Roommate walked out on bills, do I have a case?

[SuperAwesome]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Michigan

Hey all, and pre-thanks for your advice! I'm at the end of my rope and it appears that small claims court is my last option for this problem. First, some back-story;

I moved into a house, call me 'T', replacing the third roommate 'J', on January 5 with two roommates, we'll call them 'A' and 'C'. The agreement between the three roommates was that A was responsible for internet and water bills, C was responsible for electricity, and J was responsible for heat. Shortly after J had left and I had moved in, we began receiving heat disconnect notices as the heat bill had been left unpaid since September 2010 (when J moved in). After getting the disconnect notice the delinquent heat bill was transfered to our landlord company and defaulted to those listed on the lease. At first, J refused to pay any of the bill, but as I had yet to sign the lease he was still legally responsible for some of the bill and agreed to pay 1/3 of it, C had also agreed to pay 1/3. When I asked A about this, he said that he was paying the water bill and did not feel like he should pay his 1/3 of the previous four months heat bill. As it turns out, the water bill was several months behind as well as the internet. One week ago, A moved out and had our new roommate S to pay the unpaid water bill, which our landlord company took as being able to transfer A's security deposit to S. A still believes that we owe him his security deposit, even though he left garbage in his room, didn't vacuum, etc. A has yet to pay anything on the heat bill and has refused to me to pay any of it. I went to the internet office and closed A's account and opened a new one in my name, and they will be pursuing the unpaid bill against him.

Here's where it gets tricky; when J moved in, he never transfered the heat bill into his name, and as of today it is still in B's name (J replaced B).

My question is...do we have a case against him? I have tried several times to get A to pay his 1/3 of the heat bill but he has claimed to have talked to a lawyer and that he is not legally responsible for this. A is listed on the lease along with C and J for the four months that the heat bill was left unpaid.

--Name answer key!--
T (myself), took over the lease for J
J took over the lease for B in September 2010
S took over the lease for A in Feburary 2011
C has been living here the whole time

 

[latigo]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Michigan

Hey all, and pre-thanks for your advice! I'm at the end of my rope and it appears that small claims court is my last option for this problem. First, some back-story;

I moved into a house, call me 'T', replacing the third roommate 'J', on January 5 with two roommates, we'll call them 'A' and 'C'. The agreement between the three roommates was that A was responsible for internet and water bills, C was responsible for electricity, and J was responsible for heat. Shortly after J had left and I had moved in, we began receiving heat disconnect notices as the heat bill had been left unpaid since September 2010 (when J moved in). After getting the disconnect notice the delinquent heat bill was transfered to our landlord company and defaulted to those listed on the lease. At first, J refused to pay any of the bill, but as I had yet to sign the lease he was still legally responsible for some of the bill and agreed to pay 1/3 of it, C had also agreed to pay 1/3. When I asked A about this, he said that he was paying the water bill and did not feel like he should pay his 1/3 of the previous four months heat bill. As it turns out, the water bill was several months behind as well as the internet. One week ago, A moved out and had our new roommate S to pay the unpaid water bill, which our landlord company took as being able to transfer A's security deposit to S. A still believes that we owe him his security deposit, even though he left garbage in his room, didn't vacuum, etc. A has yet to pay anything on the heat bill and has refused to me to pay any of it. I went to the internet office and closed A's account and opened a new one in my name, and they will be pursuing the unpaid bill against him.

Here's where it gets tricky; when J moved in, he never transfered the heat bill into his name, and as of today it is still in B's name (J replaced B).

My question is...do we have a case against him? I have tried several times to get A to pay his 1/3 of the heat bill but he has claimed to have talked to a lawyer and that he is not legally responsible for this. A is listed on the lease along with C and J for the four months that the heat bill was left unpaid.

--Name answer key!--
T (myself), took over the lease for J
J took over the lease for B in September 2010
S took over the lease for A in Feburary 2011
C has been living here the whole time

Your dog ain’t in this fight!

So whether you are at the end of your tether or there is some slack left, you have no cause of action against any of the multiple tenants, past or present.

Shortly after J had left and I had moved in . .

However, I would suggest that the landlord remove the revolving door.

 

[fraudwatch]

You say;

.....After getting the disconnect notice the delinquent heat bill was transferred to our landlord company and defaulted to those listed on the lease.

But then you claim that;

.....he (J) never transferred the heat bill into his name, and as of today it is still in B's name

Which is it, heat in the landlords name or heat in B's name?

B is responsible for past and present unpaid heat bill if it is still in his name.

Do you have a case against A? Sure, if you can forget the alphabet game and show the court proof in writing of who agreed to share/pay what, otherwise forget it.

Now, who is the bigger fool...me, for trying to figure out your incredibly inane "bill sharing" schematization, or you, for having this incredibly inane "bill sharing" schematization?