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{\an8}She called the police.
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You took that property
and made it look like yours.
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She said that she would sell it to me.
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There's no agreement.
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I wouldn't have done none of this
if she would've told me no.
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She let you park there for four years.
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We never had a problem.
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You never had a problem
'cause she was a good neighbor.
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[narrator] This is Judy Justice.
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[theme music]
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{\an8}[narrator] Julian Hall is suing
his neighbor, Staci Benedum,
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{\an8}for breach of contract and attorney fees.
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[bailiff] Court, come to order.
All rise.
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Have a seat, please.
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{\an8}Case #2128, Hall versus Benedum.
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{\an8}- Thank you.
- You're welcome.
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Mr. Hall, you and the Defendant
are neighbors?
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Yes ma'am.
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And your houses are
right next to each other?
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Hers is on the corner of mine is...
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{\an8}- Right next to her?
- Right next to hers.
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{\an8}[Judy] Got it.
What your complaint is,
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that I see where those two
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- the truck and vehicle behind it.
- [Julian] The trailer, yes, ma'am.
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{\an8}The trailer. The property
to the left of that is your house?
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{\an8}- [Julian] Yes ma'am.
- And the property to the right of that
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- is the Defendant's house?
- Yes, ma'am.
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And it is your claim that the Defendant,
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in writing, agreed to sell you
that little piece of property
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that looks like it's been carved out
of her property?
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- [Julian] Yes ma'am.
- 'Cause you had a narrow driveway,
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{\an8}- you wanted to park these two vehicles.
- Yes, ma'am.
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{\an8}Based upon that agreement,
you went ahead
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{\an8}and did some work
on that piece of property.
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- Yes ma'am.
- [Judy] You put down gravel,
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you planted flowers, all to make it
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look as if that piece of property
was part of your house.
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Not so much to make it look
like it's part of my house,
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so I can get in it.
'Cause the agreement was that
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there was three pine trees there
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prior to her telling me
that I could buy the property.
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[Judy] No, no, no.
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The three trees that are there
had nothing to do with this except
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{\an8}that they were taken down.
And were they taken down
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{\an8}and the removal of the trees
was paid for by you or by her?
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- By both of us.
- [Judy] By both. Okay.
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So, you asked to have the trees removed
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and you both paid
to have the trees removed.
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- Okay.
- Not only did you cut the trees down,
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but you took that property
and made it look like yours.
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You say that there was an agreement
in writing for her to sell you
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that piece of property.
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So, I'd like to see that agreement.
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Yes, ma'am.
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There's no agreement in writ...
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Don't say anything.
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- [Julian] The very top line.
- Just a second.
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This is not a contract, sir, to sell land.
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- I have a lot more.
- [Judy] Shh!
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Not a contract to sell land.
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{\an8}I see what she says to you,
"I am agreeing to sell you
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the property you are currently parked on
for $1,000 plus costs.
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Let's get this in motion ASAP."
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And then she doesn't hear from you,
and that's the 18th of May.
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And then she writes you again
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{\an8}a little bit later,
and she says her offer "will expire
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at the end of today's business day, 5/19."
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And on 5/19 at 10 o'clock at night
you write to her,
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{\an8}"Hey Staci, I've started working
on things this morning.
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{\an8}I have already been to the city of Akron
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and once they are done,
and I get a surveyor
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and so on,
I will keep you updated if that's okay.
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Last everything is time sensitive
and I'm working as fast as I can
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to get the approvals,
just now seeing your texts."
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- Right.
- [Judy] Okay.
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So, that's what you're relying on
as a contract to purchase property.
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Well, the fact that she said
that she would sell it to me
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and I started all the motion
like she said to do.
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I started all the motions,
got the surveyor done, got the fees done,
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- I got everything done.
- [Judy] All right.
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That was 5/19/2021?
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- Mm-hmm.
- So, show me what you did
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based on this and what you spent
based on your belief
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that she had agreed
to sell you the property
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and you had an agreement for sale
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which is like a contract
to sell a property.
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Most people know that when
you sell a piece of property,
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you get a survey,
you put it in the contract,
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you have a contract when the property
is going to be transferred,
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that property would have to be surveyed,
because clearly
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you're carving a piece of property
out of her property.
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- Mm-hmm.
- [Judy] I wanna see what you did,
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and what you spent.
Because if you spent money
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based on this, I may consider that
as part of your lawsuit
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because then it turned out
she didn't want to sell you the property.
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By the way, I wouldn't sell him
the property either.
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- It makes your property look ridiculous.
- [Staci] It does.
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[laughs]
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{\an8}- We never agreed to sell the property.
- [Judy] Just a...
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{\an8}- Okay.
- [Judy] Did you write, "I am agreeing
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to sell you the property
you are currently parked on
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- for $1,000 plus costs"?
- Yes. I never agreed to sell the property
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until I told him he was no longer allowed
to park there. It was never discussed.
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- What is this?
- Depending on the stipulation,
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that my mortgage company requires,
which is an appraisal.
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They had to approve
the selling of the property.
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All I'm interested in is this one line.
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- Mm-hmm.
- The other "ifs" fall after that.
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It says, "I'm agreeing to sell you
the property you are currently parked on
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- for $1,000 plus costs."
- [Staci] Yes.
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[Judy]
Okay. So, you did that.
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- Yes.
- [Judy] I want to see the things
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that you started to do
right after May 19th.
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You said, "I've already
started working on things
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this morning." This is May 19th.
"I've already been to the city of Akron."
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[Julian] Yes.
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This is a receipt showing the $800
from the surveyor.
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- [Judy] Okay, may I see that please?
- There is that one.
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This is a receipt from the attorney
where I had the deed paperwork done.
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I'm looking for a date on this, sir.
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- I'm looking for dates on these.
- Look at this one, too.
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Okay. June 15th, what is this?
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That's actually when I paid to have
the three deeds made up.
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{\an8}That's the $450 that I had to pay
to the attorney
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{\an8}for him to make the three deeds up.
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{\an8}The only thing Staci had to do
was sign them.
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And that was June 15th.
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- That was not quite a month later.
- [Julian] Right.
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- I started the next day.
- [Judy] Okay. This is so far
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what you spent
in reliance on her statement
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that I'll sell you the property
for $1,000.
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This is a breakdown that I have
that I wrote down,
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you can show her that.
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- Everything, the timeline.
- I don't need a breakdown of a timeline,
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sir, I need the bills for this.
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- Not what you wrote.
- Okay.
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I need the bills for six tons of gravel.
That was in July.
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[Julian] Here's more receipts right here.
Here you go.
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Did he ever give you $1,000?
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He never paid me.
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I'm a common sense person,
and a property owner.
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It was overreaching to think
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that you could buy a piece of that land
for $1,000.
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Overreaching.
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[theme music]
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{\an8}[narrator] Julian Hall
claims his neighbor,
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{\an8}Staci Benedum, owes for building costs
and attorney fees.
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Staci is countersuing, claiming Julian
was illegally parking on her property.
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Okay, so far all I have that you paid
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was $450 for the deeds, $800 for
the survey and gravel to be delivered.
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I got the gravel in there.
I also have the concrete that I had laid
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flowers and stuff that I put in.
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Did he pay part of
having the tree stumps removed?
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We split the cost and the labor
of removing the debris of the trees.
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{\an8}- No ma'am. That's not true.
- [Judy] Who wanted the trees removed?
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I never had a problem with the trees.
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- I liked the trees.
- Don't speak.
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{\an8}He wanted the trees cut down
so he could have more space.
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{\an8}He was already parking underneath
the trees with a smaller trailer.
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{\an8}Just not his truck. He wanted more space.
So, he came to me and said, "Hey,
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what if I split the cost
of the cutting of the trees?"
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I said, That's fine, I'll split the cost.
That's fine with me.
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And then I agreed to let him continue
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to park there
as long as there was no tire marks.
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That's what it was.
And then he built this thing.
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Well, he formalized parking there.
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- Mm-hmm.
- At what point did Ms. Benedum
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tell you that she was not going to
sell you the property?
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This actually started on 4... 4/3 of '18.
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I'm not interested.
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I'm interested in the beginning
of these texts.
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- Okay.
- Where you clearly had discussions,
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trees were removed.
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I don't quite understand
why she allowed you to remove the trees
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and I don't understand
the whole transaction.
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- 'Cause it wasn't my choice.
- Just a second. It was your choice.
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{\an8}You wanted to park there.
That's what you wanted.
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{\an8}- But the trees was dying.
- Just a sec. I don't care
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{\an8}if they were dying.
I don't care if they were shriveled up.
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I don't care.
You carved out a piece of property
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Now, if you carved out a piece of property
that belongs to her,
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and you didn't have an appropriate
agreement in writing, which it has to be,
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then I believe, based upon her statement
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that you acted on,
you're entitled to whatever you spent
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to renovate that property.
Do you understand?
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- You're not entitled to the property.
- No, I under--
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You're not entitled to the property.
You're entitled to what you spent
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to renovate the property.
So, now I want you to tell me
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on what date did she tell you
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that she was not going to sell
you the property?
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That was 7/20 of '21,
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after I got everything done
and called her,
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I asked her,
could she meet me at the bank.
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She said, "No, I'm not selling
to you for $1,000."
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But it goes deeper that,
that's what I'm trying to explain to you.
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It goes deeper than that
because when it came to the trees,
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I didn't approach her with the trees.
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She came to me, said,
"Since the tree is dying."
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I said, "Well, I'll go in half with you."
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At that point. I said,
"When can I use the property?"
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She said, "You can use it as long as you
need it. So that's when I started
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investing all this money
into the property...
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[Judy] So what, I don't care.
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She said to you,
you could use it as long as you want.
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- Yes ma'am.
- Okay.
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- I said nothing permanent.
- She said as long as I need it.
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That's why I invested the gravel...
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[Judy] What I'm telling you, sir,
is the purchase and sale
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of property has to be
with a certain formality.
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If you dealt with an attorney,
the attorney would tell you
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that it had to be in formality.
Signed by her, signed by you,
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00:10:04,533 --> 00:10:08,467
the contract that provided for sale
when it took place,
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what the survey was,
whether her bank would agree to let her
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sell off a piece of the property
'cause you have a mortgage.
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All of those things. That's why agreements
to sell real property, which is land,
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have to be in accordance
with certain set of rules.
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This doesn't make it.
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However, if you relied on her statement
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in order to improve the property
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to make it comfortable for you
based upon her text message,
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I believe that you are entitled,
based upon the text message,
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to what you spent to improve it.
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But you have to understand, she's
not gonna let you park there anymore.
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- And I'm okay with that.
- [Judy] Just a second.
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00:10:46,266 --> 00:10:48,567
- Are you still parking there?
- [Julian] No, ma'am.
226
00:10:48,567 --> 00:10:52,867
- [Judy] Since when?
- I would say September of 2022.
227
00:10:52,867 --> 00:10:54,834
So you were parked there,
228
00:10:54,834 --> 00:10:59,633
in July of '21, August of '21,
September of '21
229
00:10:59,767 --> 00:11:05,667
October of '21, November of '21,
December of '21, January of '22
230
00:11:05,667 --> 00:11:08,266
all the way up to September,
you were parking there.
231
00:11:08,266 --> 00:11:09,700
This is because we had--
232
00:11:09,700 --> 00:11:12,333
Don't give me a "because,"
that's either a yes or a no.
233
00:11:12,333 --> 00:11:15,333
I was parked there,
but we also had a civil case too.
234
00:11:15,333 --> 00:11:17,667
- Which he dismissed two days before.
- We had a civil case.
235
00:11:17,667 --> 00:11:19,700
[Julian]
She called the police, the police...
236
00:11:19,700 --> 00:11:21,400
He called the the police on me twice.
237
00:11:21,400 --> 00:11:24,767
The question was, when did she tell you
she wasn't gonna sell you the property?
238
00:11:24,767 --> 00:11:27,900
September, when she agreed
not to meet me at the bank.
239
00:11:27,900 --> 00:11:30,000
That's when she told me
she wasn't gonna sell.
240
00:11:30,000 --> 00:11:32,567
- September of 2022?
- Yes ma'am.
241
00:11:32,567 --> 00:11:34,500
I never knew we were meeting at a bank.
242
00:11:34,500 --> 00:11:35,834
- [Judy] Just a second.
- Okay.
243
00:11:35,934 --> 00:11:37,967
- I can do better than that.
- [Judy] In September
244
00:11:37,967 --> 00:11:41,066
of 2022, she advised you...
245
00:11:41,066 --> 00:11:44,500
No. I'm sorry,
it was August of 2021.
246
00:11:44,500 --> 00:11:47,967
Well, show me in August of 2021
that you told him
247
00:11:47,967 --> 00:11:50,200
you weren't selling him the property.
248
00:11:50,200 --> 00:11:52,066
- Here's...
- [Judy] Okay, I'll take both.
249
00:11:52,066 --> 00:11:53,100
Kevin.
250
00:11:55,333 --> 00:11:57,000
Thank you.
251
00:11:59,734 --> 00:12:02,734
- And this was after she agreed...
- [Judy] Ssh!
252
00:12:02,734 --> 00:12:04,400
Okay.
253
00:12:06,033 --> 00:12:08,300
I'm just looking for the date on this.
254
00:12:08,300 --> 00:12:10,333
Yeah, there's not a date on there.
I'm sorry.
255
00:12:10,333 --> 00:12:13,000
But that was after May 18th of 2021.
256
00:12:13,000 --> 00:12:18,633
That was maybe July or August of 2021
when I told him,
257
00:12:18,633 --> 00:12:21,233
since he didn't meet all the requirements
that I no longer wanna...
258
00:12:21,233 --> 00:12:23,233
- What requirements?
- [Staci] He never met
259
00:12:23,233 --> 00:12:26,500
{\an8}the requirements of paying me the money
or getting the land appraised.
260
00:12:26,500 --> 00:12:30,033
{\an8}The only thing he didn't do, that
my mortgage required is the appraisal.
261
00:12:30,033 --> 00:12:32,200
[Julian] That wasn't true,
because I did everything
262
00:12:32,200 --> 00:12:35,300
that the city of Akron told me to do,
who deal with this on a regular...
263
00:12:35,300 --> 00:12:38,133
{\an8}- Ssh! Did you get an appraisal?
- I got the land surveyed.
264
00:12:38,133 --> 00:12:41,467
{\an8}She didn't say nothing about appraisal
until after I got everything done.
265
00:12:41,467 --> 00:12:44,767
That's why you have a contract in writing
for the sale of property, sir.
266
00:12:44,767 --> 00:12:47,233
I don't think you did anything
intentionally wrong.
267
00:12:47,233 --> 00:12:50,467
But there was an appraisal that was
necessary. Clearly if she has a mortgage,
268
00:12:50,467 --> 00:12:53,033
and a bank is giving her
a certain amount of money
269
00:12:53,033 --> 00:12:56,500
on a parcel of property,
and she wants to sell off
270
00:12:56,500 --> 00:12:58,934
a piece of that property,
the bank is going to
271
00:12:58,934 --> 00:13:02,800
wanna know how much that the value
of the property
272
00:13:02,800 --> 00:13:04,800
has diminished by her selling it to you.
273
00:13:04,900 --> 00:13:08,266
So, you have to have an appraisal.
Do you understand?
274
00:13:08,266 --> 00:13:10,867
- I understand that.
- [Judy] You didn't have an appraisal,
275
00:13:10,867 --> 00:13:12,467
I'm not gonna tell it to you again,
276
00:13:12,467 --> 00:13:15,734
and all I want to know is,
when she first told you
277
00:13:15,734 --> 00:13:18,800
that you didn't have a deal.
So, once she told you
278
00:13:18,800 --> 00:13:22,433
that you didn't have a deal,
whatever else you invested
279
00:13:22,433 --> 00:13:24,734
in this property was on you.
280
00:13:24,734 --> 00:13:27,700
No. And I didn't invest anything else
other than getting an attorney
281
00:13:27,800 --> 00:13:30,166
and paying everything,
I need to pay him.
282
00:13:30,166 --> 00:13:32,633
Once she told you that she
wasn't selling the property to you,
283
00:13:32,633 --> 00:13:34,467
what'd you need an attorney for?
284
00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:39,800
You're not the aggrieved party here.
You got to park for free
285
00:13:39,800 --> 00:13:41,867
'cause she was a good soul.
286
00:13:41,867 --> 00:13:47,600
I would've had your trailer and your truck
towed to an impound, on Day two.
287
00:13:51,900 --> 00:13:53,333
[theme music]
288
00:13:58,567 --> 00:14:01,100
{\an8}[narratr] Julian Hall
has accused his neighbor,
289
00:14:01,100 --> 00:14:04,633
{\an8}Staci Benedum,
of breaking their agreement.
290
00:14:04,633 --> 00:14:09,834
Staci claims there was never an agreement
and is countersuing for parking fees.
291
00:14:09,834 --> 00:14:12,500
Once she told you that she
wasn't selling the property to you,
292
00:14:12,500 --> 00:14:13,900
what'd you need an attorney for?
293
00:14:13,900 --> 00:14:15,266
{\an8}Because I had already had an investment
294
00:14:15,266 --> 00:14:17,100
{\an8}after she said
she was gonna sell it to me.
295
00:14:17,100 --> 00:14:20,934
{\an8}Once the attorney got involved,
he told me to dismiss the case.
296
00:14:20,934 --> 00:14:23,767
{\an8}Then after that, like three days later,
I moved off the property.
297
00:14:23,900 --> 00:14:26,867
Just a minute.
So, who brought a civil case?
298
00:14:26,867 --> 00:14:28,533
- I did.
- [Judy] When?
299
00:14:28,533 --> 00:14:29,967
Last year of '21.
300
00:14:29,967 --> 00:14:31,834
[Judy]
And what happened with that case?
301
00:14:31,834 --> 00:14:33,033
[Julian]
It was dismissed.
302
00:14:33,033 --> 00:14:35,500
[Judy]
What did you bring a case against her for?
303
00:14:35,500 --> 00:14:36,800
For breach of contract.
304
00:14:36,800 --> 00:14:40,800
It was dismissed
because there was no contract.
305
00:14:40,800 --> 00:14:43,467
- [Staci] Your Honor, can I say something?
- [Judy] What?
306
00:14:43,467 --> 00:14:47,233
He made all these improvements in 2018
before we ever discussed
307
00:14:47,233 --> 00:14:50,100
- selling the property.
- You mean he put the gravel in?
308
00:14:50,100 --> 00:14:51,533
- Yeah.
- Well, how could he
309
00:14:51,533 --> 00:14:53,066
put the gravel in over the trees?
310
00:14:53,066 --> 00:14:55,867
- The trees were cut down in 2018.
- [Judy] Is that right, sir?
311
00:14:55,867 --> 00:14:58,233
- Just...
- That was, that's correct.
312
00:14:58,233 --> 00:15:01,033
The trees that were cut down in 2018,
313
00:15:01,033 --> 00:15:02,300
- well before this...
- Yes.
314
00:15:02,300 --> 00:15:04,633
So, you did use it.
You used it for how many years?
315
00:15:04,633 --> 00:15:08,100
You used it '18, '19, '20 and '21.
You used it.
316
00:15:08,100 --> 00:15:11,066
You used it. You had value from it.
You had value
317
00:15:11,066 --> 00:15:14,200
from somebody else's property.
You used her property for you to park on.
318
00:15:14,200 --> 00:15:17,233
I wouldn't have done none of this
if she would've told me no.
319
00:15:17,233 --> 00:15:19,934
Every move that I made, I asked her first.
320
00:15:19,934 --> 00:15:23,600
I got it in text message.
I asked her can I do this, can I do this,
321
00:15:23,600 --> 00:15:25,100
she said, "Yeah, go ahead and do it.
322
00:15:25,100 --> 00:15:27,600
{\an8}If she would've said no,
I wouldn't have done none of it.
323
00:15:27,600 --> 00:15:29,233
{\an8}I wouldn't have put a dime
into the property.
324
00:15:29,233 --> 00:15:32,300
I'm not going back to 2018, sir.
If you made these improvements
325
00:15:32,300 --> 00:15:37,800
in the property in 2018 or 2019,
before there was any hint of a writing
326
00:15:37,800 --> 00:15:39,500
that she was going to sell you property...
327
00:15:39,500 --> 00:15:42,467
She had a verbal that I can park there
as long as I wanted to.
328
00:15:42,467 --> 00:15:45,166
Okay. Your case is dismissed.
Mr. Hall, you don't have a case.
329
00:15:45,166 --> 00:15:48,066
You did park there until she told you
not to park there anymore,
330
00:15:48,066 --> 00:15:50,834
and you had the benefit of parking there
for at least three years.
331
00:15:50,834 --> 00:15:52,600
I got money invested that she told me...
332
00:15:52,600 --> 00:15:56,166
You had the benefit of parking your things
there for at least three years.
333
00:15:56,166 --> 00:15:58,533
{\an8}- Are they gone now?
- His truck and trailer are
334
00:15:58,533 --> 00:16:01,066
{\an8}but the gravel's still there and we have
to clean up,
335
00:16:01,066 --> 00:16:05,066
{\an8}- you know, get rid of that stuff.
- [Judy] It was a huge mistake.
336
00:16:05,066 --> 00:16:07,800
So, you're gonna have to
take care of that yourself.
337
00:16:07,800 --> 00:16:09,533
- Okay.
- And I would take care of that
338
00:16:09,533 --> 00:16:11,533
- because that looks ridiculous.
- [Staci] I will.
339
00:16:11,533 --> 00:16:14,834
That looks ridiculous.
You have a counterclaim?
340
00:16:14,834 --> 00:16:17,000
- Yes.
- [Judy] For parking.
341
00:16:17,000 --> 00:16:18,934
- Forget it.
- But listen,
342
00:16:18,934 --> 00:16:21,233
I told him he couldn't park there
back in May of 2021.
343
00:16:21,233 --> 00:16:22,800
He continued to park there till...
344
00:16:22,800 --> 00:16:24,533
So, you should have been more vigilant.
345
00:16:24,533 --> 00:16:28,166
{\an8}My attorney didn't notify him
till May of this year of 2022,
346
00:16:28,166 --> 00:16:32,066
{\an8}that if he continues to park there,
we'll charge him $75 a day.
347
00:16:32,066 --> 00:16:34,233
And he continued to park there
until the case
348
00:16:34,233 --> 00:16:36,300
was dismissed in August of 2022.
349
00:16:36,300 --> 00:16:41,000
So, I'm only suing him for May of 2022
to August of '22.
350
00:16:41,000 --> 00:16:42,633
And did he move it?
351
00:16:42,633 --> 00:16:44,433
- He did.
- Okay. You still living there?
352
00:16:44,433 --> 00:16:46,333
- Yes.
- [Judy] Do you talk to him?
353
00:16:46,333 --> 00:16:48,500
- No.
- [Judy] Had you talked to him previously?
354
00:16:48,500 --> 00:16:49,867
- Yeah.
- We had a good relationship.
355
00:16:49,867 --> 00:16:52,100
I'm a common sense person
and a property owner.
356
00:16:52,100 --> 00:16:54,333
It was overreaching
357
00:16:54,333 --> 00:16:57,834
to think that you could buy
a piece of that land for $1,000.
358
00:16:57,834 --> 00:17:01,967
Overreaching. And if she had it appraised,
359
00:17:01,967 --> 00:17:05,000
and if it's something that you want
and she had, I guarantee you
360
00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:07,467
that that little piece of property
would be appraised
361
00:17:07,467 --> 00:17:13,066
at a far higher cost
than $1,000, guaranteed.
362
00:17:13,066 --> 00:17:15,200
And I guarantee you that her bank
363
00:17:15,200 --> 00:17:18,333
would say, "You can't let him buy
that piece of property for $1,000."
364
00:17:18,333 --> 00:17:20,867
How much of a mortgage are you carrying?
365
00:17:20,867 --> 00:17:22,033
$76,000.
366
00:17:22,033 --> 00:17:24,533
[Judy] Not gonna let her sell off
that piece of property.
367
00:17:24,533 --> 00:17:27,467
You had the benefit of that
piece of property for several years.
368
00:17:27,467 --> 00:17:29,767
I have to tell you that I really think
369
00:17:29,767 --> 00:17:32,066
that it's much nicer
to look at plain grass
370
00:17:32,066 --> 00:17:36,633
than it is to look at a trailer
and a truck from her backyard.
371
00:17:36,633 --> 00:17:39,300
Your Honor, I wouldn't have done none
of it if she wouldn't have said do it.
372
00:17:39,300 --> 00:17:41,367
[Judy] Do you know what
your attorney said to you?
373
00:17:41,367 --> 00:17:43,800
I can't help you.
You don't have a contract.
374
00:17:43,800 --> 00:17:46,834
And Mr. Hall,
that's what I'm telling you.
375
00:17:46,834 --> 00:17:49,300
I can't help you.
You don't have a contract.
376
00:17:49,300 --> 00:17:53,133
And from what I know now,
this all started in 2018
377
00:17:53,133 --> 00:17:56,700
before there was any discussion
of buying the property
378
00:17:56,700 --> 00:18:01,233
that you can prove to me, 'cause the thing
that you gave me was in 2021.
379
00:18:01,233 --> 00:18:03,700
I have to tell you never had a problem
'cause she was a good neighbor,
380
00:18:03,700 --> 00:18:06,166
if she let you park on her property.
381
00:18:06,166 --> 00:18:08,867
So, if you think you are the one
who's been aggrieved here,
382
00:18:08,867 --> 00:18:12,233
truth of the matter is I don't think that
you are the one who was aggrieved here.
383
00:18:12,233 --> 00:18:13,900
She let you park on her property.
384
00:18:13,900 --> 00:18:16,734
I have to tell you,
I wouldn't have let that happen.
385
00:18:16,734 --> 00:18:21,500
I had a neighbor who had an easement,
and I said, all I want from you
386
00:18:21,500 --> 00:18:23,800
when I bought the house
was I want you to say
387
00:18:23,900 --> 00:18:26,367
that you will never try
to claim this property
388
00:18:26,367 --> 00:18:28,233
by adverse possession
389
00:18:28,233 --> 00:18:30,834
and that you understand
that it's my property,
390
00:18:30,834 --> 00:18:32,667
and then you can use it.
'Cause it was a place
391
00:18:32,667 --> 00:18:35,166
that looked like
it was part of his driveway.
392
00:18:35,166 --> 00:18:37,900
- Mm-hmm.
- And he said, "I'm not signing that."
393
00:18:37,900 --> 00:18:40,767
I said, if you don't sign it,
I'm going to put a fence
394
00:18:40,767 --> 00:18:44,734
right in the middle of your front lawn
which is where my property line is.
395
00:18:44,734 --> 00:18:48,533
I don't hear from him. I said,
you have 24 hours to sign the paper.
396
00:18:48,533 --> 00:18:53,133
Or I'm putting a fence
right in the middle of your front lawn,
397
00:18:53,133 --> 00:18:55,767
'cause that's my property
and you have an easement.
398
00:18:55,767 --> 00:18:56,834
And he didn't sign it.
399
00:18:56,834 --> 00:18:59,800
He would've lived with the fence
until today, 'cause it's still there.
400
00:18:59,800 --> 00:19:02,700
Now his children are living with the fence
because he's gone.
401
00:19:02,700 --> 00:19:04,433
You're not the aggrieved party here.
402
00:19:04,433 --> 00:19:08,033
You got to park for free for four years,
for free.
403
00:19:08,033 --> 00:19:10,834
'Cause she was a good soul.
She's not a bad guy.
404
00:19:10,834 --> 00:19:12,667
She was a good soul.
I would've had your...
405
00:19:12,667 --> 00:19:15,900
I would've had your trailer
and your truck towed
406
00:19:15,900 --> 00:19:21,433
to an impound on Day two.
She let you park there for four years.
407
00:19:21,433 --> 00:19:24,633
- I wouldn't have been there...
- Goodbye. We're done. Thank you.
408
00:19:24,633 --> 00:19:26,367
[bailiff]
This Court is adjourned.
409
00:19:29,367 --> 00:19:31,867
She knew what type of work I did,
so she said as long as I needed it.
410
00:19:31,867 --> 00:19:34,834
It was just a tough lesson of being nice
to the wrong person.
411
00:19:34,834 --> 00:19:37,800
It did look like it was part of my yard.
So, I get that part.
412
00:19:37,800 --> 00:19:40,133
I hope we can be cordial
and just move on with our life.
413
00:19:40,133 --> 00:19:41,100
It is what it is.
414
00:19:42,500 --> 00:19:45,700
This is a great example of
the statute of frauds and why it exists.
415
00:19:45,700 --> 00:19:48,567
So, all writings for the sale of land,
416
00:19:48,567 --> 00:19:51,400
real estate, have to be in writing
and signed by both parties.
417
00:19:51,400 --> 00:19:53,934
I'm sure it was created for situations
just like these.
418
00:19:53,934 --> 00:19:56,066
There's a lot of moving parts.
419
00:19:56,066 --> 00:19:59,033
There's mortgages,
there's banks involved a lot of the times.
420
00:19:59,033 --> 00:20:00,800
There are easements,
there are water rights.
421
00:20:00,800 --> 00:20:02,233
- Exactly.
- There are all kinds of things.
422
00:20:02,233 --> 00:20:05,467
Legally, there's some of the most complex
documents that get drawn up.
423
00:20:05,467 --> 00:20:10,266
So, it can't be a text message
for $1,000 to sell off a piece of land
424
00:20:10,266 --> 00:20:13,100
- without all the boxes being ticked.
- [Judy] Right.
425
00:20:13,100 --> 00:20:17,367
After May of 2021,
when she wrote that piece...
426
00:20:17,367 --> 00:20:19,734
For his detrimental reliance
on this statement
427
00:20:19,734 --> 00:20:23,767
For his reliance on that statement
to his own detriment.
428
00:20:23,767 --> 00:20:27,100
by putting in gravel and other stuff.
429
00:20:27,100 --> 00:20:29,734
- But then it came out, it was--
- It was put down
430
00:20:29,734 --> 00:20:33,200
in '18, before she ever
said anything about selling it.
431
00:20:33,200 --> 00:20:34,767
- He took it upon himself.
- Yeah.
432
00:20:34,767 --> 00:20:36,166
- That would be on him.
- Yeah.
433
00:20:36,166 --> 00:20:38,567
And I don't feel badly for him
'cause he got to park
434
00:20:38,567 --> 00:20:41,467
on property that wasn't his
for almost four years.
435
00:20:41,467 --> 00:20:42,400
Yeah.
436
00:20:44,066 --> 00:20:47,600
{\an8}[narrator] Want justice?
Go to JudyJustice.tv.