Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

Hello, I reside in California, recently (march) a long term friend of mine paid $350 for me to come down to New York and visit her. We have been friends for 14 years and she has often helped me, sending food, clothing, money and etc., to help because I came upon hard times. I work 2 days a week max 4 hours each shift for a total of 8 hours a week if Im lucky. (6-7 hours lately) and I am presently on welfare, (for the last year or so) My friend is aware of all this being as we were so close. Anyway we had a "falling out" while I was there and she then stated, "you know that money was a loan right?". We both know the money was not a loan, it was a gift so that we could see each other, because it had been years, she and I both knew that I couldnt be or accept a loan like that. I repeatedly asked her if she was sure before I purchased the ticket and she insisted that I do it. I just received ( day or two ago ) a photo copy of a summons to a New York court stuck on my door, saying that she is suing me for $1000 dollars, for interest, loss of work, and room and board. My questions are; is this even legal, does the New York court have the power.jurisdiction to force me to appear, and even if they can, is it legal for her to inflate the price and tak on frivoulous charges to get more money, I have a email from her where she state, "maybe I should have told you, you had to pay me back, that way you would not have gotten confused". Does that qualify as her admitting that it wasnt a loan, or at the very least, that she didnt tell me it was a loan.

thanks in advance for your advice


Asked on 5/25/10, 8:50 am

2 Answers from Attorneys

Jurisdiction is a very complicated issue, one that trips up many a young lawyer in Civil Procedure class and on the bar exam. So giving a firm answer on jurisdiction in a web forum would be foolhardy. It doesn't seem like the NY court has personal jurisdiction over you, but as I said, I can't guarantee that. I can tell you that she can claim whatever she wants and that doesn't mean she is entitled to it or will get it. I can also tell you that if you do nothing the chances are that the NY court will take your default and enter a judgment against you. What you need to do is re-post this question under the NY section of LawGuru and ask what papers you could file in NY to contest jurisdiction without having to physically to to NY.

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Answered on 5/25/10, 12:57 pm
Anthony Roach Law Office of Anthony A. Roach

You need to repost for a New York attorney. I would specifically ask the New York attorney whether a small claims court in New York had long arm jurisdiction over a California resident.

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Answered on 5/25/10, 4:31 pm


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