Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Massachusetts
2 months ago I broke up with my boyfriend of 2 1/2 years (we lived together for the last year). We had gotten a dog together, so one piece of the break-up was determining who would take the dog. We came to the conclusion that I would take the dog with me when I left Massachussetts to move to Washington State. My ex never asked for money in exchange for the dog before I left and he even drove the dog and I to the airport on the day of our flight.
Now it's been 2 months since the break-up and my ex just demanded that I pay him for the "investment" he made in our dog, since he is never going to be able to see him again. I assume he is seeking half of the purchase price & reimbursement for vet bills he paid part of, though no dollar amount has been mentioned as of yet.
Does he have any legal right to seek money from me for the dog at this point?
1 Answer from Attorneys
To answer your specific question as written, he technically has a legal right to try to seek money, but it looks like from what you've written that he would have a very flimsy case if he ever did. Moreover, I think his characterization of the money he spent as an "investment" is a clever, but baseless, attempt to bolster his case. To the contrary, I think the money he spent is better characterized as "expenses." The difference is that he might be entitled to a return on an investment, but not on a recoupment of his expenses (absent an agreement between the two of you that you would do that).
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