Quote:
Originally Posted by MRM
Once there, the regular rules of civil procedure apply and without too much difficulty the tenant can stretch the case out for years with strategically timed motions, discovery, more motions and then a mediation or two.
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That, IMO, sums up one of the major issue with our legal system and why it must be updated or set aside.
Back in 2010 I hired a realtor for a no-service listing on the MLS. I paid him a $500 flat fee and the contract contained a clause that I could have my money back if I was dissatisfied in any way. I took the photos and provided the descriptions. I sent him these things. He put up a listing that used half the photos that I sent him and none of the descriptions--they were all in text message abbreviations (which was weird because he was in his mid-50s). After 3 months of trying to get the listing into the shape I wanted by resending photos and descriptions, I told him I wanted my money back. He went silent.
I sued him in small claims court. I got a default judgement at the first court appearance as he did not show. It took a dozen more court appearances over the next two years to get an order to pay (and he knew just when to show up to ask for more time, claim hardship, etc.). It took a handful more appearances over another six months to get a contempt of court charge and a warrant issued. He paid up promptly once the warrant was issued. In summary, it took 2.5 years, 16 or so court appearances, and about $400 of my own expenses (of which only about $250 were recoverable) to get my $500 back--and this is when I had a judgement in hand after my first court appearance!
It probably would have been much faster, cheaper, and effective to show up at his place and threaten him with physical violence. Our legal system is supposed to provide a nonviolent path for dispute resolution, but it is completely fails at this. It has morphed into a system where lawyers can intentionally bog down the process for their own enrichment, the victims are often punished and impoverished in their quest for justice, and the perpetrators (of torts or crimes) can use it to extend a clear injustice--often past the point where it is practical of the victims to get justice.