82
This law sounds likely to be unconstitutional and/or invalid because it is pre-empted by state or federal laws.
Among other things it probably violates the First Amendment right to petition the government, and the Fourteenth Amendment right to equal protection of the laws (by depriving people who have had previous police calls of the right to call the police ...
26
Constitution of the USA, Article IV, Section 1:
Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by general Laws prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be proved, and the Effect thereof.
and the Commerce Clause (Article I, ...
17
This problem seems not to be unique, see this article. Ohio is reported to have about 50 of them. Here is a legal paper on crime-free housing ordinances, and this includes nuisance ordinances which are also used. Somai v. City of Bedford is an example of a successful suit against such an ordinance (settled after an injunction was granted suspending ...
16
Those who attended reported learning that there are some new laws regarding rental properties [...] they make it easier for us to evict problem tenants whose visitors damage our property
These "laws" as described (and with no verifiable references) sound incredibly inept, contravening public policy of any state, and very likely to expose credulous ...
13
No
Pennsylvania law § 2104 requires:
(10) Requirement that heir survive decedent for five days.--Any person who fails to survive the decedent by five days shall be deemed to have predeceased the decedent for purposes of intestate succession and the decedent's heirs shall be determined accordingly.
Now, a will can provide contingencies for if an heir ...
9
The default rule is that a landlord can refuse to rent to anyone for any reason, in which case the landlord can refuse to rent in this case.
There are civil rights laws that limit this discretion in the case, for example, of discrimination based on race, or family status. But, those laws often have exemptions for owners of small amounts of property (e.g. a ...
9
As you note, it does appear that this tenant has committed one or more crimes.
In Pennsylvania crimes are prosecuted by the state, and you can begin the process by filing a private criminal complaint with your local Magisterial District Court, which will forward it to your county's District Attorney for review and prosecution.
You've essentially written ...
9
It is unusual, but not unheard of, to do a quiet title action in connection with an arms length, non-related party sale of real estate.
The far more customary practice is for the seller to do the quiet title action (at the seller's expense) if it is necessary for the seller to have what is called "marketable title" to the property, before it is ...
9
There is a law that addresses this question: §1502 of chapter 15 exempts from the requirement to obtain a licenses (in PA) in the case of
(3) Any nonresident who is at least 16 years of age and who has in
possession a valid driver's license issued in the person's home state
or country except that a person who has been issued a valid driver's
license in a ...
8
Generally yes, but it depends on both context and jurisdiction.
For example, if you arrived from a different street segment at 4-way stop at the same time as another car, and give a flash to indicate "go ahead," that by itself is not likely to be sustained as sufficient to justify a stop.
If you come up close behind another car and flash your high ...
8
Under 28 Pa. Code 1.6,
The child of an unmarried woman may be registered with any surname
requested by the mother. If no other surname is so requested, the
child shall be registered with the mother’s surname
Registration is the point at which there is parental discretion. Subsequently, a name change is possible by court order, however as maintained ...
8
The default provision is that the uncle has to survive the grandfather for his estate to inherit. A will or trust can have contrary language (sometimes requiring survival by 120 hours to 6 months) but it would be unusual for a non-spouse inheritor to have to survive by more than 120 hours.
In the case of a beneficiary designation on a life insurance annuity, ...
7
You have misread the DMLP page. In Pennsylvania, it is illegal to record a conversation if you are a party and if the other party does not consent.
The fact that federal law doesn't ban something doesn't mean that states can't ban it. There is generally a presumption that when both the feds and the states can legitimately regulate something, the feds weren'...
7
Possibly, but probably not in this case
It is possible to make an estate the beneficiary of a life insurance policy or an annuity. For example, it is common to have the decadent's own estate to be a beneficiary or contingent beneficiary.
However, to the best of my understanding, this happens only when an estate is explicitly specified, such as "John ...
7
Probably not OK
See the Wikipedia article "Freedom of movement under United States law where it is mentioned that freedom to move from one state to another is a right protected under the Privileges and Immunities Clause of the US Constitution (Article IV, Section 2) This clause generally prevents states from treating citizens of other US states less ...
6
An LLC is a legally distinct entity from your person. Basically, if your LLC is sued, and you lose, you can lose only what you put into your LLC. Your personal assets are untouched.
A very sophisticated plaintiff may try to get around this suing both your LLC and you personally. (I've done this myself.) Even so, if you are careful to keep the business of ...
6
The personal representative is empowered by law (esp. §3311) to undertake actions on behalf of the deceased, and enjoys certain legal immunities against personal liability for their actions. The personal representative can do things that a random person off the street can't do. Until you are appointed by the Register of Wills as personal representative, you ...
5
There is a relevant law, Title 18 section 907 which states that "A person commits a misdemeanor of the first degree if he possesses any instrument of crime with intent to employ it criminally". So possession of lock picks is not a crime per se. In Com. v. Gendrachi 389 A.2d 604 we are reminded that "intent need not be directly proved, but may be inferred ...
5
Presumably the lease contains an automatic renewal provision that says unless you give notice 60 days in advance, you commit to another month (otherwise, you can just leave at the end of the month). The landlord may have made a math error, or they may be misinterpreting what the agreement says. Most likely it says that the duration of the lease is a month, ...
4
In the U.S. severance payments are not provided for statutorily, and are rarely made when an employee quits or is fired for cause. However, even when not provided for within contracts it is common to see voluntary severances paid during lay-offs.
Furthermore, in the U.S. it is more likely that they would be "laid off" in order to qualify for unemployment ...
4
You're missing some pretty important details in describing the facts of this case.
The most important of which is: What were the agreed terms upon which Alice obtained possession of the car prior to paying?
Your description says:
Alice takes the car and doesn't pay.
If that's literally true, then this case is both criminal theft and the tort of ...
4
The tenant has certainly committed one or more civil wrongs against you, and you have the right to sue for those (as you know). There could be criminal activity here such as fraud or perjury - but I do not believe it constitutes theft by taking.
The tenant did not use deception to obtain property from you. They used deception to obtain a business deal with ...
4
Regular maintenance does not include repairs for being broken – I have a contract with a company that (for a monthly payment) provides regular maintenance on the furnace, which does not cover the situation where the motor wears out, or whatever. In the worst case scenario of an oil line breech, the tenant would not be liable for the tens of thousands of ...
4
I am not a lawyer either, though I have been through Pennsylvania a few times. The relevant law is 18 Pa.C.S. 5703, which prohibits recording without consent of all parties (Penna is a "two-party consent" state, like Florida and Washington). Unfortunately, violation of that law is a third degree felony, which has a maximum of 7 year prison. A specific ...
4
I intend to close on the house as I've already signed all the loan
paper work, but is there anything that can be done about a Realtor
that breaks contract?
You have probably waived your claim if you proceed with the deal knowing about the Realtor's conduct. What would your damages be? Could you have mitigated them by not agreeing to the deal?
Also ...
4
From a comment on the question:
They did damage the trailer door and headlight is smashed
This seems like the best thing to focus on, especially if you can show that it was not damaged before they towed it. The unusual method of towing (with video evidence) may be a factor in whether they are considered negligent. If the damage to the door looks like ...
4
This follows from a term in your agreement: in opening the account, you agreed to a binding arbitration clause. The general reason why they can do this is because it is not prohibited by law to have such clauses in agreements (in fact, the Federal Arbitration Act protects such clauses from legal challenge). For the same reasons, the clauses can impose ...
4
Yes, an HOA has a duty to treat all members equally
You have my condolences. Dealing with an HOA board and/or fellow residents can be frustrating and exasperating. Unfortunately, as a practical matter, the high cost of legal advice often mean boards can ignore the law.
In Pennsylvania, as everywhere, the Board of an HOA has a fiduciary relation to the owners....
4
No. This is not normal. Get out now!
Imagine you and I negotiate a particular price on a car that I'm going to sell to you. Then, right as we're about to close the deal, I say, "Oh, by the way, this sale might not include the engine. I mean, it probably does, but it might not." Still want to pay the same price for the car?
The title company is not ...
4
When I move to Pennsylvania, will the State Jury selection system keep
track of when I was called to serve in my previous state?
and
If I move to Pennsylvania from out-of-state, does my call to service
in an out-of-state court system begin the exemption period from being
called to a Pennsylvania state jury?
This is a reasonable question. But the answer to ...
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