Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Illinois

Car and personal id stolen

Do i have a case if one of the employee's of a car company i purchased a car from stole my car from my house and stole my file from their place of buisness. The owner is admitting he knows who and wont do anything to compensate my needs . He says he's not responsible.


Asked on 2/14/07, 1:48 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

Burton Padove Indiana and Illinois Lawyer, Burton A. Padove

Re: Car and personal id stolen

You may have a case if the employer knew or should have known that the employee or any of his employees were doing these types of things, or if this employee had a criminal record and the employer was negligent in hiring.

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Answered on 2/14/07, 2:01 pm
John Eliasik Citizens' Law Office

Re: Car and personal id stolen

Essentially, you are asking an employer to take responsibility for the acts of an employee. This is called "respondeat superior". There is an exception, called "ultra vires". This means that an employer is not responsible for actions taken outside of the scope of the employees' duties. Usually, this is applied to criminal acts, which are generally not authorized. Whether it applies to your situation is a matter of legal research.

The dealership may be directly liable, if they were reckless in letting this employee have access to a set of keys to your vehicle. It would take investigation.

It may help if you have a specific amount of damages (money) you are looking for, and you can justify it. Without this, the owner may think you are trying to take advantage of the situation.

Hope this helps.

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Answered on 2/14/07, 2:33 pm


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