"Don't press charges, and I'll pay you what I owe you. . . ."

Q. I am owed $330 by someone for a purchased plane ticket. This same person assaulted me and I originally decided not to press charges. I received a letter in the mail stating that I would recieve my money if I signed something saying I would never press charges. Is this legal? Is there a way to get my money without signing this?

A. You've got an interesting life going on here. You bought someone a plane ticket, who then assaulted you, and now will only pay you back if you agree not to press charges for assault. I'm thinking your first step is to get yourself some different friends. But that's not what you wrote me about.

About the $330. Assuming this other person (I can't call this person a "friend," because friends don't act like this) agreed to pay you for the ticket if you bought it, you relied on that agreement before buying the ticket, then you bought it and gave it to this person, you have a valid claim against this person for the amount agreed to. It's based on an oral contract. (I'm assuming it was an oral agreement; if you've got something in writing, so much the better.) You agree to pay $330 dollars for a ticket that this person agrees to reimburse you for. That's a contract. The dollar amount is obviously not huge, which is why your best bet is to file a claim in small claims court in your state. Your local courthouse can give you all the information you need and, the best part is, you usually don't need a lawyer on a case like this. (Of course, I should caution you that winning the case and actually collecting the money are two separate things, and it's not always easy to collect. But that's a separate issue.)

It may be that the other person will deny the contract, or say something like, "I only asked her to look into a ticket; I didn't actually agree to pay her," then the case gets harder. Any documentation you might have to back up the terms of the agreement would be very helpful in court.

Now, as to the the demand for a waiver of your right to press criminal charges before you get paid back. Don't. No need to. The contract is valid and enforceable (assuming, of course, that there was an actual agreement to begin with). Once that agreement was made, and you performed your part, the other person was legally obligated to perform their part -- namely, pay you back.

In fact, you may now have an additional charge on top of the assault. It's generally not legal for someone to make this kind of demand. Some call it "extortion." It would be a tough case to prove in the long run, but it might be a bargaining chip for the prosecutor. You should mention this scenario to the prosecutor when you sign your complaint against this other person for assault. Let me say, though, that if you're in a situation where this person might continue to try to cause you physical harm if you press charges, make sure you have a safe place to go, and a way to stay away from this person before filing a charge that might set someone off. I know that I'm probably overthinking this, but since I don't know anything about your situation, I prefer to err on the side of caution, and so should you.

On a personal note, no one should have to put up with someone assaulting them, for any reason. In my humble opinion, you shouldn't be wasting time with people who hurt you. Take care of yourself, and be careful. I truly hope everything works out for you.

Best of luck.

How long before I know if I got away with that little DUI?

Q. I got a DUI in Illinois, I was just wondering if there was a statute of limitations for this and what it is, if any.

A. I understand that you got the DUI. But that doesn’t tell me quite enough, so I’ll try to answer this as best I can. (By the way, even before I answer, you should understand that I don’t condone any driving under the influence. There is too much tragedy surrounding drunk driving. If you’ve had too much to drink, or even think you might have had too much to drink, give your keys to a friend or the bartender, or throw them into the woods, lock yourself in your car, and sleep it off in the back seat. It’s not worth it to take a chance.)

That being said, let me start with a quick explanation, just to clarify. In criminal law, a “statute of limitations” is the statute that lists the amount of time within which the State must charge you with a crime. If you’re not charged in that time, the State usually cannot charge you after the statute lapses, or “expires.” (There are, however, saving provisions and exceptions that might apply.) Usually, every state has different periods of time for different kinds of crime. A motor vehicle offense -- like speeding -- might have a thirty day statute of limitations. If you speed on November 1 and don’t get charged until December 2, the statute of limitations would ordinarily prevent the state from ever charging you with that offense. A crime like burglary might have a two year statute. Murder usually doesn’t have a statute of limitations.

Now, as to your question. Is it safe to assume that you got charged with driving under the influence at the time you were doing so? By that, I mean, were you driving on Friday night and you got stopped by the police on Friday night and charged at that time? That’s usually how it happens and, if that’s the case, there’s no “statute of limitations” issue because they charged you when they caught you.

Were you involved in an accident and were unconscious when the police arrived at the scene? Did they take you to the hospital, draw some blood, and do a blood-alcohol content test? Under those facts, the state would have to bring any charge for driving under the influence within the time required by statute after it receives your blood results. I don’t have the Illinois statutes handy, but you (or preferably your lawyer -- and yes, you should consult one) can check the Illinois statutes to see if the charge was timely. If it’s not, there may be a basis for a dismissal. Of course, there may be exceptions to the statute (especially if you were unconscious or uncooperative), so I wouldn’t hang my hat on that hope just yet.

The other scenario that occurs to me is that you were properly charged, but the matter hasn’t come to trial yet. If that’s the case, you may have a speedy trial issue. However, if the matter has been adjourned several times, and everyone has agreed to the adjournments, then that issue is considered waived.

Your best bet is to take your case to a local attorney with all of the facts and get an opinion from him or her. Your local bar association can recommend someone experienced in the field.

Good luck, and next time, allow me to suggest a cab.

What happens when the repo man calls?

Q. I'm actually asking this on behalf of my brother cause I know he'll never do it.

His truck was repossessed a year ago. The bank that held the title sold it and they're trying to collect the difference between what he owed and what they sold it for. They turned the case over to a collections law firm. He's been dodging their phone calls cause the difference is still several thousand dollars and he just doesn't have the money -- that's why the truck was repossessed in the first place.

What can he do to resolve this issue -- does he need to have a lawyer to act on his behalf, can I act on his behalf? I'm willing to discuss this with them and set up some kind of re-payment plan but I don't know where I stand legally cause I'm his sister not his wife.

A. You’ve got a couple of issues going on here. The first is your brother’s failure to pay for the truck. The second is your desire to act on his behalf (which, by the way, is really commendable. He’s lucky to have you on his side.) I’ll answer your second question first.

You can act on your brother’s behalf, BUT . . . (there’s always a but). The bank, or lending company, or collection agency may not talk to you because you are not on the account. With all of the privacy and confidentiality laws out there now, companies usually don’t have to (and usually don’t want to) talk to anyone but the debtor or the debtor’s legal representative. Part of that is privacy, and part of that is because you can’t commit your brother to do anything. You can promise the moon and the stars, but if the company relies on you, and then your brother says no, what have you accomplished?

You could have your brother give you “power of attorney” to conduct business on his behalf. He would have to sign a form (and usually debt collectors require a form that’s notarized) that gives you the authority to conduct business on his behalf. To protect yourself, it should be a limited power of attorney form that both limits the scope of what you can do, and protects you from actually becoming a target. (You want to act on your brother’s behalf; you don’t want to assume his debts.) You can, but certainly don’t have to, act on your brother’s behalf. But in the long run, it’s his responsibility.

As to the first part of your question, your brother’s obligations on the truck are usually defined by the financing agreement. Most of the time, the agreement explains what happens in the case of a repossession. Hypothetically, let’s say your the truck was worth $10,000 when new, and that’s the amount your brother financed. Let’s say your brother paid $2400 over two years before it was repossessed, leaving a $7600 balance. If the bank sold the truck for $5000, your brother could owe the difference of $2600 if that is what the financing agreement requires. (Of course, you should read the financing agreement carefully. Although it’s not likely, the agreement may provide that the bank’s only remedy is repossession and sale, without any provision for payment of the difference between the sale price and the amount still owing under the original agreement.)

If this is your brother’s situation, you can still negotiate, either by trying to reduce the total amount or by making monthly payments on it. Keep in mind that these collection firms usually get paid a percentage of what they collect (20% to 33% is the range I’ve seen), so they don’t have much incentive to reduce the total amount and take payments. They’ll usually do either/or (but it doesn’t hurt to ask if they’ll do both).

Your brother should come up with a realistic figure that he can honestly meet, either a discounted lump sum (like paying $2000 on a $2600 balance) or a monthly payment. Then, haggle. If they’re looking for $2600, and he can pay $2000 today, offer $1400 in order to eventually get to $2000. The same goes for monthly payments. If he can comfortably make $100 payments each month, he should offer $75 for however many months it takes to get the balance paid off, with the goal to be to settle at $100. Then, if the company takes $75 per month, he’s a little ahead of the game.

The only caution is that, if he makes an agreement, he’s got to abide by it. Otherwise, the agreement would likely be rendered void by his failure to abide by it, and the whole debt will become due.

Finally, he doesn’t necessarily need a lawyer to negotiate a settlement like this. However, if it looks like there are some clauses in the financing statement that might get him off the hook, or if there’s a large amount of money involved, your brother might consider taking it to a lawyer and getting an opinion about what his obligations and options are. Obviously, the amount he owes makes a difference here; if he owes $2000, it’ll probably be cheaper just to pay it. If he owes $22,000, it might make more sense to consult with a local attorney.

Good luck.

Can a husband change his alimony payments to his ex?

Q. My husband pays alimony 28% of his salary to his ex-wife. His situation has drastically changed since the divorce. He has had a stroke and lost his job. We have 2 small children, all of his children with the ex-wife are over 20. He got a new job which pays 1/2 of the salary he had when the divorce was settled. We are thinking of going into the court and filing a modification to try to decrease the alimony to a lesser amount. My questions is - What is the minimum alimony payment in the state of Massachusetts? Someone said it's 25% is that true? We would like to pay nothing. This woman got 700,000 when properties were sold, and bought herself a piece of property outright. We're struggling to hold onto what we've got. From a paycheck of $992.00/wk, we have to send her $383.00, this leaves us $660 for 4 people to try to survive on. Please try to answer my question.

Thank you in advance for your time.

A. First of all, as to actual percentages and numbers, every state has different schedules and procedures for calculating amounts due for alimony and child support. You have to refer to Massachusetts law on the specifics of the numbers for your situation. You'll most likely need a Massachusetts attorney for that, and you should probably consult one.

However, as to the general concepts you raise, your husband can go to court and file a motion (sometimes called an “application,” and sometimes called a “petition,” depending on the state you live in) for a modification of the terms of the divorce based on changed circumstances. Ordinarily, the terms of the original divorce should address things like what happens when the children reach the age of 18 (or 21) or otherwise become emancipated. The divorce decree may also address what happens in the event or remarriage, loss of job, illness, and other ordinary events, so your husband should review it, just to cover his bases.

If the divorce decree doesn’t specifically address the issues you raise, I suggest that you consult a divorce attorney in your area. Family law is one of those specialized fields in which it helps tremendously to have a knowledgeable attorney on your side. Often, divorce attorneys will work with you on the fee. However, even if you cannot find one, you can still file a motion based on changed circumstances and then explain to the court what the problem is and what relief you are seeking. It’s not always easy, but it can be done.

Good luck.