From time to time people call us looking for help finding legal information. Recently I spoke to a woman about an issue she was having with a tenant. We conversed for awhile before I realized that she was calling from Florida. Yikes! We provide Canadian legal information. She’s living under a whole different set of laws and a very different legal system. Her internet search had led her to us and she didn’t even realize that she was calling Canada. That’s the problem with the internet. Good information is available, but you have to be on your toes to check if it is relevant and accurate for your situation.
New and Improved FREE LawNow!
Good news, everyone!
Our much cherished publication, LawNow Magazine, is going to be completely free as of September 2012.
We are very excited about this new phase in the continual development of LawNow. We believe this change will allow greater access to LawNow’s valuable content and will help us reach new audiences.
In addition, based on feedback we received from many of our subscribers, the LawNow website is being completely redesigned. You can look forward to easier to read articles, greater searching capabilities, and no login! LawNow will continue to include all of the features and articles that showcase the best in practical public legal information and education.
To keep up-to-date with what’s happening with LawNow subscribe to the LawNow Updates.
We are confident that you will enjoy the new LawNow, and encourage you to visit the new and improved website at www.lawnow.org in the fall.
Even More Stuff I Wish I'd Known Yesterday
After I wrote the blog post “Stuff I Wish I’d Known Yesterday,” which was about writing demand letters, I received a few questions. A lot of the questions were the same, so before I find myself repeating “that is not what I meant at all. That is not it, at all” I thought a follow up post would be appropriate. (Free bookmarks to anyone who can identify the quote without using google.)
Let’s go back and think about when you may want to use a demand letter: you did something with someone else, something bad happened, and now you want the other party to do something to fix it. That’s it. If we were to go back to the example of the debt, then basically the situation is this: you loaned money, the other guy didn’t pay you back, and now you want him to pay you by a certain date.
Problem 1
You should not send a demand letter as a first step to getting your money back. Try to talk with the other party first and see if you can come up with an agreement. Sometimes it is true that you can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar. A demand letter isn’t a first resort; it’s something you use after you’ve tried being a nice and haven’t gotten anywhere.
Problem 2
Don’t include details that are not important. This is not a confessional; stick to the facts that are relevant, and leave out the stuff that isn’t. What usually matters is that you loaned $500, not that you gave all that money in $20 bills.
Problem 3
Don’t admit things in the letter. Confession may be good for the soul, but it’s not so good when included in a demand letter. Sometimes, a demand letter can be the first step in going to court. That means that you have to be careful what details you include in the letter. Basically, by writing a demand letter, you are telling the other side “look, this is what I want you to do by this date.” If the other party doesn’t think that they should have to do what you want, then it’s up to them to prove why they shouldn’t. Don’t help them by writing down everything single thing you’ve ever done wrong; let them do their own homework.
Problem 4
That being said, don’t lie. Don’t stretch the truth, don’t mix up details, don’t embellish. Stick to the truth and the relevant facts.
Problem 5
Keep the letter short and sweet. If your demand letter is five pages long, you need to edit. Unless you’re a multimillion dollar corporation, your situation should be able to be summed up in a page or less.
Problem 6
Before you send the letter, think about the consequences. If you are sending the letter to someone that you have an ongoing relationship with (for example, someone from your wife or husband’s family), you have to consider what is going to happen after you put the letter in the mail. Are the consequences worth it for you? What if you are only owed a small amount? Is it worth your time to write it and the money to pay for registered mail or delivery? Before you send the letter, think about the worst case scenario and prepare yourself for that to happen. I suppose you could also prepare for the best case scenario (getting the money right away), but in my experience, and to throw around another cliché: hope for the best and prepare for the worst.
Until next time, enjoy writing your concise, accurate and succinct demand letters. Well, hopefully you don’t have to write more than one (and if you do, stop lending people money).
New Adult Interdependent Relationships Brochure
The term living “common-law” is often used in everyday language to describe a couple that lives together, with or without children, but is not legally married. The Canadian government recognizes “common law” relationships for income tax purposes, but the Alberta government does not. In Alberta, the phrase Adult Interdependent Relationships (“AIRs”) is used instead of common law.
AIRs are interesting because they can include non-sexual relationships of interdependence. For example two friends or relatives that live together may be considered to be in an AIR if they meet certain criteria.
CPLEA has made a new brochure about AIRs. This brochure answers some of the most common questions people have and provides examples of what AIRs look like. Check it out here
Rules for Smart Renters
When I first started working at CPLEA I was given the task of finding out what youth need to know about the law. After consulting with youth in our city and the groups that work with them, we came across a serious problem. Young people, especially those in vulnerable situations, are being taken advantage of. Youth often do not know their legal rights and responsibilities when renting.
Finding a safe place to live is one of the biggest challenges facing youth who have moved out of their homes because of abuse, neglect, or being kicked out.
At CPLEA we have created a video with some basic tips to help renters. It is a great resource for young people and anyone else that rents. The video focuses on ways to prevent things from going wrong and how to have a positive relationship with your landlord.
Illegal Activities in a Rental Property
I went out of town and a friend was staying at my place to look after my dog. My landlord caught him smoking pot on the balcony, and now the landlord is trying to evict me. Can my landlord do that?
Probably not. Under the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA), if the tenant commits any illegal acts or carries on an illegal trade in the property, then the tenant has committed a substantial breach of the tenancy agreement, and can be evicted by the landlord. But, the issue in your case is that you were not the one who was committing an illegal act; your friend was.
Generally speaking, if you did not have knowledge of or control over the illegal acts, then your landlord cannot evict you for them. In the 2007 case Fairmont Hotels Inc. v. Zwir, from the Provincial Court of Alberta, the landlord tried to evict the tenant for a similar reason. The tenant’s cousin had come to stay with her, and while she was in another apartment, the cousin smoked a joint in her place and got caught by a security guard. The landlord tried to evict her for committing an illegal act, and the Judge wrote at paragraphs 16 and 17 that:
The illegal act here is a criminal act and under criminal law, in these circumstances where the tenant neither knew nor authorized the illegal activity, it is not likely the tenant did anything illegal.
Accordingly, I am not convinced that the tenant, Ms. Zwir, has breached Section 21 of the Act and accordingly I am not convinced that the illegal act here puts Ms. Zwir in substantial breach so as to justify summarily terminating her tenancy.
In your case, ignorance is bliss!
So what to do if your landlord serves you with a 14 day notice terminating your tenancy?
If you don’t want to leave, then you can serve your landlord with a notice of objection. The notice of objection should state the reasons why you do not agree with the termination notice. You must serve this notice on the landlord personally, or by registered or certified mail, before the termination day in the landlord’s notice. If you meet these requirements, then the landlord’s notice terminating your tenancy is ineffective and your tenancy stays in place. If your landlord still wants to evict you, then he has to make an application to terminate your tenancy.
Remember that if you are going to object to the notice, you need to follow the rules and serve the landlord properly and on time.
If your landlord does make an application to terminate your tenancy, then your landlord will serve you with more papers, and you will have a chance to respond to the application and tell your version of events.
And next time you’re out of town, you might want to give your dog a vacation at one of those fancy pet hotels instead.
Frequently Asked Questions:
- What if the landlord does not give the proper amount of notice?
- Can the tenant move before the notice takes effect?
- What if the landlord does not use the property for the reason stated in the notice?
- What happens if the tenant does not give the proper amount of notice?
- If the landlord has done something wrong, but it’s not a substantial breach, what can the tenant do?
Moving Forward: Supports for Victims of Domestic Violence Conference
Are you a social worker, community worker or lawyer who works with victims of domestic violence? If so, have we got a learning and networking opportunity for you!
Community Initiatives Against Family Violence and the Centre for Public Legal Education Alberta are excited to announce, Moving Forward: Legal and Psychological Supports for Victims of Domestic Violence Conference on April 24, 2012 at the Santa Maria Goretti Community Centre in Edmonton, AB. This full day conference will feature keynote speakers and multiple breakout sessions by presenters who work in the family violence and legal fields to support victims as they move forward in their journey. It will also be an opportunity for delegates to learn more about domestic violence from both a legal and a psychological perspective and to become more aware of the wide array of services available to victims of domestic violence. The registration fee is $45.
Domestic Violence is a societal issue that affects 1 in four women and 1 in 7 men at some point in their lives. The Edmonton Police Service received 6500 domestic violence related calls in 2010. We do know that only about 25% of domestic violence incidents are reported to the police (Family Violence in Canada: A Statistical Profile 2011). Alberta has the second highest reported incidence of domestic violence in Canada. We are tied with Saskatchewan.
This conference is an opportunity for professionals to increase their knowledge base on legal issues and community supports, build relationships with other professionals, and reflect on their practice.
We gratefully acknowledge the Department of Justice Canada Victims of Crime Fund for providing funding for this event. Every year Justice Canada chooses a theme for Victims of Crime Week. For 2012, the theme is “Moving Forward.” This theme acknowledges both the journey that victims of crime undertake as they make changes in their lives and the work done in the last 30 years to improve services for victims of crime.
The conference brochure is available here.
You can view a listing of presentations and register at www.ciafv.com.
Financial Information for Your Charity
If you’re like me, you’ve owned, borrowed, or discreetly flipped through some version of the “for Dummies” book series. I own Wine Tasting for Dummies, borrowed Excel for Dummies from the library and listened to Spanish for Dummies on CD. I am willing to acknowledge that, occasionally, I don’t know everything. I need basic information presented in an easy format that actually helps me learn! I want something that answers my questions and I like to be able to flip back as needed to remind myself what I’ve learned.
If you are looking for information on keeping financial records for registered charities in Canada, you likely want the same things – easy-to-read basic information, quick reference sheets, and answers to your questions!
Charity Central has created a Financial Information Kit to fill this need.
The kit contains a series of frequently asked questions on financial reporting and registered charities. This includes answers to questions like:
- Once we’re a registered charity, do we need a professional accountant?
- What should we look for in choosing a professional accountant, whether volunteer or paid?
- How should the accounting records be set up so we can easily complete the Registered Charity Information Return (T3010)?
- Is it a good practice to have our financial statements audited by a professional accountant?
- What are the different types of services that a professional accountant can provide?
The kit also contains six tipsheets:
- Choosing a Professional Accountant
- Setting Up a Chart of Accounts for a Small Organization
- Setting Up Financial Books and Records
- Financial and Other Information Needed to Complete the Registered Charity Information Return (T3010)
- Getting Ready for an External Audit – What Can You Prepare?
- Other Tips on Working with your Auditor – Common Issues During an Audit
This kit is available for free download at www.charitycentral.ca/docs/financialkit-en.pdf.
More Stuff I Wish I'd Known Yesterday
Do you know what I’m struggling with today? I’m struggling with the concept of tough love. I feel really bad for all of the tenants who have had horrible things happen to their rental buildings lately, but I also think that this is (in a phrase I never would have used before working here!) a “teachable moment.” How can you avoid being the tenant on the TV who has lost everything? Get tenant insurance. Just go out and get it. It doesn’t cost that much (you can even spread the cost over the year by paying in installments), and your lease probably requires you to have it in the first place.
Why do you need it? So that if your apartment burns down, falls down, is broken into, or gets up and walks away, you will be able to buy new stuff. One of the most common things I hear from tenants is that “my stuff isn’t that nice anyway, so it’s not worth it for me to spend the money on insurance.” Wrong, wrong, wrong! Let’s break it down: let’s say you pay $200.00 for one year of content insurance. Let’s say that your place is destroyed, and all of your stuff is lost. If you spent the $200.00, then you pay the deductible, and replace your crappy stuff with brand new stuff. How great is that? If you don’t buy the insurance? Well, hello, free couch in the back alley that may or may not be crawling with bed bugs. Hello, internet café, where no one washes their hands before they touch the keyboards. Get it? You will have nothing: no couch, no laptop, no TV, nothing.
The other common thing I hear from tenants is “if the place burns down, the landlord has to buy me all new stuff because it’s his fault.” Really? Does anybody actually believe this? Guess what would happen if you went to court to try to force your landlord to pay for all new stuff for you? The first question would be “Were you required to have tenant insurance under your lease?” You’d have to say yes, and then your case would be thrown out and you’d still be left with nothing. Well, actually, worse than nothing, because you’d probably have to end up paying your landlord’s court costs.
Use your head, and go buy insurance.
Until next time, make sure you think ahead and take the spoon out of the sink before you turn on the water or you’re going to have a big ol’ mess on your hands…
You can find out more about insurance and renting here.
Movin' on up, movin' on out (Part 3)
Welcome back to the last of the “how the heck do I give notice to move out” posts. You can read the first one here, and the second one here. This post is going to talk about fixed term tenancies and what steps you can take to end one.
First, let’s talk about what a fixed term lease actually means. The way a fixed term tenancy works is that both the tenant and landlord are bound by the terms in the lease, including the period of for which the property is going to be rented. The tenant gets some bonuses (the landlord can’t increase the rent during the term of the lease, the landlord can’t end the tenancy during the term of the agreement unless the tenant has done something wrong, etc.), and so does the landlord (the landlord knows that the property will be rented for a guaranteed period of time for a specific amount of money). Most issues come up when one side decides that they don’t want to be bound by the lease anymore. For example, the landlord decides to sell the property and wants the tenant to move out early, or the tenant’s job moves, or is lost, and the tenant needs to move somewhere else.
So, how do you end a fixed term tenancy? You cannot just give a month’s notice like you would for a monthly periodic tenancy. You signed a contract, and one of the terms that you promised to follow was the length of time you would rent the place. The nature of a fixed term tenancy is that the tenancy only ends under the terms of the contract (for example, the tenancy will end on the date stated in the lease), or if the landlord and the tenant agree to end the tenancy early. You can always try to talk to your landlord to see if the landlord is okay with an early end date. If you are able negotiate and come up with an agreement, you should put this agreement in writing. Remember, your landlord does not have to release you from your obligations that you have, so it’s a good idea to think of some negotiating points (“this will give you time to paint the apartment like you said you wanted to do. With all new paint, I bet you could charge more rent”) and to be nice. You are asking for a favour from your landlord, so be courteous and act in a reasonable manner.
If your landlord won’t agree to end the lease early, what can you do? Well, you might be able to sublet or assign your place. Generally speaking, this means that you would find someone who wanted to rent your place, and then that person would move into the property and you would move out. Under an assignment, you would generally give your entire interest in the property over to the new tenant. In a sublet, you would remain responsible, along with the new person, for all obligations of the original lease. So, if your subtenant did not pay rent, then your landlord could come after you to collect the unpaid rent. You must request your landlord’s permission in writing before you assign or sublet. If your landlord does not respond to your request within 14 days, then you can assume that the landlord consented.
What happens if none of these options work for you, and you go ahead and move out anyway? Well, there are consequences that you have to weigh. You remain responsible to pay the rent until the tenancy ends (either because the landlord rents to a new tenant, or the end date in your fixed term occurs). This means that if, for example, you moved out in March and you were supposed to live there until September 30, then you must continue to pay the rent until either the place is rented out again, or until September 30 comes. Your landlord must try to rent out the property again. The landlord has to do all of the things that s/he would normally do to find a new tenant. And if you’re thinking right now that you can just ignore the landlord’s demands for payment, think again. The landlord can contact a collection agency to try and collect the debt, or can make an application against you.
The chances of you getting your security deposit decrease as well. Your lease might have a term that says that if you break the lease, then you must pay the landlord some money in fees, and these fees, if you don’t pay them, can be deducted from the security deposit. You can find out more about these fees in Service Alberta’s Voluntary Code of Practice here. Also, you might be paying rent on your new place and won’t be able to afford to pay rent on the old place, and the landlord can deduct unpaid rent from the security deposit.
Well, we’ve covered most of the common concerns that come up when a tenant wants to move out of the property. Until next time, stay away from those home design magazines at the check-out counter, as they will only lead to a vague feeling of dissatisfaction when you get home.