Brother in law demanding repayment of money given as gift

gibboelli

Ugh, tell me about it. I think even Jeremy Kyle would be bored of it.

The sister is silent on the matter so who knows.

fluffnutter

meritaten wrote: »

yes I think it was signed under duress too - its PROVING it that's the problem here!

As is proving that the money wasn't a gift in the first place. It's his word against the other one. How silly it all is. Is this really what courts are for? Settling paltry little debts between disgruntled members of the same family? Grow up!

Carl31

Op, you know the parties involved, would they gift each other £500 usually?

£500 is quite bit to take from someone not knowing its true intention, i dont think any of my family would gift me that amount, i wouldnt take it if they did

Cant your bf just give it back?

Mrs_Imp

Now he knows what his family is really like. If he can pay it, then he should, then walk away from them. It could be the best £500 he ever spends.

I once lent someone £500 on the understanding that they pay it back when they got a job. First pay check got spent on drugs and taking friends out clubbing (not me though). It made me realise where I stood and I scarpered sharpish. I never saw a penny back, but I did know where I stood in their life.

Kayalana99

Right im not 100% but here goes.

This 'loan agreement' doesn't state how much was actally lent. So next question did any of it go bank to bank? It will be extremly difficult (if it went to court) to prove he was loaned any money that wasn't deposited into his bank account.

This does not 'all clear' him if it was cash but it will be your bfs word against BIL. End day evidence matters most though.

If no money was actally transferred bank to bank your bf won't be able to say no money was lent as he signed a loan agreement - so again this would be up for dicussion.

As for being taken to court if BIL wins BF will have to pay all court costs - but if BF can't afford to pay it all in a lump sum (I belive this bit might be wrong) they will ask to see his income? - But then bf can say I cant afford to pay back I will pay £5 a month (or whatever he can afford)

So BIL will probally not end up getting his money quicker.

End day though if thier is a paper trail + he signed this agreement you probally wont have much of a leg to stand on.

fluffnutter

Carl31 wrote: »

Op, you know the parties involved, would they gift each other £500 usually?

£500 is quite bit to take from someone not knowing its true intention, i dont think any of my family would gift me that amount, i wouldnt take it if they did

I think that the 'gifts' totalled £500. So over a period of some time, it could have been £50 here, £50 there. I can see how it can add up and would be quite different to lending (or giving) someone a lump sum of £500.

kellymunsch848

If this dispute went to court, it would be the judges opinion whether he was duress or not, if he/she believes you then you could be ok. Depends on the evidence.

fluffnutter

Kayalana99 wrote: »

As for being taken to court if BIL wins BF will have to pay all court costs - but if BF can't afford to pay courts (I belive this bit might be wrong) they will ask to see his income? - But then bf can say I cant afford to pay back I will pay £5 a month (or whatever he can afford)

So BIL will probally not end up getting his money quicker.

End day though if thier is a paper trail + he signed this agreement you probally wont have much of a leg to stand on.

It's an important point. If the OP's OH doesn't have any money, even if the court rules in the BIL's favour, you can't pay back money you don't have. So he'll continue to owe the BIL money, the only difference being that the court agrees he owes the money. So what?

The fees are added to the sum being claimed, i.e. you don't pay the courts separately. On a sum of £500, costs are likely to be around £100 so if the OP's OH loses, he now owes BIL £600. And if he refuses to pay, or can't pay... then what?

gibboelli

Regardless of how silly it is, The consensus is that the money is owed as my boyfriend signed this letter, under duress or not.

Would a court really be willing to take any action over such a small sum of money that is actually being paid back? if only in installments? This seems such a waste as my boyfriend is living at skin of his teeth paying off all his debts so it would not really gain anything, even taking him to court except huge amounts of stress and even more debt.

fluffnutter

gibboelli wrote: »

Regardless of how silly it is, The consensus is that the money is owed as my boyfriend signed this letter, under duress or not.

Would a court really be willing to take any action over such a small sum of money that is actually being paid back? if only in installments? This seems such a waste as my boyfriend is living at skin of his teeth paying off all his debts so it would not really gain anything, even taking him to court except huge amounts of stress and even more debt.

Re. your first point, I don't think that. So it's not consensus. I'm not sure that everyone else does either. They're just pointing out that, from a court's perspective, it might be seen as proof.

Re. your second question, that's precisely what the small claims court is for. So yes, a court would be willing to take action.

I think your OH needs to start talking. This is his family, fgs. Can he really not resolve things without having to go to court?