Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

Re: personal slander by atty in email

The subject line of your post indicates that the boyfriend/attorney may have slandered you. Slander and libel are very specific legal terms of art, and they both require that the untrue statements be communicated to a third party, and you must have some damages as a result of the untrue statments (lost work, etc...). Emails back and forth only between you and the other party would generally not be grounds for a complaint of slander or libel.

As for his making threats, it depends upon the nature of what he has said. Calling you "white trash" is probably unethical behavior, but stating that he is going to sue you, and the potential consequences of his obtaining a judgment against you (wage garnishment, etc...) are probably not improper. It all depends upon the totality of the communications. You can file a complaint with the State Bar Association (www.calbar.ca.gov), but without reviewing the communications, I can't say what might happen. This is not an area of law we practice in, so I cannot be of much assistance.

Finally, there is no conflict of interest, unless he (the boyfriend) has previously represented you as an attorney. Within my family, we have 6 attorneys, and there have been times where husband has represented wife, brother represented brother, etc... so personal relationships are not grounds for disqualification. The nature of the dispute with your roommate really is the factor in determining what sort of attorney you need to hire.

*Due to the limitations of the LawGuru Forums, The Gibbs Law Firm, APC's (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided is general and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.

Re: personal slander by atty in email

Mr Gibbs has given a detailed answer that I agree with.

You will only lose money and sleep pursuing this.