Suing over a Cat?

[BliliesDad]

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

Over the summer, my niece who is 20, had two cats in her apartment. Her landlord told her that she can only have one cat and that she would get charged more rent if she didn't get rid of the cat in two weeks.

She asked a co-worker of hers to take the cat and he said that he would. She gave him the cat, a 7lb bag of cat food, her toys and a carrying case all for free.

That was three months ago. He just texted her two weeks ago demanding that she pay him $75 for the damage that the cat did to his couch. She said that she wouldn't because it isn't her cat anymore and that she gave it to him which is true.

He threatened to call the police because he said she was lying and he also texted her saying that he was going to go to her boss and say that she has been doing drugs. I just told her to ignore all of this but she keeps telling me she is worried about it.

He then texted her last week and told her he is taking her to court for $250 to pay for the fees he has incurred feeding the cat, cleaning up after the cat because he has just been watching the cat for these last three months.

She has saved all of her texts and forwarded them all to me. She doesn't want to tell her parents as she is 20 so she's asking her uncle's advice.

I told her he can do what he wants and try and sue her but it's his cat and he won't get anything out of it because it isn't her cat anymore. Am I right about this?

Thanks!

 

[asiny]

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

Over the summer, my niece who is 20, had two cats in her apartment. Her landlord told her that she can only have one cat and that she would get charged more rent if she didn't get rid of the cat in two weeks.

She asked a co-worker of hers to take the cat and he said that he would. She gave him the cat, a 7lb bag of cat food, her toys and a carrying case all for free.

That was three months ago. He just texted her two weeks ago demanding that she pay him $75 for the damage that the cat did to his couch. She said that she wouldn't because it isn't her cat anymore and that she gave it to him which is true.

He threatened to call the police because he said she was lying and he also texted her saying that he was going to go to her boss and say that she has been doing drugs. I just told her to ignore all of this but she keeps telling me she is worried about it.

He then texted her last week and told her he is taking her to court for $250 to pay for the fees he has incurred feeding the cat, cleaning up after the cat because he has just been watching the cat for these last three months.

She has saved all of her texts and forwarded them all to me. She doesn't want to tell her parents as she is 20 so she's asking her uncle's advice.

I told her he can do what he wants and try and sue her but it's his cat and he won't get anything out of it because it isn't her cat anymore. Am I right about this?

Thanks!

It's a 'he-said, she-said' situation. Does your niece have any documentation that she gave the cat to the co-worker permanently as his pet?
Was this only a verbal agreement? If so it makes it hard to verify.. although it could be argued of why would she give the cat to a co-worker, temporarily, if she was not allowed to take the cat back.

If the co-worker attempts to interfere, and defame her, at work then it becomes an entirely different argument.

 

[FlyingRon]

Cats don't come with warranties and really can reasonably be expected to cause this sort of damage if you aren't proactive about it. Even if he alleges that he was only borrowing or temporarily caring for the cat I don't see how he'll prevail. It's not like she dumped the cat into his unattended apartment while he wasn't there.

It's easy to threaten to take people to court, only a small amount of those threats are carried out and even those that are carried out still have to meet the rule of law. Small claims is frequently informal but it's still a far cry from the fiction that the Judge Judy et al practice.

Until she actually gets served with a lawsuit, she should ignore the blowhard.

 

[asiny]

Cats don't come with warranties and really can reasonably be expected to cause this sort of damage if you aren't proactive about it. Even if he alleges that he was only borrowing or temporarily caring for the cat I don't see how he'll prevail. It's not like she dumped the cat into his unattended apartment while he wasn't there.

It's easy to threaten to take people to court, only a small amount of those threats are carried out and even those that are carried out still have to meet the rule of law. Small claims is frequently informal but it's still a far cry from the fiction that the Judge Judy et al practice.

Until she actually gets served with a lawsuit, she should ignore the blowhard.

And that's a fact

 

[BliliesDad]

There is no documentation. It would be just a "he-said she said" with her telling the judge she gave it to him and him saying that he was just watching it for a while.

Thank you for confirming what I already thought. It is just a big joke. I will let you know if she actually does get handed papers as I might seek answers to more questions but for the time being, it is all good.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Tell her to show the texts to her boss, so he is aware of whats going on and tell the "friend" to pound sand. Make a police report for extortion.

 

[asiny]

Tell her to show the texts to her boss, so he is aware of whats going on and tell the "friend" to pound sand. Make a police report for extortion.

Excellent advice here. Would it be best to pre-empt the co-worker or to wait until IF the employer comes to her?

 

[Free_Advice]

Cats don't come with warranties

Here is my cat warranty:
If it breaks in half ; you get to keep both halves ! Meow@!

 

[BliliesDad]

She told me that she did show the texts to one of her managers and they said that they couldn't do anything because it wasn't at work.
They did tell her that if he brings up anything about the cat or the money while they are both at work, to immediately tell management so they can handle it.

I guess the co-worker hasn't been at work with her for the past few weeks because he got into a car accident. He's supposed to return tomorrow. I'm arranging for her to be picked up and dropped off from work. They both end at 10pm and I don't want him doing anything to her.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Here is my cat warranty:
If it breaks in half ; you get to keep both halves ! Meow@!

Feed it!!! You were supposed to barbeque it!!!

(I have 3 cats)

 

[Gail in Georgia]

If said co-worker goes through with his claim to sue in Small Claims court, he can present evidence to the judge regarding their written contract where he agreed to "watch" the cat and she agreed to pay him so much per month for doing this.

Wait...there isn't any such evidence to present to prove his claim he was babysitting the cat for $$$$.

And the claim of $250 to feed and clean up after one cat for 3 months is, well silly. That's over $80 a month; even my two cats (who eat IAMS at $25 a pop for a bag of this stuff) don't cost that much per month.

Gail

 

[BliliesDad]

Yes, exactly. There is no written agreement on anything. He could say he was babysitting it, she would say no, it's your cat now.

I don't know if I mentioned this before but she told me that he even brought the cat to the pound. If he was babysitting the cat, wouldn't it look bad in court that he brought "her" cat to the pound?

The $250 is because of the damage to the carpet and couch besides food and cleaning up after the cat according to the co-worker.

There hasn't been any communication for a few days. She is ignoring all his texts and not replying to them. But she does work tonight for the first time and he could be scheduled now that he's able to work again.