Title: March 8, 2006
Q. Can my wife testify against me in a criminal case I am involved in?
A. Generally speaking, a marriage person may not be forced to testify against his or her spouse in any proceeding. This privilege will still hold even after the couple gets divorced, though it will only apply to acts and conversations held while they were married. However, there are exceptions, i.e. (1) where one spouse is suing the other (including divorce or child custody hearings); (2) A proceeding where one spouse wishes to have the other committed or take control over property because of the spouse’s alleged mental or physical condition. (3) A criminal proceeding in which one spouse is charged with a crime against another spouse or family member (even if committed before the marriage). (4) Charge of bigamy (5) a civil case brought by one spouse for the immediate benefit of the other spouse and (6) any communications made to enable or aid anyone to plan or commit a crime or fraud.
A I bought a brand new car last September, but I keep having to bring it in for repairs and I am tired of this. In the last seven months, I have had my car to drive for a total of 3.5 months. This is ridiculous. I believe I have a “lemon”. What can I do?
Q. California’s Lemon Law states that if a car manufacturer or an authorized dleaer or representative can’t repair a serious defect of a new vehicle under warranty after a reasonable number of attempts, then the manufacturer must either promptly replace the car or give the buyer back his or her purchase price. Of course, the decision to get a new vehicle or get your money back is up to you. If you choose to get your money back, it will not include the costs of items that were installed by either the dealer or yourself after the car was shipped by the manufacturer. You will be compensated for any incidental costs associated with getting the car fixed, such as towing and car rental fees. You may be charged for your limited use of the car up until the time when you first brought it in to get repaired. Generally, this works out to 1 percent of the vehicle’s purchase price for every 1,200 miles that you drove it.
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 13 years of experience. She practices law from her Tehachapi office as well as her Lancaster satellite office. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers to the best of her abilities. Email your questions to maxinedev@msn.com or fax to (661)825-8880.
Showing posts with label Common Law Marriage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Common Law Marriage. Show all posts
Monday, March 16, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Legal Eaze #27 Children Custody/ Common Law Marriage
Title: July 27, 2005
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 13 years of experience. She operates her law practice from her new office in town, as well her Lancaster satellite office. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers, to the best of her abilities. Please forward your questions to maxinedev@msn.com or fax them to (661)825-8880.
Q. My brother has custody of his two young children, a 6-year old boy and a 4-yeard old girl. My brother has been out of work for the last 8 months while his new girlfriend goes to work in Bakersfield everyday. Just a couple of weeks ago, I walked in my brother’s house, uninvited, and found him unconscious in the living room, sprawled on the couch, with a syringe stuck in his arm. Both children were crying hysterically. I called an ambulance and he was taken to the hospital. He overdosed on drugs and had I not come in, he would have died. His girlfriend does not seem to have a clue as to what he was up to. What should we do?
A. If you want to help your brother, you need to either return the children to their mother or if that is not an available solution, you need to petition for temporary guardianship of these children until your brother goes into and completes a drug rehab program. At this point, his actions are endangering the lives of his children and if Children Protective Services (CPS) hears of this situation, the children may be taken away from your brother and placed into foster care. Since you are “family”, these children would be better off remaining in your care, if you are in a position to take care of them.
Q. I have been living with my boyfriend for the last 22 years. I mentioned to him that we should get married, but he says that we are already married because we have been living together for so long. Is this true?
A. No, it is not. There is no such thing as “common law marriage” in California. You are not married and unless you apply for a marriage license and go through either a civil marriage or a religious one, you will remain “boyfriend and girlfriend”. Maybe he just does not want to get married. But as long as you are not married, you have little legal protection as to the property you purchase together, not to mention that any children you have together may eventually suffer because they are illegitimate.
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 13 years of experience. She operates her law practice from her new office in town, as well her Lancaster satellite office. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers, to the best of her abilities. Please forward your questions to maxinedev@msn.com or fax them to (661)825-8880.
Q. My brother has custody of his two young children, a 6-year old boy and a 4-yeard old girl. My brother has been out of work for the last 8 months while his new girlfriend goes to work in Bakersfield everyday. Just a couple of weeks ago, I walked in my brother’s house, uninvited, and found him unconscious in the living room, sprawled on the couch, with a syringe stuck in his arm. Both children were crying hysterically. I called an ambulance and he was taken to the hospital. He overdosed on drugs and had I not come in, he would have died. His girlfriend does not seem to have a clue as to what he was up to. What should we do?
A. If you want to help your brother, you need to either return the children to their mother or if that is not an available solution, you need to petition for temporary guardianship of these children until your brother goes into and completes a drug rehab program. At this point, his actions are endangering the lives of his children and if Children Protective Services (CPS) hears of this situation, the children may be taken away from your brother and placed into foster care. Since you are “family”, these children would be better off remaining in your care, if you are in a position to take care of them.
Q. I have been living with my boyfriend for the last 22 years. I mentioned to him that we should get married, but he says that we are already married because we have been living together for so long. Is this true?
A. No, it is not. There is no such thing as “common law marriage” in California. You are not married and unless you apply for a marriage license and go through either a civil marriage or a religious one, you will remain “boyfriend and girlfriend”. Maybe he just does not want to get married. But as long as you are not married, you have little legal protection as to the property you purchase together, not to mention that any children you have together may eventually suffer because they are illegitimate.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Legal Eaze #9 Common Law Marriage/ Propery Rental Shed, Verbal Agreement Loan
Originally Printed: November 10, 2004
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 12 years of experience. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers, to the best of her abilities.
Q. I have been living with my boyfriend for the last seven years. We hold ourselves as being married to the outside world, but we never actually got married. Is there such a thing as common law marriage in California?
A. No, California is not a common law marriage state. This means unless you have a marriage license, you are not married. However, had you been living for a number of years in another state that recognizes common law marriage, the State of California would have to honor the other state’s law. But if you have been living in California with your boyfriend for the last seven years, he is still only that, a boyfriend.
Q. I have a large shed which was unfortunately built half-way on my neighbor’s property. When the shed was built, approximately 12 years ago, I paid $2000 to my neighbor to give me an easement for the 75 square feet my shed occupies on his property. My neighbor has sold his property and the new owner wants me to move my shed back onto my property or he will destroy the portion that occupies his property,. What do I do?
A. Hopefully your easement was properly recorded with the county recorder. If you new neighbor causes you problems, you should seek an injunction to stop him from destroying your property. If he proceeds with his threats, you have recourse in filing a lawsuit for your damages. If you damages are not more than $7,500, you should use the Small Claims Court, which is much cheaper and faster.
Q. I learned of a verbal agreement Law in California. I loaned a substantial amount of money to my brother-in-law, but there’s nothing in writing. He promised to pay it back within two weeks, a promise he did not keep. It’s now been two months and he refuses to return my phone calls. Does this law pertain to this type of transaction?
A. I am not sure what law you are talking about, maybe Parol Evidence. You will need to sue your brother-in-law. However, before you do, you must show that you used money you loaned to him from your own funds. Your evidence must trace the money to funds you had in your possession, such as a bank account. If you had a witness present when the transaction took place, he can testify on your behalf. Otherwise, you may have to subpoena your brother’ in law’s bank records to prove he obtained the money.
Forward your questions by e-mail to maxinedev@msn.com or drop questions at the Tehachapi News, 411 N. Mill St., Tehachapi, or send them by mail to P.O. Box 1840, Tehachapi, CA 93581
Maxine de Villefranche is an attorney and civil general practitioner with 12 years of experience. She will answer legal questions posed to her by the readers, to the best of her abilities.
Q. I have been living with my boyfriend for the last seven years. We hold ourselves as being married to the outside world, but we never actually got married. Is there such a thing as common law marriage in California?
A. No, California is not a common law marriage state. This means unless you have a marriage license, you are not married. However, had you been living for a number of years in another state that recognizes common law marriage, the State of California would have to honor the other state’s law. But if you have been living in California with your boyfriend for the last seven years, he is still only that, a boyfriend.
Q. I have a large shed which was unfortunately built half-way on my neighbor’s property. When the shed was built, approximately 12 years ago, I paid $2000 to my neighbor to give me an easement for the 75 square feet my shed occupies on his property. My neighbor has sold his property and the new owner wants me to move my shed back onto my property or he will destroy the portion that occupies his property,. What do I do?
A. Hopefully your easement was properly recorded with the county recorder. If you new neighbor causes you problems, you should seek an injunction to stop him from destroying your property. If he proceeds with his threats, you have recourse in filing a lawsuit for your damages. If you damages are not more than $7,500, you should use the Small Claims Court, which is much cheaper and faster.
Q. I learned of a verbal agreement Law in California. I loaned a substantial amount of money to my brother-in-law, but there’s nothing in writing. He promised to pay it back within two weeks, a promise he did not keep. It’s now been two months and he refuses to return my phone calls. Does this law pertain to this type of transaction?
A. I am not sure what law you are talking about, maybe Parol Evidence. You will need to sue your brother-in-law. However, before you do, you must show that you used money you loaned to him from your own funds. Your evidence must trace the money to funds you had in your possession, such as a bank account. If you had a witness present when the transaction took place, he can testify on your behalf. Otherwise, you may have to subpoena your brother’ in law’s bank records to prove he obtained the money.
Forward your questions by e-mail to maxinedev@msn.com or drop questions at the Tehachapi News, 411 N. Mill St., Tehachapi, or send them by mail to P.O. Box 1840, Tehachapi, CA 93581
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