r/legaladvice

Location: Ohio

I bought a used enclosed utility trailer from a private seller about four months ago. I paid in full, got a signed bill of sale, and transferred the title into my name at a title office. I used some money I had saved to convert the inside for my small woodworking setup.

I came home and the trailer was gone from my driveway. My camera shows a tow truck taking it. I called the company and they said it was repossessed because the previous owner used it as collateral for a loan he stopped paying. I sent them a picture of the title showing my name, but they said their lien existed before I bought it and they will not return it unless the lender authorizes them.

The police looked at my paperwork but said it was probably a civil issue. I cannot reach the seller now. Can a lender legally repossess it from me even though the state transferred the title without showing any lien, and what kind of attorney would handle getting it and my equipment back?

Location: Illinois

Hello. I’m the executor for my Dad’s estate in IL. He’s resting in peace. He had a girlfriend for 17 years who lived in his house. (Illinois is not a common law state.)

All of his financial accounts had beneficiaries and many of his accounts are transfer on death to his kids, including me.

His will specifically designates all the estate goes to the kids and none goes to anyone else. It states that no one can claim to be married to him.

Edit: The will is from four years after she started living there, and basically only applies to his house and car due to beneficiaries on all bank accounts.

His girlfriend is living in his house and she looked at all his statements after death. She thinks that she will be inheriting a major stake in his estate.

The kids all feel we want to help her as she is retirement age, but we don’t know how to tell her that she isn’t directly inheriting anything.

Edit: She has been retired the entire time while living there. My dad covered all bills and expenses for her (to my knowledge).

Edit: There is no mortgage.

Edit: She has no children. They had no children. She has family.

Does anyone have any suggestions about how to legally protect ourselves when dealing with her? We are now supporting her letting her stay in the house, paying the bills there (maybe temporarily)…?

Thanks in advance for any ideas.

Spent the weekend in jail and I’m very frustrated as I write this out. I took Friday off from work and slept in. Decided to get a late breakfast and discovered there police on my other part of my property. My property is split with part being a vacant lot. My property is larger than typical lots, it used to by rural but the city grew around it 30 years ago. That second part doesn’t have a fence or gate and nothing has been built. All that’s out there other than trees and a pond after a walk in is a bench. Anyway near the road on that part of my property was a car and motorcycles. They were running speed guns and pulling people over. I don’t dislike police but I don’t want people on my property. It’s marked with no trespassing signs and purple paint. So I pulled up and honked and told them they needed to leave. They got real hostile right away and told me I was obstructing their activities. I told them multiple times to leave and I admit I was getting upset. To make a long story short they arrested me for trespassing and interfering with law enforcement and disobeying a lawful order. I asked how I could be trespassed and they told me I wasn’t allowed there. I told them it’s my property and no one was going to tell me I can’t be on my property. They said I’m a liar it’s public property and I wasn’t allowed there. And they arrested me. I didn’t get a bond until this morning and I have court at the end of August. I called a bunch of lawyers but I haven’t had any luck getting hold of one so I left messages with their office. What should I be expecting? I know it’s my property because I haven’t sold it and it’s been mine since 2001 when my mother died. I grew up on it. It’s mine. How can they do this? Location: Kansas

Edit to clear up some things

I don’t know how to put a picture or I’d draw one. There’s:
- the road
- then a sidewalk,
- then a space of grass where street lights and utlity lines runs,
- then my retaining wall and my property. The wall varies from about 8 to 16 feet tall above the sidewalk and utility area. It’s a very large concrete wall that I pay to maintain and an engineer says I’ll need to have overhauled in the next five years.

The cops with the motorcycles were down by the entrance except for the one with the car he was up east of the entrance where it’s high up and people can’t see you from the road using his gun.

The entrance has a sign on either side saying no trespassing private property. There is purple paint on the perimeter trees every so often. The entrance is the only way on the property by vehicle. You can walk on of course there or on the other side if you go through an old unused rail yard.

I’ve paid taxes on it the entire time. It’s posted no trespassing private property. I’ve had people removed from it. There are no utilities on that part of the property. There never will be. It’s the original site of the family home from when my father’s family came to this country. The original house is gone. There’s just a bench. Somewhere is the old family cemetery but the markings were lost decades ago.

I don’t want to sue them. I don’t want them on my property. I don’t need money. I have money. I just don’t want people on the property.