Posted on 01/16/2023 11:20:12 AM PST by where's_the_Outrage?
I agree.
Should have cut it off. Cell phones work.
Why do those loaning get off?
They are people with financial degrees and years of experience. Why shouldn’t they feel pain?
For disclosure- I went for ChemE and EE, and used my GI Bill at a state university. I owe nothing.
These are the same too big to fail geniuses…
Pretty simple. A couple of "gentle reminders" (verbally, text messaging, etc). Then send an email. Then a follow up email. (30 days later or so). Afterwards, sue in small-claims court.
Seems pretty straightforward to me.
LOL yep. They shouldn't be off the hook. Gotta hold them accountable.
Are Oral Contracts Enforceable?
Most lawyers recommend written contracts. While writing down your contracts offers several practical benefits, an oral contract is no less legally binding. Before a party can sue over a breach of contract claim, these three elements must be present:
The existence of a valid contract between the parties.
It must be established that the defendant breached the contract.
Damages caused by the defendant’s actions.
The validity of a contract is not dependent on whether it was written down or oral. It is only in situations where the statute of frauds is applicable that a contract must be in writing before it can be enforced. An oral contract which does not fall into this category is enforceable.
https://www.upcounsel.com/are-oral-contracts-binding
Ask them about it. If no satisfactory answer round up 25 homeless people and send them into the apartment on the last night. Tell the homeless lunatics that the roomies are looking for love and no means yes. Jk
Yup, l call it “paying your tuition.” Life’s lessons can be harsh.
If it were me I wouldn’t waste my time—but I am a “cold equations” cost vs benefit kind of guy.
But—if I did decide to go after them it would be a war they would never forget—with all kinds of unique tactics they would never expect (and I would not discuss here).
Good luck with “oral contracts”.
For five hundred bucks and change with two people—the legal costs would exceed that if you even looked at a lawyer.
There is no evidence any “oral contract” ever took place—just the word of one young fool.
If I was a judge I would laugh him out of court.
In most all of the states he has no legal case. Some do allow for hand shake deals but proving it would be difficult and the expenses would beat out the money recouped. So, chalk it up to experience.
Personal story from long ago. A “friend” and I made a 15/30 reversse bet on two horses running at different tracks with our bookie. Both won, one horse went off at more than 20 to one, the other something like 4 to one. The result is we won over a K (big deal as I was making 100 a week). My “friend” collected on the bet and skipped. I told the book I would find him. The book said: how much did you lose? I said my share is 500+. He said again, how much did you lose? I said I lost nothing because we did not put the money up front. He said wise up, you learned a lesson, he is not your friend and it is not worth going to the clink for.
With limited exceptions, a contract doesn't need to be in writing to be enforceable. A contract is just written evidence of what was agreed. In the absence of that written evidence other evidence can be used. For example, if he can show they were splitting the bills before the moratorium started that is evidence of the agreement and he would likely prevail in a law suit.
“I once had a Tennant six months behind on the rent. I reached out to a lawyer friend. He told me to pay them $1500 to leave. I went ballistic with rage”
Despite the invective often hurled at lawyers, I have found (at least among the ones I know, which is several) that very, very often, they instantly come up with the correct solution to rotten problems that might have dogged you for months. At minimum, they (and I) generally understand that if a narly problem can be solved simply by paying money, it’s most often the cheapest way.
The debt is his alone to the electric company, but he will have a contract claim against his roommates for their portion if they don’t pay. A contract doesn’t need to be in writing.
The irony in this is rich...
He stiffed the utility company and now he’s worried about himself getting stiffed.
I’m getting a rush of schadenfreude.
[ You have no grounds to sue anybody in small claims court unless you have a contract entered into with the roommates as signatories and it was duly signed, notarized, and witnessed. ]
“Oral agreements can be enforced and have been the bases for wins in court.”
A very tough road for (a) real estate transactions (which is may or may not be, arguably) but more (b) agreements spanning a year or more.
That’s what the LSAT measures. Smarts in the quickest time frame. (My daughter is now an attorney)
Their credit needs hurting. They need to learn to not scam people out of money.
It may or may not be covered by the statute of frauds in his state (it is not a contract for sale of real property, for the sale of goods worth more than $500, or that cannot be performed in less than one year), but oral agreements are usually sufficient in small claims court. If he wins in small claims court he will get a judgment that he can frame and put on his wall (but probably never collect).
You learned a good lesson and it only cost $500? That’s a deal - the bookie probably saved you a lot more than $500 over the years.
Sad, but often the price of getting good judgement is by having bad judgement.
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