My lawyer wasn't responding, so I gave him a call. It turns out, my landlord hired him for a different case. This means he can't defend me anymore, since my landlord pays more money (he's a company, I'm a person). If he were to defend me, there would be a conflict of interest. I'll have to find a new lawyer extremely soon, as they're going to announce the date of the court case this week.

This is either a great coincidence, or a massive dick move from your land lord

I'd go with the latter...

I'd say it's probably a mixture of the two. ;) Coincidence, that he has multiple cases at the same time, and dodgy move, in that he (possibly) deliberately hired Farah's lawyer.

If he's that desperate, though, Farah could probably win the case without a lawyer lol. ;) Hope it goes well, Farah!

Seems like your lawyer has engaged in unethical behavior - perhaps you should report them to the governing body for lawyers (here it would be the Bar Assn). Seems like dropping an existing client simply to make more money by entering into a self inflicted conflict of interest is pretty inappropriate. If you have paid them anything for representation in this matter, they've clearly harmed you, as you now have to start from scratch with a new lawyer, which will entail redundant billable hours. Not to mention that they are privy to your side of the case and that information could "inadvertently" find its way to your landlord.

Good luck mate! Thanks for the posting - we get good entertainment value (though at your expense)

hey Farah, in which city is this fairytale taking place?

Leeuwarden, NL (iirc)

I started renting an apartment on May 1st, 2019. The rent was quite high: €720 for the apartment and €100 for costs including gas, water, electricity and internet.

I'm lucky I live cheap. My girlfriend pays €80 for her room per month. That's extraordinarly cheap considering she does not pay for electricity and water. furthermore the room is right next to the college campus so she never is in a hurry. Meanwhile, 820€ is a gasp-taking high amount. To pay 10 times more as a student like this is a financial necklace for your savings. With high-prices like these, the reason for renting a house as a student is a big no-no. This among others, are the main reasons I live with my parents and take the train to school.

If only my parents hadn't kicked me out when I turned 18 :p

that's damn early

They can't kick you just like that at 18. You're protected by the law. I would call police and you have a right to live with parents.

If they have a problem with that, I would say: "It was your decision to make birth to me, so now you have some responsibility towards me. If you want to kick me out of the house and avoid that responsibility, I'm calling the police"

Edited 8/19/2020 04:25:09

Legally, they can kick you out when you are 18 given that you are an adult, and demanding that they take care of you at that point makes you sound like an entitled child. That said, it is entirely up to the parents to determine how long they want to take care of their adult child.

But we are getting off topic.

Farah, I wish you luck with this landlord. He sounds like a real piece of work. (I know I shouldn’t wish I’ll on people, but I wouldn’t be sad if there were a wayward bus when he is crossing the street.)

Also, your lawyer sounds like they broke the law by allowing themselves to be hired by both you and your opponent. As someone previously mentioned, I’d recommend looking into it with the bar association or equivalent.

Best of luck!

Sucks to be kicked out so early Farah. High cost was the main reason that made me decide to stay and take the train to school rather than go live closer.

You should not only sue your landlord to get back your money, but counter sue him for all a compensation for all the time you wasted on his BS.

High cost was the main reason that made me decide to stay and take the train to school rather than go live closer.

same, except my parents don't want me to leave without having a job and enough capital first

Edited 8/19/2020 18:37:57

@Z

The point is, tenants have their rights and you can show the police on your passport that you live there.

Kicking people on the street is illegal. So your parents need to have eviction documents to legally kick you, which are hard to get. Without these documents they can't do shit.

Legally, they can kick you out when you are 18 given that you are an adult, and demanding that they take care of you at that point makes you sound like an entitled child. That said, it is entirely up to the parents to determine how long they want to take care of their adult child.

Maybe in the US. Over here (Germany), yes, you can kick out your kids when they turn18, but you will still be required by law to pay them subsistence allowance until they have finished their vocational education and earn their own money. I don't know Dutch alimony laws, but I guess they are not that much different in that aspect?

Edited 8/20/2020 06:50:30

Let's just say me being kicked out was sort of a mutual agreement. But more mutual from my parents' side. Moving out was the best thing I ever did. I finished my high school and then went on to study. Which turned out to be way easier when I didn't have my parents' drama around

I used to live in the Netherlands. May I ask which state or city you live in? (My mom would have a field day with this situation, since she's put people in their place many times before.) We've had many landlords, one of which was probably one of the best in Germany. But then we moved to Maryland and had two landlords kick us out; one to start a business and one to sell the house. The one to sell the house came with a fair share of problems throughout our stay, including not removing her stuff out and trying to charge us for damage her movers caused.

So, another funky update:

This morning I received a letter. The postman deemed it so important that I had to sign to prove I received it. After a small back-and-forth with the postman, I signed the document, received my letter and continued to read it. It was my landlord's debt collector who had written me. When I finished reading and taking it all in, my mother called me. She had received the same letter. What a coincidence!

The letter stated that I hadn't paid the €1229,67 yet. At least they got one fact right. Because they are so generous, they are giving me seventeen days to pay. The last letter, from July 17th, only gave me sixteen days. Now, if my math is correct (and it rarely is), July 17th is 39 days ago, so I might have not paid in time indeed. Anyways. They're claiming they're going to sue me and my mother. Now, my mother is married to a guy. And this guy doesn't like being sued. He's working on a letter (and it contains a LOT of swearwords), which will be funny to read once it's finished.

In the meantime, to reply or not to reply, that is the question. Sending another picture of me laughing at them seems like a funny joke, but I feel it's passed its funniness. Therefore, I've replied this time with this picture of my cat, to pay for all the damage I've caused them:

They didn't accept my currency =/

That's a cute cat! I can only hope the photo is made on your previous landlord's property. I also hope the letter contains many creative swearwords, as they are clearly superior.

On a more serious note, good luck. I thought a court meeting was already scheduled? But why are they then threatening to sue you?

Furthermore, your previous lawyer is a dick. Don't forget to tell that to your new lawyer. Could get funny with the "deken".