Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

After having rented my property to two tenants, I have found out that they committed fraud during the rental process by giving me fake pay stubs from a well established and well known national chain. They presented themselves as the employees of the store and provided me with the name of the store manager for the employment verification. The store manager who did work for the store falsely verified the employment of these prospective tenants.

Although the pay roll department of this store has acknowledged over the phone that my tenants never worked for the store and the paychecks they have submitted me are fake, they have refused to put this in writing.

1) Can I Subpoena the store to give me verification that my tenants never worked for them and the pay stubs they gave me are fake?

2) Can I take legal action against the store manager who falsely verified the employment of my tenants or the store itself?

Thank you for clarifying.


Asked on 6/10/13, 10:17 pm

4 Answers from Attorneys

Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

1. Subpoenas can only be issued as part of an ongoing court case. Unless you have sued someone over this, you can't get a subpoena.

2. Possibly. What the manager did sounds like fraud. But you would have to prove you have been harmed as a result. If the tenants are paying their rent and haven't damaged your property, then you probably haven't been harmed. And even if you have been harmed, that wouldn't necessarily mean the manager or the store are liable for that harm. Also, if the amount of harm you've suffered is small, then you likely would not be awarded much in the way of damages.

Note that if you sue the store you won't need a subpoena to get its records. Subpoenas are only used for non-parties. There are other methods for getting evidence from parties.

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Answered on 6/10/13, 10:43 pm
John Laurie Gertz and Laurie

I understand that you are upset but on a practical note, are they good tenants and are they paying rent? A subpoena can be issued to a non party in a lawsuit. If you have damages you may depending on the facts be able to take action as to the alleged manager.

This gratuitous response does not create an attorney client relationship. The advice provided herein is generic, may not apply to your circumstances and is not to be relied upon in your actions. An attorney client relationship is created only upon execution of a retainer agreement hiring me or my firm.

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Answered on 6/10/13, 11:24 pm
Phillip D. Wheeler, Esq. Phillip D. Wheeler, Attorney At Law

Are the tenants paying rent? That is my question. If they are paying rent each month I am not sure what the issue is. Yes, you can subpoena to a non party in a lawsuit. Were there any damages that you can claim?

DISCLAIMER: This is general information only and based upon limited information. Facts that could change the outcome have not been evaluated.

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Answered on 6/11/13, 1:36 am
Anthony Roach Law Office of Anthony A. Roach

I agree with Mr. Hoffman.

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Answered on 6/12/13, 2:37 pm


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