New York Civil Litigation Legal Questions

The time for bringing an action for false arrest is one year which starts from the date of arrest and confinement. There is also a possible claim for malicious prosecution which is one year and the time starts from the  date the  case is dismissed. If  a police officer was involved and you want to sue the city in addition to the police officer  there is a requirement of serving  something called a notice of claim which has to be served  within 90 days from  the time that one could bring the  action.  There is still one option involving a police officer. You can bring a 1983 claim (federal) against the police officer and city  which has a three year statute of limitations. There is no requirement for first filing a notice of claim. ... Read More

Have you been appointed by the Surrogate's Court as the executor or administrator of your mother's estate?  If you have not, you must take steps to do so.  The attorney might be breaching the attorney-client privilege if he were to reveal confidential information about the action to someone other than the official representative of the estate.  However, there is a great deal of information which can be found on court's websites.... Read More

It depends on from whom you are taking it, whether you can do so without entering private property, and whether you can do so without breach of peace. If the other joint owner -- who is lawfully in possession of it -- has it, then your retrieval of it without a court orderfrom prviate property may be wrongful.... Read More

It is not clear whom you are going to sue and why. As a general matter, you have no right to require your name to be taken off a debt that you have co-signed. You have no claim against the creditor, which is merely enforcing its rights (to which you agreed). If anything, you have a claim against the folks for whom you co-signed this obligation. It seems probable that they do not have any money, and it would likely be foolhardy for you to spend any money to engage the services of an attorney to sue them. Have you carefully thought this through?... Read More

There are so many variables here that it is impossible to answer all of your questions. That being said, ordinarily, neither a power of attorney nor a webcam, will be allowed. She certainly can file  a lawsuit through a US attorney. You may wish to consult an attorney or await the service of lawsuit papers. Gerry Wendrovsky, Esq.- Upper West Side Lawyerwww.upperwestsidelawyer.com... Read More

If the person ignoring the lawsuit was properly served, and is subject to the jurisdiction of the court (i.e. lives in the jurisdiction or has other significant contacts with it), a default judgment will be entered against him based solely on the evidence presented by the plaintiff.  Indeed, in many cases, the plaintiff will not even have to present evidence, other than his own word. That judgment can be enforced (e.g. through levying on assets, garnishing wages, etc.) exactly as if the case had been fully litigated.  At that point, the defaulting person could seek to have the judgment vacated, but that will be quite difficult, and even if he succeeded, he would merely be back at the beginning, fighting a lawsuit, having gained nothing.  Also, before it will vacate the default judgment, the Court might impose conditions, such as requiring the defaulting party to deposit money into court to cover the damages if the person loses the lawsuit.  All in all, it is a very bad idea to ignore a lawsuit against you.... Read More

You can ask the insurance company.  If they refuse, you may be able to subpoena the insurance company for discovery in the action between you and your sister, but you will probably not be able to do this in small claims court.  In order to have discovery, you will probably have to start your action in the civil court.  However, although it doesn't hurt to ask, it sounds as if anything more would be much more trouble and expense than it is worth.  From what you wrote, it seems that your letter (which is hearsay if offered to prove the truth of what is contained therein,and therefore may not be admitted into evidence in any event) proves nothing, unless you can show that your sister knew what you were writing and didn't object.  If you can prove that, what would you need the letter for?... Read More

It was certainly proper for you to tell the attorney how you felt.  If that makes him angry enough, or embarrassed enough, to drop you as a client, so be it.   p.s. An attorney is not always allowed to just "drop" a client when the client would be damaged by that withdrawal, such as when the attorney is representing the client in a litigation which has gone on for some time and is now ready for trial.  You didn't mention the type of matter(s) in which this attorney was representing you.  However, even if you might have a way of preventing him from "dropping" you, it sounds as if you might be better off with another attorney who shares your sensibilities.... Read More

I can't give you a definite answer without seeing your agreement, but if the seller made a false representation (that there were new engines) on which you relied (by agreeing to purchase the boat), you may be able to rescind the contract because you were fraudulently induced to enter into it, or you may be able to obtain damages.... Read More

You can bring a direct case against her for intentional infliction of emotional distress and property damage. However, without expert testimony by a therapist, or proof that it has impacted on your income, the recovery for your emotional distress would be not substantial. You should consult with an attorney. Gerry Wendrovsky, Esq.- Upper West Side Lawyerwww.upperwestsidelawyer.com... Read More

If you start an action with yourself as a plaintiff, you can later seek to amend your complaint to allege a class action, but the better practice usually is to start the action as a class action.  If the class is later not certified, your individual claim would remain.  However, in a class action, not only the plaintiff must be approved as an appropriate representative, but also the plaintiff's attorney.  Without knowing a lot more, I can't speculate as to how likely you are to be approved as the class representative, but you cannot act as attorney for the class unless you are admitted to practice law in the jurisdiction.  As a general rule, non-attorneys can represent themselves, but not others.  This being the case, you have to think about what advantage there would be to you to commence the action as a class action.... Read More

You don't say how the family member was "responsible" for your loss.  Did they steal the property?  Were they negligent in looking after it?  Did they destroy it out of spite?  Was it jointly owned property that they used or transferred without your permission?  The answers to these and other questions can impact whether your family member is indeed legally responsible for your loss.  However, if someone is legally responsible for your loss, they are liable for it, regardless of whether they are related to you or not.  I have, unfortunately, litigated many cases involving family disputes.  Before you sue this family member, you need to think about whether there is another way to resolve your dispute, or whether it is worth taking the risk of ruining your relationship in order to be reimbursed for your monetary loss.... Read More