Unlike most of the states, Montana is NOT an at-will employment state:

https://www.blr.com/HR-Employment/Performance-Termination/Termination-with-Discharge-in-Montana

http://dli.mt.gov/resources/faq

Employment is only at will during the probationary period. If they want to terminate her from her job, they're going to have to show they have good cause.Answer #2: I could be wrong but I would have thought it was entirely dependent on the role in the company.  If she is just a cashier, and you are just a warehouse employee, that is quite  different that if you were both in the sales teams.  Working for companies in similar lines of work shouldn't be enough for a conflict of interest unless you have access to specific information.Answer #3: Does she have authority to choose which distributor food is purchased from?


Title: My father illegally took my name off a Taxi Medallion that's worth over 40 grand and put his and my sister's name on it. What can I do? U.S. Virgin Islands.

Question:
Hi, guys.  I really need some advice on what to do.  I live in the United States, Virgin Islands.  My father and mother divorced in 2002 and live in the same house that's divided between them. She owns one side he owned the other.

In 2004, both my father and my name were on a Taxi Medallion; it's worth over 40 thousand dollars.  A few years later, we stopped getting along because he verbally abused my mother.  I took my mothers' side and my sister and brother took his side.  In 2012, he illegally took my name off the Medallion by telling the Taxi Commission that I don't exist, and some how he got it done and took full ownership of it.  Then, he applied for a loan with a bank for 28,000 dollars to build an apartment on his side of the house, using the Taxi Medallion to secure the loan.

In late 2014, he died and so his side of the house and the Taxi Medallion became a family estate because he had no will.  Before we noticed it, my younger sister drained my father's bank account of over 30 thousand dollars and took other things that was supposed to be divided among his children and was trying to lay claim to the medallion as well.  I decided not to bother about the money she took, but I've been trying to deal with getting the Taxi Medallion back.  Recently, I found out that my father didn't completely pay off the 28 thousand dollar loan; he only paid off 17 thousand dollars and since the bank wasn't getting monthly payments on the loan, they're soon foreclosing on the Taxi Medallion.  What exactly can I do about this?  Can the bank foreclose on the Taxi Medallion when half is suppose to be mines?

Edit:
Mistake in title, he didn't add my sisters' name to the Medallion; he just took off mines.

Answer:
 I would say you need to worry about the money she took, because you're going to have to be able to make some payments on that medallion one way or the other.
Get a lawyer that specializes in estate law. They'll help you figure out what your next steps are. With this much money on the line you shouldn't have too much trouble finding someone interested in your case.Answer #2: Sorry, I hope others here have some concrete advice for you.  This is beyond me.  I would suggest speaking with a competent Wills and Estates lawyer in your area.  Does your father's estate have an executor or estate trustee assigned yet?

Also, what is a Taxi Medallion?  Is it some type of GIC or bond of some sort?


Title: [NY] Given a ticket for having a license plate cover (clear plastic), which was purchased in-state?

Question:
Hello,

My father had purchased 6 sets of clear plastic license plate covers for each license plate on our cars (2 per car, front and back plate). These are not magnifying lens covers, sparkle covers, or anything meant to obscure the plate, just legitimately clear plastic. They were purchased from 1 of 2 places, both of which are well known auto care chains.
We now understand that the law says there may be no license plate covers allowed over the plate as they may obscure the view of the plate.

These license plate covers, [here is an image, for example](https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/mywebtimes.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/6/06/606518d6-f29a-5962-9cae-392b8c8d5545/516577a0377ca.image.jpg) , were purchased in good faith in New York from these stores on the grounds that we could use them in our own damn state (still New York!).

We'll probably just have to eat the ticket but still, anything that could be done?

Answer:
 I'm not going to comment on whether or not those covers are legal to use in New York, but merely because something was purchased in a state doesn't mean that it is legal to use in that state.

(Edited to remove double negative)Answer #2: >(b) **Number plates shall be kept clean and in a condition so as to be easily readable and shall not be covered by glass or any plastic material**, and shall not be knowingly covered or coated with any artificial or synthetic material or substance that conceals or obscures such number plates or that distorts a recorded or photographic image of such number plates, and the view of such number plates shall not be obstructed by any part of the vehicle or by anything carried thereon, except for a receiver-transmitter issued by a publicly owned tolling facility in connection with electronic toll collection when such receiver-transmitter is affixed to the exterior of a vehicle in accordance with mounting instructions provided by the tolling facility.

[Source](http://codes.findlaw.com/ny/vehicle-and-traffic-law/vat-sect-402.html)

It's stated very plainly in New York state code. You'll have to eat this one.


Title: CenturyLink charging me for the internet that I never used. How do I go about fighting it?

Question:
English is not my native language, so bear with me. I live in Washington state. Last month a rep showed up at my door trying to sell CenturyLink and Direct TV bundle. Since I had gotten tired to slow speed of Comcast, I decided to switch. So I said that I would switch only if I can get Direct TV signal, and that I didn't want just the internet. The rep said that someone is going to check if I can get signal, and if I can't then nothing will be installed.
Few days later Direct TV tech shows up, and finds that he can't get any signal. He left without installing. Now nothing got installed, I didn't worry about calling anyone thinking that the account was never set up.

This month I got a bill from CenturyLink for the internet which was never installed. I tried to contact customer service but never got hold of them. Today, finally after a week of trying, I talked to customer service who says that the bill is valid because the internet is live even though it was never set up inside my house, and that I owe all the amount. Besides, I have to call their Loyalty Department to cancel the service. I told them I don't intend to pay the bill.

So can they still charge me for something that was never installed completely? Please help.

Edit: Grammar and location.
Topic:
Computer and Internet

Answer: Have you called the Loyalty Dept. yet? They're the ones that handle cancels.


Title: Child abuse in county school

Question:
My daughter is special needs and high risk eloper.

Earlier in May she got out of the gym door and someone on school grounds brought her back inside, the teachers couldn't find her. Her class is 3 adults to 5 children. One of the teachers in there at the time said she was "distracted". CPS got involved and the school didn't report the incident but we did, this apparently isn't the first time this has happened.

Last week the same teacher dragged another student (also special needs) up a slide he didn't want to go on then kicked him down the slide, she was arrested after a conflict but later released.

We've requested all emails, videos, essentially anything on my daughter at the school, for assurances that they aren't attempting to hide anything that isn't being brought to the light at the moment. They are charging a minimum of $800 for all this information for us, which seems unfair to us and makes up more suspicious that there is something they are hiding something.

There's been many accusations of abuse happening in the school. We don't have money to pay a lawyer to sue the school unless we find one that'll take a cut of any settlement.

I'm looking for advice on what steps to take to avoid pay $800 to make sure my kid is safe in an environment that's supposed to be safe and what steps to take to gather all information I can to build a case against the school. Located in Virginia

Answer: Based on what I've heard about Virginia (this isn't a state where I've worked, so I'm not 100% confident), this charge is likely occurring to blur out the faces/identifying features of other children in the video. Secondhand info, but this service is extremely expensive and if you aren't legally entitled to it, they'll try to charge you.


Title: "Collector" calling me about fathers legal issues

Question:
Pennsyvainia, USA

I have a very rude and invasive person calling me about my father's debt. After screening his calls he called from a local number and refused to send me a verification report and hung up, then sent me the following message:

i have no idea what you demand, not a consumer collector nor obligated under FDCPA. I have asked for a call over legal issues. either we can talk or you can make pointless demands and threats that will not deter anything. choice is your my friend

How much could this actually effect him and how can I get this guy to stop calling our place of work and family?

Also my understanding of this debt is that he owes it due to costs of a business he used to own and run, and much if not all of it is owed to the IRS

Answer:
 If you don't want to talk to him, tell him to never call you again. Ideally, get his mailing address and send a certified letter with a signature receipt. "Dear (name), Do not ever contact me again. Sincerely, (you)"

If he continues to contact you, get law enforcement involved. They'll want to see a pattern of calls after being told to stop, but harassment is harassment.

The FDCPA does not apply if he's not a debt collector. For example, if he's the original creditor.Answer #2: "Dear X, I am not my father. I do not owe his debts. Leave me alone."

Answer #3: Let him call you and see what information he volunteers.  If he is a debt collector, the penalties for talking to someone else about the debt could include a fine or discharge of the debt.  And termination for the employee.Answer #4: I don't know if anyone else has seen this, but there seem to be some fake debts springing up (google fake debt).  They chase a fake debt aggressively and chase family members aggressively to get payment.  I'm pretty sure I've seen it a few times.  You may like to speak to your father and ask if he's getting grief re a fake debt.

I would ignore them as much as possible and hope they go away.  Good luck


Title: As a programmer, can I be held liable for code I am instructed to write?

Question:
Hello, legaladvice. My title sums up the general subject of my question. I looked, admittedly briefly, for other threads posted here relating to this question but was unable to find anything. I'm sure its a topic asked about before. I also did a web search, but would prefer a more personalized answer to my specific situation. However, any good reading on it would be very nice to look over.

&#x200B;

To keep the post as short as possible, my current employer has me concerned about the programming I am instructed to write. There are three primary questions I would like some clarity on. I am a sole developer who maintains a system, not written originally by me, that handles the entire process of the business. I have rewritten a large part of the system, but not all of it. I have only been here about a year. My first question, **can I be held responsible for parts of the program not written by me either criminally or civilly? Similarly, can I be held responsible after I leave?**

&#x200B;

* Missing Requirements

This is not the place to rant about my job, and I will to my best to avoid this sounding as such. To keep it short, my company has no sense of code control (or any process control in general.) Our jobs are held at the mercy of two owners, related by family, whose wants change daily and are often contradictory to themselves and one another. At times, we have to undermine them, not in a rebellion, but in the sake of keeping the business operational. If you know the term scope creep, it is rampart here. I am constantly given instructions to write a process, which I am completely ignorant of, without any requirements. I'm simply given an end goal and only after I'm done am I told to return and reprogram the requirements. Some of these are very important, like government regulations, and leaves me concerned I have missed some, which could result in criminal or civil case. I am also instructed to do things I am not completely ignorant of, and know can result in package rejections, although I have yet to do anything I know is clearly illegal (but they could have been). **Can I be held legally responsible for writing a process that is illegal, although I am doing so under instruction?**

&#x200B;

* Customer Contracts

This is my most direct worry. I recently did a complete overhaul to how we invoice customers for services rendered. I treated this process *very* sensitively. However, I am still just an employee and have no power to make executive decisions. For example, I would ask *"In the case of x, do we charge y?"* No contracts were ever pulled for these situations. The two bosses would sit and discuss how they wanted to charge and then tell me the result. I am positive that a number of these were in violation of contracts, and at the very least made me uneasy. **Can I be held responsible for implementing these demands in the case that a lawsuit occurs?**

&#x200B;

**TLDR;/SUMMARY QUESTION**

**Legally speaking, how much responsibility lies on a programmer who is at times given unclear requirements and at other times given requirements that can result in criminal or civil cases?**

Answer: Lawyers rely on the concept of “reasonable care.” That is, you’re not expected to be perfect, just good. The prevailing legal view is that it’s impossible (or nearly so) to create perfectly secure and reliable code, so nobody’s handing out death sentences for every little bug. Some kinds of mistakes are okay. But you are expected to exercise “reasonable care” in writing your code, testing it, and ensuring that it does what it’s supposed to, while not also doing too much that it’s not supposed to. You need to be professional, in other words.Answer #2: NAL, but you need to start doing the process of getting all the requests in email (or doing follow-up emails saying "just so I understand correctly, you wanted me to do ___". It's known as CYA (cover your ass) and can be used if at some point things do go south, or if you do need to turn documentation over at some point depending on what laws/ regulations are being broken. Keep the copies somewhere off site.


Title: Does someone sending a private message on Facebook have a reasonable expectation of privacy?

Question: If the recipient of that message shares the PM in a public forum, is that theoretically actionable? (I mean, everything is theoretically actionable, I suppose, but winning that action is something else again; in any event, is expectation of privacy for a PM a viable legal position?)

Answer: In the US, no expectation of privacy or action for publicizing it.Answer #2: Being "private" would only make it illegal for a third party to intercept the message.


Title: I just broke up with my pregnant live-in girlfriend.

Question:
Edit: NH USA

I originally posted this in r/advice, it was suggested I post this here too.

 I've never been in a relationship like this I'm 35(m) and she's 33. We've had ups and downs, and arguments like other couples, but she's mean. I'm not a doctor but from what I read online it sounds bi polar. A few months ago she got pregnant, that spurred me to get out of the my apartment and I bought a house, and she moved in. We had a miscarriage. Shortly after she got pregnant again. Around that time there was growing animosity between her and my family to the point that my sister in law took out a restraining order.

I feel it was justified, given some of the texts that my gf sent, but I was afraid to say so. During all the fighting between them, my gf is also texting me, like it was my fault or I did something wrong. She broke up with me (not for the first time) and later yelled in my face saying how much she hates me. On my way to work the next day she texted that she hoped I would die at work.

That's when my heart just gave up on her. I've been trying to get her to agree to some sort of couples counseling, but she keeps moving the goal posts on what it will take to get her to go, and to be honest I only wanted to do it because she's pregnant.

After fighting back in forth, mostly over text, she agreed to therapy, only if I agree my whole family will never meet my unborn child. That was to much.

I didn't want to give up. I really truly tried to hang on. Now she says she'll take me to court to make sure I don't have any custody to our child. She's still living in the house I bought. I told her she can stay as long as she needs, because I don't want to be an asshole and kick out my pregnant gf.

I know I'm a little short on details, the text exchanges are long and full of circles. Mostly me trying to focus on us moving on and her sitting on me and my family....I'll answer any questions.

I guess I just don't know what to do from here or go about living with someone I used to love, and part of me still loves because she's carrying my child, but I also have no interest in being romantic with. Meanwhile she hates me..... Final thought- I truly believe separate parents are better for the child than together parents that hate each other. Am I right?

 Addition for legal advice: she's only 7 weeks along, what can I do if she decides to try to keep me in the dark about the pregnancy. Or after the baby is born?

Answer:
 NAL:

Most of this is /r/relationships stuff.

Legally, you can serve her an eviction notice to leave your house (look up landlord/tenant laws for your area ... unless for some reason you allowed her to be on the deed to the house, she is your tenant and your legal remedy is to evict her). Continuing to let her live in your property is a bad idea for many reasons.

As far as the pregnancy, you have zero legal rights until the child is born, at which point you can establish paternity (possibly via court ordered paternity testing) and then set up a custody arrangement, ideally with the help of a family attorney.

She has no grounds to keep you from seeing the kid, assuming it’s yours.Answer #2: Once the child is born, get a lawyer and file for custody. You will probably end up with shared custody.

You have no right to information about her pregnancy.

You will need to give her notice once you want her to leave, that's generally 30 days in most places but varies by location.


Title: [KY] My apartment building is transferring ownership to university housing. University housing is assigning me a different apartment than the one I'm living in. I previously signed a lease before the ownership change. Is there anything I can do to remain in my unit?

Question:
I'm a student. I live in an apartment building on campus. The building was previously owned by a housing company, but ownership is being transferred to university campus housing. I signed a lease to remain in my current unit before the change in ownership was announced. Now, campus housing has had me fill out an application with a licence, and has assigned me to a different unit with a different floor plan at a higher price than my previous lease stated.

The old lease is a renewal of the one I signed when I first moved in. As far as I can tell, this new license just says the university can give me any housing assignment. Campus housing hasn't contacted me with my unit assignment or roommates, I had to go to the office and ask about my status to find out they were moving me.

If you need any other information, feel free to ask.

Answer:
 The new owners must honor the original lease for its period of validity.

>The old lease specifies what floor plan I'm to be given.

Does that include the unit number? If not, then then I suppose they could require you to change units so long as the new one has the floor plan you're supposed to receive.

>campus housing has had me fill out an application with a licence

You should review these papers. You may have lost your original lease by doing so. You probably shouldn't have signed anything at all. You had a lease and were under no obligation to fill out any new applications or apply for whatever this license is.

Answer #2: You're unclear - does your lease specify which unit you live in, or does it say that you take what they give?


Title: My cousin's husband is being accused of rape

Question:
Hi, we're in California. My cousin's (Ash) cousin (Jeff) and his girlfriend (Sara) were visiting from the mid-west for a few days. Ash's husband (John), and another cousin of mine (Phil) decided to take them out bar hopping for the night. Once the night was over, and everyone was completely trashed, they all headed back to Ash's house to get some rest. Phil ended up heading home, while Sara passed out on the living room couch and Jeff passes out next to her on the floor. John headed to the bedroom with Ash and mentioned he forgot to lock the doors and windows so he heads back out. About 10 minutes pass when Ash realizes he's still out there so she goes out to look for him and finds him passed out on the recliner (fully clothed), wakes him up and takes him back to the bedroom.

Next morning, John is at work and Ash is home with Jeff and Sara. They pull her aside and tell her that John raped Sara in the living room that night. She clawed him and screamed and pushed him off of her.

Now, I know false accusations are rare and there's a huge issue about not believing rape victims. However, Ash was completely sober (as well as all the kids in the house) and no one heard a peep. John does not have a mark on him, and like I said earlier, he was gone for less than 10 minutes and fully clothed. Jeff was laying right next to her and although he didnt hear or see anything, he said hes backing her 100%.

The family recommended she go to the ER immediately and get a rape test, then call the police after. She refused and said she'll take care of it when she gets back home (???). She'll then contact Ash on next steps (more ???).

We're not sure what happened, but we're leaning towards Ash and John's side since this all just doesn't add up. If he is in fact innocent, should he lawyer up now or wait until she files a police report? Anything else he can do to make sure this doesn't destroy his life?

Of course, on the off chance that he is guilty then as long as she does her rape test this should be easy to prove I'm guessing?

Answer:
  > should he lawyer up now or wait until she files a police report?

Given the circumstances he should, at the very least, make a couple of calls in the event that he's detained by the police. Hiring one outright seems premature at this point however.

> as long as she does her rape test this should be easy to prove I'm guessing?

Rape is never easy to prove.

He should cease all contact with this woman, ignore any of her attempts to contact him and refuse to speak to the police under any circumstances. If detained, he'll need to retain an attorney.


Title: The Supreme Court Rules Half of Oklahoma is a Native American Reservation

Question:
[https://youtu.be/EG6T2gQXhOg](https://youtu.be/EG6T2gQXhOg)

The Supreme Court just ruled in the case of McGirt v. Oklahoma that the Eastern Half of Oklahoma is now considered a Native American reservation for the purposes of criminal justice. Here’s why the Supreme Court ruled that way and what it means.

Answer:
 Arizona stands as the state with the largest percentage of its acreage allocated to Indian Reservations - 27%. Does this put Oklahoma as the new #1, or does this ruling only extend tribal jurisdiction and not necessarily the Reservation's land holdings?Answer #2: Does this mean all property in that area is not actually owned by people, but considered under the same "held in trust" and "managed by BIA"?

For non-natives that live there, will they be evicted? Or forced to move?Answer #3: The ruling is limited to the Creek’s criminal jurisdiction, not all of Oklahoma or beyond criminal.

Later suits will have to open civil and taxing authority and any authority for the other four tribes (Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Seminole).


Title: Bike got stolen 5 hours ago! What is my best course of action?

Question:
So last time I saw my bike was 5hrs ago when I went in front of the house I am renting at. The next time I go out it's gone! Now this bike is dead as fuck since the last time I rode it, I lost control and kicked a telephone pole at 40 mph. This resulted in eight dislocations (fractures, breaks) in my foot that required some hardware to be installed in my first, second and fourth metatarsal. As well as some bridges between my medial, intermediate/middle and lateral cnieforms. So it's been sitting out for 6 months.

Though I feel that I, in the end, will have been preyed upon and have been the victim of those who prey on the week and ignorant. Just maybe a glimmer of hope will come from the righteous acts from those with the strength and ability to combat the evils and corruptions that plague our world today. Whether from those I call upon or those that help without thought of reward or gratitude.

It's unfortunate that we must be ever vigilant on our very brothers and sisters ( every other human). Thank you to anyone who reads this or even glances upon this.

And don't be discouraged by this depressing event I truly do believe there are great people. I like to think I'm kind of decent even though I have been screwed over pretty hard. I still can't loose my faith in humanity cause I have seen so much greatness.

Sorry for the rant I really don't know what to do.

Edit: location State, Hawai'i Nei

Answer: Call the police. Is the bike covered under insurance?


Title: Uncle broke into mom's house, refusing to leave.

Question:
My grandfather sold my mom his house before he passed away because unfortunately his two sons are degenerate lowlives.  One just got out of prison for committing $45,000 in fraud.

He claims he can't find a job.  My mom put her neck out for him and got him work.  She even offered to pay his rent until he gets a couple paychecks under his belt.  He doesn't like the town he'd be living and working in, so he refused the job.

My mom told him he is not welcome to stay at her house, the one my grandfather sold her.  She does not live there.  Today she stopped by to straighten it up and do a little work and she discovered that my uncle is there.  The house is located in Goshen Virginia.  An extremely  rural area.

He says he and his brother have legal right to the house, despite the fact that it was sold to my mom years before my grandfather passed and is 100% in her name.

What do we do?  Is it enough to call the police to have him removed?  Or is there a more involved process?  We don't even know how long he's been in there.  He could have broken in any time within the last two weeks.

Answer:
 Call the police and see if they will remove him.  That will be at their discretion.  You may want to have relevant documentation on hand to dispute the uncle's claims.  Again, SOMETIMES they will view that, sometimes they will not get involved.

If they will not remove him, you will need to go to court and evict him.

The sooner you start this, the better.  Answer #2: Call the police. Now. Yesterday even.

Your mom is an extraordinary woman to offer him a job AND rent untim be gets on his feet. HE spit in her face and tpok advantage of her kindness. He is an intruder into your home.

If you want to be nice give him a few days notice to vacate. Use a lawyer to make sure its all on the up and up. Then when you are finished be prepared to have a constable or sheriff evict him.

If you are not feeling nice CALL THE POLICE NOW.

I can tell you if this were me, I would not be even close to nice.Answer #3: On a side note, the one who got out of prison, is he on probation?  Unlawful possession of someones home might not sit well with his probation officer if he has one.  That might take case of one of them.


Title: Need advice

Question:
I lost my job as a corrections officer after being arrested for public intoxication. It was a bonehead move on my part for not calling someone, or a cab....Long story short i went out, had too many at the bar and was impaired as I drove off and sinking fast so i pulled into a parking lot and stopped the car and the cops were called on me .I admitted to the cops I drove to a parking lot to "sleep it off." I was released with a prepayable fine several hours later and told my boss and was placed on leave w/o pay and instructed to pay the fine. I was fired the next day. I filed an appeal and was denied because of my "admittance to my criminal act." I wasn't gonna lie to the deputies and say I drove to a parking lot and got drunk.

This was my first arrest ever and I understand we in LE are held to a higher standard. I don't need to hear how much I screwed up, etc.....I've dealt with that since getting fired. My coworkers want me to fight this since I was a hard worker with no writeups or other legal trouble. Will I be able to get my job back or ever work in law enforcement again? How can I fight this?

Answer: Absent union intervention , you have no recourse. Nor should you. File for unemployment if eligible (you may not be), find a new job, and make better choices with your life.


Title: PLEASE HELP: At a Bed and Breakfast, my family has paid the landowners but they claim we violated the rules and are allowing us to stay but we no longer feel safe? We gave them a check before hand but are not staying for the amount of days we paid for..

Question:
**I am using rounded numbers to make the math easier**

Okay so my family wanted to stay at this Bed and Breakfast for 8 days. We paid 800$ via check beforehand for the first half of the days and are supposed to pay 900$ for the second half for a total of 1700$ for 8 days. We have currently stayed for two nights which equals 600$.

Our agreement with the landowners was that we stay all 8 days for 1700$. Would it be illegal if we cancel that 800$ check and just pay them in cash what we owe?

EDIT: this is in upstate new york

EDIT 2: If a contract is breached by one party, does the other party still have to uphold it? We found out the landowner went through our rooms and our stuff without permission. This means that they violated the contract and we only have to pay them what we owe right??

Answer:
 >Our agreement with the landowners was that we stay all 8 days for 1700$.

Read your rental agreement. Its likely that your stay is nonrefundable, as is typical with Bed and Breakfasts, and that the $800 check was the deposit on the total owed. Unless the rental agreement allows you to break the bill down per day and cancel early, then you owe the total $1700 you agreed to pay.

Cancelling the check doesn't change the agreement. It merely provides evidence that you broke the agreement.

I'm overlooking your "no longer feel safe" comment at this point because you've given no description of criminal or harassing acts by the rental owners. If you feel they've threatened you, call the police. Answer #2: >We found out the landowner went through our rooms and our stuff without permission. This means that they violated the contract and we only have to pay them what we owe right??

"What you owe" is $1700 per your agreement. There's no part of your rental agreement that allows you to divide that *per day*, or you would have answered my prior question.

The landowner went digging through your suitcase without your permission? Is that what happened? What precisely did he do?

Which part of the contract do you believe he breached, and what exactly does it say?


Title: TSA denied me from flying back home to Austin, TX from NYC because of my broken ankle. Now stranded in NYC!

Question: I broke my ankle a couple months back, and had ankle surgery shortly after to have a plate and two screws put in my ankle. I'm in a hard cast for about two more weeks. My girlfriend and I had purchased round trip tickets to vacation in NYC about 5 months prior, so I bought a knee scooter and we decided to go ahead and go on the trip. We flew out of Austin this last Wednesday without any issues. TSA pulled me to the side and gave me a pat down, and wanded my body and ankle, swabbed hands for bomb dust. Everything was cleared except my ankle. The wand kept beeping when it reached the area where my metal plate and screws were located. TSA agents called their supervisor to ask if I could pass through. This took about 10 minutes and I was reassured I would be flying to NYC that day. They eventually got word from the higher up that I was cleared. Woohoo 5 days in NYC. Tons of money spent. Skip to Sunday when we are trying to fly out. Have full confidence I'll be able to pass through. The same procedure begins as I'm going through JFK airport security except this time they can't decide to let me through or not. TSA just keeps calling more and more people over to the scene. Like 5 port authority police officers, a bomb specialist, more higher up supervisors. We sat there for 1 hr and 30mins. I explained to them at least 20 times that I'd broken my ankle and received metal on the side the wand was alarming on. They sat there just staring at each other. Like deer in headlights. They tell me they don't know what to do since they can't actually see what's inside my cast. Everyone including the bomb specialist tell me they'd let me though but the decision comes down to the TSA agents. My gf showed them pictures of my X-rays and of me in the hospital after surgery and showed them our tickets from Austin to NYC that we used. Eventually some stone faced supervisor approached me and said he had to escort me out and was denying me my flight out. Que freak out. My gf is crying. They basically told us we were on our own for getting back home. They said we could rent a car, take train or a bus. I can't drive right now so that's out. My gf would have to drive the entire way (1 day, 8 hours). All last minute trains were nearly $900 dollars for two people and take around 50 hrs to get home. We finally had to decide on greyhound which cost me 400 for the two of us and will take around 38 hours to get home. So here I am typing this out on my phone on this unnecessarily long journey home. TSA said I shouldn't have been allowed to fly out of Austin. This would have been totally different if I'd been denied back home. I could have had my tickets moved by Delta. This has been a huge inconvenience on my GF and I. My gf decided to stay with me to help me get around, but is having to miss work now. Any advice would be helpful. I just feel this would have been avoided if TSA had their act together and had a uniform policy for situations like mine. This could prevent many people from being stranded thousands of miles from home.

Answer:
 Hey, someone from TSA here, speaking for myself and not on behalf of TSA.  There's 100% a uniform procedure to screen your cast and that supervisor at JFK did not follow policy.  Collect your travel information and send it to @AskTSA on Twitter, send it to Facebook AskTSA.  Explain your story.  Austin followed procedure.  Supervisors are supposed to be "experts" on procedure.  Not too mention the TSA explosives expert (that bomb guy in your story is a TSA employee) provided his insight that you weren't a walking bomb.  Procedure was thrown out the window in this case and you need to contact TSA and file a complaint on that supervisor.

This is so disheartening, and I'm sorry you had to go through this bullshit.  Definitely bring your story and trip info to TSA. Even Google "TSA complaints" and follow the first link.  Hit that up, use TSA's twitter and Facebook, and press for answers.  Hurry up, because CCTV is a limited commodity,it's usually overwritten after 30 days.Answer #2: the tsa is so broken it's ridiculous.


Title: Could be disciplined due to coworker showing our boss our text message conversation

Question:
I work at a school in the United States (non-union) and there was a situation I was unhappy with at the school. I expressed my concerns via text message with my coworker, I stated that I wanted to contact higher ups and parents regarding the potential changes made to my program. There was no actual execution of the communication to said persons. The conversation was purely to blow off steam to a friend. I will be leaving the school for another next year so I really don’t have a dog in the fight.

Later that day my principal summoned me to the office. There was a assistant principal there to take notes and I was laid into about what was shown to him via my coworker showing him the text message conversation. There was a threat to write a letter regarding the content of the text conversation to be placed in my file and forwarded to my new employer.

Can I be written up for things said in a perceived confidential conversation with a coworker? I did not do any of the things mentioned in the messages. There were no threats in the messages and I did not ask my coworker to try and fix the problem the conversation was about.

Answer:
 > Can I be written up for things said in a perceived confidential conversation with a coworker?

Yes, 100%.Answer #2: >Can I be written up for things said in a perceived confidential conversation with a coworker?

Yes.


Title: Should I keep the money?

Question:
So today someone sent me 200$ on Venmo without context and now asked me to send it back to him, is it illegal if I keep it and not send it back?
Topic:
Consumer Law

Answer:
 I would contact support. It sounds like a scam.Answer #2: Be careful, despite that being the "official" way to return money on venmo, people can run a scam where you send the money back, then they "reverse" their first transaction and keep your money.

Contact venmo support and have them reverse the original transfer. That's what I did when this happened to me and venmo reversed it.

An no, you can't legally keep the money if it was someone's mistake.


Title: (FL) I'm a small scale chicken farmer, I sell at a local farmers market. Some guy wants to sue me because I wouldn't sell to him.

Question:
I have all the relevant permits and licenses. The chickens are butchered at the farm, I don't sell live chickens.

I was set up at my usual spot when a man approached me and asked to buy a chicken. I asked what weight, young or a hen. He asked for a younger bird any weight.

I grab one out of the fridge and ask him if it's ok. He says that he wants a live chicken. I told him that I don't sell live chickens.

He immediately became angry and demanded that I sell him a live one since he's "seen people coming out of the farmers market with live chickens before". I told him no again.

He then tried to bribe me($100) saying he needs one badly and if I want I can drop one off at *near by beach* after the farms market closes. Again no.  He said that he needs it due to his religion. The answer was still no.

Then he started to accuse me of discriminating against him because of his religion. He threatened to sue me for it.

I didn't sell it to him because it's against my rules, the rules of the farmers market and I'm pretty sure against the law.

Could I be sued for this? Would a judge side with him?

Answer:
 Sounds like Santeria, but I ain't got no crystal ball.  Answer #2: >Florida

Yeah, no, we knew. Thanks though.

Anyway, the only way someone can claim religious discrimination is if you treat them differently based on religion.

"I don't sell live chickens to anyone, period," is not religious discrimination.

If you are sued, get a lawyer, but I can almost guarantee he will not sue you. It's all bluster.


Title: Apartment forcing lease addendum for cable services on residents

Question:
My apartment just rolled out a "technology package" through ATT that offers TV + Internet at a discounted rate. The issue is: we already have internet, and we don't want TV services. They posted it to our door and said to have it signed and returned within 72 hours.

I do not want this. As far as I can tell, we have a contract and they're trying to edit it. That's not allowed, is it? Can they retaliate (evict, etc.) if I decide to not sign it? What happens when I renew my lease? Can they force me to move out if I don't sign the addendum on the "new" lease?

EDIT: State is Texas, sorry. New to the sub

Answer: You never have to sign anything you don't want to. If the cable package isn't in your lease, you shouldn't have to use it. They can not terminate your lease for this, but that doesn't mean that they have to renew it, or include the internet/cable package when it comes to renewing your lease.


Title: HOA is trying to prevent me from getting a service dog (Texas)

Question:
So, long story short I was in an accident and am now disabled - the worst thing being that I have seizures unexpectedly as aftermath from a brain injury. My husband and I were approved and put on a waiting list for a service dog that can help me when I have seizures without a family member of friend being present (I’m also an amputee so getting around can be difficult enough without a seizure). Part of the process is showing that you can house and care for an animal - which we can. The problem is a nosy neighbor figured out we were going to be getting a dog and reported it to the HOA.

 Our HOA hasn't really been an issue before, but they have pet restrictions - no wild animals and no aggressive or large breed dogs (over 100lbs). The type of dog we're looking at working with is a large breed - German Shepard - because part of its job is to keep me from striking my head on the ground if I suddenly drop into a seizure. The HOA has already sent us a letter stating that even if we have a service dog we have to abide by the pet restrictions, but that doesn't seem right. I'm not getting a service dog for fun – as awesome as dogs are – this has been suggested by my doctor to try and prevent me from further injuring myself and being able to be more independent. The dog will have a vest and paperwork from both my physician and the accreditation from Assistance Dogs International.

&#x200B;

Does ADA supersede the HOA's breed restrictions when it comes to the breed of a service animal? If it does how best would I bring this to the attention of the HOA and deal with nosy neighbors?  I don't want to seem like a confrontational jackass, but it's been hard enough to go through this process of getting a service dog so I don't just want to give up.

Answer:
 Yes, federal law supersedes their breed restrictions. Have a lawyer send them a letter telling them so, or refer them to the [U.S. Justice Dept](https://www.ada.gov/regs2010/service_animal_qa.html).Answer #2: Reminder that the law governing this issue is the Fair Housing Act NOT the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Find a disability lawyer and have them draw up a formal letter explaining your rights as a handler. Breed restrictions are not reasons to deny your service dogs unless in poses a significant burden like higher insurance rates for a landlord. But since this is the HOA they can go pound sand. Answer #3: Might be worth while to remind your HOA that a service animal is not a pet. The pet restrictions do not apply.


Title: My mom just tore up my stepdads truck.

Question: My mom just went to my stepdads house, found him with another woman and proceeded to tear up his truck with a shovel. This truck is not worth more than $1000, it’s a beater. I know she might be facing some misdemeanor of destruction of property. But I don’t think she could afford jail time or a hefty fine. Any advice on what she should do?

Answer:
 Well, the court doesn't care about that. And the step-father has a right to have his truck.

I get it, everyone lives out this fantasy. Carrie Underwood  capitalized on it. But, it comes with consequences.Answer #2: Hire a lawyerAnswer #3: She should get a criminal defense lawyer immediately.

Actions come with consequences.


Title: Can I withold and employe's last paycheck ? Even with valid reasons. US -FL

Question:
I fired an employee who was making international phone calls for over 5K USD (Security Guard Making calls back to his country at a Clients Place), now I have to payback my client the damages made by my employee (No problem with this just freaking pissed).
Can I withhold his last paychek for theft, embezzlement, fraud or any other reason?
I could really use that money to cover part of the money that now we owe because of him.

Answer:
 The others are correct that you cannot unilaterally hold back their paycheck because of this.

However, you can certainly negotiate a settlement where, say, you agree not to sue them further, and they agree to forfeit their last check.  That's certainly an option.  Answer #2: No you can't.Answer #3: No. You pay him and sue him for the charges.


Title: Mother extorting money from daughter

Question:
My girlfriend's mother is currently trying to blackmail us into paying for all of the expenses she had while raising my girlfriend. Her leverage is that my girlfriend once signed a check for her mother (was told the money was a gift, we have since paid her back in full). Her mother has claimed that she will take us to court if we don't come up with a payment plan immediately. My girlfriend understands that singing a check for someone else is wrong, but is now concerned that her mother will take us to court for money that we had influence over. We have tried talking with her calmly and logically but her mental illnesses have made communication next to impossible.

TDLR: Girlfriend's mom wants money even after paying her back for what was originally a gift. Does she have any legal standing?

EDIT: We are in New York state.

Answer:
 Don't talk to her, don't give into any demands, and let her try filing a frivolous suit in court if she wants. She has no civil damages if the money was repaid.

Just don't ignore any actual court documentation if she's stupid enough to file. Answer #2: >she will take us to court if we don't come up with a payment plan immediately.

So let her.

Just ignore her.

The headline for this is "Angry woman yells at sky".Answer #3: In Narnia this is settled via some weird combination of warfare and Turkish Delight. I was never entirely sure how that worked.

Otherwise we need a location.

If she has no damages (you paid her back) she cannot successfully sue you (you still need to respond if sued). The most she could do is report the forgery. If it's an old check the police are going to give no shits.

She has no right to any expenses she incurred raising a child. Send her a bag of sand and a hammer. DO NOT AGREE to any payment whatsoever.Answer #4: If you have already paid it back, why would she want a payment plan?

If you took money from your mom, its not extortion to say agree to pay it back or I will sue you.


Title: I Need Legal Advice (I'm 14) And Got Subpoenaed Please Help Me

Question:
I need someone to please help. I don't know much about law but I'm an emotional mess, and I'm fourteen. So basically my mom has a boyfriend. He's like a father to me I've known him since I was four. He's got a nephew who's four years older than me. So when I was a kid, he molested me and his little sister. I was six when it started and nine or ten when it stopped. So basically he was kid 10-14, going through hormonal changes, and he made a very big mistake. He could be facing ninety years for all of this since there are nine charges. Giving the age ranges the three major 20 year ones will most likely be dropped.

Now, his name is Nick (changed to keep confidentiality). So Nick is eighteen now. His sister told. It has been four years since it stopped happening, and I have never wanted him in jail. I forgave him, no matter how stupid that sounds. A while ago my aunt talked to me and said she would be pissed if I didn't try to get him in jail for it. At that time I had a forensic interview coming up. So I did it, and I told them everything he did. The video also has parts about my dad in it (he did something similar to Nick) so they can't disclose it. However they said they would use it so I didn't have to testify. (This was in december or january) now it's April, I really don't want him in jail, and I just got subpoenaed. I don't know much about law. Nick is four years older than me so it doesn't fall into the romeo and juliet laws for my state. It does for his sister, (she's actually his half sister) but incest.

I need someone to help me because I have no clue what I'm doing. I don't want to lie under oath, and I don't want to go to jail but I also don't want them to talk. His mom (My 'aunt' on my step-dad's side) is going to be there. She will have to listen to me and her daughter testify against her son. (His sister got subpoenaed too.) I feel so damn helpless. I'm the victim and the fact that I don't want him in jail carries no hold. The state is the pressing charges not either of the families. His lawyer will either make us look like filthy manipulative liars, and we let him, or we tell the truth, completely, and talk, and Nick goes to jail before his life has even started. I can't plead the fifth as the victim, because I didn't make the allegations, and they aren't false. I don't know what to do in my situation and I'm begging you can someone please help me?!

Answer:
 Talk to your mom or another trusted adult, alternatively you could ask for legal advice at legal aid or a free legal clinic. This right now is beyond the scope of this subreddit.

However, if you are dead set on not testifying, an attorney can file a motion to have you withdrawn as a witness.Answer #2: You're going to have to testify. Your prior interview probably isn't admissible unless you are unavailable or you change your testimony. No matter what you say on the stand, the truth is going to come out.

I'm sorry that this happened to you, but you aren't the one who did this. Whatever sentence your cousin gets will be because of his actions. I encourage you to tell the truth on the stand. You can't change what's going to happen, but you can honor your own oath and keep your integrity.Answer #3: This is not a legal advice and I’m not a lawyer.

That said, if I were you in your shoes, I’d simply state the truth. He violated you and his sister. That’s a fact. Don’t let anyone’s emotion (including yours) influence you to tell a lie to protect anyone. I understand it takes a lot of courage but prepare yourself plenty and rely on others when you need help. You’re not really hurting anyone here. We all make mistakes, and some mistakes are more costly than others.

In the future, when any situation like this happened, reach out to a trusted figure or a legal aid hotline or someone that can provide you comfort and guide you. Don’t fight the battle alone... at least not when you’re 14.


Title: USA. Do minors have legal rights in regards to their personal privacy when it comes to their parents?

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 First of all, if something is private, don't post about it on the internet. The internet is the exact opposite of private.

Second of all, no, generally not. Some limited kinds of privilege exist for medical info, psychological counselling, and so on, but those are the exceptions, not the rule. Generally parents have free reign to intrude upon their kids' privacy.


Title: Will changing my name enable me to escape my country?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: We're (hopefully) not going to tell you how to break the law of the land where you are. Mandatory military service is a common thing, and I would wager that you've taken advantage of your Singaporean citizenship in the past.


Title: [Alaska] Divorced due to spousal abandonment. Have now located him again; next steps for joint debts?

Question:
I was granted a single party divorce in Alaska after my now-ex-husband disappeared and stopped responding to communications. He is good at vanishing when he doesn't want to be found, and I've moved on with my life, including getting remarried in a better relationship. Since I was the only one in court, the judge told me that if I ever located him, I could file for the court to determine the assets and debts at that time of the divorce.

I have paid off a significant portion of the marital debts since he left, including having my Permanent Fund Dividend and Federal tax refund amounts applied to back tax that he owed from the year we got married. He has not paid any of the joint debts during that time. I don't know if he took out any more loans or opened new credit cards during that time. He took our vehicle when he left, and I want to make sure that he takes responsibility for his portion of the debts, in addition to the amount that the vehicle was worth.

I recently located his current address, in the home of his relative in another state. He may not be there for long, and want to jump on this opportunity if possible. I would appreciate any advice about what to include in the motion or any relevant forms; since this is apparently an unusual scenario, the court clerk wasn't sure. Is there a way to find his current credit cards and balances? Are there any pitfalls with re-opening this sort of issue? If he disappears again after being served, what should I do?

Thanks in advance for the advice!

Answer: You should probably get a lawyer for this. You'll need to subpoena his financials. If you know his SSN you could try and get his credit report(not sure how legal that is). You're also probably going to need a PI, because the second he gets served he'll probably try and vanish again.


Title: At least 2 of my wife’s coworkers are spreading bad rumors about us in order to hinder our relationship.

Question:
My wife works at a retail store. There is at least 2 of her coworkers that are spreading bad rumors about us. They say that she is cheating on me with the male co-workers of hers (they are friends of ours). Also that she spends her time gossiping and wasting time at work, insinuating that she is a bad employee. One of those two girls when she heard i was coming thru the door looked out and said “is that her husband? She can do a lot better than that”. When confronted about it she said she thought I was another guy also close by me. Their objective, I believe, is to hinder our relationship between us and our friends that also work there with my wife.

We know who they are because they spread these rumors to employees (among other employees) that they know are going to tell my wife because she is friends with them.  So part of their plan is for us to find out and in their mind maybe doubt my wife.

Is there any legal action I can take against them?
Contact corporate? I was thinking of getting a lawyer to write some sort of warning letter for them two. Idk you guys tell me.

(You may skip this part)
The reason we believe this is happening is because it’s widely know at this store that my wife is one of the top employees. She gets preference and is trusted by all including management. I always go to her job on my free time off work to drop her off lunch, smoothies , etc. basically I show my attention and love constantly in-front of her coworkers. The managers like me because I have busted some shop lifters too. The employees like me too, they to our house to chill and party at times.
So these two people that spread the rumors are out of this circle and we believe are jealous. That’s what we believe and that’s we think is the reason why they spread these rumors.

Answer:
 This isn't a legal issue. This is the time where you both act like the married sills you are and ignore them. They can talk shit amoung themselves all they want.

She needs to tell get friends that she doesn't want to hear what they are gossiping about anymore. And ignore them. Talk to them when required for work. That's it Answer #2: >she spends her time gossiping and wasting time at work, insinuating that she is a bad employee.

>I always go to her job on my free time off work to drop her off lunch, smoothies , etc. basically I show my attention and love constantly in-front of her coworkers. The managers like me because I have busted some shop lifters too.

> Contact corporate about one employee talking negatively about a customer (me)?

Maybe they're just tired of picking up the slack because you're constantly hanging around when your wife should be working?

Customers make purchases, they don't come in just to drop off smoothies, suck face, and "bust some shop lifters". You'll get your wife in more trouble if you contact corporate and tell them that when you're hanging around your wife at work playing vigilante her coworkers are mean to you.


Title: How to properly/legally avoid how to avoid commingling marriage assets?

Question: [deleted]

Answer: If you have this many assets, you can afford a lawyer. Talk to your family law attorney about a strategy for your particular case.


Title: [Utah] I was fired, and my former employer is trying to avoid paying severance

Question:
I was called into the boardroom last Friday afternoon and told that my employment was being terminated. I said that if resigning instead was an option, I'd like to do that. My boss said he'd check on that and get back to me, but then I was given a signed termination letter and boxes to pack my things in, and I was told not to return on Monday. The termination letter stated the reason for my dismissal as well as a list of benefits to which I'm entitled (severance was not mentioned).

Several days ago, I emailed HR to ask about severance. I got an auto-reply saying my ticket had been submitted.

Today, my boss emailed me to accept my resignation. Shortly thereafter, HR replied to my email to say that severance is not paid out to employees who resign. I called to discuss the situation further, and the HR rep said she would gather more information and get back to me. My argument was that the termination letter was effective the moment it was given to me, and as such, had closed off the possibility of resigning.

What are my options? Is there any way I can still get my severance pay? If the company doesn't pay it out, can I reasonably expect to win a lawsuit?

Answer: Severance pay is really at the discretion of the company, assuming you didn’t have a contract. I assume you were fired and not just laid off. So why would they pay you a severance? File for unemployment.


Title: Maintenance entering my apartment

Question:
This is Ohio. I just woke up to a maintenance person in my apartment. I had no idea they were coming. I check my email to make sure I didn’t receive any communication from my landlord, and lo and behold at 10:24 this morning I received this message:

“After 12:00PM today Alix will be by to replace all of fire extinguishers in apartments.
If you have any questions feel free to give us a call.”

This is the second time this month this landlord has given us less than a 24hr notice of entering our home. My question is, do fire extinguishers count as an emergency or is there any reason they would be able to enter my home?
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 This would not constitute an emergency.

If this has been a repeat problem, I would start sending them emails (and saving those emails) outlining what date and time they provided notice and what date and time they entered.

Remind them that they are required to provide 24 hours notice.