Angry ex-girlfriend, car damage, possible libel

This is about an angry ex-girlfriend, some minor damage I've caused to her car, a small debt she owes me, and possible libel related to my employment.

I met Cathy (not her name) in June 1999. I live in Silicon Valley and Cathy's home is in the Palm Springs area of California, though she has resided with me a good percentage of the time until recently. During this period, she did not contribute to my rent, and contributed relatively small amounts to our food costs.

In August 1999, while on a Sunday road trip, her car broke down. It was under warranty and she was confident that she would be reimbursed for expenses. I paid $320 for a rental car and she said I would be reimbursed. As our relationship progressed, I asked several times for the reimbursement but didn't press it. In July 2000, she paid me $160 in cash as 50% payment. I said I would accept it, and I said that I considered the remaining $160 to be owing.

In Semptember 2000, in my capacity as a sales manager for my employer, I planned a four-day business trip by car to Southern California. We agreed that she would travel with me, and that we would take her car, a late-model Mustang. During this trip, while maneuvering the car at low speed, I scraped the right front corner of the bumper against a structure. The scrape went through the paint and did some minor damage to the fiberglass bumper covering. I told Cathy at the time that I would cover it, and she said not to worry about it, that she would make an insurance claim.

In early October 2000, we ended our romantic relationship under reasonably amiable terms. The breakup was at my initiative. On November 1st, Cathy called me and was very angry and hostile over some perceived slight, which she refused to explain. My best guess is that she thinks that I may have lied to her about something related to our relationship, but that is only a guess, and I still do not know the source of her anger.

On November 5th, Cathy sent me an email regarding repair of the damage I caused to her car's bumper. She said that her insurance company appraiser gave a high estimate that included replacement of the bumper. She also said in this email that she would get another bid the following day from a local shop who she said would give her a break. Her email said she wanted to settle this quickly and asked how quickly I might be able to reimburse her.

On November 6th, Cathy called me on my cell phone at work and explained that the local shop quoted her $250 to repair the bumper. I said I would send her an email that evening in response. I did indeed send an email which recounted the details of the conversation in which she stated her damages as $250. I said I would settle for $90, which represented the $250 for the car repair, less the $160 she still owed me for the car rental in 1999. I attached a Release document to my email and said that when I received the signed release from her, I would immediately send a check for $90.

On November 7th, Cathy called me at about 7:50 am to ask about paying her for the car repair. She hadn't read the email I sent and asked me to tell her my proposed settlement, which I did. My proposed $160 offset angered her. She explained that her insurance company's appraiser estimated the cost of bumper replacement at $1500. She said that her insurance company deductible was $500. She said she went to a local repairman who said he could fix it for $250. I explained that I had never agreed with her to share the cost of the rental car in 1999, and that I would have done something different if I thought I was going to bear the cost. Then, still very angry, she said that she would have the bumper replaced and that I would need to pay $500 less the $160 for a total of $340. She also threatened to call my employer. I told her that my employer had no liability in this. I asked her, if she wished to change her claim, to put it in writing via email. This conversation ended at about 8:30 am, with Cathy still very angry, and still threatening to call my employer.

I proceeded to prepare to get to my office and saw that she had left a voice message on my cell phone answering service at 8:40 am. In it, she said, "Round one is done. Check in with Tom when you get to work." Tom is my supervisor. I have saved that message.

Later that morning, Tom told me about the strange call he received from Cathy. He said that Cathy told him that I refused to pay for the damage to her car. I explained the basics of the situation to Tom, and said that if she called again, he should ask her to put any claim or complaint in writing. Dan made it clear he does not want further calls like this, and asked me to "handle it."

At 9:03 am, Cathy sent me an email in which she now says that I must have misunderstood her about the $250, that it really represented a split of the $500 deductible so that she could get her car repaired now. (Not true. Her verbal explanation of the $250 damage was very clear, and it was consistent with her earlier email in which she said she thought she could have a local shop repair the damage at a reasonable cost.) She also said in this email that she has learned that since she was not the driver, the damage will not be covered by her insurance company. (I was driving her car with her permission, and of course the damage would be covered under her insurance.) She further said in this email that my options are to pay for complete replacement of the bumper or to turn it into my insurance company or to my employer.


MY QUESTIONS FOR AN ATTORNEY:

1. In a situation like this, I believe there is a legal principle that says that the claimant is required to mitigate damages. Is that true, and if so, can you tell me how that applies here? Can Cathy at first claim $250 damages, and then raise her claim to $1500?

2. Am I on firm legal ground if I insist that I will reimburse only for actual out-of-pocket costs? If so, what are your recommendations for the documentation I should require?

3. Can you tell me whether Cathy's action in calling my employer and lying about me would be considered libel or perhaps extortion?

4. Do you think I should just pay Cathy to go away?

5. In any case, I presume it would be prudent to get a signed release before I give her any money. Should the release cover any possible claims over the complete period of the relationship, or should it cover only the car damage?


Thank you for your help.
[email]Mindful1@mindspring.com[/email]