231
votes
Accepted
Rent cheque was stolen from landlord - am I obligated to pay again?
Yes, absolutely! You are obligated to pay your rent, and you haven't done so yet. Since this was your landlord's issue and not your own, if your bank charges you a stop payment fee, it would be ...
- 47.1k
193
votes
Accepted
A friend asks me all the time to pick up money for her (Western Union, Moneygram)
I think it is likely that your “friend” is doing something illegal, and that she is putting these payments in your name to avoid getting caught. You may be being used as an unwitting money mule.
I ...
- 115k
170
votes
Found a heap of BTC but have no documentation. What do I do?
The existing IRS guidance in the US related to bitcoin indicates it will be taxed as property.
You'll sell your coins then when you file your taxes for that year you will indicate the dollar value ...
- 48.9k
142
votes
Accepted
Is it legal to photograph and test ATMs?
Legal? Maybe. Legitimate? Absolutely Not.
I'm not qualified to guess whether documenting the make, model and location of ATMs is technically legal in your jurisdiction. A list like that isn't ...
- 772
117
votes
Accepted
Can a company block a specific person from buying its stock?
I assume you are talking about a publicly traded company listed on a major stock exchange and the buyer resides in the US. (Private companies and non-US locations can change the rules really a lot.)
...
- 3,997
104
votes
Rent cheque was stolen from landlord - am I obligated to pay again?
Your obligation wasn't to write a check...it was to pay your landlord. And you haven't actually paid until money has gone from you to the landlord. So you're still obligated to pay.
(You might not ...
- 3,211
84
votes
Accepted
Is it legal to use cash pulled from a credit card to pay the monthly payment on that credit card?
Your friend is basically doing "Credit Card Kiting". While not strictly illegal* (there are nuances), it's an expensive way to maintain debt.
Your friend would be much better off taking the time to ...
- 23.9k
82
votes
Accepted
Closed account, haven't received payment. When has the bank "stolen" my money?
The best way is to either file a dispute (or threaten to) with their regulator. They do NOT need negative attention from a bank regulator, so it should get their attention if you show that you are ...
- 52.9k
75
votes
Can a CEO short his own company?
That would be the ultimate in insider trading. They made a stock transaction knowing in advance what was going to happen to the share price.
They could easily expect to face jail time, plus the CEO ...
- 133k
75
votes
Girlfriend took off with the car I got a loan for
Call the police and see what they can do to help get the car back (which might include reporting it stolen). Don't stop making payments or it will wreck your credit (not hers). When you get the car ...
- 129k
67
votes
Accountant/ lawyer will not return my call
This sounds like a scam. The IRS sends notices of amounts due, they don't enlist 3rd party services for that. The IRS does make use of 4 different 3rd party collection agencies:
CBE - P.O. ...
- 68.6k
65
votes
Is it legal to photograph and test ATMs?
In addition to skimmers, another reason to have photos like this is that some ATMs are poorly secured. A surprisingly common type of theft is to steal the whole ATM. Banks are poor targets as their ...
- 2,226
62
votes
Found a heap of BTC but have no documentation. What do I do?
Document how you came to have the stuff in the first place. First to defend against potential government inquiry; and second to establish that you held the asset more than one year, so you qualify for ...
61
votes
Transfer over $10k
However, I heard that government monitors transfers of over $10K
No this is wrong. They want to know about cash or cash equivalent transactions over 10K, or small cash or cash equivalent transactions ...
- 133k
61
votes
Would simplistic date / amount / description bookkeeping "cut it" legally?
If you're not comfortable "filling out tax forms" then hire a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). Depending on how easily they can convert your records to actual income statements, it may not ...
- 129k
57
votes
I need a title out of my name from a vehicle that my ex drive, refuses to cooperate, what can I do to resolve this?
You go down to the police station where he lives and tell them you are repossessing a vehicle you own. Make sure they have a copy of the title and whatever useful information you can find (loan/...
- 4,684
56
votes
A friend asks me all the time to pick up money for her (Western Union, Moneygram)
So just to be clear, she gets so many of these ~$500 transactions she can't even make the time to show up and collect them all? Yet, she still holds down a day job cutting hair? You are on here ...
53
votes
Can my dad remove himself from my car loan?
Dealerships lie. They told you that dad would be a cosigner, but the likely only way the lease could be approved is by him being the primary. They likely did a clever job of concealing that fact, ...
- 75.7k
44
votes
How far removed from source does one need to be to avoid Insider Trading?
It doesn’t matter how far away you are. If you have important information that the public doesn’t then it’s insider trading.
Obviously the distance makes it harder to prove or even to suspect.
The ...
- 22.3k
43
votes
Rent cheque was stolen from landlord - am I obligated to pay again?
Yes, you are still obligated to pay the rent.
I don't know Canadian law, but in the US, your obligation to pay a debt is generally relieved when control of the money passes to the other person.
In a ...
- 22k
40
votes
Accepted
Can a company charge you for services never requested or received?
In general, you can only be charged for services if there is some kind of contract. The contract doesn't have to be written, but you have to have agreed to it somehow.
However, it is possible that ...
- 8,106
39
votes
Girlfriend took off with the car I got a loan for
I was in a similar situation 20 years ago and want to highlight one aspect you didn't mention, that kept me awake at night. This is your car, your insurance and your registration that she is driving ...
- 499
38
votes
Accepted
Can a company with a very large valuation still be held privately?
Is this scenario practically possible?
Absolutely - there is no legal requirement in the US to become publicly traded.
Are there any examples?
The top 25 private US companies all have annual ...
- 129k
37
votes
Accepted
If I create software that can identify and predict insider trading, and I use that to trade, am I insider trading?
A cautious "no." Public information is just that, public. If you are able to data mine and use that information to create a buy signal, you are legally able to trade on that signal. Since nothing is ...
34
votes
Rent cheque was stolen from landlord - am I obligated to pay again?
The Régie du Logement is the government agency responsible for setting regulations regarding leases in Québec. They are very clear that paying the rent in full is your #1 obligation as a tenant.
When ...
- 556
33
votes
Closed account, haven't received payment. When has the bank "stolen" my money?
JohnFx is right: banks hate visits and attention from the regulator (both positive and negative). I would not threaten to file, just file away and let them get in contact with you.
The local branch ...
- 1,527
27
votes
Can a company block a specific person from buying its stock?
A more serious problem: how do you know who's really buying your stock?
"Shell companies" are an increasingly obvious problem in corporate and tax accountability. There are jurisdictions where ...
- 1,675
26
votes
Is it legal to use cash pulled from a credit card to pay the monthly payment on that credit card?
I don't know if it is explicitly illegal but it's certainly against Venmo's user agreement:
Restricted Activities
...
Provide yourself a cash advance from your credit card (or help others ...
- 8,045
25
votes
Accepted
Should I be worried that I won't be given a receipt if I pay with cash?
If this is because he wants to avoid paying taxes, will I get in trouble if I agree to have him work on my vehicle?
You should check your state and local sales tax laws to be certain, but in my state ...
- 129k
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