Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California
a former friend lended me books for this school quarter and asked to have them back at the end of the quarter for no charge. now that we are no longer friends, she wants her books back. i want to give them back, but they are currently in a friend's car, and that friend is currently out of the country. i have told her about this and she responded by telling me that i had a choice to either get a locksmith or that she will file charges in small claims court. does she have a legitimate case?
2 Answers from Attorneys
She can not file charges [criminal act] but she can sue you for the value of the books as you were supposed to give them back by the end of the quarter and you apparently are not going to do so. It is your fault that you left the books in someone else's car.
I'm a little confused about your use of the term "this quarter." If the quarter has ended, and the agreement was to return them at the end of the quarter, then you had an obligation to return them, and not leave them in someone else's quarter. But if you mean "this quarter" to refer to the quarter ending in winter break, then it sounds as if she has breached her agreement to loan you the books and cannot demand their return earlier.
I also strongly advise you not to get a locksmith and break into someone else's car.
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