Breach Of Contract Legal Questions

You state that the statute of limitations has run.  If so, it is too late for you to sue successfully.  However, I don't think it is true (unless here was a statute fo limitations in your contract which shortened the normal period).  The statute of limitations for breach of contract in Florida is 5 years from the breach, although there is a 4 year statute of limitations for contracts to improve real property which may apply.  If I understood you correctly, it has only been between 2 and 3 years since the work was done, less than that since he breached his contract to repair the work.  Also, sometimes a party can be estopped to invoke the statute of limitations, or it can be tolled, where that party's misrepresentations caused the other party not to sue.  That might apply here (although it's a tough sell if it's been 2 years sinceyou've had contact).... Read More

If you loan someone money and he doesn't pay  you as agreed, he is in breach of contract, promissory note or not.  The note serves as evidence to prove the contract and its terms.  However, it cannot be determined whether it is legally enforceable without knowing whether the debtor has any defenses to the contract (e.g. he may claim it was entered into under duress, that he was defrauded into entering it, that it is usurious, that he was not of legal age or mentally competent when he agreed to it, that you forgave the debt at some point etc. etc. etc.)  The better drafted the  promissory notes were (for example did they include merger clauses stating that they represented the entire agreement between the parties, superceded any previous oral or written agreements or representations, and couldn't be changed except in writing signed by both parties?), the better your chances of defeating any defenses.... Read More

The judgment creditor will avail himself of various legal mechanisms to collect, including garnishing wages, restraining bank accounts and other assets, etc.  Interest will run on the judgment until it is paid, and other expenses of collection (for example a marshal's or sheriff's fee if one of them has to get involved in collectin efforts) may also be added to the judgment.... Read More

Civil cases and criminal charges are not mutually exclusive.  If, for example, someone beats you up, you would sue that person for battery, seeking money from them, while the government would charge that person with a assault and battery and seek to put them in jail.  That being said, I see no crime here, only a civil case.... Read More

You don't indicate whether the "father's company" is a separate entity (i.e. a corporation or llc), in which case his death affects nothing, the entity (not the daughter or any sibling) remains liable.  If the father ran a sole proprietorship, i.e. the bussiness was not a separate legal entity, it gets more complicated.  The daughter (or sibling) still has no individual responsibility for the father's obligations, but you would have a claim against the father's estate, and may be able to collect from the estate's assets, such as the business, even if they were transferred to the daughter.... Read More

You have a claim for breach of contract, and should probably seek out an attorney who's experienced in dealing with esate matters.  Promissory estippel can create a contract in the absence of consideration (normally a requrement to create an enforceable contract).  It sounds as if you provided consideration by taking care of your grandfather in exchange for a promise of 1/3 of the proceeds of the house, but if consideration is a problem, promissory estippel may get you past that hurdle if you can show that you detrimentally relied on your grandfather's promise, but you have other problems.  Depending on the totality of circumstances here, unless you have proof of the ocntract other than your own testimony, you will probably have problems with the dead man's statute (which prohbitis an interested party from testifying to a transaction they had with a now deceased person, because the decedent is not able to rebut it) as well as the Statute of Frauds (which requires that certain types of contracts be in writing to be enforceable).... Read More

This may be a collections violation under Fla. Stat. 559. You will need to hire a lawyer to review this but if they are trying to collect on a properly cancelled account, as opposed to the $0.00 owed being the result of a charge of and sale, you may be entiled to up to a $1,000.00 penalty and having the collector pay your legal fees. ... Read More

It probably won't be hard, but if may be expensive becasue you may not be able to assert a claim against an out of state defendant in small claims court (check with the clerk of your local small claims court to see if its rules permit suing an out of state defendant there), which means that you'd have to sue in another court with higher court fees, unless you are close enough to your friend to be able to sue him in his local small claims court.  Of course, a Court can only give you a judgment.  Thereafter there are a lot of ways that you can try to collect, but ultimately if your friend doesn't have enough to pay the judgment, you may be able to force him into bankruptcy, but you will not be able to collect.... Read More

Although it seems likely that No would have jurisdiction over the warranty co., since it contracted to cover equipment located in MC, you may not be able to sue in small claims court.  Many small claims courts are only set up to have jurisdiction over locals. You should contact the clerk of your local small claims court to check.  Also your contract with the warranty company may contain a choice of forum which limits where you can sue, or an arbitration clause requiring all disputes be arbitrated.  If there is no contractual provision to the contrary, you can sue in a state court of general jurisdiction. ... Read More

I suspect the "hard time contacting the lawyer" is related to the money issues related to the lawyers engagment, especially since it seems no lawsuit was file. This is common where a client pays $200.00 for a letter to the merchant and then the clients expects ongoing and repeated consultations for "advice" about doing this or that, wihtout further payment to the lawyer, by example. Lawyers that are actually getting paid for thier work are usually pretty responsive for obvious reason. At this point, you may need to simply hie anew lawyer, file a lawsuit and move forward - as there are far too many holes and issues that will likely only be addressed in litigation. ... Read More

Most contracts do not have to be notarized to be enforceable (many don't even have to be written).  However, the contract you describe sounds as if it would not be enforceable.  Whan a contract is breached, the non-breaching party is entitled to recover from the breaching party the actual damages that person suffered due to the breach (which certain qualifications.)  Sometimes, the partes can specify in the contract what those damages would be.   This is known as a liquidated damages clause.  However, for such a liquidated damages clause to be enforceable, certain conditions have to be met.  1, it has to be difficult or impossible to calculate the actual damages which would be suffered, and 2, the liquidated amount must bear some relation to the actual damages that would be anticipated from a breach.  It can't be a penalty. You can just say that if you fail to pay me back the $500 you owe me, you will owe me $10,000. More practically, if you put up your home for a bond, you may lose your home if your friend skips bail.  If he skips bail that means that he will be on the run and hiding.  Thus, even if your contract was enforced, how would you collect?  Indeed, since it appears that he doesn't have the wherewithall to post bond without your help, how could he have the money to repay you even if he didn't skip out? In short, you had better be very sure that your friend will not skip out on bail before you put up your house to bail him out.... Read More

You will need to provide a LOT more details and claiming "you lost everything" is of no consequence in a vaccum. You will probably need to hire a lawyer at some expense to review the case the file and the issues and go from there. If the case is not yet dismissed you need to do so immediately. ... Read More