Indiana Civil Litigation Legal Questions

You could theoretically be held in contempt and arrested, but that is very unlikely.  The bigger problem is that you may lose your case on default and have a judgment entered against you for the full amount of the claim.  That judgment can be enforced against you by garnishing your wages, auctioning your assets, etc.... Read More

There are two bases for federal court jurisdiction, diversity of citizenship and federal question.  In the abstract, if you sue someone in their home state, they can't remove to federal court on the basis of diversity jurisdiction, but could sitill remove if the suit involved a queston of federal law, for example if you allege that your adversary violated some federal statute.  If you sue in your home state, teh case can be removed to federal court assuming that the other requirements for federal diversity jurisdiction are met (e.g. a sufficient amount in controversy)  In your case, however, having already sued in one case, you cannot bring another case alleging the same claims, as it would probably be dismissed because of a prior action pending. ... Read More

That depends on (a) what the claim is; and (b) what jurisdiction governs the statute of limitations, which is not always the same as the jurisdiction in which suit is brought.  Assuming that this "event" is governed by Indiana law, most tort statutes of limitation in Indiana are two years from the accrual of the claim.... Read More

There are three questions here.  First, is what you plan to do barred by your contract.  That question can’t be answered without knowing what the specific contract provides. Sime non-competes only prohibit solicitation of the former employer’s customers, others are far broader.  You need to review (or have a lawyer review) your contract.  Assuming the contract prohibits what you want to do, the second question is whether it is enforceable.  Non-competes are viewed suspiciously by the courts and are not always enforced, but there is no hard and fast rule about what will be enforced.  It depends on such factors as the length and breadth of the restriction, the type of employee and industry involved, the degree to which the employer’s confidential information is involved, the time and expense the employer put into acquiring any information the employee would be using and/or in training the employee, and many other factors.  Finally, if the court considers the contract to be unenforceable but not too oppressive, it may “blue pencil” it, that is the court may enforce a narrower form of the non-compete, for example enforcing it for 1 year instead of 2, or over a 2 mile geographical area rather than 10 miles.  The broader the provision, the more likely the court is o Todd the whole thing out, rather than edit it. ... Read More

Your family may have a decent case, depending on any pictures that you have taken to document the funeral home misconduct. Did you take pictures? Keep in mind that most states have laws that allow only certain family members to have standing to sue. Generally, the spouse and the children have claims in most states. Indiana may or may not follow that general rule. I have done many of these cases throughout the country and each is fact specific. Discuss in private with counsel.  I WORK ON CONTINENCY FEE!!... Read More

What do you mean by signed it over? If the title wasn't in her name then it hadn't been transferred and you were still technically the rightful owner of the vehicle, but it may be deemed a constructive transfer if you had signed the title transfer documents, but she had simply failed to register it with the BMV. You should call the BMV or the Indiana Bar Association and discuss this further with them.... Read More

In Indiana a class action lawsuit was filed in the 90's concerning this. I'm not sure if there is still money avaialbel from that fund, but if not you probably can't make a separate claim. Contact the Indiana Bar Association about this and they'll refer you to someone with more knowledge about the tobacco litigation.... Read More

This is going to depend on a lot of different factors including whether you agreed to pay a security deposit. If you did, then they can likely take any payment given to them and apply it to the outstanding balance, before applying anything to your monthly rent balance. You should call the Indiana Bar Association and ask them for the number of an attorney who specializes in landlord-tenant law.... Read More