California Civil Litigation Questions & Answers
Q: Former roommate holding personal items from me saying I owe him money when he signed me off the lease of an apartment.
I'm not sure what the question is, but whether you owe him money or not does not give him the right to hold your personal effects hostage.
Q: Define what "last date of activity" on a statute of limitations encompasses.
Several years ago a doctor billed me erroneously. His office refused to adjust the bill. The bill went to collections. I would like a detailed explanation as to how the last date of activity is defined as it relates to the stature of limitations. I have found a general description, but am... Read more »
No one can give you a detailed explanation of the statute of limitations without knowing the details of your situation. There are multiple causes of action that can be used against you in a collections situation, including breach of contract, and common counts, such as "open book account."... Read more »
Q: While it's legal to have an audible alarm system as an anti-theft device. Is it legal to sound the horn to engage?
Neighbors truck is early nineties. The horn is full, not muted like todays cars
It's loud. I can hear it inside my house and when outside it's completely disturbing. I ask him to just use his key to lock his door he says the alarm won't set if he does that
Depending on where you live, and the time of day or night this is happening, he may be in violation of local noise ordinances. I will say however, that if you report him, you may not get a lot of sympathy. Local enforcement may just take it as a trivial complaint between neighbors that don't get... Read more »
Q: Am being sued & a judgement was made against me for not showing but was unaware of lawsuit. Not responsible for debt
Am being sued for Breach of Contract but i have nothing to do with the loan agreement between my ex boyfriend & his mother. I signed as a witness only & was never any kind of business partner with my exboyfriend (co-defendant). A judgement was made against me for not showing up because i didn't... Read more »
You can move to set aside a default judgment under Code of Civil Procedure 473(b) for "mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect" but the outside time limit to do so is six months. After that time, the Court has no power to entertain the motion. That you say you are "trying to file"... Read more »
Q: What would be a reasonable fee to retain the "limited Scope" attorney if I am fortunate enough to find one?
I am able to write a check for a retainer and/or pay hourly for the legal assistance
That depends on the lawyer's hourly rate and the hours needed to undertake the specific project. Even for litigation, limited scope services are often simply "pay as you go". So, the first project may be to start the lawsuit by filing the drafting and filing the Complaint and arranging for... Read more »
Q: Who is responsible for late/penalty fees from dmv at the time of sale? Or after the sale?
At the dmv i found out there was a $900 balance owed for penalty fees due to not being registered for 2 years. The seller says it's my truck now and i bought it "as is"
Do i have to pay the $900 to get the truck in my name? Oh and there is an illegal 2019 sticker on the plate...
"Penalties may be waived upon payment of the registration fees due when a transferee (including a dealer) applies for transfer and it is determined that the registration penalties accrued prior to the transferee’s date of purchase and the transferee was not aware that the registration fees for... Read more »
Q: At a bbq in a public park, is the host liable for minors sneaking in beer if the host only offers soda to all guests?
This is for the state of California, Orange County. I tried searching online but was only able to find cases in private property.
more info needed
did someone get hurt as a result? arrested?
i would think you could not be automatically responsible for everything/everybody
Q: 5 mil lawsuit in 79-80s in which the children of deceased never received any funds from the suit? Can this be recovered
Wrongful death and DUI. Grandma was guardian of children but she was in trouble by the law at the time and they refused to give her the money. Children just learned of the lawsuit and want to know if it can be recovered since they are innocent of grandma criminal activity
1. The children recover the money, not the guardian, so the Grandmother's criminal history would not be relevant. Any money is placed either in a blocked account (not accessible until the children turn 18), or is deposited into an annuity that pays out specified sums on a specified timetable.... Read more »
Q: Thank you for the answer to my question, but what would an intentional tort be?
If tort is a civil wrong, what is an intentional tort?
Torts are categorized by different mental states. Primarily they are either intentional, such as an assault or a battery, or they can be premised on negligence (a reasonable person standard).
An intentional tort as opposed to a tort that is based on negligence is a tort that requires a... Read more »
Q: I am a plaintiff. I need to amend my lawsuit to add two additional defendants. How can I do this?
The matter concerns a surety bond. I want to join the surety as an additional defendant, as well as the principal on the bond. The original defendants have not been served because we cannot locate them.
Dear Plaintiff Needing to Amend Complaint: If there is no named defendant whom has filed an Answer to Complaint (which seems likely from my reading of your description) then you are allowed by the Code of Civil Procedure to file a "First Amended Complaint", and the court will accept the filing... Read more »
Q: Is it legal for me to leave business cards on office building doors?
I'd like to hand out business flyers at individual office suites within an office building. Do I need the landlords or cities permission to do this? Can I leave business cards behind if the tenant is not present.
Yes, it would be advisable to get the landlord's permission, identify yourself at the security desk, and obtain tenant's consent at their reception desk if you are given permission to go up to their floor or suite. Enhanced security protocols have made entering large office buildings more stringent... Read more »
Q: Is it possible for the executor of the trust, do the paper work for probate or do you have to go to court? My brother
Is the executor for our mothers trust. He is the one that drew up the document for me to sign, not to have my name on the title to our mother's property. On Friday my case was dismissed. I left my brother's a message to let them know. They have not called me back. There was no court order... Read more »
Without reading what you signed and understanding what type of case you had, it is impossible to answer your questions. You should bring all of your documents to an attorney to review and give you some legal advice.
Q: I was injured on the job which was a quadriplegics home care worker. The father of the quadriplegic was told the day
I was injured and how it happened it took my doctors 3 years to find the problem once they had I needed emergency spine surgery i was close to becoming paralyzed. I went to in home supportive services and filed the workman's comp paper work and saw their workman's comp Dr who told me it's been too... Read more »
You can always file a claim for workers compensation benefits, but with this fact pattern you will have trouble overcoming the statute of limitations. Definitely too late for a civil suit.
Q: Long term board members breaching governing docs and city building codes for decades. Selective enforcement of parking,.
For many years, the current and previous management companies, dictated by the board have pushed, selective enforcement and harassment on the complex. The parking rules stipulate, “2 car’s in the garage andIf you own a third car, you can obtain an annual permit which enables the third... Read more »
you are asking this question on a criminal website.
this is arguably not criminal.
everything is controlled by the By Law.
i would not be surprised if there are time limitations on how long someone can remain on the board.
i suspect quite a few laws/rules have been... Read more »
Q: Lived on ranch, owner of ranch destroyed everything I owned on purpose....
I lived on a ranch in a trailer that i did not own in exchange for taking care of the cows and other ranch duties, and earned money as an electrician off ranch. One day after work I got home and the trailer I was living in, and everything I owned in a pile of rubble. The ranch owner decided to... Read more »
you should have called the police when it happened to have him arrested, prosecuted and requesting restitution be a part of the sentence.
you can still try to do so...but with the lapse of time they may give you a hard time.
contact a civil lawyer in your area.
sue in small... Read more »
Q: Independent Contractor for a Wentzville , MO based company not being paid
I am an independent contractor for a MO based company but I live in Los Angeles, Ca. They have not paid my wages /invoices and have written several bad checks to cover the amount owed. I would like to sue them for my back pay and am questioning which state to file the case in and if out of... Read more »
If California law applied to your situation, it is unlikely you are actually an independent contractor unless you worked for multiple companies at the same time and were free from control of the employer in carrying out your duties. That would also give you access to many of the very good... Read more »
Q: There was no probate case, when my brothers and I inherited the property from my mother. Is a document legal if it's
not notarized? My brother had it typed up stating, my name not to be on the title but that I would still retain 331/3 percent ownership.
Whenever someone dies owning real estate in their individual name, there must be a probate case for a court order that transfers the real estate to the heirs. Is the document that you're referring to a court order? Court orders are not notarized.
Q: My name is not on title to a property I inherited with my brothers. Do I retain any ownership?
There is a document my brother had typed up stating, I would not be on the title because of financial matters. However, I still would retain 331/3 percent ownership. We never went through probate and the document was not notarized. Is the document legal?
No, your name must be on the deed to have an ownership interest in the property. Was there a probate case when you inherited the property?
Q: I believe I was scammed for medical services. Do I have any recourse or is this just a lesson learned?
I just returned to the US from teaching abroad so I don’t have health insurance. It’s not open enrollment period. I got a job upon return but my benefits don’t start until after 90 day probation period. I needed to see a doctor prior to then. Made an appt at a women’s health clinic. Shortly... Read more »
Go get your $300 back.
Q: Type of attorney for harmful rx practices of 2 doctors, severe brain injuries by hospitals refusal to care
Permanently disabled prior to incidentd. Severe losses. Cause involves 1 of 2 drs already prosecuted by state of CA medical board, san diego hospital refusal to care, sheriff refusal to report . kidnapped from ER taken by ambulatory delivery to a border naval hospital, refused to treat acute... Read more »
More info needed.
for negligence by a doctor or medical providers you would want a med mal atty
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