Author Archives: Sharmil McKee

About Sharmil McKee

I am a licensed business attorney and owner of McKee Law Office. The firm focuses on providing small and mid-sized companies with strategic legal advice. I help businesses prevent and resolve contract disputes, debt collections, employee disputes and tax problems. I have helped over 100 businesses and have tried over 200 cases. In addition, I am the only business attorney in Philadelphia with over 10 years of experience owning and operating a business.

Overpaying Philadelphia Property Taxes?

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The State Tax Equalization Board reduced that the 2012 common level tax rate for property in Philadelphia to 18.1% for the first time in decades. However, Philadelphia continues to use an assessment rate of 32%, which appears to violate Pennsylvania law. The Pennsylvania General County Assessment Law provides that there cannot be more than a 15% difference between the common assessment level rate and the county’s Established Predetermined Ratio . 72 P.S. § 5020-511(c).  The Philadelphia Tax Review Board yesterday agreed; it reduced a parking lot owner’s tax  bill by 44%. While Philadelphia intends to appeal the board’s decision to the Court of Common Pleas, more than 100 property owners have filed appeals of their 2012 tax assessment bill.  If you own property in Philadelphia, you may have been overpaying your property tax.   Call me for a free consultation at 215-242-5260 or email me at http://mckeeoffice.com/blog2/contact-us/

They stopped paying so can I pick up my items now?

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This is the question:

I live in PA. and I have entered into a contract with another party. I retain ownership of a piece of equipment as it is in my name. The equipment is in physical possession of the other party in the contract. We have each signed a legal contract stating that the other party will pay stated amount of money by a certain date every month. However there was nothing put into the contract regarding what would happen if the party failed to pay either the amount agreed upon or the due date to be paid. My question is this, because the equipment is still in my name do I have the right to go and remove the said equipment because the othewr party has breached the contract.

This is my answer:

Unfortunately, no, you cannot enter someone else’s property and remove any property without his/her permission.  To recover the property, you need to file a lawsuit for breach of contact, and repossession of the property.  Because your contract does not specify what happens when one party fails to pay as promised, case law tells us what to do.  In this case, you are entitled to money damages equal to the entire contract or you can recover the equipment. If you contract allows you to recover attorney and court fees, you can add this figure to your damages. Once you have a judgment, then you must file a Writ of Execution to recover the equipment. Depending on your county, you will need to hire the Sheriff to visit the property to recover the equipment. I recommend talking to a lawyer before you act; otherwise you may be liable for trespass.

How to stop a sheriffs sale of home

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I received this question by email:

How do I stop a sheriff sale of my home?

This is my answer:

Go to court and file a Motion to Stay Sheriff Sale. Call the court’s clerk and she/he can help you file the necessary paperwork.  You want to file the motion as an emergency. Of course, the judge is going to ask you why do you want to stop the sale. You should have a good explanation about how you intend to pay the past-due mortgage payments.  You may want to contact the lender, and work out a loan modification.  You should also talk to a lawyer to determine whether bankruptcy is a good option for you. On the other hand, if you really can’t afford the mortgage, then you should consider selling the property.

Good luck.

 

 

 

The Best Celebrity Lawsuits of 2011

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In honor of the New Year, I am posting an article from The Hollywood Reporter. This is a list of the most outrageous celebrity lawsuits of 2011.  Some of my favorites:

  1. The $1 trillion dollar lawsuit against Oprah for stealing the plaintiff’s poet
  2. The lawsuit against Michael Jordan because he looks like the plaintiff.
  3. The lawsuit against Budweiser for falsely advertising that its beer will cause endless merriment with beautiful women.

 Read the entire article and view the photo gallery here.

Q: I bought a used car but the car doesn’t work. What can I do?

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I bought a used car from a dealership.  I negotiated over the phone, but did not inspect the car prior to purchasing it. I mailed the dealership a check. They delivered the car.  When the car arrived, it had more damage than the salesperson stated.  In addition, when I tried to start the car, it did not work.  I contacted the dealership.  They want me to buy a newer car and pay $10,000 more than what I already paid.  What are my options?

 

This is my answer:

You have many options.  It appears to me that you have a breach of contract claim and possibly a violation of the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practice Act. You can try to contact the dealership’s consumer relations department or their general manager.  If that doesn’t work you can contact the Pennsylvania Attorney General. File a complaint online. If that is not successful, then contact an attorney.  A letter from your attorney may be sufficient to resolve the matter. If not, then prepare to sue them in court.  If you are successful in proving that the dealership violated the Unfair Trade Practices act, then you may be entitled to an additional amount equal to triple your damages. 

Good luck.

When does a tweet become a contract? the $1 million dollar reward

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An artist’s promises on Twitter to pay $1mm for returning his missing laptop. A stranger returns the laptop. Does the artist have to pay the stranger $1mm? In Pennsylvania, probably yes.

Artist Ryan Leslie lost his laptop while on tour in Germany. This is the tweet : “I’m absolutely continuing my Euro tour plus raised the reward for my intellectual property to $1mm. Click to watch: http://on.fb.me/bCBnrM””. Does this 160-character statement make a contract? Would a reasonable person read this tweet, and believe all she has to do is find the laptop and she will become a millionaire? Well, Armin Augstein has filed a lawsuit in New York claiming that Leslie’s tweet is a binding contract.

While New York law will determine the lawsuit’s outcome, let’s imagine what would happen if Augstein sued Leslie in Pennsylvania. The contract in dispute is called a unilateral contract; it means that Leslie made a promise and all that is requried to convert this promise into a contract is that the other party must merely act—or in this case—find the laptop. Ordinarily, a contract requries two parties to commuincate with each other. (this is called a bilateral contract). If this situation were a bilateral contract, Leslie would make an offer by tweet; someone would accept his offer by tweet, and a contract is born.

However, a unilateral contract is different. The person accepting the offer does not have to communicate his/her acceptance. The person accepts the contract by acting.1 The law will examine the tweet for “some language of commitment or some invitation to take further action without further communication.”2 The threshold question is: would a reasonable person read the tweet and understand that she would receive one million dollars if, without further communication with Leslie, she found the laptop. Without this language, the law may find this tweet was merely an advertisement or invitation to begin negotiations. So, in short, if Leslie were sued in Pennsylvania, he may lose a million dollars. My best advice to Leslie: settle early before your legal bill also reaches a million dollars.

There, of course, is a separate issue of whether Leslie is morally or ethically responsible for paying the promised million. I believe the answer is yes. I think Leslie is a sophisticated public figure, and New York Law School agrees with me. He understands the power of Twitter and the media. He is a Harvard-graduate at the age of 19 and a Grammy-award nominee. He should have known better. Thus, the court should hold him accountable for the promises he makes in public.

Sharmil McKee
sm@mckeeoffice.com
Business Attorney
Philadelphia, PA
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1. Bauer v. Pottsville Area Emergency Med. Serv., Inc., 758 A. 2d 1265 (Pa. Super. 2000).
2. Bourke v. Kazaras, 746 A.2d 642, 644 (Pa. Super. 2000).