Title: I just found out the restaurant I got a job at (FL) pays all of the servers under the table. Is keeping this job going to land me in legal trouble?

Question: I'm home for the summer for college and just snagged a job serving at a mom and pop place. The other servers were telling me that our paychecks are under the table. The tips are excellent on the weekend so I'm inclined to keep the job, but before doing so I want to make sure I wouldn't be in any legal trouble for partaking in this. Is working under the table illegal?

Answer:
 Report them to the IRS.

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/how-do-you-report-suspected-tax-fraud-activityAnswer #2: If they are doing this, they are also likely skimping on the other stuff responsible businesses have: unemployment, worker's comp, etc.


Title: Tampering With Motor Vehicle - 1st degree felony

Question:
So on April 22nd I was arrested for "driving a stolen vehicle". The cops talked to the owner, found out it wasn't stolen, I am released and think I'm all good.
Tonight, right after actually purchashing the same vehicle, I am pulled over and arrested again.
They tell me I have a warrant and its a $7500 bond for Tampering With Motor Vehicle - 1st Degree Felony D
I ask them what the hell I did and they wont tell me anything. I get a bondsman and get bonded out only to be told I now have to stay on a 24 your hold. So I get dressed out, go to my bed and about 5 minutes later they tell me I can go and send me on my way with a court date for July 10th.
So my question is, how can I get these charges dropped considering I own the damn car?

Answer:
 Get a good lawyer.

Sue the hell out of them.

The first arrest could be seen as an accident. Not sure why they pulled you over for a stolen vehicle but that got cleared up, so I might let that go.  When you bought the car and then they arrested you, they should have asked you for the proof of ownership, and let you go, or at least brought you to the owner. At this point I'm saying they didn't do their job.


Title: Enforceable Prenup?

Question:
Without getting into too much detail, my husband (an attorney) drafted a prenup and handed it to me the day before our wedding. He asked me to look it over, make any edits I thought necessary, discuss with him, and sign. I did those things. In case it matters, this was done in Texas but we now live in Alberta.

The signing wasn't witnessed, and the agreement wasn't notarized. At the time, of course, there was no intention of divorce. Things have changed, and I'm wondering how enforceable/official the prenup is now. Any advice is appreciated.

Answer: I'd be very much concerned with him asking you to sign the day before the wedding, leaving you essentially no time to consult your own attorney.  While it's over and done with in the past, you may be able to invalidate it in divorce proceedings on those grounds.


Title: (NJ) Can police just enter your home if your parents are concerned about you?

Question: For background, as of recently I have decided to take a hiatus from work. I worked at an investment bank and 2 years have passed (you generally only stay there for 2 years then you transition to another position) and the numerous weeks where I had to work for over a hundred hours have really worsened my preexisting depression and made my life extremely stressful. I decided to take a 2 month break before trying to get into a private equity position and without a job to keep me occupied my life has kinda spiraled down. My apartment is a complete mess and there are pizza boxes and chinese food all over the place. I haven't showered in approximately 2 weeks and my life is just all around shitty. Getting back on topic, I hadn't contacted my parents for about 3 weeks and I guess they got concerned. I had unplugged my home phone because I just wanted to be isolated by myself. My parents called the police and they said they would do a "welfare check" (I guess my parents told them I had been suicidal in the past). So about 2 days ago it was ~2:30 in the afternoon and I was asleep on my couch. Apparently the police were knocking on my door for a while but I was still asleep. So the police actually just opened my door without my permission! I'm not a sovereign citizen or anything like that but I was extremely embarrassed. I was on my couch with nothing but a t-shirt and underwear and my entire apartment was a giant mess. To make things worse, one of the police officers was a attractive female and I was so embarrassed that she saw my house this way. How can the police just come into my home like that, isn't your home protected by the bill of rights from police searches?

Answer:
 First, don't be embarrassed they do welfare checks all the time. They have seen MUCH worse.

Second, some of your post is worrying - please seek out help so you don't continue to spiral down.

Third, welfare checks vs the 4th amendment are an interesting area of the law. See: http://www.abajournal.com/mobile/mag_article/courts_in_a_muddle_over_4th_amendments_community_caretaking_exception/Answer #2: If they believe your health is in imminent danger, yes they can enter.Answer #3: Generally speaking, you don't have to let them in. But if they can see in your window and see something that might suggest that you are in danger or need aid, they can enter without permission.

The NJ Supreme Court [said that they can't enter](http://www.nj.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/03/nj_supreme_court_police_cannot.html) in a non-emergency. If there was something that indicated to them that it might be an emergency, then they can enter. I would venture to guess that your parents saying "yodog12345 has been suicidal before, we are worried he/she may have hurt themselves" would be enough to constitute an emergency.


Title: Airline messed up my visa on their system and I ended up stranded in a foreign airport

Question:
Not sure if this is the right flair so I'm sorry in advance.

I was travelling from the United States to the United Arab Emirates. I had to stop at Munich (Germany) before my final flight to the United Arab Emirates. I was taking Etihad Airways which is a United Arab Emirates airline. For some reason their system refused to recognize my visa which is 100% valid. This is the third time this issue happened to me and my family over the past year and it is ALWAYS Etihad Airways. One of my family members even had to pay their own replacement ticket despite Etihad being at fault. The staff members, managers, and everyone at the airport admitted that this was an issue on Etihad's system and had nothing to do with my visa being invalid or otherwise. I reached out to them and filed a complaint. After being transferred from department to department they finally "compensated" me with $150 in Etihad points that I can use on their flights. Not to mention, they insisted that they already compensated me in the airport by giving me meal vouchers (never happened). This is a flight that cost me approximately $2,500. I have limited vacation days and I lost 2 full days with my family due to their failure. Their compensation is nowhere near what I think is appropriate simply because this has happened 3 times before. This tells me that they simply refuse to fix whatever error they have. I'm not sure if I have a case here and I'm not even sure if I'm able to file a complaint on an airline based in the United Arab Emirates (I live in the United States). Is there anything I can do here?
Topic:
Consumer Law

Answer:
 Etihad sucks.

However, their duty to compensate you is fairly limited if they did secure your transport to UAE. Did you need to purchase another ticket, or did they get you there? Answer #2: One question, where were you stranded?

I do not understand what happened, you were stranded in the USA or in Munich? If you were stranded in Munich, EU  compensation law applies.

EU air passenger rights apply:
>If your flight departs from the EU to a non-EU country operated by an EU or a non-EU airline

though it also requires

>If you have not already received benefits (compensation, re-routing, assistance from the airline) for flight related problems for this journey under the relevant law of a non-EU country.

which you mught have?

If EU law applies and the mistake was theirs you were entitled to rerouting, lodging food and all that and I believe 600 euros compensation in cash assumind flight was longer than 3500 which surely was.


Title: What to do about repaired items never picked up?

Question: Kentucky. I own and operate a business. My other business partner repairs items, and a customer dropped off some stage lighting to be fixed. After many attempts to contact them (over 1 year) they have failed to pick up their repaired items and pay for them. Every now and then they will say they are going to pick them up but never do. What can we do? They are taking up too much space and need them gone. What are the laws regarding selling the equipment? We have notified them several times we may seek to sell. Is there anything else we need to do?

Answer:
 Consult a lawyer. Your state may have a statute dealing with repairman's liens, which would set out all the applicable rules for just this situation.

Some jurisdictions have these laws, some don't.


Title: spousal support change

Question:
I live in Vermont. My ex pays me a considerable sum every month in spousal support (not child support).  My ex's job situation may change drastically in the next few months which may affect his/her ability to pay this support. This is my ex's choice, btw.

The divorce decree makes no stipulation about changing circumstances making a reduction in the spousal support. It just says that my ex will pay $$$$ per month for x months, that's it.

Can my ex take me to court to reduce the payments?

I should add that I've gotten a big pay raise since our divorce but my ex does not know how big.

Answer:
 > Can my ex take me to court to reduce the payments?

Yes.  Both your change in circumstances and his are good reasons to revisit the payment.


Title: [hypothetical] In which US states is it legal for a man to marry his brother?

Question:
Hi Folks,

When I applied for a marriage license in MA a couple years ago, my wife and I had to sign a declaration prohibiting [the marriage of a man to certain relatives](https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleIII/Chapter207/Section1) and [the marriage of a woman to certain relatives](https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartII/TitleIII/Chapter207/Section2). As a software engineer, I immediately noticed that I was not (at that moment) prohibited from marrying my brother or any of my male relatives.

In the wake of Obgerfell, in which other US states is this the case?

Answer:
 The law hasn't caught up, and probably won't have to.  The prohibition on intermarriage between close relatives relates to historical fears about incest resulting in babies with higher risk of genetic disease than those produced between unrelated individuals.  Those fears may have been [overblown](http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/frame_game/2002/04/the_love_that_dare_not_speak_its_surname.html).  So brothers could marry each other, which would be really gross, but they couldn't reproduce so the genetic disease risk is absent.

There is probably a joke in here about how Alabama seems to be doing just fine despite...blah blah blah... but I don't have it in me to make the joke this morning. Answer #2: In most states the law is written with a certain number of degrees of "consanguinity," so the male part is irrelevant.  Sometimes they might exempt adoption, I guess?


Title: [TN] My client did not return signed contract but stayed in communication with me. Then they cancelled day before services. [x-post from r/smallbusiness]

Question:
This client was great - good people. But the owner of the business (who I was not in touch with - just a rep) got cold feet the day before the services and cancelled. I expected to get a deposit that day and all would be well.

I DO have a cancellation fee in the contract, but the problem is that since we were communicating digitally, I never got a copy of the signed contract.

This one kind of puts me back financially. I had to cancel work the same week. I don't want to pull out the cancellation fee because I know it wasn't the reps fault and it is a smaller business, but I need to. What can I do?

Other details:

- Met with them at on 5/8 with a desired work date of 5/30
- Submitted pitch by end of next wek
- Waited on approval, received 5/16
- Submitted contract on 5/22 (needed to work a little before I could submitt this)
- Continued planning after this date
- Client goes dark on 5/24
- Let's me know of cancellation on 5/26, with a weekend and holiday between 5/30
- I have already reserved equipment rental + assistance (I will likely not be charged cancellation, but still upset that I have put someone out of work that date)

Answer: You don't have a contract that requires a cancellation fee so you cannot force something they didn't agree to. Next time get a signed contract before committing resources.


Title: Sex Offender Attending Mass at a Catholic School

Question:
Hello. Long time reader, first time poster. Also, I’m on my phone so the formattin’ pickin’s  here are gonna be slim. Here goes: My child attends a private Catholic elementary school.  Recently, parents found out about a registered tier 3 sex offender attending Mass on Sundays. They are on the state’s register with pictures and offenses and all. This person has several volunteer type roles within the church community, some of which do include slight involvement with youth groups (but not school). Technically, he could attend Wednesday Mass when the school also attends (during the school day). I’m not sure if he has. Parents are up in arms about this person being anywhere near the school, be it Sunday or any day of the week. Allegedly, his spouse is somehow involved with another group of after school students and has hosted events at their house. The priest will probably say he can’t tell the person to stop coming to church, because part of the whole Catholic tenant is that we accept all sinners. That said, I think it goes without saying that several mama bears aren’t happy about knowing a person who has served SIXTEEN YEARS for their offenses is around children at all. Should he be required to find another church, without a school attached? Is the church still a school on Sundays? Is the church a school when it’s full of students on Wednesday’s? Should we teach the kids to point and yell THIS IS A SEX OFFENDER!!? Is that all we can do? Some parents have informed the front office staff (principal, head receptionist, religion teacher), who say they were not aware of him. We are planning on having an impromptu parent meeting this week. What is a good course of action to take regarding this sex offender near our school children? How do we handle this professionally without turning it into an insane witch hunt? Do we contact the diocese? The Bishop? A lawyer? Threaten to pull the kids from the school? We need a united front here. This is in Michigan.
Topic:
School Related Issues

Answer:
 You can contact the police and find out if this is a violation of his parole. If it's not, **you** can find a new church to go to. Answer #2: Do you know what offense he committed which requires sex offender registration? Has he been released from prison because he has served his sentence? Is he on parole? If he is on parole, is he violating it by attending this church?

I suggest you do the above homework before you break out the tar and feathers.Answer #3: He cannot live or loiter around children.  You have not provided information that he is doing either.  Answer #4: They’re usually conducting mass.


Title: Employer not paying for time spent staying late or on short lunches [MN]

Question:
So I just found out today that my employer (a DOT contracted steel fabricator) has been editing my time card to reduce time worked by 15-30 minutes (we round to 15 min) each day in order to avoid paying me overtime. They have told me to only record 8 hours regardless of actual time worked.

If it makes the difference, many of my co-workers routinely come in about a half hour early, and stay a half hour or so late. They do not get paid for this additional time as either. As for me, my extra time usually comes from arriving early (I am usually 5-10 min early.) and/or taking a short lunch.

Is this behavior legal, and if not, what is my best course of action, preferably one that does not lead to me losing this job, but does get this policy changed, even if I don't get any back pay.

Additionally, I have been down to the shop a few times, and notice a consistent lack of PPE, such as no safety glasses, short sleeve shirts while grinding and doing hot work, and hoodies and other loose clothing while working with angle grinders and drill presses. Im pretty sure these are relatively major OSHA violations, but as I do not work in the shop, I have figured its not worth loosing my job over. Is there a way to report these as well without loosing my job?

Answer:
 It is not legal. They must pay you for all time worked, and must pay you overtime when applicable.

It **is** legal for them to fire you for working overtime without prior permission, or to fire you for not being able to complete assigned duties within the standard workday. But that is your employers only recourse, not paying you for time worked is majorly illegal.

You should certainly start documenting everytime this happens. You can also use apps on your phone to document when you arrive/leave work for additional documentation.

When you are ready, you can file a wage claim with the department of labor. Be prepared to be fired/have a backup plan if you do, while it’s illegal for them to fire you in retaliation, it’s possible to likely they will fire you and say it’s for a legitimate reason (working overtime without permission perhaps). It’s risky on their part but you’d still have no job while everything got sorted out.


Title: (MO) Was told I need to leave my house I rent ASAP bc of electrical issue

Question: We had an electrician come by yesterday bc we have partial electric in our kitchen.  Everywhere else in the house is fine.  Afterward the landlord said they will need to tear the walls and everything up so we need to leave ASAP.  They said its not an eviction.  What can i do to protect myself?  Do i still have 30 days to vacate?  Im in Missouri.

Answer: Ask your landlord where he's going to be having you live in the mean time?


Title: Online Coding Bootcamp Instructor Ghosted us, Tens of Thousands of Dollars stolen. [Online, International]

Question:
I am a student at Devschool (devschool.rocks). It is an online coding bootcamp that teaches web development. We have one instructor(used to have several more), with whom we usually communicate through slack and zoom.us. Tuesday night, he stopped responding. We have since researched more on him and found that he is a wanted man, has gone by several names, and has had a history of mental illnesses.
Many student paid their entire tuition up front, and now have no way to get it back. We can not track him down, he lives in Mexico somewhere and the best we can go on are his old pseudonyms.
We are trying to find ways to resolve this issue. Is there any way to track someone like this down and get our money back?

Answer: Wow, now **that** is an interesting scam.  You might want to repost on r/scams.  WRT getting your money back, I can think of a couple of options (not that I hold out any hope for you).  First off, when and how did you pay?  If you paid by credit card less than a couple of months ago, then contact your credit card issuer and contest/dispute the charge based on the fact that you didn't get the services that you paid for.  If you paid using a physical check, then you can follow that money to the bank account that it ended up in, and you can potentially sue the owner of that bank account.  If you paid by bitcoin, then you are SOL.Answer #2: Lesson learned, only take acreddited classes. Im sorry but you wont get your money unless you get lucky and he gets cought. Even then the police moght not be able to extract the money.


Title: [North Carolina] Help! My crazy sister stole my dog.

Question:
Hey guys, so to give some background info, we all live in North Carolina, and my sister adopted a dog, Torbin, ~2 years ago. She neglected him and had no time for him, so she forced my mom to surrender my mom's dog at the time to a dog shelter (and there was a whole mess of lies involving this as well) and then informally surrendered her dog, Torbin, to my mom who took care of him for ~2 years, so basically the whole time he'd been adopted. My mom also abused and neglected Torbin, and he was left with facial scarring and a gnarly neck scar from being chained up with a choke chain collar and left alone in the back yard for 10+ hours a day. All of this scarring is documented through random videos or pictures. He had also run away more than twice due to this neglect.

This dog could also be considered a special needs dog. Before I started taking regular care of him, he would snap and bite anyone who approached them or basically molest them for attention. He has extreme abandonment issues and he needs to be taken out at least 4 times a day, and if not, will become extremely visibly stressed and knock over his food and water bowls. However with just regular care, he's an angel who has a spunky personality and is just genuinely a really great dog.

I started taking full responsibility for Torbin last summer, and became his primary caretaker. He used to be obese, but with me he lost weight and his neck healed because I purchased him a harness. My boyfriend used to live with me at my mom's house and take care of Torbin while I was away at college. However he just moved out and for an apartment, and we decided it'd be best to take Torbin with us, this to which my mom agreed.

To give some background about my sister, she's insane. Everyone in my family lives in constant fear of her. She is violent, and the only one in my family who can speak fluent English. My mom can speak it well, but still has a strong accent. She has complete financial control over my family, and constantly threatens my family with force or the cops.

Yesterday, she stole my mom's phone for two hours and texted my boyfriend and I pretending to be my mom. She constantly screams an inch from my mom's face, and abused me consistently when I was a child. Around four years ago, I tried going no contact with her, which was difficult because I was 16 and didn't have anywhere else to go when she came home to visit. After about 4 months of not talking to her, she came home and began yelling at me for a "mess" in the hallway. Keep in mind, she's a horribly messy person and could be classified as a hoarder. She leaves trash and food out for weeks or months before cleaning it or throwing it away. In this encounter, I kept insisting to call the cops because she eventually wanted to kick me out of my mom's house, a house that isn't hers, and she proceeded to get on top of me and choke me. She's regularly physically violent with our family. After getting off of me, she defiantly claimed that she wanted the cops to be called this entire time, despite the fact that she had just choked me to get me to not call the cops. That's just a small snapshot of living with her for 21 years. At this point it doesn't even phase me, and like with most people in my family, I just do whatever she wants to get her out of my hair. She will go to any lengths to make anyone miserable enough to do what she wants.

So fast-forward to yesterday, at this point I'd been taking care of this dog for 1 and a half years out of the 2 years it's been adopted, she randomly texts me from my mom's phone pretending to be my mom saying, Sharon (my sister) wants Torbin back. Just the day before, my mother and I had dinner and agreed that everything would be best if I kept Torbin, and that if my crazy sister asked about him we would say he ran away. However my mom has literally no backbone. She is an awful person who has never told my sister no about a thing, and constantly chooses my sister over me because I don't get violent or yell. I had been homeless for over year because my sister moved home, and my mom refused to tell her to stop getting violent with me so I had to move out per threats from my sister.

So of course, yesterday on Thanksgiving day, my mom divulges everything about our plan, and my sister threatens to call the cops in two weeks unless we return Torbin. Later in the day however, my mom texts me and says that Sharon has already called the cops, not on me, but on my boyfriend. As much as we love Torbin, we figured since my sister is the one who adopted him, she has legal ground to get us arrested. We figured we could get him back if necessary, so he agreed to give Torbin back if my sister called the cops in front him to call everything off.

He went to my house and met with my mom outside and laid out his terms. My mom adamantly agreed and said Sharon wants to see the dog before she calls the cops, and that to do this my mom has to be the one holding Torbin. My boyfriend said this is only okay if you make sure to not give her the dog until she calls the police. My mom agreed wholeheartedly, and immediately upon walking inside, she hands my sister the leash with no hesitation. My boyfriend still asked why my sister couldn't call the police in front of him, and to this my sister got an inch from my mom's face and screamed full force, telling my mom to make my boyfriend leave. To this, my mother said to my boyfriend, I think you should go now. And my boyfriend said fuck you. My mother consistently plays the victim role in all of these situations and lies while doing so, despite the fact that she could clearly do something to help me or stop the fact that my sister terrorizes my entire family, so she ran out and chased my boyfriend and tried to grab his hand to lie about her involvement in the whole thing. From this, it's clear the cops weren't even called in the first place and my mother and my sister were both just lying to our faces.!So now we're both incredibly depressed, and sad that Torbin is going to be living a bad life. My mother and sister don't care about animal life nearly as much as the average person here because of their culture, and undoubtedly Torbin will be neglected. I should also add that this was all a huge power play for my sister, and that she was supremely smug after screaming straight in my mom's face and effectively making my mom do what she wanted her to do.

Given all of this backstory, we want to know what legal ground we stand on for owning Torbin. Is there anyway we could get him back?

TL;DR living in NC, my sister rescued a dog that she's abused and then I've taken sole responsibility for and grown to love immensely, my sister terrorizes my entire family, and my mom consistently lies for her and makes excuses for her, they lied to get the dog back, and now the dog is undoubtedly going to be neglected and abused, what are my chances of obtaining legal ownership for this dog?

Answer: Aside from animal control for neglect, I think the only thing that might help you is if you have vet bills, and if the vet office is able to confirm that you are the only individual that has brought the dog in for care, paid the bills, etc. That will help with showing who has actually taken care of the dog over the last year+, but it won't guarantee anything. If the dog has a microchip/tattoo, the name(s) registered will also hold a lot of standing.


Title: Restricted Licence driving regarding an MLM business.

Question:
I got a DUI (reduced to Wet and Wreckless 0.08%) and licence was suspended. After 30 days suspension I have now obtained my restricted licence for going to & from work and DUI classes. Licence will be restricted for 5 months.

I work a M-F construction job. (Main Job) I wasn’t asked to provide a work schedule so as far as the times I can drive I think it’s 24hrs a day as long as I’m technically driving to & from work.

I also work for an MLM as a 2nd source of income.

I won’t say which one so we can stay on subject.

In my particular MLM I’m constantly trying to:
1. Sell product to people
2. Get people under you to sell product
3. Go to these presentations at convention centers where some “guru” of this specific MLM is speaking and you bring potential partners with you to motivate them.

FYI: I do not get paid by the hour for this. It is strictly sales/commission. So technically I’m always working. If I had to legally put hours on it I guess it would be 24/7 on-call.

My concern is if I get pulled over at 10:00pm on a Saturday night that my licence will be suspended right then and there. And to be honest I know it sounds sketch but some of our meetings will go til 1 in morning. Yea we’re not working hardcore the whole time but these guys aren’t my friends. More of co-workers than anything. There more like motivational meetings then anything.

Also I take people to local sports games (NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, etc.). I buy tickets when we are signing up new people or when some of the guys below me are doing really good so I reward them.

Can I drive anytime of the day as long as it’s work related? (Whether it’s my construction job or my side job)
Can I drive to an MLB/Sports games and back because it’s work related?
Any advice positive or negative is greatly appreciated.

It’s hard to find information on people who own their own business and these types of things. Thanks in advance. And remember Don’t Drink & Drive.

Answer:
 NAL: Try to look at it from the perspective of a cop or a judge, would you believe someone with a license restriction was at a ball game because of work? While I get that its your side gig to make extra cash, a cop or a judge will be hard to convince unless you have some kind of documentation to prove it. Personally, I would hold off on the side gig until your license is doing being restricted. The hours at your construction job are easy to prove, that side gig is going to be tough, especially if the business meeting takes place at someones house, or a hotel conference room, etc. Answer #2: It's up to the judge.

You are risking additional fines and etcetera on whether or not a judge considers this MLM to be a legitimate 'to and from work' as spelled out in your penalties, and whether or not they even believe that that's what you were doing when you got pulled over.

The ability to drive to and from work after the ticket  is considered a privilege and can be revoked.
It is probably not worth the risk.
Answer #3: Why don't you just skype with your 'coworkers'. Save money and gas. Also, FYI 99% do not make money with MLM so if you're attempting to save dollars this is not the way to go about it.Answer #4: Have you actually made any money in your MLM? (Including what you have paid for product).  If not, which is probably the case, just okay it safe and drop it.


Title: Getting adopted into an HOA soon and have a question about pre-existing structure.

Question:
Hello r/legaladvice!

Our home is being adopted into a HOA within the next year and I have a question. Our fence we currently have does not meet the rules set by the HOA. But the fence was up prior to being adopted into the HOA.  IF there is a problem in the future , what can I do? It seems like there should be an exception since it was pre-existing and I wouldn't think it would be right for us to remove the fence and pay for a new, wooden one.

Background info: live in Georgia. Lot is 1.1 acres and putting a wooden fence up will run roughly $25k USD to install. Current fence is hybrid of vinyl (is allowed) and vinyl covered chain-link (not allowed).
Thanks so much for any help!

Answer:
 Isn't there some type of legal paperwork regarding this? If not see if existing fence is grandfathered.

Are you being forced to join the HOA? If not, why are you doing it? I have heard nothing but bad things about HOA's


Title: How to obtain a marriage certificate in Illinois?

Question: I got married around 20 years ago (am 40 years old) but after I moved to the USA, the officials (from insurance company) didn't accept the marriage certificate from my country. I also have a child, if that makes any difference. How will I be able to obtain such a certificate?

Answer: You may need what is called an apostille, an authenticated document certified by your home country's government under the 1961 Hague Convention. Try googling "apostille from *country*", as the exact procedure varies.


Title: Advice on used car ripoff in Missouri

Question:
On March 3rd I bought a 2004 Nissan Murano from a dealer here in Kansas City, MO.  It had about 98500 on it and I bought it As Is.

This week the engine started knocking and this morning I went to take it to the Nissan dealer where my sister works.  It broke down on the side of the highway.  It turns out the engine is blown from being completely out of oil.  I checked the oil all week and it showed being full.

The car has 103k miles on it now. Do I have any legal recourse.  It is apparent that something was wrong with it if it burned through 5 quarts of oil in that time.

Any ideas?  The new engine will cost $6k with a discount from my sister and I put $1000 down on the car.  I have poor credit so I dont have many options to get another car.

Answer:
 >I bought it As Is.

>Do I have any legal recourse.

No.


Title: Is my employer allowed to forbid employees from going to competing businesses?

Question: I work at a dog boarding/grooming/daycare facility and we have had numerous employees quit to open their own businesses. The owners of our company refuse to let us go to their buisnesses. We cant suggest people go there either even outside of work. If they find out then we get scolded, our hours halfed or quartered, and threatened to be fired. Are they allowed to restrict us that much?

Answer: Of course you can be fired for recommending a competing business to your employer's customers.


Title: CPS, is targeting my friend and wants to drug test him.. what cam he do

Question:
Ok, I am typing on behalf of my friend living in Indiana, who has found himself in this situation. He told me about it and I feel like CPS is overstepping boundaries. Names below are obviously not actual names.

Basically my friend's sister's ex-husband, Chad, has 50/50 custody of my friend's sister's daughter who we will call Nina. My friend Damon lives with his sister and is obviously there when Trisha (sister) has Nina around. Damon vapes alot around the house and Nina has seen him doing this. When Nina went back with Chad, she told him that Damon "smokes" around the house but not smoking cigarettes. Chad being the very intelligent being that he is, immediately jumped to the conclusion that Damon was smoking weed in the house, with the kid, specifically with a waterpipe (I don't know why).

Trisha has explained the situation to CPS, but now they are still talking about trying to get Damon to take a drug test. Obviously my friend does not do any illegal substances around the kid, nor does he have any illegal substances or paraphernalia in his vehicles or the house. Does he need to actually take this drug test of they want him to? Let's say he MAY have traces of THC in his system, what should he do?

Answer:
 He certainly has the right to refuse. Cps has the right to either remove the children from the home or help the other parent to deny him access to his child.

He needs to stop doing illegal drugs and hire an attorney


Title: Not sure how fucked I am

Question: I am an Arizona resident scheduled to meet with an investigator tomorrow at a fraud unit. A year ago I went with a firend to the DMV. He said he lost his license, when they called his name for a new one I went up and took the picture and signed his name. This gave me the ultimate fake ID, someones real information and a DMV issued license with my picture. A couple months later said friend gets a DUI, and in the process of handling this an investigator notices the discrepancy in pictures. This friend being panicked and scared immediately gives them my information and later calls me and tells sorry and to expect to be contacted shortly. A year goes by snce his DUI and I have yet to be contacted. I go into the DMV to have my ID turned now that I am 21 and am told that the investigator general has a hold on my license. What am I facing?

Answer: Very fucked.  This is a felony. Very likely a several thousand dollar fine, long term probation or jail time.  Get an attorney.  Answer #2: Do not go talk to the investigator tomorrow. Do not give any information. Do not answer any questions without talking to an attorney first (who will almost certainly tell you not to answer any questions at all). I'm too lazy to dig up the link to that video, but talking to the police is always a bad idea. Answer #3: Ouch, well anything you say tomorrow to the investigator is not going to help you, based on what you've said here. If I were you, I would not go tomorrow and contact an attorney instead.


Title: [NJ] Landlord/Owner forcing me to move out early by referencing "house rules"

Question:
The original (signed and agreed upon) lease says I have the apartment until May 31st. The Agency that owns the building is now saying that I have to move out by the last weekday before the end of the month at 5 pm (in this case, EOD May 29th). They are referencing a slip of paper that was placed at each door a few months ago that stated that under the new house rules...(the bit about having to move out early), etc.

These "house rules", which I'm guess was an attempted addendum onto the original lease, were never agreed upon, never signed, never discussed. In fact, they have no way of knowing that they actually reached any of the tenants.

My question is: Are these "house rules" legally binding? i.e. do I have legal grounds to argue that I can stay until the 31st?

**edit:** Thanks for all the advice! I was polite and plainly asked if they had any record of my signature/agreement to these "house rules" as I didn't have any records. After allowing them in for an early pre-inspection this week they agreed to let me move on the 31st.
Topic:
Landlord Tenant Housing

Answer:
 Check with a local property attorney or landlord-tenant clinic or legal advisory.

I doubt they can do this, but I don't know NJ law.  I'd figure, though, that you contracted for a legal property interest through 5/31.  They probably can't shorten it without a modification, which you could refuse to sign.  Doing this through an addendum sounds shady to me.


Title: Need advice sexual abuse HE DID IT AGAIN

Question:
Location:  NY

My best friend was routinely raped by a family member when she was six.  He was a young adult.  She's now in her early twenties, and he's in his thirties.  She reported the rapes when she was 14.  The police did nothing; they said there was no proof, and it split her extended family apart, with most people believing the guy.  Yesterday, we learned that he has been ordered to stay away from his STEPDAUGHTER by some sort of court order, at the request of the stepdaughter's biological father, who has made some sort of allegation.  They were asking for money to "reunite the family."  My best friend is sure that he did something to the stepdaughter, given the fact that she is almost the exact same age my friend was when she was abused.

Here's the kicker:  Today, my friend's mother stated that the injunction has been lifted, and the family has been "reunited."  (Edit:  In other words, the stepdaughter is living with the abuser again.)  Now, the biological father knows nothing about the accusation my friend made when she was 14.  ACS is/was involved in the stepdaughter's case.  I don't know if the police are incompetent, and haven't connected the two sets of allegations, or stupid, and don't believe both of them.  But is there anything I, or my friend, can do?

My friend is also reluctant to get involved with the police again.  She did NOT have a good experience the first time.
Topic:
Criminal Law

Answer: Sure, call the biological father.  I am sure his lawyer would want to know about the previous allegation.


Title: [MO] The tenants that previously lived in my current home are still using my address

Question: We get everything of theirs. From bills to IRS letters and most recently drivers licenses. What can I do to stop them from using my address?

Answer:
 Return to sender everything you get.Answer #2: If they are doing it on purpose, it could be [mail fraud](https://postalinspectors.uspis.gov/investigations/MailFraud/MailFraud.aspx). The other possible reason is they may be doing this is to keep sending their kids to the same school district if they've moved out of the district.

IANAL, but have been a victim of mail fraud, which can be committed for several reasons, one of which is to send a child to a good school district using someone else's address.Answer #3: I think you should be able to contact the post office and give them the names of the former tenants and request that they don't deliver their mail to that address anymore.Answer #4: Go to the post office with the mail. Tell them these people don't live at your address anymore and you don't want the mail. You may need to speak to the postmaster.Answer #5: Go to the post office.  Fill out a change of address form for every name you've gotten mail from.  In the forwarding section either put their current address (if known) or write "Moved, left no forwarding address."

Sign it yourself, write "form filled in by current resident, [name]" and hand it to the postal workers.

The post office will handle the forwarding (or return to sender, most likely) for you for a year.  Hopefully they'll get their shit together before then.Answer #6: Are you sure they're doing this on purpose? Have you communicated with them? If not, how exactly are they retrieving mail delivered to your house?


Title: Parking laws in Ohio : Landlord told me no parking pass is needed and still had my car towed

Question:
I have been with this landlord for 1.5 years (first year was at a different property). In August upon signing this lease they told me to hand in my parking pass and that I wouldn't need one for the new apartment. Today I noticed my car was gone from its spot and the local towing company confirmed they towed it based on landlord request. The car didn't break any rules stated on my lease . They have a copy of my registration and have all details of my cars make and model on file. It was parked exactly how it's been since the lease started.

What are my rights as far as getting them to pay the fees for me for having the car towed?

Answer:
 Get car out of tow lot if you haven't already- you have a duty to mitigate damages.

Send a demand letter for the amount you're out.

File in small claims if not paid.


Title: Advice on what to do about extortion from an escort/pornstar?

Question:
     So a few months ago I tried to setup a meeting with a high-end escort (who turns out is actually a pornstar also). After I stupidly sent her my information, she asked that I send her $500 in electronic gift cards to a sports apparel store popular with women, as a deposit to secure a date with her. After much reluctance I complied, but it took a day for her to get her e-cards and she refused to meet me until then. By the time she got them, she kept saying that she couldn't see me anymore because she was booked and that she was heading back to Vegas the next day, and that I'd have to wait on another occasion. I was understandably upset at the fact she couldn't tell me this before and asked if I could get my money back. She told me no, as it was not her fault that the cards took forever to go through and that i could wait til next time.
    I played it cool and told her fine. But later on I called my bank and told them that the purchase was unauthorized so they could get me a refund. This all happened in summer of 2019. Today in January of 2020, I get a text and email on my phone telling me that I need to send the escort $3k for canceling her $400 gift card, and I'm like WTF? How does that make sense? She goes on to threaten putting my info out there for everyone and that she will go to my wife (never been married btw) and family for the money. She also texts me very threatening sounding messages such as "...I am going to fucking ruin you," and "you have until tonight or your done for." I simply reply that I dont know what shes talking about, with her replying not to play stupid and calling me things like a dumb fuck and cheap shit.
    From here I just block every avenue of communication with her. My question is, can she actually harm me and am I able to go to the police in NYC to report this? I have all the texts and emails she sent me that sound threatening, and although I did send her those gift cards, i never even ended up seeing her. I am a bit worried, but feel that she is simply trying to extort me for what she can get from me thru fear and intimidation. It makes no sense for her to demand $3k for losing a $500 gift card, does it?
    I just want to protect any semblance of my reputation from being ruined. I am a grad student and just dont want to have things spiraling out of control from here. I dont have any social media whatsoever (not even a LinkedIn), and when I google my name my home address does appear on the white pages public record. However, without name-dropping, I did a check on her number and it turns out that she is a pornstar who many in the industry aren't to fond of. But do you think that she can actually do me physical harm or damage my reputation? And should I report her to the police with my evidence?

Answer:
 >But later on I called my bank and told them that the purchase was unauthorized

But it was authorized. You authorized it. You lied to your bank to get the charges reversed? That's called fraud.

>can she actually harm me

What do you mean by that? Harm you how?

>and am I able to go to the police in NYC to report this?

Yes, you can report her for blackmail. I can't guess at whether the police will do anything about it, but you can report her.

>But do you think that she can actually do me physical harm or damage my reputation?

You'd know the answer that a hell of a lot better than some strangers on the internet.Answer #2: > she asked that I send her $500 in electronic gift cards

Gift cards are used for money laundering, you were being scammed.  There is no 'escort that is also a porn star' that would do this.

The problem with reporting this is it doesn't seem like sex work is legal in New York City in the first place so tread carefully I guess.


Title: NYC - Ex girlfriend and her new boyfriend are saying bad things about me to business associates, do I have a slander case?

Question:
I work in finance in New York.

Dated a coworker for three years. During our relationship, she took a better position at a different firm. We ended about six months ago over disagreements about our future. We got back in touch about four months ago and are Facebook friends and I thought we were okay. We liked each others posts, occasionally commented, etc, thought everything was okay between us.

A month ago, found out she was dating another guy. Last Saturday, got a call from a mutual friend ("Dan") who is also a counterparty of mine at another firm. Here's what happened according to him:

Last friday, he's at a bar with his girlfriend. Sees my ex, goes over to say hello, she's with her new boyfriend. My ex was allegedly very drunk and says to Dan "Oh, I haven't seen you since (me) and I broke up. He's so immature. He's like an overgrown baby." This continued for a few minutes, then her new boyfriend says "Oh yeah he sounds like a real child."

Apparently they ran me down for like five minutes, then Dan politely make an excuse and left or went to another section of the bar, whatever.

This bothers me for several reasons. I don't really want my ex spreading rumors about me to the rest of our industry. I work M&A on large multi-million dollar deals and I don't want my bosses and clients hearing I'm immature or childish or whatever. Or future employers. Her new boyfriend is much older than she and I are and in a very senior position and I don't want him running me down to other top people on Wall Street.

Do I have a slander case? I don't really want any money from them, I just want them to shut up. Is there some kind of gag order or verbal restraining order or something I can put on them?

Answer: Personal judgements like "immature" or "childish" aren't defamation, even if you can prove everyone else thinks you're mature and adultlike. You can't use legal force to stop someone from giving negative opinions about you.Answer #2: Because one time, while drunk, she had a conversation with one mutual friend in which she expressed personal opinions? No.


Title: [PA] Please read the text, the situation is far to in depth for me describe in a title (wondering if I can be evicted)

Question:
Where to start...

I moved into a house back in September.  It is a 4BR/4BR house.  The landlord is technically a construction company, but they were represented by a real estate agent.  Lets call her Amanda.  I met with Amanda at the end of September to sign a 6 month lease.  I only signed my part in front of her, but the landlords part was pre-signed.  The lease was specifically for the houses basement. The basement was not yet finished but I was assured it would be within two weeks of me moving in. It wasn't, but ill get to that later.

There were 3 other rooms that did not pertain to my lease.  I paid a prorated September rent (about 5 days), my first months rent ($900), and my last months rent ($900).  At the time I moved in there was only one other person living in the house.  He had leased out the master suit.  The lease clearly states the tenants are responsible for everything including electricity.

 As stated earlier the landlord is a construction company.  The construction company was building houses along the entire block and they were juicing off of our electricity to build the neighboring houses.  We were going to change the electric into our name but we wanted confirmation that they would stop using our electricity.  The construction company (who up to this point is still only represented via Amanda) stated that we didn't have to change the electric over until they were done using it.

Fast forward about a month of time and we are in late October.  The power was cut off by the electric company because the bill wasn't paid.  We ended up calling Amanda and she said "I spoke to the landlord. He apologiezes. (the electric company name) closed at 6 he will call first thing in the morning and pay by credit card it will be turned on immediately. He will continue to pay the bill the bill and give you a $25 credit for next month." (no the bill the bill is not a typo.  That is exactly the message I received) Anyways at this point the landlord has now stated that we are not responsible for electric until further notice. Flash forward to early February and the electric is back off.  This time the bill is > $6000.  The construction company had a bunch of houses under their name and it all got funneled into our address.  For the first time ever we speak to the real landlord.  He is very rude. For example, I said "how are you doing tonight?" His response ("well better than you haha"). Its like WTF did this asshole just say?! I digress.  He tries to tell us that this is a learning experience and we should tough it out through the night.  *side note its winter in PA and our heat is electric.  I tell him I pay too much money per month in rent to sleep in a cold house without electric. We negotiate back and fourth about a hotel.  He tried to put me in a rat infested place and when I said that wasn't good enough he cursed me out and said something along the lines of "do what you gotta do, don't stay in a place over $200 and I make to much money to be dealing with this *hangs up")

 I find a hotel on sale at Expedia and book it for $20 under the "going rate" for the area. We went 5 days without electric because there was no way we were paying  $6000 bill.  I went to change the electric in my name but the electric company said that I would be responsible for the back bills because the lease said I moved in late September.  I tried to explain the amended agreement but the electric company didn't care.  The landlord paid his bill and we currently have electric.  We were finally told to put the electric in our name and we complied.

They wanted us to pay for the electric for the months of December and January.  That didn't seem like a big deal to me.  The landlord felt he was being ripped off (that's what I was told by his other representative...Lets call her Megan). So I proposed a new idea to Megan.  I wanted to make peace because my lease was up and I wanted to renew for 6 months so I proposed that I eat my hotel costs and they eat the electric.  That way they would save $200.  I was told that Megan had to confirm that deal with the landlord because she couldn't accept deals for him.  I never heard back the answer to that deal. A few days later I got an email that was trying to strong arm me into a lease I didn't want any part of.  They were trying to unite the roommates under one lease so everyone was responsible for everyones portion of the rent, not just their own.

At this point I said I wasn't interested in the new lease and being frustrated that they weren't given me any options I told them I will go back to the original plan with regards to the power incident.  That meant I would deduct the money other living arrangements costed me. The landlord wrote back saying he would not accept the pro rated amount and that he would evict me if he didn't get the "full rent" by Monday.  He also went on to say "You are, and were, responsible for your electric irregardless of the prior correspondence.   It was your responsibility from DAY 1 to have the electric transferred into your name.  While we were paying the electric until the end of October it should have been in your name as you were the tenant.  When the power was last shut off in October we notified you and your roommates verbally that we will not be using anymore power and that per the lease it is your responsibility. " See this doesn't make sense.  He literally acknowledge a prior agreement, then said it didn't matter, and finally he made up the whole verbal agreement.  Who the hell says they will continue to pay the electric (in writing mind you) and then months later verbally claims he said otherwise.

Other relevant information.

My lease has a typo.  It says its valid Sept 2014 - March 2014
My room had giant holes in it for months and still isn't completed. (I think this is a breach of contract and I could sue for the loss of bargaining. a $900 room isn't worth $900 with giant holes in it.
They came to work on my room one time and got spackle dust over literally all of my stuff.  There were footprints on my things.  I document this incident very thoroughly.  It was literally everywhere. I asked them to be mindful of my living space (seeing how I live only in a room) and they said (in writing) that they would.  I had just done laundry the day before and my cloths were out on my futon. They said they would send a cleaner to clean the apartment and do my laundry. I came back on a Sunday night and none of my laundry was done, the bathroom wasn't cleaned (had spackle dust everywhere), and the floor was still dirty.  Other misc items were dirty too, such as my camel hydration pack and hose. I had to do 6 loads of laundry (4 of them on Sunday because I didn't have a clean bed spread or any clean work cloths) and I had to detail my bathroom, floor, and other misc items.  (I think this is another breach of contract because they said they would be very careful and clean after themselves.  Then they did classic victim blaming.  They said you should have known this is messy work. I FUCKING asked them if my stuff would be okay while they worked and they said it was fine.
The third item I believe is a breath of contract is the electric.  I don't think I need explain that anymore than I did above.

Also since I paid last months rent at signing can't he not even start evicting me until my last month seeing how he is still positive in the overall rent picture?

My question here is what should I do.  Should I just count my loses and eat the $550 dollars the hotel and food loss costed me? I feel like I have strong legal ground to stand on, but I can't be sure and thats why I am here.  It's not like I can't afford the extra $550 and I am not spending the money until this situation is over.  I am prepared to go to court and represent myself in the eviction process if I am in the right.

So please, people or /r/legalAdvice. Don't go easy on me.  Am I right to withhold the rent? Can I legally withhold the rent?

PS sorry if there are any typos or unclear thoughts.  This whole situation is exhausting.

TL;DR (I just wish you would read it but here it is at the fewest words possible)

-I was lied to when I moved in.  My room was never finished

-The electric clause in the lease was amended and the landlord didn't follow the amendment

-the electric was turned off for a week and I need a hotel to live in. The landlord agreed that would be fine

-I have currently withheld the amount of money the hotels costed me

-The landlord violated 3 agreements so far

-What legal grounds do I have?

-Can he evict me even though he still has next months rent in full (he is only missing a portion of Februarys)

-I'm really sorry for the bad formatting. I get it, but I'm just really really tired and I have to work tomorrow and this is just a last ditch effort for help.  Please bear with me if you can.

Answer:
 I am not reading that long thing.

In your state, rent withholding is for habitability issues only and must be confirmed by a city inspector before withholding rent


Title: Utah, Salt Lake County - Neighbor is denying Comcast access to utility pole, impacting my access to broadband.

Question: My situation: I live in a corner of Salt Lake County, UT that has little to no wired broadband. I've been settling with Clear cellular internet for a couple years, but that service is ending in November. As we are in the shadow of a mesa that separates us from the rest of suburbia, none of the other wireless providers are currently an option. I was on the verge of going with satellite internet when we received a flyer on the door from Comcast stating their plans to run service to my house. Not a huge fan of Comcast, but it'd be the best option out of a list of lousy options. After a couple weeks, we still weren't showing up on their systems as serviceable, so we called the field engineer who left the flyer. Turns out that they had permission from the local power company to run their lines along the power company's poles, one of which is on a neighbor's property. That neighbor is refusing to allow Comcast access to his property..."as long as I'm living here, you'll never..." According to the Comcast engineer, if they already had service on the pole and the property owner was barring them from accessing the pole to do maintenance, they could push the issue with local law enforcement, but not to run new service. I've attempted to contact the neighbor through a few channels, but he's not speaking to me (we've never met, but I've heard tales of his "charms" from other neighbors). I don't expect Comcast to go to any trouble on this issue, as they won't notice a couple homes that don't subscribe, so i'm either on my own or SOL (or both). Do I have any recourse?

Answer:
 Talk to the city about it, whoever handles easements.  They often can compel your neighbor to allow Comcast access to this utility pole.Answer #2: So the pole is landlocked and you want access to it?Answer #3: The FCC reclassified broadband as title 2, common carriage, telecommunications service in February. There were huge fights about this as it gives the government more rights to regulate broadband (many heard about it in regards to net neutrality debates). As a side effect, it gives the cable companies certain easements over private property and public rights of way, and pole attachment rights.

I don't know how you can use this directly, but I do know that it gives Comcast more rights to force its way onto your neighbor's property than they had before February. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable in this area can chime in.Answer #4: Can you put a pole up on your property and run the cable line to that? Cable can go unsupported for longer stretches than power lines.


Title: Can an employer ban music from certain employees but not others?

Question:
Edit: Sorry, forgot to add location - New Jersey, USA

I've been working for this employer for a little over a year.  It's a VERY small business (around 15 employees).  As far as people I have to answer to, we have the owner and I have a manager.

1/2 a year ago I asked my manager if music was allowed with headphones, I was told that they were never told no, and that our accountant does it all the time.  For 1/2 a year I used headphones with no trouble, then the owners son (who I don't think likes me) walks by one day and tells me "we don't do that here".  He's not my boss, but being the owners son means he gets whatever he wants.  I comply, and take out my earphones.

Now, my coworker next to me listens to music really low over her speakers, and has been since I got here.  I can hear it, but I don't mind, and I know that the son HAS to have heard it at some point.  With the headphones I had no way of knowing whether or not he knew the accountant used them, but with speakers I know for a fact that it's something she does, she doesn't hide it, and in the year I've been here, he's never said anything.

Do I have any ground to stand on if I play music over the speakers and he tells me I can't do that?  Can he legally ban music for me, but allow it for her?  I know they can ban music across the board, but for only some employees?  That seems kind of sketchy to me...

Answer:
 > Can he legally ban music for me, but allow it for her?

Sure. Unless you've got a union contract *or* employment contract stipulating your right to listen to music during company time, they can enforce whatever rules they set on whatever ad-hoc basis they wish (unless said rules are part of governance or compliance structure pertaining to safety regulations or something similar).


Title: Is it possible to be considered disabled/handicapped depending on the day?

Question:
[deleted]
Topic:
Disability Issues

Answer:
 You are either disabled or you are not. No one is going to check on you on a daily basis to see if you are disabled on a particular day.

If you are feeling guilty about parking in a handicap spot when you feel okay, just park in a regular spot at those times. Answer #2: I'm not a lawyer, just someone who has looked into this before.

You can get a handicapped placard and only use it when needed. Having it doesn't mean that you are required to use a handicapped parking space every time you park. There are lots of chronic illnesses where some days are much worse than others, please don't be so hard on yourself for not being as disabled as others, it's not a competition.

(This is true for Ohio at least, not sure about other states)


Title: [Serious] mother is claiming that she owns part of my idea and is threatening to sue me. New York

Question: Hello fellow redditors sorry for my grammers/ punctuation I am writing this from my phone. The story starts when I lived with her at the house. I invented a little electronic and I think that it could be very successful. Now hers where it gets interesting . 1 year ago last week my mother said she wanted to be part of it and I said I currently need investors and I'd sell 15% for 10k. She refused to sign the paper work. Now presently I have found another investor and they are cutting me a check next week. My mother found out some how and is now claiming that she owns part of my business. I told her she wasn't since she walked away from the paper work a year ago and now I have an invester who bought into my idea. She claims that she owns the business because I built it in her house using her electricity. What the hell do i do? Can she do this? Will this hold up in court? Thank you in advanced l. I'm trying not to let this make me stall on my project

Answer:
 >  She claims that she owns the business because I built it in her house using her electricity.

LMAO. No.Answer #2: Based on the short paragraph you've given us, no, it does not sound like you mother has any claim to it. However, since you are patenting and selling it anyways, it couldn't hurt to make the lawyer that you are going to hire aware of this.

(My roommate doesn't own my ideas if I fail to pay bills one month) Answer #3: Are you over 18? Do you have a patent on the gizmo?Answer #4: Have you looked into kickstarter to fund your project?

> She claims that she owns the business because I built it in her house using her electricity.

Gotta love greedy, delusional, people.Answer #5: > She claims that she owns the business because I built it in her house using her electricity.

With more explanation than she deserves in exchange for her crazy greediness:

You were a tenant/resident. Whether or not you had a lease, whether or not she charged you rent, whether you chipped in for the electricity or not, you had rights to live there and engage in any of the normal activities of a tenant, which includes running a small business from home, with no duty owed to your landlord other than whatever was agreed upon in advance.

Now, if I had an adult offspring who was working on an invention or a startup, I might well offer them housing in exchange for a cut of any resulting business. But that would be an up-front discussion.


Title: Can you be sued for making memes of a Youtuber?

Question:
Hello,

I was wondering if you can be sued for making memes of a Youtuber, by using an unedited picture of them with just text on them, if the memes are being used to criticize/expose the Youtuber. Also, could I get a copyright claim/strike on my video/channel for using a picture of the Youtuber for the memes?  If Youtubers make public videos, shouldn't I be able to use pictures/images of them that they share online in their videos, and on their social media profiles, like Facebook? I want to use memes/pictures of a Youtuber in a meme compilation I made of him so I can expose him. I appreciate any advice that anyone can give me.

Answer: Everything you've mentioned sounds like fair use, and is done a lot on YouTube, so go ahead. Just stick to the truth or to clear opinions and you should be fine.


Title: As a non-union student employee of a public university, can my employer force me to do the work of a striking employee? [CA]

Question:
As some of you may know, workers at the University of California may soon go on strike. I'm a (non-academic) student employee of the UC, and several members of the bargaining unit that may strike work at my work site (doing different jobs than myself). If the represented workers at my work site picket, can I refuse to do their work if my supervisor asks? (Their work doesn't require any certifications or technical skills).

I think that the right of non-union workers to respect picket lines is protected under the NLRA, but since I'm an employee of a public university I believe that the NLRA does not apply to me. UC employees are covered by the [Higher Education Employee-Employer Relations Act (HEERA),](https://www.perb.ca.gov/laws/heera.aspx) but I couldn't find anything in there that said that employees not in the bargaining unit are protected if they choose not to cross the picket line and do the work.

I'm perfectly willing to risk my job by refusing to cross the picket line, but if there are legal protections I would like to know so I can convince my co-workers not to cross as well.

Answer: If you are not a union member and you refuse to work you can be and almost certainly will be fired.


Title: [IA] Can my manager asking me to travel more because I have no children be considered workplace discrimination?

Question:
If my manager asks me to travel more than another coworker due to the fact that they have children and I don’t, is this considered workplace discrimination?
Topic:
Employment Law

Answer:
 Is it workplace discrimination? Sure.

Is it in any way illegal? Absolutely not.

Is it prohibited by your company's guidelines? We have no way to know.


Title: [IL] Father needs license taken away, wondering if I can help impact that

Question: [deleted]

Answer:
 Write a letter to his endocrinologist, documenting all of the incidents you have described. Ask them to speak to your father about surrendering his license. This is not a HIPAA violation.

My mother has Type I diabetes and she had hundreds of car accidents as a result of hypoglycemia.  Hundreds. I'm not exaggerating. I can't imagine what her insurance cost her. It is a wonder she didn't kill anyone. My siblings and I were finally able to wrestle her license from her when she was in her 70s (she's now 84) by threatening to call the state and report her as a dangerous driver. Good  luck

https://www.caring.com/articles/dangerous-senior-drivers


Title: Partnership in Michigan question: individual who shouldn't be a partner was given a K-1 last year. How to remove?

Question:
So, unfortunately, my friend entered into a partnership with a shady individual. I've been helping my friend out with partnership issues, but this is something I don't know the answer to and would like to know implications.

My friend entered into a partnership with the shady individual ("Shady") this year. Shady said that he filed tax returns the prior year for the business and provided them to us. When we received the returns, I noted a 1065 was filed and a K-1 was given to an individual we were unaware of -- and the K-1 showed the individual owning 60% of the capital interest in the partnership. The split, according to the partnership agreement with my friend, was supposed to be Shady 55% and friend 45%. Shady responded that he was unaware of why the person was given a 60% capital interest and must be tax return preparer's misunderstanding, which is total bullshit in my view. Tax preparers don't just assign interests in partnership.

Anyway, moving onward and upward, we've been trying to contact this anonymous partner who is a friend of Shady, but, as of today, he isn't picking up certified mail and isn't responding to calls.

If we are not able to get in touch with the individual, should we register the partnership between Shady and friend as a new LLC or is there another route to take? I wasn't able to find anything directly on topic online, but I haven't dug too deep. Figured I'd see if anyone here would have suggestions.

As a side note, my friend has a substantial sum of life savings invested in the company and couldn't immediately recoup the investment if they walked away. For this reason only, it's not savvy of them to leave the business -- and the business is very profitable in the first few months and should continue to trend upwards. So, from a foundation standpoint, the business will be a winner -- just unfortunate she got stuck in this mess with a loser.

Answer:
 > The split, according to the partnership agreement with my friend, was supposed to be Shady 55% and friend 45%.

If this is in writing anywhere, then proceed directly to a lawyer. Heck, proceed to a lawyer, anyways: it sounds like your friend's business partner is using the partnership's assets as part of a tax scheme, and she needs to make sure she's protected.


Title: Vehicle purchase - No title from dealer [CO]

Question:
Hello /r/legaladvice:

I'm having a bit of a problem with a dealership that sold me a car on December 17th. I just needed something for basic transportation to work, so I was able to pay in full on that day. I have extensive documentation of the sale, as you would expect from a dealer. Tax receipt, bill of sale, a receipt for the credit card transaction, and inventory invoice.

My problem is that the temporary tags assigned from the dealer expired yesterday and I am not able to register the car as I have not yet received the title from the dealer. I am having a friend take me to work for now, which is quite inconvenient for both of us.

I have called the dealer once a week ever since I purchased the car to inquire about the title. They keep lying saying "it's in the mail" or "I'll look into it and call you back." They have never once called me.

I still have the car in my possession, yet I am unsure as to how to proceed. At this point, it seems unlikely that the dealer will ever provide me with the title. What do you think would be the best way for me to resolve the situation?
Topic:
Other Civil Matters

Answer: Have you gone down there and talked to them? They should be able to issue you another temporary plate if needed. Stop letting them dodge you on the phone and go talk to them in person.


Title: Please help.

Question: Just got in an accident in california mecca. Can I refuse the tow truck? I'm off the road in a desert lot flipped over. Tge cop is being very confrontational and making assumptions. I'm not under the influence of anything and it was a 1 car accidemt. He called a tow truck can I refuse it until my grandfather the owner of the vehicle arrives.

Answer: If you were in a rollover accident you need to go to the hospital to be examined. Your grandfather will worry more about you than the vehicle. It's going to have to be towed regardless. Don't worry about that. Answer #2: How, exactly, do you plan to move a flipped over vehicle without a tow truck?Answer #3: Almost certainly not.


Title: Work decided to arbitrarily enforce a random policy on me, ONLY ME, that they haven't enforced in over 2 years. (Nevada)

Question:
Hey ya'll. Bit salty over this so just curious as to what the actual laws are.

My work has a universal, 1/2 inch facial hair policy. Last week I was informed that I had to trim my beard to 1/2 inch.

However- My beard, in the whole time I have worked here, has NEVER been this short. I was hired with it longer than 1/2 inch. It's been longer than that the whole time I've worked here. This isn't a rough 1/2 inch either, IE "Hey, go get cleaned up a bit." My boss was told he actually has to hold a ruler up to my face and measure it.

I keep my facial hair neat and styled. I don't understand where this is coming from. On top of that, I've asked around to other co workers, some with longer facial hair than me, and no other employees are having this asked of them. It's truly only me.

NV is an at will employment state, but my place of work waives their right to at will upon hiring. However, every day I come in and don't stick a ruler to my face, I'm getting written up.

Answer: Unless the reason for their doing this is motivated by your membership in a protected class, it's legal to selectively enforce policies.  Answer #2: Why do you think they singled you out and nobody else?


Title: Pricing error law

Question:
Several months ago, an online merchant had a price glitch in which an item showed up in the cart as $0.00. I placed an order and it shipped and delivered to me.

Can this merchant send me an invoice later demanding payment?

I’m not asking what the ethical thing to do is. I’m asking what the merchant’s and my rights are legally.

Answer: Since it was clearly a computer error, yes, they can demand payment.


Title: IL- Roommate moved into room I have listed to sub let

Question:
I had some issues with a roommate I was stuck with, so I moved out and am currently looking for a subletter for the master bedroom in my 2 bed/ 2 bath unit in Chicago.

I have posted the room on several sites (including Facebook, Craigslist, and Reddit) looking for a reasonable sub letter. I have paid this month, but would like someone to take over next, until the end of my lease (a total of 3 months).

Since I moved out, the roommate decided to pick the lock (one which I installed) on the master bedroom, and move his stuff into it. We never agreed on this, but he is flat out refusing to leave the room, stating that this is what I did when the last roommate moved out. The previous roommate and I agreed to me moving into the master, prior to his departure.

I have people coming to look at the apartment, but he is telling me I need to show the other room. We pay the same amount, even though the master bedroom is bigger.

Is there anything I can do, here?

Answer: What kind of an agreement do you have with your roommate?  Is there anything written or is it just oral?  If written, what does it say?Answer #2: Who is on the lease? And if you are both paying the same amount why should you get to sublet the bigger room? Why can't you just sublet the smaller room. If you are both on the lease  he more than likely has to approve of you subletting which he probably won't do if you make him take back the smaller room.


Title: (GA) My psychiatrist was arrested- is it worth looking into a malpractice claim, or should I just let it go?

Question:
I began seeing a psychiatrist in May of 2018. I felt something was off about the practice, but it was the only place that took my insurance within 50 miles. They put me on Ativan, which I know can be addictive, but the NP swore the only people who got addicted were people who abused it, and I was at a real low point mentally and she was the professional, right?

I continued with the practice for the rest of 2018,  and every month, the NP kept me on the Ativan, which, at 2mg daily for seven months, I became dependent on.

It turns out, the NP was actually not an LPN, and was forging prescriptions for the doctor I never saw while she was in jail for DUI and other charges- she left her staff with her script pad and ran the office from jail. When the office was shut down, I tried to taper down with my remaining medication, but still experienced withdrawal. I truly believed I was a bad person and a dirty addict, and while I have been clean since the office shut down, it was a tough recovery.

I have all of this documented- copies of scripts that were forged, EOBs, and proof the doctor was on the jail roster the same dates she allegedly saw me. I also can prove that I saw my PCP and a new psychiatrist, out of pocket, for withdrawal/abuse issues.

Is it worth trying to pursue action, or should I shrug it off and consider it a life lesson?

Answer: Are you saying that you went to see a psychiatrist and saw someone posing as a psychiatrist instead?


Title: Malicious HOA repeatedly changing rules.

Question:
Florida, US (Yeah yeah, I know.)

My neighbors don't like me. I inherited my parents house and don't work due to disability + I have enough inheritance to last as long as I am careful. So I am almost always HOME. I'm 31 and they dislike me because they think I'm lazy and they're all old.

Unfortunately this house is part of an HOA. This HOA keeps changing its bylaws and then notifying me I needed to change stuff. I was annoyed, but in order to not get sued, I complied. These changed have included changing the color of my blinds, getting a mailbox that matches the rest of the houses, having to have plants removed as they were banned, and more.

After the 6th or so change, I started to get suspicious. I overheard some neighbors talking. Apparently they are doing this specifically to spite me. Ex- they look at all the houses and make sure I'm the only one with a certain color door, and then making a bylaw against it so that I (and only I) have to change it.

Besides moving (which would be massive issue for several reasons), what can I do? I have no chance of getting on the board or anything. They all dislike me. They send stuff for voting on the changes, but obviously my vote is meaningless.

Is this simply legal harassment? It's already cost me a pretty penny in pointless modifications and I fear it will only escalate from here.

Answer:
 You should at least get a consultation with a local lawyer. There are some rules that may or may not help you, but you absolutely need an actual lawyer from an actual law firm to send them actual letters full of actual veiled threats to get anywhere.

This is a situation well beyond what free internet help can do for you.


Title: How can we legally get a car off of our property?

Question:
So we had a guest staying with us for several months who moved out last week. She left her car in our driveway with much of her stuff in it.

We want it out for many reasons. We dont want to be liable for someone taking studd out of it (its unlocked), she may try to say that she still had belonging on our property so she can still claim squatters rights, it blocks us from taking garbage out and from using the parking space, but mostly she's a toxic person we want out of our lives asap.

We spoke to an officer who said all they can do is ticket it until it visually looks like it is abandoned. They said call back in two weeks and they'll put a tow notice and tow a week later. This is way longer than we want to wait.

We live in Rockford, Illinois.

Answer:
 The police offer seems to be correct. The relevant IL law is quoted below. I would call the local non-emergency number for your area and see if you can get the tow authorized by the police department faster.

   > (625 ILCS 5/4-202) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 4-202)
    Sec. 4-202. Abandoned, lost, stolen or unclaimed vehicle notification to law enforcement agencies.
    When an abandoned, lost, stolen or unclaimed vehicle comes into the temporary possession or custody of a person in this State, not the owner of the vehicle, such person shall immediately notify the municipal police when the vehicle is within the corporate limits of any city, village or town having a duly authorized police department, or the State Police or the county sheriff when the vehicle is outside the corporate limits of a city, village or town. Upon receipt of such notification, the municipal police, State Police or county sheriff will authorize a towing service to remove and take possession of the abandoned, lost, stolen or unclaimed vehicle. The towing service will safely keep the towed vehicle and its contents, maintain a record of the tow as set forth in Section 4-204 for law enforcement agencies, until the vehicle is claimed by the owner or any other person legally entitled to possession thereof or until it is disposed of as provided in this Chapter.
(Source: P.A. 78-858.)


Title: [MO] [OH] Do I have to pay my parents for this loan?

Question:
Using a throwaway in case someone I know sees this.

While I was in college my parents took out Direct Parent Plus loans to pay for my education. I graduated but have still yet to find a job in my field, life happens it’s okay. When I was in college I told my parents that I hoped to one day help them pay it back if I ever got a job that paid enough.

I have recently gone no contact with my family. I don’t want to being too much backstory in, but here’s enough to be relevant. I cut them off a couple of months ago after many years of manipulation and downright treating me like shit. I did so to improve my own life and mental well-being. They didn’t react well to this and showed up at my apartment several states away in MO after I told them not to come (they live in OH). They were banging on my door for about two hours, after about an hour and a half of this I gave up and called the cops. I talked with the cops when they got here but my parents already left.

Now I’ve received an email from my parents demanding that I pay back all of their parent loan, including a line saying if I don’t pay they will “come knocking and collecting”.

I have a few questions. 1) Do I owe them for this loan? I didn’t sign anything when they took the loan out nor did I have a contract with them but I’m not sure if there’s some argument they could use. 2) if they do show up trying to get money from me what is the best course of action? 3) Will I need a lawyer for any of this? If so what kind and where would I look for one?

I appreciate the help!
Topic:
Credit Debt Bankruptcy

Answer:
 > Parent Plus loans

The lender's recourse is against your parents alone.

If you agreed to repay your parents, your parents _may_ be able to recover the amount they pay from you, but it'd be up to them to prove that such an agreement exists and is enforceable. If you never agreed to pay, then there's not much they can do besides be difficult.

If they show up and won't leave, you already know what to do: call the cops. If this becomes a pattern of harassment, you can also seek a restraining order. If they sue you for the balance of the loan, get an attorney and respond, but you can put that off until and unless they actually file. Your state bar can refer you to an appropriate lawyer.


Title: Should I Sue Samsung?

Question:
I have never had to file a law suit like this before and wondering what I should do and how to do it. Here is what happened:

I  paid $830 for a brand new Samsung S7 Edge. About a year after owning it  the battery bloated and separated the from front the back. I took it to  Samsung to have it fixed or replaced and they tried to charge me  telling me it was my fault  that their battery is defective. I don't  like injustice of any sort so I refused to pay and they refused to fix  it. Several months later the bloated battery worsened and started  leaking poisonous gas. I was getting sick but had no idea what was  making me sick but after about 2 weeks I realized it was the phone.  After putting the phone in a Ziploc in a drawer for 5 days I finally  felt well enough to venture out again but was still sick from inhaling  toxic fumes. I took the phone in again for another attempt to get the  phone fixed for free or replaced. They refused but I decided to pay the  $60 for the new battery because I was getting sick. When I picked up the  phone they charged extra for glue but I paid it with credit card and  went on my way. After about a month I was better than the 1st 2 weeks of  this ordeal but wasn't getting better. Still sick, problems breathing,  sore throat, cough, etc. I realized then, they had never replaced the  battery but just deflated the old battery and put it back in and sold me  my old battery that was making me sick. My phone is now yet again in a  plastic Ziploc across the room in a drawer to keep me from getting  sicker. What should I do?

Answer:
 > I realized then, they had never replaced the battery but just deflated the old battery and put it back in

That's not a thing that they can do. No they didn't.


Title: Property manager filed collection against me 4 months after my lease ended in good standing.

Question:
Hi.

So, long story short...I co-signed on a house rental lease agreement for my mother in February 2014. The lease agreement was for 12 months. In the 10th month, my mother informed the leasing agent that she would be terminating her lease at the end of the 12 months (she found a better house, in a better area, that was owned by a co-worker of hers).

During my mother's stay, she was a good tenant. She paid rent on time, and left the house in good condition. The terminating procedure involves a walk-through of the property, which I video taped in its entirety. To quote the maintenance supervisor who walked through the house, he said "this is the best I have seen a property left before...it's like no one even lived here the last 12 months". There was no damage caused during her stay.

After the walk-through, we were informed that the leasing agent would notify us if there were "...any damages we were responsible for". We never received a follow-up letter, phone call, or e-mail regarding damages, and as far as we are aware, our account was closed out in good standing.

One thing that is worth mentioning is that this leasing agent seems very shady, and tried to bully us during the termination process as well. What I mean is that the termination fee was due by the 28th of February, but they demanded that it be paid by by the 10th of February. I responded in e-mail that our contract doesn't specify a date, and that it is due at the normal day rent would be due (according to attorney I called). They responded back immediately that the fee was due in 2 days or they would file a lawsuit against us. The next day, they sent another e-mail saying that would "cut us a deal" and reduce the termination fee by 20% of we paid it within 5 days, which we did.

Anyways, back to the main point at hand..Today (almost 4 months after she made the last payment for the lease agreement and closed the account), my mother received a letter from an attorney's office stating:

"Your account with XXX Property Management in an amount of ~$2,000 has been placed with our office for immediate collection. Accordingly, demand is hereby made that you pay the balance of the subject claim through our office within ten (10) days of the date of this letter. Failure to pay as demanded will result in further action being taken; this could include the filing of a lawsuit against you".

We have no idea what prompted this letter, and I am afraid that the leasing agent is trying to bully us into paying money for no justifiable reason. Should I hire my own attorney, or start with talking to the attorney's office that sent the letter?

Thank you for spending your time reading, and any guidance you can provide.

**EDIT**: Moved last paragraph up so that the timeline of payments made sense. We have not responded to or made payment regarding the collection notice that was received today.

Answer:
 >30th of February

Answer #2: she paid a termination fee? for what?Answer #3: Did she pay a deposit and was it returned to her?


Title: “Laundry hours”

Question:
I’m questioning whether or not our complex is able to designate specific hours for laundry.

My boyfriend and I live in a suburb of Chicago and just renewed our lease agreement for the second year. We both work odd hours. Meaning my boyfriend starts work between 6/7/8 A.M. and will work for 15 hours straight and sometimes over night shifts, and I am a waitress who’s hours start around 11 and end whenever my manager sees fit (which I am okay with).

Our “condo” complex consists of 12 apartments, two of which are vacant. We live in the one condo who’s master bedroom shares a wall with the lobby, so we can hear everyone’s coming and goings. Starting from around 4 A.M. to all hours of the night.

Recently our management put up a flyer in our laundry room that states our laundry room hours are from 8 A.M. to 9 P.M. My question is whether or not this is legal. We have a management “team” for our condo association but all/most of the units are privately owned.

Do  I HAVE to follow this rule? Regardless of the fact my boyfriend and I work odd ours and struggle already to do our laundry?

Answer:
 If your lease doesn't spell out 24 hour laundry access, this is likely a legal change.   If your lease DOES state you get 24 hour laundry access... your remedy is probably to break the lease with reduced or no penalty.  A court is probably not going to compel them to open the laundry room at 2AM for you.

Does the laundry room share a wall with an apartment that is likely to be bothered by the noise?  Given that your wall is thin enough to hear the lobby, it wouldn't surprise me if someone else's is thin enough to hear loose change and zippers in the dryer.

Also, did your condo association make this decision, or was it the hired management company?  If it was the former, I'm going to be VERY surprised if you have any recourse.  If it was the latter, there's a good chance that bringing it up at the next condo association meeting has a chance of working.  It's possible your neighbors are annoyed too and want to send new instructions to the management company they employ.

Have you talked to the management and explained when you are able to do laundry?  If you can absolutely demonstrate that this renders you unable to do so without hardship, and are polite and positive about it, this seems the sort of thing they may make an exception to.

Are they even locking the door, or are we still at the level of 'just send a flyer, and hope people stop complaining about the laundry noise?'   And for that matter, are you certain the flyer came from management and not from the residents who back up against the laundry room?


Title: If I’m sitting on my back porch at night, and a cop drives by shining a flashlight in my backyard and then sees me holding nothing with a small clear glass pipe (for weed) on the table, is that enough cause for him to come on my property, or knock on my door?

Answer: Yes


Title: My gf's mother is threatening to press charges over a cat

Question:
On Christmas Eve my girlfriend and her mom got into a fight which resulted in my girlfriend being kicked out of the duplex she lives in with her mom. Sadly this isn't unusual, and in little over a year that I've known her she has been kicked out of her mom's at least 4-5 times. These fights are usually started due to her mom's drinking habits, and my girlfriend tends to get a little hot headed.

This fight was worse than any of the others, and luckily she was able to move into her adoptive father's house, but all of her things including her pets were still at her mother's place. She returned to get the rest of her things the day after Christmas with a friend only to find the locks were changed. They waited for her mother to return home and things got ugly.

Her mom had been drinking and drove home drunk with a big gulp cup half full of vodka. My girlfriend called the police and her mom freaked out. To keep things concise I'll just list the things that happened before the police arrived.

* My girlfriend's mom poured alcohol on both of them while on the phone with someone, while claiming loudly that my girlfriend was hitting her (she wasn't)

* My girlfriend's mom went inside to hide the weed and pipes that she had laying around the house

* My girlfriends mom opened and slammed the door several times while throwing things at her friend's car, breaking the windshield wipers in the process

* My girlfriend attempted to stop her mom from slamming the front door, and in the process put her hand through one of the pane glass windows, cutting her hand up pretty badly

When the cop finally showed up her mom let my girlfriend into the house to grab some of her things while she talked to the police. The officer seemed fairly irritated by the whole incident, and only took down her mom's side of the story. Her mom likes to play victim, and claimed that she was assaulted by my girlfriend (she wasn't, in fact if anything she was the one who assaulted my girlfriend by grabbing her by the neck), claimed that my girlfriend damaged her property (which she technically did by breaking the window, but they rent the place so I don't know if that's something she would be able to press charges for), but when asked if she wanted to press charges her mom said that she didn't wish to press any charges.

Now, things probably would have ended there, but my girlfriend decided that since her mom had already lost one of the three cats that they owned in the two days since she had been kicked out, that she was going to take her favorite cat back to her step dads, and she snuck it out of the house with the help of her friend. This went unnoticed by her mom for about a day, and the following evening my girlfriend got a text from a family friend asking if she had the cat, to which she responded "yes"

The family friend told her mom and now things are getting even worse. Her mom is demanding that the cat be returned. Her first threat was that she would press charges for assault, destruction of property, and theft of her cat, and sent photos of vet bills with her name on them to my girlfriend as a proof of ownership. The issue with this is that on the vet bill, the address listed is her step dad's address (which is where the cat is currently) and the phone number isn't her's not her mom's. The cat was not adopted, he was a barn cat that was given to the family by my girlfriend's sister.

My girlfriend's adoptive father responded to these threats with legal threats of his own, threatening to turn her mom in for tax evasion over the last 10 years, and she seemed to drop the threats for some time. Her next threat was that she wouldn't allow my girlfriend to have the rest of her things unless the cat was returned, but my girlfriend refused to return the cat, and would rather give up her things.

The very next day her mom seemingly did a 180 and offered to return some of my girlfriend's things, knowing that she was upset and needed them the following day, but after arranging a place to drop of her things requested once more that the cat be returned.

Today her mom texted her again, saying that she was going through with pressing charges, that she had spoken with the officer from the night of the big incident, and that he told her that was the only actions she could take to ensure that the cat be returned, and claimed that she had spent the day securing documentation that he belonged to her, and that she had also turned herself in to the IRS (which is a lie since their offices are closed today).

I know that this might seem dumb, all this trouble over a cat, and the advice of many might be just to give the cat up, and that it might not be worth the trouble. In theory I don't disagree, but knowing the kind of person her mom is, I worry for the safety and well being of the cat. She already lost one, and the one that my girlfriend took is acting more sociable and happy now that he's at her father's house.

My main questions are:

* Can her mother press charges for an incident that she already declined pressing charges for?

* If she presses charges, and this goes to court, wouldn't her testimony and my girlfriend's testimony be a she said she said situation, despite my girlfriend having a witness, I can't imagine that anything can be proven without real evidence. (She did break the window and there is proof of that, but my girlfriend offered to pay for the window, and her mom did break her friend's windshield wipers)

* Her mom clearly didn't turn herself in to the IRS, but if she were to be turned in, wouldn't that be incredibly serious given the situation (she runs a cash business that she hasn't paid taxes on for 10 years)

Location: US, IN

tl;dr: My girlfriend took a cat with no documentation out of her mother's house, and her mother is now threatening to press charges for assault, destruction of property, and theft of her cat.

Answer: As a concerned citizen the police should be called if her mother is drinking and driving.