Legal Question in Business Law in California

trying to pay someone but no address or response to emails

we are a non-profit group that does a haunted house for charity. this year (2006) we had a written agreement with another business that participated in putting on the haunt. after paying all bills and deducting expenses we have a check for the other business. i mailed a letter to the address we had for them a few months ago and it came back with ''no forwarding address'' on it, so i don't want to mail the check we have to that address. i have emailed them 4 times for an updated address and even sent messages to their ''my space'' site. i know they have logged on to their ''myspace'' site so i assume they have gotten my messages but they are not responding. what obligations does our non profit group have concerning getting their check to them? and at what point do we stop trying? what do we do with their check? they live about 2 hours away and the email address is the only connection i have to them.

thanks

nancy dibella

treasurer

dragons head productions


Asked on 1/26/07, 11:50 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Bryan Whipple Bryan R. R. Whipple, Attorney at Law

Re: trying to pay someone but no address or response to emails

If you're asking whether you get to keep the money, the answer is no; nothing you've mentioned changes its ownership or makes it a de facto donation.

I would recommend reflecting it on your books as a current liability for now; if the amount were very large, I would suggest depositing it in a separate interest-bearing account. I would make further good-faith efforts to contact the owner.

At some point, three years, I believe, unclaimed accounts like this escheat to the state. See the Unclaimed Property Act, Code of Civil Procedure section 1500 et seq., particularly section 1520.

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Answered on 1/27/07, 2:42 pm


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