Legal Advice

As far as I understand it (and this is a state by state thing so it might be different):

1) If what you signed wasn't a standard lease and just like a single piece of paper contract, any lawyer worth 5 pennies could find loopholes around it. If it was a full-blown lease, you are pretty much fucked.

2) Not every state would require it to be in writing, but, if she sues you, the burden of proof is on you and anything you say is hearsay, which basically means it doesn't count. The only way around someone like that is certified mail (I think that's the right kind).

3) The marijuana thing might work, but it is illegal. I mean, it's illegal for him to use it and it's illegal for you to blackmail them with it. I guess you should determine risk here. Is it riskier for you to 1) pay it and be out the money 2) wait to see if they do bring you to court or just let it be or 3) try the blackmailing thing.

If #3, you better damn well get it in writing that they won't sue you in the future. Even if you go with #2, they probably have a long time period with which to sue. The problem with #3 for them is that they can't take you to the police for blackmail and not get him arrested for marijuana.


As it is: you might be fucked for August rent at this point.

Edit: Do you have a copy of what you signed?

Also, just because she doesn't have your social doesn't mean anything. Apartments take that for background checks and most states don't require landlords keep them.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Yeah, that's a fairly standard owner lease. The thirty-day notice is fairly clear and it doesn't say that it has to be pro-rated, which almost was a gift.

The only way you could get out of the lease is if it were improperly done, and you'd need a lawyer for that anyway. For example, some states require such things to be notarized.

Originally Posted by Divest

I'm leaning towards 3 at this point. I mean, shit. I have nothing to lose. I'm just not sure if I should report it immediately to the police so that I have to record of it, or threaten them first and foremost, so that I have that leverage? It's risky business. :/

Well, you do have something to lose. Criminal blackmail is a hell of a lot worse than being out some money.

Consider this:

1) You go to the cops now. Which, OK, maybe screws over this family, but after the cops do anything, they have no reason to proceed in the same way towards you, in fact, they will probably be more hostile.

2) You blackmail them. They get rid of any evidence (a photograph gives cause for the police to perform a search, but they actually have to catch them in the act) and then ask the cops to bring you up on extortion charges.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Divest

So, there's no way to get around this? I mean, if they take me to court for this, I could potentially win, couldn't I, or is there no possibility of that?

There was notarization done. I'm not sure if California requires that, though.

And yeah, I'm not going to blackmail them. If she pursues legal action though, I will report it to the police. I mean, it couldn't make things any worse.

Leases are drawn up as easily as form letters for a reason. There isn't going to be a lot of wiggle room for you if she were to sue you. I mean, being in California, they're probably going to side with the individual over the corporation when possible, but that is a pretty solid lease, just shorter than ones I've signed with bigger apartment complexes.

The problem with assuming that it costs her money to sue you is that if she feels there's a strong chance she'll win, she'll also petition the court and likely win court costs too, which means you'd be paying her lawyer.

But it would be a lot of time and energy on her part. You might want to try for a compromise.

How ya doing, buddy?