I'm Being Sued !?!?!! Ha Ha Ha, Funny Shit

[Kevsh]

Just got a letter from a lawyer the other day, paraphrased below, highlighted at key points. Basically, they are saying that I used my former condo address on web sites that I allegedly own and that it will cause nuisance, a decrease in property values and is defamatory toward the building I lived in and it's residents.

This is about as ridiculous and frivolous as any claim can get and since I have no personal addresses listed on any sites I can only assume they mean the domain registration. Anyhow the letter:

The (condominium) Corporation has become aware that you are the administrator/webmaster of certain pornographic websites. (Lists several web sites). Each of these sites lists you as webmaster and lists your contact address as (my former address). Accordingly, we have been instructed to require immediate removal of references to addresses with the property of the Corporation, or any other associations with the property of the Corporation, from certain websites of which you are the the administrator/webmaster.

Your use of the address of the Unit may expose the owner or occupant of the Unit, or other residents of the Corporation, to unwanted contact from third parties. Further, your use of the address of the Unit may act to associate the occupant or other residents or the Corporation itself with your websites and your personal business.

... The fact that you have no right to use the address in the manner in which it is being used, its continued use on your websites is defamatory and may occasion occupants and residents from being victims of nuisance. You may also be responsible for any diminution in property values owing to the association of the Unit with your personal business.

We also note that your use of the Unit as a base of operations for your website was contrary to the Declaration of the Corporation ... "each of the Dwelling Units shall be occupied and used only as a private single family residence and for no other purpose ..."

Signed
Lawyer Dude

-- So I was thinking about how to respond. Perhaps sending a letter back saying "Fuck you, sue me" or maybe putting the address of the lawyer and his firm in the contact info on the domains? Probably get another letter

[candyflip]

Sounds more like a Cease and Desist than a lawsuit to me.

[Barefootsies]

Originally Posted by Kevsh

-- So I was thinking about how to respond. Perhaps sending a letter back saying "Fuck you, sue me" or maybe putting the address of the lawyer and his firm in the contact info on the domains? Probably get another letter

Gotta love those communities. It's one of the many reasons I would never want to live in one. When I buy a house, it's mine. I am not going to check with some third party on what I can do with my own property. Including painting, and whatever other silly rules they have. Going in front of boards, and needing permission for little b.s. things.

[Kevsh]

Originally Posted by candyflip

Sounds more like a Cease and Desist than a lawsuit to me.

It is, but they go on of course to say that if I don't comply they will seek damages for defamation and nuisance.

[woj]

That's exactly why I would never own a condo..."each of the Dwelling Units shall be occupied and used only as a private single family residence and for no other purpose"

fuck that, it's mine, I'll do whatever I want with it...

[candyflip]

Again...barefootsies didn't even READ the post. He's just here to drop his sig...nothing's changed.

He doesn't fucking live there any more you idiot.

[brassmonkey]

Originally Posted by woj

That's exactly why I would never own a condo..."each of the Dwelling Units shall be occupied and used only as a private single family residence and for no other purpose"

fuck that, it's mine, I'll do whatever I want with it...

damn right!

[seeandsee]

who came with that bulshit, now you must get house in porn neighbor jez

[LickMyBalls]

Originally Posted by Kevsh

It is, but they go on of course to say that if I don't comply they will seek damages for defamation and nuisance.

Ask them what the damages are.

[Spudstr]

Well for one, contact your own lawyer and see what they say.

pretty sure your lawyer would tell them to screw off.

worse case scenario get a box at the local ups store.

[Barefootsies]

Originally Posted by woj

That's exactly why I would never own a condo..."each of the Dwelling Units shall be occupied and used only as a private single family residence and for no other purpose"

fuck that, it's mine, I'll do whatever I want with it...

Yeah. I have never understood the people who enjoy condo living honestly. Especially the fees that some of the people have to pay. More over the condos that are set up like town houses. It's like buying an apartment.

My old college roommate lives in a nice place over on east side of Michigan. He's right on the big lake, has a small marina, club house, all that. He's paying almost $400.00 a month in association fees. He does not even use any of that shit. He also still has to do his own snow shoveling, leaf blowing, and some other stuff I would have thought that they would have been taking care of.

Maybe they do not all work that same way, but there is no way I want to be having to go in front of a board to ask for permission or held accountable for others in the community. Despite law care, snow plows, and what not. I prefer the added hassle of a home in that regard.

[Barefootsies]

Originally Posted by LickMyBalls

Ask them what the damages are.

Tell them to LickYourBalls.

[MrBottomTooth]

Always best to pay the extra buck or so per domain and get private whois.

Pathetic that they would waste money paying a lawyer to send you that crap.

[L-Pink]

Actually, you are 100% in the wrong, legally.

Face it you ran a business from an address that is zoned and/or has deed restrictions for personal use only. You knew this from the beginning if you read the contract. I for one wouldn't want to live next to or occupy the dwelling after a webmaster foolishly listing his home address for a pissed father, boyfriend, etc to find.




.

[DVTimes]

Originally Posted by L-Pink

Actually, you are 100% in the wrong, legally.

Face it you ran a business from an address that is zoned and/or has deed restrictions for personal use only. You knew this from the beginning if you read the contract. I for one wouldn't want to live next to or occupy the dwelling after a webmaster foolishly listing his home address for a pissed father, boyfriend, etc to find.




.

not sure if thats correct.

i mean putting your home address as the business address does not mean you work from home.

ie, say he was a painter, or window cleaner. he would put his home as work address, but not work from home but be working on location.

they would need to prove he works from the home, running the businness. it would surly be no more business use than say the person you live next door works for a bank, but will contact work when they phone or he phones them. or for that matter they email work from home.

to work from home as in home business. surly it would be somthing like setting up a room to make somthing, or as a office.

i think unless you admit you work from home, it would not be hard to prove.

[Jarmusch]

So you moved to another place, why didn't you update your whois information to reflect your new address?

[L-Pink]

Originally Posted by DVTimes

not sure if thats correct.

i mean putting your home address as the business address does not mean you work from home.

Correct. But it sure makes you lose the argument about using the domicile as a residence not a business. After all he did say it was a business address.


.

[DVTimes]

surly its simple.

just update your whois with your new address.

i would not reply to the letter.

[cykoe6]

If they were smart they would contact your registrar and inform them that your whois information is incorrect. Anyway I agree with them that you should stop using their address for your whois information.

[DVTimes]

Originally Posted by L-Pink

Correct. But it sure makes you lose the argument about using the domicile as a residence not a business. After all he did say it was a business address.


.

another thought is just becase the website names are registered to you, does not mean that is the person who runs or owns the sit(s).

for instance, you may simply register the names for people, and they rent then from you for there own use.

another thought is, i am not sure regersting the condo as your business addresds would be breaking there rules, as long as you do not run a biusiness from that address.

or to reverse that. i am sure it would be breaking there rules if he registered his business in a different location but ran it from his home. ie, he build chairs, and bulit them at home.

often the reason they say not to use the place for businmess is simply to stop the place looking a mess and being noisy. ie, if you live next door it would not be noisy at any time day or night.

We also note that your use of the Unit as a base of operations for your website was contrary to the Declaration of the Corporation ... "each of the Dwelling Units shall be occupied and used only as a private single family residence and for no other purpose ..."

nothing there says a business can not use the address to register at it.

in fact it would be no difference (in my mind) to him registering a car, a mobile phone, a credit card.... at that address. he simply registered a domain name.

[arock10]

this is why condos suck, buy a real fuckin house

[Spudstr]

Originally Posted by arock10

this is why condos suck, buy a real fuckin house

HOA's can be just as bad.

[Kevsh]

To answer the few that mentioned I should have updated my domain info, that's true. I just own a lot of domains and overlooked updating them all.

For the dispute about using the residence for something other than a residence is weak. Yes they would have to have some basis for proving I used it as a business (and domain contact info doesn't mean a whole lot), but I think it's a fair bet that plenty of other residents run home-based businesses or even bring their laptop home from the office - technically using their home for work.

But even doing so, so what? I don't see how suing me for that has any merit or damages (see below).

I should note I'm in Canada (didn't think of it in my original post) so our laws are a bit different than in the U.S. From what I understand - and could be wrong - the big key to winning is actually proving damages. You can't just say "Hey this person defamed me", etc. without showing how it actually hurt you. So unless the condo, it's residents or the management company can show "loss of property value" and that that loss has hurt them, or that any nuisance has somehow hurt them ... not much there.

[DVTimes]

Originally Posted by Kevsh

To answer the few that mentioned I should have updated my domain info, that's true. I just own a lot of domains and overlooked updating them all.

For the dispute about using the residence for something other than a residence is weak. Yes they would have to have some basis for proving I used it as a business (and domain contact info doesn't mean a whole lot), but I think it's a fair bet that plenty of other residents run home-based businesses or even bring their laptop home from the office - technically using their home for work.

But even doing so, so what? I don't see how suing me for that has any merit or damages (see below).

I should note I'm in Canada (didn't think of it in my original post) so our laws are a bit different than in the U.S. From what I understand - and could be wrong - the big key to winning is actually proving damages. You can't just say "Hey this person defamed me", etc. without showing how it actually hurt you. So unless the condo, it's residents or the management company can show "loss of property value" and that that loss has hurt them, or that any nuisance has somehow hurt them ... not much there.

how are they suing you?

all they have done is said can you change the whois address.

its not a big deal.

the info is incorrect. and if i lived at that address i would not be happy.

just change your whois info and i bet you never hear from them again.

you will have done what they asked.

they are unlikly to sue you as it would be coplex as in they would need to prove p[roperty prices have droped.

the only thing i could think is that the person living at that address could prove distress. ie, he has been getting unplesent phone calls from people thinking he/she does porn. or its affecting there work, ie, they are a teacher and have lost there job from it.

just change it now.

then forget about it.

[marketsmart]

Originally Posted by Kevsh

To answer the few that mentioned I should have updated my domain info, that's true. I just own a lot of domains and overlooked updating them all.

For the dispute about using the residence for something other than a residence is weak.

Yes, that is weak, but that is not what the main issue is from how i read your post. They are saying that going forward, you need to remove that address from any of your sites.

And they are correct and have legal merit in requiring you to do so. Your best cause of action is to remove those references and send a polite letter to the attorney stating your intentions to do so.

I dont know how canadian law works in these cases, but in the US, you would be liable for the damages the attorney mentions and you would lose in court...






.

[DVTimes]

Originally Posted by marketsmart

Yes, that is weak, but that is not what the main issue is from how i read your post. They are saying that going forward, you need to remove that address from any of your sites.

And they are correct and have legal merit in requiring you to do so. Your best cause of action is to remove those references and send a polite letter to the attorney stating your intentions to do so.

I dont know how canadian law works in these cases, but in the US, you would be liable for the damages the attorney mentions and you would lose in court...






.

i am not sure i would write as that could be used as evidence.

i would just phone and say that you had not updated as you do not run the sites but just own the names, and you have no idea what they are used for.

but you will (or have) updated the whois info.

in fact you could even say the domains are not yours. but you found out that a friend registered the domains at your address without you knowing, and you have got him to change the whois info (that way your not admitting to anything).

[BlackCrayon]

lol is it typical for these condo dicks to not allow home businesses?

[czarina]

you probably want to write back and tell them to kiss your err... shoes...
But is it really worth it, when you dont even live there?
Me, I would just remove the address from wherever it is listed at, and call it a day.

If you still owned the condo or if you still lived there, that's another story. You could tell them to go F themselves and that you dont use the condo for anything business-related but that it is your LEGAL address, so you have the right to use for the purpose of receiving communications, etc.

[spazlabz]

Originally Posted by DVTimes

surly its simple.

just update your whois with your new address.

i would not reply to the letter.

I have to agree with this. Just change the information and move on and forget about it. I would also suggest you have a lawyer contact theirs and let them know that the problem has been resolved.

[SmokeyTheBear]

as others have mentioned change whois, after all it is possible the current resident is getting harrased because of the address. Think of it in reverse if the kkk had your address as its website address and every week some kook would come by your house knocking on your door.

[fatfoo]

What are condoms? That's where rich people live.

[TrainWreckContent]

Originally Posted by Barefootsies

Gotta love those communities. It's one of the many reasons I would never want to live in one. When I buy a house, it's mine. I am not going to check with some third party on what I can do with my own property. Including painting, and whatever other silly rules they have. Going in front of boards, and needing permission for little b.s. things.

no shit i was watching tv the other day and they were talking about this community in oregon were the neighbors were all madd at this lady for drying her clothes outside in a clothes line....crazy how people are...like you said when i buy i house i will do what ever the fuck i want to!

[Kingfish]

I agree with L-Pink. You?d be surprised by the number of people that contact you and try and send you things if you put your real address in your domain registration. I?d comply with the request and send a polite return letter stating I did so. I suspect the ball got rolling when someone sent something to the address or made contact with a person residing there referencing your website.

[hypedough]

Originally Posted by SmokeyTheBear

as others have mentioned change whois, after all it is possible the current resident is getting harrased because of the address. Think of it in reverse if the kkk had your address as its website address and every week some kook would come by your house knocking on your door.

Very good point. Just change that shit and keep it moving.

[DBS.US]

It's just a simple Cease and Desist.

Step #1 change the address and get private whois.
Step #2 buy a new domain "ScatSexTube.com" and url forward traffic to a scat site
Step #3 register the domain to the person that sent you the letter.

[Zayne E.]

Originally Posted by DBS.US

It's just a simple Cease and Desist.

Step #1 change the address and get private whois.
Step #2 buy a new domain "ScatSexTube.com" and url forward traffic to a scat site
Step #3 register the domain to the person that sent you the letter.

THAT'S fuckin' funny =)

[Amputate Your Head]

Why on earth would you not already have domain privacy enabled?

[LiveDose]

Why even waste anymore time on this. You're in the wrong on a number of points. If you want to tell them to fuck off, update your info to the correct address and then write them a letter saying 'fuck off if I still lived there I would still use that address'. Everyone's happy.

[smutnut]

Aren't you supposed to have your sites updated to a legit address anyway? And if so can't you just rent a private mail box and do it that way? I wouldn't want people to be able to trace my domains to where I live anyway.

[Kevsh]

Okay, lots of info/advice here but this is not something I am too worried about and many of you have valid points. The only outstanding issue is that if I change the whois (which I've done anyway -- too many domains/multiple registrars, and basicaly was just too lazy to update them) I'm thinking the problem is that the domain info had found it's way onto other sites, some of the wiki variety - if you have a few domains you probably know of some examples.

So I can update the whois, fine, but these legal types may look in 2 weeks and see that the site that the contact info was found on is still the same. Oh well.

In any event, I've done what I can do. If they want to proceed, I'm not worried, they may be right on some points but as far as damages ... please. And no I'm not the KKK so the worst thing likely is the current occupant got a letter from a sponsor like "FUCKXBUCKS" (made that up) about their program or one of a hundred sponsors that may still have my old address and sent something. Nuisance to a degree it's worthy of a lawsuit? Yeah, right.

[smutnut]

Originally Posted by Kevsh

Okay, lots of info/advice here but this is not something I am too worried about and many of you have valid points. The only outstanding issue is that if I change the whois (which I've done anyway -- too many domains/multiple registrars, and basicaly was just too lazy to update them) I'm thinking the problem is that the domain info had found it's way onto other sites, some of the wiki variety - if you have a few domains you probably know of some examples.

So I can update the whois, fine, but these legal types may look in 2 weeks and see that the site that the contact info was found on is still the same. Oh well.

In any event, I've done what I can do. If they want to proceed, I'm not worried, they may be right on some points but as far as damages ... please. And no I'm not the KKK so the worst thing likely is the current occupant got a letter from a sponsor like "FUCKXBUCKS" (made that up) about their program or one of a hundred sponsors that may still have my old address and sent something. Nuisance to a degree it's worthy of a lawsuit? Yeah, right.

I'm probably way off here, but like I just said above, I'd be more concerned about losing my domains if they don't have to proper whois info. I'm probably wrong about this, but someone mentioned that to me once. I think as long as you update now, you'll be fine. That is if your info is accurate (in case they bitch alone those lines I mean).

[Black Ops]

What country is this?

[Davy]

What pornsites was this about? If they want you out, they could find a better way...

[rowan]

Originally Posted by Kevsh

Okay, lots of info/advice here but this is not something I am too worried about and many of you have valid points. The only outstanding issue is that if I change the whois (which I've done anyway -- too many domains/multiple registrars, and basicaly was just too lazy to update them) I'm thinking the problem is that the domain info had found it's way onto other sites, some of the wiki variety - if you have a few domains you probably know of some examples.

So I can update the whois, fine, but these legal types may look in 2 weeks and see that the site that the contact info was found on is still the same. Oh well.

That's possibly how they found out in the first place - an online WHOIS page was indexed by G and shows up on page 72 of results for the name of your former apartment complex?

[Cyber Fucker]

Sue him as well for wasting your time with ridiculous lawsuits.

[Spankys Teens]

i'm no lawyer but i do have the following points , besides that this is fucked up

1. Use of the Unit as a base of operations for your website was contrary to the Declaration
- I fund it hard to believe they added such a specific statement in the declaration
- Running a website is your god given right....there could be an issue if you made the condo into a porn scene where models are fucking each other and screaming etc

2. As far as i can see they didn't state when they would like you to remove your address from the websites, or didn't you add that part. They also didn't state how much they would sue you for if you don't agree.


Most Important: The lawyer dude has to prove that all the claims in the letter actually have caused house devaluation etc etc...and he's gonna have a hard case proving devaluation during one of the worst economic crisis in history.
I also think he can't sue you of something that hasn't actually happened yet.

You can't convict a murderer just because you think he's gonna kill someone

my 2 cents would say: get a laywer and tell them GFY

[TeenCat]

i can not read but strange things

[HandballJim]

I would be more concerned about how they found out about your websites in the first place. I hope your not bragging about how much money you make with porn.

Just get a PO Box and use it for your register whois info, and you might want to have a conversation directly with the board...and skip if you can talking through their lawyer.

[jackknoff]

that lawsuit is laughable at best...

[american pervert]

HOA's are evil... good luck, they will prolly win.