Legal Question in Landlord & Tenant Law in California

Everyone involved lives in CA. My Brother & Sister in law has/had a non-paid caretaker (free room & board for helping out around the house). My Sis n law passed away 8/8/11. I�ve been helping my Bro n law get his finances together, he had a brain bleed 3 yrs ago & has a little memory problem (his Wife took care of all the financials for 37 yrs). So far I have looked at the last 90 days of financials; monies to the tune of $15K in one form or another have gone to the caretaker. I will probably find upwards of $75K (or more) that have gone to him over the past 3 years.

My first question is �is this elder abuse�?

My next question involves the fact that I kicked the caretaker & his boyfriend out (about 3 weeks ago) after I discovered said problem. They are renting a house in another city. They took most of their belongings but left behind a few things (lizard cages, a small pile of clothes, and a mattress). Their mail still comes to the house, can�t forward it, don�t know there new address. They were not rent payers. Do we have to go through the eviction process to get rid of their crap and to stop them from coming back if they have a mind to? Thank you for any help.


Asked on 9/09/11, 4:08 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys

David Gibbs The Gibbs Law Firm, APC

First, I am sorry to hear about your sister-in-law passing. Next, as far as elder-abuse, you need to consult with an attorney who handles matters of that nature - as the question was posted in Landlord & Tenant law, you're not likely to get a response from someone with experience with elder-absue cases.

With respect to the property they left behind, you do not have to go through an eviction to get rid of it. Irrespective of their status in the home - renters, non-renters, etc... the rules are the same. From what you posted, it sounds relatively clear that they have left with no intention of returning. As such, the property they left behind is most likely abandoned property in the context of landlord-tenant law. The California Department of Consumer Affairs has a pretty good webpage describing what a landlord must do with abandoned property. That page can be found here http://www.dca.ca.gov/publications/legal_guides/lt-5.shtml. Read that, as well as the underlying law (footnoted on the webpage) for the specific procedures for dealing with the property that has been left. You have to be reasonable in your assessment of the value of the property - you can be held liable for dumping property if its value does in fact exceed the statutory limits if you were not reasonable in your assessment of value. Good luck.

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Answered on 9/09/11, 4:32 pm


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