Do I owe?

Colorado - I recently received a letter from my most recent, former, employer. Several months before I was layed off, I was relocated to Los Angeles. The company is a vendor for large real-estate management companies, and I was living in an apartment complex owned by one of our clients. When I was layed off, I unfortunately had to break my lease 2 months early, out of financial necessity. However, I spoke with the property management, and was told that they would apply my deposit, and I would be contacted to "work out" arrangements to pay the balance.

The letter that I received from my former employer states that they have paid my lease balance as a matter of "good customer relations", and they are enacting their right to be reimbursed for the amount paid.

My question(s): Am I obligated to pay my former company? Should I contact them to work out payments? (I don't have the total amount available to me now)

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Originally posted by DrShawn
Colorado - I recently received a letter from my most recent, former, employer. Several months before I was layed off, I was relocated to Los Angeles. The company is a vendor for large real-estate management companies, and I was living in an apartment complex owned by one of our clients. When I was layed off, I unfortunately had to break my lease 2 months early, out of financial necessity. However, I spoke with the property management, and was told that they would apply my deposit, and I would be contacted to "work out" arrangements to pay the balance.

The letter that I received from my former employer states that they have paid my lease balance as a matter of "good customer relations", and they are enacting their right to be reimbursed for the amount paid.

My question(s): Am I obligated to pay my former company? Should I contact them to work out payments? (I don't have the total amount available to me now)

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My response:

You don't owe your former employer (FE) one, single, penny.

However, you do say "thank you" to them.

Your FE was not in privity of contract with you, and they, as a third party "good samaritan", for their own self-interest and good will, took it upon themselves to voluntarily pay your debt. But, by paying your debt without privity of contract does not make you their debtor.

The FE did not have your permission to interfere with your contractual relationship with their client, and anything the FE did in this regard was of their own voluntary act and free will. They could have just as easily stayed out of the situation but, they felt their own good will was more important. Okay. So what?

"In the absence of any status, either as an insured or as a claimant . . . plaintiff must be deemed an intermeddler without standing . . ." [Williams v. Transport Indem. Co. (1984) 157 Cal.App.3d 953, 964, 203 Cal.Rptr. 868, 874]

So, like I said, make sure you thank the FE, but if the FE feels the need to sue you, they have no grounds, and will lose.

Good luck to you.

IAAL

Thank you for the information! This is very helpful.