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Legal document to cover my butt?
StrifeRaZoR
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Alright, here's the long version of the story (in spoilers, of course):
TL;DR - Can I write up a legal document without the help of a lawyer that will hold up in court saying that both me and my roommate agree on split payments for expenses? If so, what details do I need and how should it be worded?
So about 6 months ago I moved down to the southern tip of Texas with my (then girlfriend/fiancee) roommate. Her dad passed away and left her a house, a boat, and a bunch of other stuff, so she decided to keep everything in working order by moving down here. I tagged along against my better judgement, so here I am. When we first arrived here, we were living off of insurance money in her bank account, and we both knew we needed jobs ASAP. After a few months I found a job making just above minimum wage, and then she eventually found a job doing something she loves (she's a chef). With both of us bringing in money and the house already paid off, we were pretty much set to live comfortably until we decided to do something different. About 3 weeks ago we decided that me going in to work in every Wednesday and picking up the old fashioned paper check was getting bland, so we added my information to her bank account. I got my own debit card and checks, etc.. but we share the account. So here's where the issue lies. Our relationship has pretty much died off in terms of being 'together'. She just tells everyone I'm her roommate, so I guess there's no use trying to salvage this thing. I told her that I would do the whole 'roommate' thing as long as it was official. I pay half the bills plus a little extra since I use her car to get to work. Is it possible for me to write up some sort of document that will hold itself in court (if it ever came to that situation) saying that we both agree on the split payments for expenses? I just want to make sure I can get out of this without too much of a hassle if she decides to go batshit insane on me.
Edit - Totally forgot to add this part. The reason I want this document is because ever since our money has been pooled into a shared bank account, I've noticed many charges that are quite large on our statement. I know it's her, and I've spoken to her about it. I will eventually break the account and get my own that is separate, but I just want to make sure that if I'm paying my half of things and we're somehow out of money for bills, that I'm totally covered if she wants to make a scene out of it.
Edit - Totally forgot to add this part. The reason I want this document is because ever since our money has been pooled into a shared bank account, I've noticed many charges that are quite large on our statement. I know it's her, and I've spoken to her about it. I will eventually break the account and get my own that is separate, but I just want to make sure that if I'm paying my half of things and we're somehow out of money for bills, that I'm totally covered if she wants to make a scene out of it.
TL;DR - Can I write up a legal document without the help of a lawyer that will hold up in court saying that both me and my roommate agree on split payments for expenses? If so, what details do I need and how should it be worded?
StrifeRaZoR on
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Open your own account immediately and stop depositing your money with her. It's not hard so I don't get why you are dithering on this.
Your problem - the account sharing - has wider ranging problems than the document you propose as a solution, and at most drafting a bunch of agreements to cover those situatilns would let you try to enforce them against her after she hypothetically wipes out your joint bank account and stiffs you with the utilities.
Better to get your name off any utility accounts you are on and then open a separate bank account.
The car sharing seems somewhat suspect and may actually not be legal dependent on her insurance plus there's the issue of what happens if you get into an accident. I may just be risk adverse, but if you can I would get your own transportation. Googling appears to reveal that there are car sharing agreements available online as well, though I don't know a whole lot about it.
I can't quite figure out what you want protection from "when it comes to the money situation". What are you afraid she might do?
you're on the right track though, get your own account, and get a rental agreement. Just to be safe/smart.
If that's the case, he should take his money and leave first.
To me, it seems like the bigger worry might be that she'll take his share of the bills, and then not pay the bills, or pay them late, or something like that. If that's the worry, I don't think piling on additional legal obligations will help. She already has a legal obligation to pay the bills. If she has trouble respecting that, what makes him think she'll respect anything over and above it?
Basically that. If I'm paying my half of the bills and the power somehow gets cut off, I don't want her asking for more money because she couldn't keep up her end of the deal. If we're using a joint account (for now, but not for long) then she's using 'our' money for her own personal gains and not upholding her end of things. I realize that the document is really only needed while we have the joint account, but it would still be nice to have some sort of insurance if/when the time comes for me to provide proof that I've been doing my share.
I'm not a lawyer, and this isn't legal advice, but it seems to me that you might be better off without any kind of documentation. If she goes after you for money out of court, you can tell her to fuck right off, simple as that. If she tries to take you to court, she has to prove that there's a valid contract between the two of you. It's much easier to do that if she has a piece of paper with your signature on it.
She can ask for more money, but she can't just take it. GTFO of the joint account, like first thing in the morning.
In Texas, a verbal contract is binding but the effectiveness of pursuing a breach of said contract is only as good as your will to fight it in small claims court. Do it yourself contracts are not hard, a decent guideline can be found here. The link doesn't mention it but it is a extremely good idea to sign the document in the presence of a notary public. This lends the document a legitimacy it would not otherwise have.
Keep in mind. A contract is not a shield or any other type of protection. It only allows you a better than "he said, she said" chance of recovering any damages that are caused by a breach of contract. Actual recovery of damages depends entirely on the other persons ability to comply with a judgement in your favor.
Hope this helps you some.
All your money that has gone into her account I would consider "lost" or spent. Because getting it back will cost more both emotionally and financially.
And if you decide to break it off, then you want a clean break and not see her in court for the next 2 years over a few thousand dollars.
Get your own account. I might discuss whatever net positive you think you'd have in the existing account, but I might also just consider that money a loss. This situation sounds strange and I must admit that I don't fully understand it or why you'd continue in your current arrangement for very long.