Hello I made a huge mistake I signed a lease for a friend because I felt bad that I had to watch them sleep on the street every night. But I had them sign a contract I drew up stateing that they take responsibility for the property and will be sued if the lease is broken. So about a mouth ago he got evicted and now is refusening to pay the fews he owes like he's been told I am now going to sue him in small claims court only problem is I don't know how to reach him his phone is off and he might have gone to California. Although I do no where his sister lives. Do you think that I have a chance at winning this case? Thank you
Adam A StudnickiPersonal Injury LawyerScottsdale, AZ ·
Whether or not they moved out of state doesn't affect whether you can sue them. You might have issues serving them with the lawsuit, though.
If you can show they breached a contract, you have a chance to win.
This is one of those situations where the legal answer is YES. But the answer to the question you did not ask is NO. You might be able to win the lawsuit. But collection of $$ from this type of homeless individual who likely does not live in Texas will be ridiculously hard.
Don't bother with it. Let it go. Move past it.
Yes. Have him served by certified mail. If he doesn't pick it up, then you will spend a lot of money getting him served. After all is done, good luck with collecting. I would look into Judge Judy or some similar show. An ex client of mine did. They paid for travel to show and paid the judgement for the defendant. Good luck to you.
There are avenues in place for serving him, so that should not be a problem. You could use the long arm statute to serve via the secretary of state, or if you can find his location, hire a process server there to server him. I do not recommend using registered mail for serving anyone, as it is the least reliable method and the most likely way to see any default judgment overturned for improper service. Thus, service should not be a problem and nor should your ability to prove your case. The problem I foresee, as another pointed out, is collecting any money from the guy. Assuming you get a judgment, collecting it could be problematic. This is an example of an old cliche: "No good deed goes unpunished".
