I used to send away clients who wanted to hire me to go after people for that amount of money, for exactly the reasons that you mention.
At the $200 an hour I charged back then, I would have to put in AT LEAST 10 hours of time, even in small claims court. Initial interview, draw up docs and review with client, file with court, several court attendances before trial, go to trial, wait several hours for case to be heard, get judgment.
Then, all you have is a piece of paper saying that the slug owes you money. Collecting is another $1000 or so, and success isn't guaranteed. Some weasels are very adept at judgment-proofing themselves.
So, ~you~, the poor guy who the landlord screwed can't afford a lawyer, and even if you could, it would be a money losing proposition anyway. So you represent yourself. Turns out the landlord's law firm has a law clerk or articling student that he can use dirt cheap. Especially since unlike your lawyer, this guy has 10 cases in court, so he wins with the economies of scale, at a way lower hourly rate than your lawyer.
You're all nervous, you forget some important documents ('cause you've never done this before). The landlord, who's in court every other month, is a real smoothie. He looks real good on the witness stand. So's his law student/paralegal - they have all their i's dotted and t's crossed, the cross-examination makes you look like a goof, and the judge finds for the defendant on some stupid technicality.
Even without hiring a lawyer, you've missed about 4 or 5 days of work to do this ('cause they kept coming to court asking for adjournments), and you get zip.
I don't blame you for not going to court at all, Tom. Sounds like you learned your lesson the hard way, though... <g>
cheers, frank
"The optimist thinks this is the best of all possible worlds. The pessimist fears it is true." -J. Robert Oppenheimer
From: graywolf <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: something weird... Date: Mon, 29 Mar 2004 14:42:54 -0500
Yep, you have 2 weeks, he has 30 days to respond, you have 2 weeks, he has 60 days to respond, you have 2 weeks, he has 90 days to respond. If you go through all that then you can take him to small claims court. But then you will have to find where his accounts are, to collect in all probability. Remember he had practice doing this with hundreds of people, you are doing it for the first time. And you have moved out of state, or at least the county, so you have to run back and forth. (Detroit, Michigan landlord/tentant laws)
I find it amazing that folks think you go to small claims court, the guy pays and that is it. In reality he does not show up, the judge sees in your favor then you deliver that court order to him, or pay the sheriff's department to deliver it, if know where he is. He ignors it. You find out where his bank account is, or his job. You go back to court and they sign a garish, in the mean time he moved his account, and got another job. They don't show all this on the TV Court shows, do they?
Oh yes, if you keep following through, you will eventually get your money. After about 3 years.
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