House of Cards Returns Without Frank Underwood, But Not Really.

No. 1,585

He died, hated by everyone and especially by the wife whom he made President.

Of course, there is an equally creepy drama behind the drama, as Kevin Spacey is gone from the screen in disgrace. The first episode is dark and difficult to watch. She quarrels with her advisers, none of whom seem to respect her authority. They urge her not to attend an event at a military base due to a rumor that an assassination attempt is in the works. When it happens, unsuccessfully, she comes to the conclusion that Frank was murdered and she is next. And so, Season 6 will again be dominated by the story of the character who apparently cannot die, even when he does.

We know that he is still around when, in the final scene of the first installment, she discovers his ring on the bed and puts it on the middle finger, which she raises ceremonially to her yet to be determined enemy.

In a parallel theme, Claire has her own childhood #me too story fueling her anger (make that rage) and for this there will also be revenge.

CLT

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

If you want an answer, give me a phone number or email address.

No. 1,583

I received two inquiries in the contact box today that I would like very much to answer. But I cannot because neither of you left a phone number or email address. If you don’t wish to do this, call me at 412-561-6303 and if necessary, leave contact information on the voicemail.

CLT

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Post-Gazette Headline Today Drew Attention Around the Country

No. 1,582

Dozens of publications around the country and overseas took note of the headline in today’s Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Yes, Pittsburgh Really is . . .

No. 1,581

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

“It is Right to Be Taught Even By An Enemy.” — Ovid

No. 1,580

It has happened before. I has happened too often. Our enemy has taught us once again how precious is life.

Ironically, all this occurred at a sacred place called “Tree of Life.”

CLT

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

A Prayer for October 27, 2018: Bless My Enemies.

No. 1,579

Prayer for Blessing One’s Enemies

Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Enemies have driven me into your embrace more than friends have.
Friends have bound me to earth,
enemies have loosed me from earth
and have demolished all my aspirations in the world.
Enemies have made me a stranger in worldly realms
and an extraneous inhabitant of the world.
Just as a hunted animal finds safer shelter than an unhunted animal does,
so have I, persecuted by enemies,
found the safest sanctuary,
having ensconced myself beneath your tabernacle,
where neither friends nor enemies can slay my soul.

Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.
They, rather than I, have confessed my sins before the world.
They have punished me, whenever I have hesitated to punish myself
They have tormented me, whenever I have tried to flee torments.
They have scolded me, whenever I have flattered myself
They have spat upon me, whenever I have filled myself with arrogance.

Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Whenever I have made myself wise, they have called me foolish.
Whenever I have made myself mighty, they have mocked me as though I were a dwarf.
Whenever I have wanted to lead people, they have shoved me into the background.
Whenever I have rushed to enrich myself, they have prevented me with an iron hand.
Whenever I thought that I would sleep peacefully, they have wakened me from sleep.
Whenever I have tried to build a home for a long and tranquil life,
they have demolished it and driven me out.
Truly, enemies have cut me loose from the world
and have stretched out my hands to the hem of your garment.

Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Bless them and multiply them; multiply them and make them even more bitterly against me:
so that my fleeing to You may have no return;
so that all hope in men may be scattered like cobwebs;
so that absolute serenity may begin to reign in my soul;
so that my heart may become the grave of my two evil twins: arrogance and anger;
so that I might amass all my treasure in heaven;
ah, so that I may for once be freed from self-deception,
which has entangled me in the dreadful web of illusory life.

Enemies have taught me to know what hardly anyone knows,
that a person has no enemies in the world except himself.
One hates his enemies only when he fails to realize
that they are not enemies, but cruel friends.
It is truly difficult for me to say who has done me more good
and who has done me more evil in the world: friends or enemies.

Therefore bless, O Lord, both my friends and my enemies.
A slave curses enemies, for he does not understand.
But a son blesses them, for he understands.
For a son knows that his enemies cannot touch his life.
Therefore he freely steps among them and prays to God for them.

Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless them and do not curse them.

Written by St. Nikolai Velimirovic, a Serbian Orthodox bishop who opposed Nazism and was eventually taken to Dachau concentration camp.

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Winning the Lottery

Image: bbc.com

No. 1,578

We all knew that when we bought those Mega-Million tickets that the odds of winning were astronomical. What we really bought (or at least those of us who are in touch with reality did) was the fun of being part of it all. People standing in line are interviewed on TV with broad smiles on their faces, talking about things like buying their parents a new home and taking a year-long trip around the world.

Yes, there is a part of us that believes we really can win it all. Somebody has to win and if I don’t buy a ticket, I’ll never know if that somebody is me.

This is not a totally irrational thought. We have all won the lottery of life and have the privilege of living. And not just that (which would certainly be enough) but we hit the super jackpot of living in America in the 21st Century. Just look at the faces of the people marching in the caravan from Costa Rica to get an idea what that really means. Just as we imagined ourselves as the Mega-Millions winner, we have also from time-to-time ruminated on what it would be like to be a refugee, fleeing from oppression, hunger and disease.

So you didn’t win the Mega-Million! You and I have already won the big one.

CLT

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Landlord and Tenant: What Is “Pay and Stay”?

No. 1,577

JOHNSON v. BULLOCK-FREEMAN, 61 A.3d 272 (2012).

Image: ilclawyers.com

If there is a decision rendered by the Magisterial District Judge for overdue rent only, and for no other reason, the notice of of the decision will contain the following notations.

“Grant possession” NO

“Grant possession if money judgment is not satisfied by time of eviction” YES

There has been a great deal of confusion about what these entries mean.

“Grant possession” is followed by yes when the reason for the decision in favor of the landlord is more than delinquent rent. It means that payment of the delinquent rent is not sufficient to reinstate the tenant’s right to live in the property.

However, “Grant possession” followed by “no” can have two meanings. It can mean that the tenant has won the case and can remain in the property. In that case, the second question would be answered “no.” It can also mean that the tenant can “pay and stay” if the full amount of delinquent rent is paid prior to eviction.

In a pay and stay case, the answer to the second question is YES. Thus, even if the landlord has obtained an order of possession and comes with the constable on the appointed day to lock out the tenant, the tenant can still stop the eviction by paying the full amount of the award.

In the case, Johnson v. Bullock-Freeman, cited above (click the link above to read the full opinion of the Superior Court), it was held that the tenant is required to pay the exact amount of the magistrate’s award in order to retain possession. The landlord may not refuse payment of that amount because additional rent has accrued since the court’s decision. This decision explains the law behind this conclusion in detail.

Of course, if the landlord wants to be certain that the tenant is required to leave, he or she should allege violations of other terms of the lease, assuming they exist. Otherwise, the tenant may be able to pay and stay.

However, if the original lease term has expired and the tenant is month-to-month, pay and stay is not possible because the lease term is over at the end of the month.

If a tenant wishes to pay and stay, he or she must be prepared to refute the allegation that other terms of the lease were violated.

Such a lease violation might include a no-pet rule, a no extra occupant rule, a no smoking rule, damage to the property or a direct violation by the tenant of ny other provision of a written lease.

CLT

Category: Landlord and Tenant law and litigation
Tags: action for recovery of real property > eviction

Weather Fans and the First Snowfall

No. 1,576

When winter intrudes on autumn’s normal progression.
Image:marcusashley.com

TV news shows typically give you the weather at the middle and the end of the broadcast. Sometimes it leads, too. The reason is obvious. If you tune in just as the weather report is ending, you might abruptly switch to a competing channel. They are constantly running telephone surveys to determine why we watch and weather reporting usually tops the list.

This made sense in the era before smart phones and apps. Today, all except the most technologically inept can get the local weather statistics 24/7 on demand. I am usually interested in only two weather facts, the temperature and whether it will rain or snow soon. Those nuggets are continuously available on my Apple Watch. And yet, I watch the weather forecast anyway.

You would think that TV weathermen/women would have gone the way of travel agents by now. And you would be wrong.

Weather is a lot like sports. Somehow, it grabs your attention and keeps it, over and over. This phenomenon occurs even though you don’t need to be told what you can see from the nearest window.

Like sports, weather has a regular succession of big events. We have just been through the hurricane season, which is something akin to the NFL playoffs in its intensity. When a hurricane is approaching landfall, it gets continuous coverage with live reporting from various beaches.

Most of the time, the story is so predictable that you would think it would hardly be news at all. Maps showing the advancing storm as a big blob about to hit the helpless coastline. Sheets of torrential rain and high winds blowing stuff around. Houses flooding; cars in water up to the windshield; people being rescued in boats. And yet, I must confess, just like millions of others, I find this absolutely riveting. It is on every station, including the news networks that don’t have regular weather reports. Some even run storm images on split screens through the commercials.

Now that hurricanes are in the past, we are coming up on the next big weather event: the first snowfall. It is, of course, preceded by the first frost. Then usually comes the first hard frost. Then there will be film of a premature blizzard somewhere out there in the badlands. Maybe it is coming our way.

Snow is inevitable. The only question is when. In my brain, images appear of Bob Kudzma telling Patti Burns that tonight’s snowfall will only cover the “grassy areas.” That sets up her classic repeating joke: “Don’t drive on the grassy areas!”

And so the wheel continues to turn. Before long, Winter in all its fury will be fully launched. Then, we will have to tune in at eleven to be told whether we will be shoveling in the morning.

After several of months of suffering, hope springs once again.

No wonder we are sucked into this mostly predictable drama year after year. Gotta go now. I want to find out whether the flurries will fall tonight.

CLT

Category: News Commentary, Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

AVVO Answers contain valuable information

No. 1,575

AVVO, the on-line lawyer directory, just sent me the badge posted on the left margin indicating that I was a top contributor in 2018 in the area of Landlord & Tenant Law.

AVVO operates a Q&A page whereby anyone can ask a question and the lawyers who participate provide answers. I answer several such questions per week. Most questions will receive at least one answer and some of them are very interesting. I have used questions AVVO readers posed in seminars, asking the group to provide answers. That usually livens up the session after a couple of hours.

CLT

Category: Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

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Welcome

CLIFF TUTTLE has been a Pennsylvania lawyer for over 45 years and (inter alia) is a real estate litigator and legal writer. The posts in this blog are intended to provide general information about legal topics of interest to lawyers and consumers with a Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania focus. However, this information does not constitute legal advice and there is no lawyer-client relationship created when you read this blog. You are encouraged to leave comments but be aware that posted comments can be read by others. If you wish to contact me in privacy, please use the Contact Form located immediately below this message. I will reply promptly and in strict confidence.

Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk

Legal topics of interest to lawyers and consumers with a Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania focus.

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House of Cards Returns Without Frank Underwood, But Not Really.

If you want an answer, give me a phone number or email address.

Post-Gazette Headline Today Drew Attention Around the Country

Yes, Pittsburgh Really is . . .

“It is Right to Be Taught Even By An Enemy.” — Ovid

A Prayer for October 27, 2018: Bless My Enemies.

Prayer for Blessing One’s Enemies

Winning the Lottery

Landlord and Tenant: What Is “Pay and Stay”?

Weather Fans and the First Snowfall

AVVO Answers contain valuable information

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