ex-roomate

I am in AZ currently and have a situation with my ex-roomate. Our lease was up this passed May and she moved out on April 30 with her boyfriend, leaving me to live alone (with her paying her half of the bills) for the remainder of the lease. She moved all of her things out of the apartment but left a mess in her bathroom, on her bathroom floor, bedroom floor, in the refridgerator, filled trash bags and left them in the apartment, and much more. I left her several notes on our white board on the fridge (as well as attempted phone calls) asking her to clean her part of the apartment as well as helping me clean the parts that we both used (family room, kitchen, etc.) in order to avoid a cleaning fee which is stated in our lease. She called me back leaving messages saying that we could not be charged a cleaning fee because we had not left a deposit and refused to come back and help me take care of it. In turn, she left me with the entire apartment a mess!!! My mother and I took time off of work to clean the carpets, the fridge, the floors, her bathroom, the kitchen, etc. She is now asking me to pay the SRP bill for May (which is in her name). Now, for a $61 or so amount that she is saying that I owe to her, she is threatening to take me to small claims court. What I basically want to know is, does she have a case? If she does, I can easily come back with the wages that my mother and I lost (totaling well over $150), the cost for cleaning fees, and her portion of the phone bill that I have already paid. Thank you so much for your time!

Misjanuary

I am sure that you know what an "SRP bill" is, but it would sure help us if we knew what the bill was for and who was responsible for it.

Personally, I would tell her that the $61 bill is offset by your labor in cleaning up her mess and that you are prepared to prove it to the court. Let her make the decision on whether she wants to lose her money by filing against you. If she does file, then detail your 'labor offset' facts in your answer to the court and get prepared to 'rumble'.

My response:

Inasmuch as I thoroughly agree with Mr. Halket in terms of defending yourself against this "miscreant", in reality, explaining an "offset" to the court is not a defense to the $61.00. You probably do, in fact, owe her the money. But, that doesn't mean that you're not owed money by the other girl - - I'll explain . . .

Yes, no doubt that your time and labor (not your Mom's **) has value, and the fact that you paid her share of certain bills. However, in order to claim an "offset" for these items, you need to file a Cross-complaint (or a Counter Claim) for the money you are owed. Then, if the court agrees with you, can then "offset" the debt you owe to her.

** I don't mean to imply that your Mom's time and labor has no value - it does. It's just that your Mom cannot claim anything against the other girl, for two reasons:

1. Mom helped you out of the goodness of her heart, but didn't have to.

2. Your Mom was never in "privity" of contract with the other girl. So, in essence, your Mom donated her time and labor as a gift to the other girl, and cannot make a claim for that time and labor against the other girl.

In summary, if she sues you, you can admit to the court that you do, in fact, owe her the $61.00. But, in your separate Cross-Complaint, you then plead your complaint for an "offset" against her. The judge will say that the two of you win, but since your claim will be larger than hers, the "Net" judgment, minus what you owe her, will be paid to you. She will be sorry for having sued you in the first place, and should have let "sleeping dogs lie". Or, as Admiral Yamamoto once said, after his attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, "We have wakened a sleeping Giant" (with tears in his eyes).

Good luck to you.

IAAL

[Edited by I AM ALWAYS LIABLE on 06-09-2001 at 05:14 PM]

With all due respect to IAAL:
I would agree with you if this were a District or Superior court case. However, since it is posted to the Small Claims area (and I assume would be filed as a SC case), those courts are much less formal and normally (at least in Texas) are very amenable to hearing the counter argument as to offsets and explanations. (In fact, the Texas Justice Court manual instructs the court to allow for offsets in determining awards).

If the same holds true in the AZ SC court, you really wouldn't need to incur the costs (filing fee, plus service fee) to have your 'explanation heard'.

However, if filed in a higher court (or you were actually claiming additional 'damages') you would certainly need to consider filing a counter-claim to protect your right to pursue your claim.

IAAL is correct as to the lack of inclusion of the costs (labor) incurred by your mother, unless you paid her for her labors.

Finally, it is claimed that Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto full quote was "I fear that we have awakened a sleeping giant and filled him with a terrible resolve." upon hearing that the attack had failed in sinking any US carriers. (However, I have also heard that he never really said it and that it was a 'script line' in "Tora Tora Tora!!")

[Edited by Halket on 06-09-2001 at 06:00 PM]

My response:

And, with all due respect to my friend, Mr. Halket, I submit the following rules from the Arizona Small Claims court:

"How do you answer a small claims complaint?

"After receiving the summons and complaint, the defendant has 20 days to file a written response (called an answer) with the court. If the defendant fails to file an answer within 20 days, the court may rule in favor of the plaintiff.

"A counterclaim is a statement by the defendant, not necessarily opposing the plaintiff's claim, but alleging other facts to establish a claim by the defendant against the plaintiff. The defendant's counterclaim may also demand money from the plaintiff; this demand may not exceed $2,500 unless the case is transferred out of the small claims division."


So, as you can see in the second paragraph, if our writer has any claims of her own, the court in Arizona expects and requires that a "counterclaim" be written and filed with the court. Otherwise, the Plaintiff will not have her Constitutional Due Process "notice rights" to mount a defense to such a claim by our writer.

IAAL

I agree with IAAL that the 'normal' system is to file a counter-claim, but it is still hard to imagine that a Small Claims court wouldn't at least hear, and consider, the facts of the Defendant.

However, mine is only an opinion, and I certainly agree with IAAL that, when in doubt, follow ALL the rules and instructions. File a counter-claim if she takes action.

SRP

Sorry about that. SRP is our utilities provider here in AZ.

I appreciate the advice you have all given me. I understand that my mom does not have any legal rights to state in this matter. I have, at this time, written my -ex-roomate a statement requesting around $150 for labor, time off of work, cleaning supplies, and two bills that I have paid that are in my name. If she does choose to take me to small claims court, I will state that I understand that I owe her $60-some dollars, but will, in-turn, let the court know of the fees she owes me (which is over twice the amount). Thanks again!

You did exactly right. A good offense is always better than a good defense. By putting the 'ex' on notice that her spending the money and time pursuing a $61 bill will be answered (either with a formal counter-claim or not) by a claim from you, I have to believe she will rethink the priorities of her claim.

Let us know how this one winds up. Probably as a 'Mexican standoff'.

My response:

The historically accurate movie, Tora, Tora, Tora! (Tiger, Tiger, Tiger!) did make Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto's statement famous. The statement was, in fact, made by him because immediately after Pearl Harbor, when he learned that the Japanese attack had begun before the United States was presented with a formal declaration of war, Admiral Yamamoto remarked,

"I fear that we have awakened a sleeping giant and filled him with a terrible resolve."

Yamamoto's words were prophetic. Prior to 1940 the economic and industrial system of the United States could accurately be described as a sleeping giant, exhausted by the Great Depression and listless with indecision.

The era of the Great Depression, preceding WWII, and up to December 7, 1941, is one of my pet historic studies.

IAAL

next chapter

Well, she received the letter that I sent her and says that she is not responsible for anything because she did not agree to it. Doesn't signing the lease make her liable for cleaning the apartment, as stated in the contract?

To be honest, I am so sick of dealing with it to continue that I want to just pay her. But then my ego will kill me because I gave in and didn't stand up for what I am owed! At this time I am not going to do anything until I actually receive a claim in the mail (which I am not even sure she will do). At that time I will file a counterclaim for the amount (three times what she is asking me for). The problem is that I am moving to UT on July 1 and am not able to fly back and take time off work to go to court for $64.14! She does know this and has already held it against me in her harrassing voice messages (which I have documented and saved).

This just all seems so petty that she can't call it even and think of someone other than herself!

[Edited by Misjanuary on 06-13-2001 at 02:21 AM]

1) If the lease requires that the unit be returned in a clean condition at the end of tenancy (and virtually all do), then you don't need 'her permission' in order for you to comply with the lease requirements. And, as a co-lessor, she is also responsible for compliance. The fact that you provided the labor and/or incurred a loss to provide her compliance is valid.

2) Your moving to UT in a few weeks might just help your case. Here is the situation:
She files an action, you fail to appear (since you are now in UT). She wins a default judgment against you which is now unenforcable since you no longer have any seizable assets in the courts juridiction (AZ). In order to enforce her judgment, she will have to re-file it (transfer or 'domestication') into the state where your assets are (UT). This will cost her ANOTHER $100 or so (AND you will have the right to contest the transfer), all for a $61.14 plus costs judgment. Realize that you may not be 'scot-free' though. She could note your judgment with the credit agencies and it would be on your credit record. If she does this, you can get it 'zero-ed' by paying it and recording the "Satisfaction of Judgment".

Bottom line... if she delays serving you with any notice of a lawsuit until you leave the state, if she were to get a judgment (even default), it would be unenforcable (you could void the default due to 'improper service').

Could it really go against my credit if i'm in UT and don't pay?

Absolutely. With the 'entire credit world' now in control of three national credit reporting agencies, your credit report is available nationwide. And it does follow you to whatever state you move to.

Well, just to update you on everything that has happened. My ex-roomate tried to burn me again...another failed atttempt. She called me again saying that she received another bill for long-distance charges that are in my name. Well, what happened is that she went on-line and changed all of my information into her information (address, phone, e-mail, etc.) but kept it under my name. She then proceeded to rack up some charges. Here's the weird part...she paid some of the fees, but left me some to hold over my head. The funny part about this all is that she keeps calling and telling me who my bills are for and for how much. Because of that I am able to call up the service and pay off the balance. Not very smart of she is trying to ruin my credit and hold it over my head.
Furthermore, I really don't think that she is filing with the court.

Thanks for all of your time. I'll let you know how it all works out!