Legal Question

[Kynaeus]

First off, let me say that I am being sued because I made a stupid mistake. I am not denying my guilt, but, 2 weeks ago I received a letter from some attorney's representing the Hudson's Bay Company seeking to collect damages as a result of unlawful possession of merchandise.
The letter was addressed to this house, however, the person addressed to does not live here. They misspelled my first name in every instance on the letter!
My question is whether or not I would have a good chance of beating this if I fought it instead of paying ($500 is what they're seeking, a huge amount for a grade 12 student with only a part-time job heading to Uni in the fall...) would I stand a good chance of winning? My defence would of course be that the litigant's claiming of damages is invalid because no one with that name exists at this address.

Thanks guys

Edit: I just saw this on a California Small Claims Court page, I thought it might be relevant

Find out the company's legal name; you must use it when suing. If you are suing an individual doing business under a "fictitious business name," you can examine the "fictitious business statement" registered with the county clerk's office. "Joe's Repairs" might be owned solely by "Joseph Jones": in that case, you would file against "Joseph Jones individually and D/B/A (doing business as) Joe's Repairs." If you use the wrong name in suing a company, your case may be thrown out of court.

Edit 2: http://mrsmallclaimscourt.com/article1.html
Last heading is totally relevant because I live in Ontario, Canada and this would likely go to a Small Claims Court.

Edit 3: Hum hum diddly hum. If I do not point out their error in court, they will win the case, however if they try to seek damages they will find they cannot enforce their victory because the person the letter is addressed to does not exist.

[Zebodog]

Originally Posted by Kynaeus ...I made a stupid mistake. I am not denying my guilt...

You might also try holding yourself responsible for your own actions and accepting the consequences of same.

I'm not here to judge what you did - but if you got busted doing something you knew you shouldn't have been doing then own up to it. The first lesson on your way to life is how to be an adult.

Of course that's just my opinion now. When I was 18 many, many, many years ago I would have likely asked the very same questions as you do. Today, with over a half century of experience behind me, I can say with reasonable confidence that you will likely get your ass handed to you by a judge who has little sympathy for someone trying to "pull a fast one."

But, this is just my opinion and I'm not a lawyer.

[Bungleau]

I'm no lawyer, nor do I play one on TV. That said, the bottom line for me is simple: the face in the mirror. If I can look at that guy without flinching or worrying about my actions being brought to the light of day, I'm doing good.

That guy, you see, knows the truth... no matter how I'd like the truth to be, he knows what it actually is. I haven't been able to pull anything over on him for years... if ever.

So... ask the guy in the mirror. Did you do it, whatever it is? If you didn't, then you should defend yourself. If you did, then 'fess up to it, accept the consequences, and move on.

Years ago (not quite as many as Zebodog, but up there), my employer gave me a $2000 advance for some travel expenses. I didn't spend all of it on travel, and needed to reimburse the company. They didn't ask, I didn't tell, and eventually planned to pay.

We got a new controller two years later and he came to ask me about an outstanding advance of just a couple hundred.... no mention of the two grand. With a heavy sigh, I told him that I thought there was more than that. He checked, and sure enough, there was. I paid it off over the next three or four months... and my conscience is clear to this day.

On the other side, when moving out of an apartment around that same time, the leasing company sent me a notice for the final rent. I looked at it, and was *pretty* sure they'd missed a month of rent... no, I *KNEW* they were owed two months, and were asking for just one.

Heavy sigh... I went to talk to them to explain that I thought I owed more. The person I talked to said that their computers said that I didn't, so they saw no need to go any further. So I didn't.

Again, I got out with a clear conscience, and can still look that guy in the mirror in the morning without a problem. That's worth a whole lot more than the $2k I owed, or the $600 that the leasing company forgot about.

Your call. Hard though it might be, it could cost a whole lot more later.

Good luck, amigo...

PS If one judge *does* buy in to the "no one by that name" argument, they'll simply refile with the corrected name, and you'll be in the same position, but with a pissed-off judge...

[Kakero]

Let me get this straight, the letter is for a person that is not YOU to begin with. Why should YOU pay when they are suing ANOTHER person? If you do pay, it means you are the guilty party and it WILL go down into your record which is not a good thing to have. So, by all means fight it out by having your own lawyer (not a court appointed one ) and show them the mistake that they have made. CLEAR YOUR NAME!!!

[Luvian]

I think he meant that they misspelled his name.

[Kynaeus]

Yes, they mispelled my name which effectively means they are suing someone else.

Bungleau... they can't refile another claim if I let this one proceed through and they win anyway. They would try to enforce their victory and won't be able to. Can't refile if they win.

[dplax]

In that case they would file an exactly same suit for your name, not misspelled...

[Bungleau]

If mis-spelling your name is your only defense, you're on tremendously shaky ground. If I'm the one suing you, and I find out that I've mis-spelled your name (and therefore the suit is unwinnable), I will drop the suit before the judge hands down a verdict and re-file with the correct name.

Bottom line... you have to look yourself in the mirror in the morning. Take actions that you can live with. I don't know the full scope of what took place, nor do I need to. If it were me, though, I'd settle up or pay up and be done. Money can be easily replaced... a reputation can't be, and neither can personal integrity. And my reputation and integrity are worth a whole lot more than $500...

If whatever happened could be chalked up to youthful indiscretion (aka stupidity, and I can say that having done it many a time), you *may* be able to get closure *without* having to go to court by talking with them, admitting you screwed up (assuming you did), and working out some form of resolution with them. Believe it or not, they really don't want to go to court either; it's usually (Westmoron Church excepted) a tactic of last resort because it's potentially incredibly expensive, even if they have their own lawyers on staff.

[Larry_OHF]

Can you settle out of court for a lesser fine? If they insist on dragging you through court I would fight it with whatever I had and not think twice about it, but if they are willing to let me settle the error outside of a court setting, then I would try that venue first and thank them for letting me.