Legal Advice

[newyork99]

What is the name of your state? Florida (his sister lives in PA)

My spouse has a sister who unfortunately is a drunk, but they all come from a good family. They bicker alot all of them (4 brother & sisters) but maintain a relationship. During Christmas of 2007 she was upset about the gifts that were sent to the her kids & wanted to know if that was all they were getting and demanded to speak to my spouse. Keep in mind she has already at that point had estranged herself from the other brother & sisters and occassionaly had some contact with the mother (who lives with one of the sisters). I got on the phone and she went on to say that my spouse never visits the kids enough, mind you my husband sees the kids 1 a year we have flown up to see them or they have come to Florida on vacation and he has driven up to see the kids. Anyways, she was really nasty on the phone my spouse finally got on the phone and said this conversation is over. Needless to say they have had no contact since December of 2007. Until yesterday when my spouse picks up a call (unknown number) and she states this is your "sister and I have been in therapy and its all my your fault". She goes on to say that when they were kids (doesn't specify age) that he molested her and her sister????? This just out of the blue???? The other sister has adamantly denied this accusation and states that she did not expierence anything of that sort. My spouse said to her what are you talking about and she said you know what you did, my spouse responded your crazy this conversation is over and hung up...she called back several times on the phone & work cell phone and left a scary message that said "You will talk to me about this you will not run away or I will call your boss, you don't know me I will make your life a living hell, try me." My husband is a well respected federal employee and now is in fear that she will try to destroy his livelihood. Can we prevent this from happening? Can she make false accusations and if not what can she do to him Legally (criminal or civil) granted my spouse is 50 and his sister is 45. Can we file a restraining order aganist her can we file suit aganist her if she does contact the job ???? This is so far fecthed and ridiculous. Needless to say if that is what she believes happens why would she allow her kids to be around him. It just doesn't make sense. Please let me know what type of attorney I need to discuss this case with or if she has any legal case?????? How can she make his life a living hell...in her words???? Need to know asap! ThanksWhat is the name of your state?

 

[SHORTY LONG]

Not sure at this time personally what would be a good Attorney for such matter but, from reading your post
[it] seems to turn on all fours creating the landscape for that of [a] dysfunctional/w/codependency environment!

 

[newyork99]

yes absolutely a dysfunctional family situation but hey who isn't nowadays...yeah brothers and sisters fight all the time, but they make up and never get to the point of accusing each other of such a hideous act. I know nothing has happened yet but we want to be proactive in this matter. I hear all kinds of stories of people falsely accusing people and literally destroying thier lives. Even after its been proven that the accustions never happened? Can we get a restraining order aganist her preventing her from contacting us????? What constitues a restraining order???? We just don't want to sit back and wait to see what she is capable of?????

 

[quincy]

The attorney you will want to speak with should know defamation law.

Slander cases are extremely difficult to prove, however, and until (or if) the sister contacts someone other than you or her brother about these supposed acts when they were children, there is not enough reputational damage to make a slander case worth pursuing. What she says to her therapist is considered "privileged" and you cannot sue her over anything said to him/her.

As for a restraining order, your husband can file for one in court. It is generally wise to have a police report detailing the harassment prior to filing. Your husband will need evidence of the harassment from his sister, which may be difficult to obtain if everything has been communicated over the phone. An additional hurdle is that it is harder to obtain any order when one person lives out-of-state.

You may want to run all of this by an attorney at a free legal clinic or one who gives free initial consultations, since there is little action you can take right now. The attorney you consult can let you know whether a restraining order is possible or feasible.

Changing phone numbers or not accepting calls from the sister may alleviate some of the harassment with very little expense involved.