Jewels

Oh, my. Can anyone provide this sweet woman with some help line information?! TPM Sister #102

Andrew scrambles frantically to warm up the car. Be careful on the Crown Royal Highway. Yeah, I don't think she should actually be REWARDED for that kind of behavior. I'm going to the Avs/Flames game on Saturday and I don't want to think about Shell screwing this one up. . . . TPM Sister #102

Bittersweet, but I'm SO glad they were successful! What a great accomplishment. The video is pretty spectacular. TPM Sister #102

I don't know; once the bone started cracking, it's my guess that her day was pretty well ruined anyway. It looked like it all happened pretty fast. There might not have been time for her to do anything (like stop running) from the time she heard the crack, anyway. TPM Sister #102

I don't know that I follow all of what you're saying, but again, I'm really not following this one in the courts or in the media so I'm not opining on the "permission" the neighbors may have had or not had with respect to the use of the property. They're still entitled to bring the case and have the court determine whether they satisfied the elements of their claim. A "quiet title" action is just an action to determine who owns the property, and they can do that. It doesn't guarantee that they will win their case, but neither does it mean that they should be disbarred for bringing a case they are allowed to bring. One of the great things about our legal system is that we're entitled to bring causes of action before the court to have matters like this legally resolved. On the whole, I think we treasure our rights and privileges in this country and part of having those rights means that others have them, too. Just because they choose to exercise them does not make them inherently unethical--even if there are good reasons that they might lose their case. Let's face it; if we all agreed about how cases should be resolved, there would be no need to go to court in the first place. Let's say, just for the sake of discussion, that this couple had permission to use the property but still thought they had a good claim for adverse possession so they asked the court to resolve it by bringing their case. Let's even suppose that the court objectively reached the wrong conclusion and the plaintiffs shouldn't have prevailed, but they did. That doesn't mean THEY should be disbarred. It means that we should look at what happened in the court and take the case up on appeal if the outcome wasn't what it should have been. If it's really aggregious and the judge on the bench just decided, "Hey, I like these two--it's another judge and an attorney and we're tight because we chose the same profession," we should look at the judge deciding the case. I still haven't heard a reason why the couple bringing the case in the first place should be disbarred because they exercised their right to bring a non-frivolous case before the court. TPM Sister #102

Again, I don't know the factual details. There could be other factors at play that make their actions wrong, but just on the face of it, the judge and attorney neighbors were within their rights to bring that kind of suit. We don't have to like it OR like the outcome, but it doesn't sound like a frivolous suit in that there was apparently legal basis for it--enough so that they won. That doesn't mean they should be disbarred. It's like saying that the quarterback on an opposing football team should be banned from play because they ran a play that your team wasn't expecting but still worked well enough against you to win the Superbowl. You probably wouldn't like the outcome but it doesn't make the player in the wrong. You have to have defensive players helping out as well--and that includes practicing plays and learning what to expect before you get to the game. TPM Sister #102

LOL--Permission is a good thing. Just let them know they have your permission. Not a tough thing to do. Anyway, the point was just that someone wondered about the other side of the story. There are always two!

Yep. So, the lesson is, protect your rights. Don't sit there and watch your neighbors use your land while you don't. Give them a LICENSE to use it, if you wish--because then it's use by permission. That doesn't lead to adverse possession. Tell them they CAN'T use it. Put up a fence, post no trespassing signs. Consult a lawyer to discuss what you need to do because those things may not be enough. They might be, but maybe you need to do something more as well, depending on the circumstances. As I said, it's a very fact-intensive area of the law. Or, talk to your legislators and do something to change the law. In any event, I think we've gotten distracted from the main post. Derek's post is obviously pointing at another possible reason that WFFC was canceled. The property dispute may have nothing to do with it. TPM Sister #102

You can't adversely possess against the government. TPM Sister #102

LOL--That's my point. Sometimes the problem is the law itself. TPM Sister #102

I have not tracked the adverse possession case and do not pretend to know the details of it or to opine on whether the outcome was a correct one or not. However, I'll just mention that the period of adverse possession in Colorado is eighteen years, which means that a casual use one summer, for example, isn't going to result in anyone losing their land. You have to be vigilant as a property owner. If people are using your property, you need to make it clear that their use is by permission or you need to "oust" them (and no, I don't mean by using self-help methods) to protect your ownership interest. Adverse possession cases are, by necessity, very fact-specific. As I said, I don't know the facts in this particular case but it's not a bright-line rule area of the law. The facts definitely matter. So, the other side of the story here *could* be that the original property owners sat back and did nothing to protect their property rights for eighteen years or more while someone else started to put that property to use. Eighteen years is a long time. If the neighbors were able to prove to the court that they had used it for that long, meeting all the elements required to establish a claim of adverse possession (i.e., use of property that is actual, adverse, hostile, under claim of right, exclusive, and uninterrupted for the statutory period of 18 years), the court SHOULD award the property to them because that's what the law says. By statute in Colorado, eighteen years of adverse possession is "conclusive evidence of absolute ownership." So, perhaps the consideration should be whether the law itself is correct. That comes from a different branch of the government. People understandably jump first on the lawyers and judges when they see case outcomes that they don't like, and sometimes that criticism is fair. On the other hand, sometimes the real objection is to the underlying law itself that allows such outcomes. Adverse possession is not a new, nor is it a unique, concept. However, the way the concept is implemented can be changed by amending the statutes. TPM Sister #102

Congrats! I'm happy for you AND the kids. They needed you and you SHOULD brag a little bit! You've earned it. Now get over here and do some vacationing! TPM Sister #102

I have a very small immediate family if you my geneaology, but I have been blessed with a GREAT family of friends who would all step up in a heartbeat if I never needed anything. I'm thankful that this is true, and thankful that I don't doubt it for a moment! (I'm also thankful that, so far, I haven't had to find out.) I'm thankful for patient instructors. I'm thankful for a good job with a good firm that hires and expects integrity. I'm thankful that the car is repaired and that even if it's not perfect yet--there's always more to be done--I can get to and from work every day and I have no real inconvenience in doing it. I'm thankful that Mom made it through back surgery without major incident and is looking forward to feeling good again. I'm thankful that the dog's heart held up and powered through surgery for a torn ligament and a patella repair--especially at her sweet little age of 12! I'm thankful that I've been blessed to have so many amazing experiences that I never would have expected to have. I haven't missed a moment, and I'm grateful. I'm thankful that I have friends who know that Thanksgiving is small because my family is small, but who made sure I'd have a place to spend it. I've had three offers and I think I'll only be able to get by two of them . . . AFTER Mom and I celebrate together! I'm thankful that in the last year, I've learned new ways to find happiness and discovered that there is more to me than I ever would have suspected. It's not necessarily all good--but it's beyond my own expectations! I'm thankful that as I've learned more about myself, it has become easier to give grace to others. Again, it's far from perfect, but I find that I can stretch myself further to forgive, or to understand, or just to accommodate differences. I have a long way to go, but it's a beginning! I'm thankful that we have a holiday every year that makes us stop and take inventory of these things so that nothing is taken for granted! TPM Sister #102

No objection, and I'm nowhere near SVNH. Then again, I want the deals at OUR tunnel to be secretly passed to me in advance so I can book my time FIRST. Okay, okay, it doesn't work like that. TPM Sister #102

What terrific news!!! Congratulations! I'm very happy for you and know that it has to be a tremendous relief. Time to celebrate . . . before all the hard work kicks in. TPM Sister #102

You're welcome! I'm glad they had something up. TPM Sister #102

I confess, I don't get all THAT excited about the food, although I could completely get into the "gooey" thing. However, two different sets of friends have invited me to come by and it's the second year in a row for this. It's my skydiver family and I'm about as thankful for them as I am for my own. I can't wait just to spend the time with them! (It's so good that I'm not male. This post alone would require a shredding of my man card.) TPM Sister #102

FWIW, Snopes says it's true. I could spend MUCH too much time doing that!

I don't care HOW much testosterone you have, a physical attack is not acceptable, period. There are other ways to handle difficult situations responsibly and even someone's affair does not justify that sort of behavior. TPM Sister #102

There is no "under" option. Not really. I mean, okay, people do it but that doesn't make it right. OVER. Then you can fold it so it makes that nice little point on the square you pull, and stick that in your guest bath. "Under" is just begging to get corrected. TPM Sister #102

Yep, I was right. Don't want one! OUCH!!!!!!!!! TPM Sister #102

Article contains link to video: http://www.9news.com/rss/article.aspx?storyid=80242 TPM Sister #102

Okay, for those of us who have managed to remain intact in spite of themselves, what is a "reduction?" I am pretty sure I don't want to have one, but details would help! TPM Sister #102

I'm thinking that would be an excellent addition up at MileHi, though! TPM Sister #102

What? The source code Peter blogged about? Damn, gal, that's WAY too freaky for me! What can I say? I have a penchant for source code. Edited to add: Okay, well, not THAT particular source code. I can't sell a bad-girl image even when I try. TPM Sister #102