Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in California

Re: Thought Macaw was gift, am now being sued in SCC for her value.

Regarding the Macaw:

Let me make sure I understand

the sequence of events:

1992: X-bf's mother gives you

and x-bf a Macaw.

1995: You and x-bf are no

longer living together, but

still in a relationship. I

presume you moved out,

taking the Macaw with you.

1998: You and x-bf break up.

1999: Mother demands

$1,000.00 or return of the Macaw.

Questions: 1) When you moved

out, did your boyfriend agree that

you could retain possession of

the bird? At any time after that,

did he or anyone else make

demand for return of the bird?

Even if they made no such demand,

be prepared for them to claim that they did.

2) Does the mother claim that her

agreement with the son was written?

Again, be prepared for them to phony

something up, but its likely they never

had a written agreement.

Assuming I have the chronology correct,

I believe you can defend the suit on

several different grounds, including statute

of limitations defenses, the mother's status

as a "volunteer" in giving the Macaw, and

a statute of frauds argument, i.e., you

can't be made to pay your x-bf's debt

absent a written agreement that you will

stand as surety/guarantor for his debt.

If you'd like, e-mail me with answers to the

questions above. I'll be glad to discuss this further.

The foregoing information is provided as an

accommodation only, and does not constitute legal

advice or a legal opinion based on a comprehensive

review of all relevant facts, nor can provision of

such information be construed as creating an

attorney-client relationship.