Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

I was a member with golds gym back in 2005. I cancelled my membership before I left in Jun. 2005 due to Military Orders to Japan. it took 4 months for them to cancel my membership and I still had to pay for those 4 months. it is now 2010 and just out the blue, Golds gym charges me a clubs fee of $29.00. with no authorization. I have not been a member with them in the last 5 years. I want to know if it is legal for them to just deduct money out my account without my consent? isn't that stealing?


Asked on 2/03/10, 12:26 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Marshall Law Office of Robert L, Marshall

It may be an inadvertent mistake. No District Attorney's office is going to prosecute a business for this kind of a billing dispute.

Theft requires the specific intent to wrongfully deprive the owner of property. If they innocently believed you were still on the hook for membership fees, they committed no crime.

I suggest you call the gym's business office and politely tell them about the error. You should also contact your bank and cancel the automatic debit agreement with the gym.

Please understand that this is a general discussion of legal principles by a California lawyer and does not create an attorney/client relationship. It's impossible to give detailed, accurate advice based on a few sentences on a website (and you shouldn't provide too much specific information about your legal matter on a public forum like this site, anyway). You should always seek advice from an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction who can give you an informed opinion after reviewing all of the relevant information.

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Answered on 2/08/10, 4:10 pm


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