SUE BY PROXY?

[augieL]

I'm in california. I have a friend in germany who made an arrangement over the internet to buy a collectible item worth $2000.00 from a seller here in california. The seller recieved the money and then stalled for 6 months without sending the item. Finally he said the deal is off and has not sent the money back. He has been contacted several times and is making no effort to send it back. My question is, can my friend in germany sue the seller in small claims with a "Proxy"(ME) since it is prohibitive for him to travel to America?

 

[JETX]

Very unlikely, and even if you could, you would probably lose the case.

Here is the problem... lets assume that I am the Defendant in your action. One of the first things I would do would be to make a claim that the item was shipped or the money never received or a refund already given, or any other such claim. And since you have no FIRST-HAND proof or testimony otherwise to contradict my claims, your case would be dismissed by the court. Any testimony that you might offer would be hear-say and inadmissable. And notarized statements are not well accepted by the court since they cannot be cross-examined.

One suggestion would be for your friend to consider filing criminal charges against the seller with the sellers local Police Department or DA. That amount of money would normally be a felony theft complaint. Sometimes just the threat of police action can move the scammer to refund. Also, it could be very important for your friend to archive ALL correspondence involved. Not just to disk, but be sure to print out all of the emails and include the full 'headers' to confirm sources. Also, if the US Mail was used in the transaction, there could be a case of Federal Mail Fraud. If so, you might want to contact the USPS Inspection Service.