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By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

Landlord clients often ask me about what they can do legally to screen and/or reject prospective tenants. A landlord’s goal is to lease the premises to a tenant who will pay their rent and keep the premises in good shape. To accomplish this goal, there are several areas that a landlord can use to legally exclude or reject prospective tenants. Some examples include non-smoking; criminal convictions for any reason; low credit score; bad reference from previous landlord; etc. A landlord can deny housing to a prospective tenant for just about any reason, so long as the reason used is not an illegal reason. The list of illegal reasons are contained in the Fair Housing Act.

There are three basic documents that every landlord should use when leasing real property. One of these three documents is the Rental Application. When used correctly, the Rental Application provides the landlord with the best tools to legally reject a prospective tenant.

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By Patrick George

When you rent a car, there is understandably a certain expectation that the vehicle will be provided in good mechanical repair, and with safe tires which are relatively new and have good tread. Idaho roadways are packed with leased vehicles from numerous rental car companies with very recognizable names due to our picturesque scenery and vacation places. While rental car vehicles are typically washed and vacuumed, and even delivered with a fresh new scent or pine smell, they are not always delivered with the same high quality tires, engine repair, and other vehicle needs that we have come to expect.

More than one case has been brought against a rental car company in connection with accidents that were allegedly caused by low tire tread resulting in a hydroplaning event or a lack of traction on slick or snowy roads. Imagine the surprise and dismay experienced by those who were injured, or their family members, when it was learned that the tire tread on the rental vehicles had been worn down below the level recommended in the safety manuals generated by the very rental car companies that had leased the vehicles. Consider the last time you actually checked the tread on a rental car. And yet, so often it would not be something that you wouldn’t trust on your own vehicle.

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By Heidi Buck Morrison

Child custody orders are not necessarily permanent. However, they cannot be changed at the drop of a hat either. In Idaho, in order to justify a change in a custody order, the moving party must demonstrate a material, substantial change in circumstances occurred since entry of the earlier order. Courts have great discretion in decisions regarding child custody, and in addition to determining whether the moving party has met their burden of showing a material, substance change, courts will always look to ensure any custody modification serves the best interests of the children.      

Clients often wonder what qualifies as a “material, substantial change in circumstances.” However, there is no definitive answer. It is a fact specific inquiry and analysis that a court must engage in. An attorney can help you determine if your unique set of facts may qualify as a material, substantial change in circumstances.

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By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

A common area of law that involves environmental issues in a landlord tenant relationship is the implied warranty of habitability. This area is frequently contested by tenants when they are being evicted. This is usually done by a tenant as a means of trying to avoid the eviction by offsetting the amount of rent they have failed to pay with the damages they claim are caused by the landlord.

In most cases, but not in all, this argument fails and the eviction goes forward anyway. This is usually the case not because the tenant’s claims aren’t true. Rather, this is usually the case because the tenant has failed to follow the statutory requirements to properly notify the landlord of problems with the property that properly raise the issue of implied warranty of habitability.

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By Patrick George

Often the idea of an unmarked crosswalk is misunderstood or misapplied. The lack of understanding this concept can lead to tragic and even fatal accidents between vehicles, pedestrians, and bicyclists. Fortunately Idaho has specific laws to govern the responsibilities of the various users of this area of the road.

Most everybody knows that they must watch for pedestrians in marked crosswalks. These marked crossings often have signs, white paint on the roadway, and even flashing lights to alert drivers to the potential of pedestrians. Drivers know that they should stop for pedestrians and bicyclists. Other drivers are alert to the fact that if one vehicle is stopped at a crossing, it is illegal to pass. What about unmarked crosswalks?

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By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

Many employers do not know or understand the laws that apply when it comes to hiring or choosing to not hire a prospective employee with a criminal record. Additionally, the amount of misinformation that exists and that people hear from well-meaning friends or unreliable sources on the internet only add to the confusion. Below are several myths that exist concerning whether or how employers can use criminal background checks in the employment process and actual facts to dispel those myths.

MYTH #1

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By Lane V. Erickson, Attorney

The law doesn’t do this for you automatically. Rather, the presumption under many different laws is that you want your assets and property to be distributed to you immediate family members such as your spouse and children. However, the law does allow you to disinherit a specific person when you use certain language in your Last Will and Testament. Here are 3 things you should know about disinheriting family members.

Can I Disinherit a Child?

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Augustin Rangel, a 55 year-old farmer from Caldwell, Idaho died from personal injuries he sustained when a van tried to pass two slow-moving tractors, including the one he was operating, which caused an accident on Homedale and Beet Roads in Canyon County, Idaho, on Sunday, September 25, 2016. Several other injured people were transported to local hospitals as a result of the car crash. The car accident is still under investigation.

Idaho law enforcement agencies have issued statements reminding drivers to use caution, be patient and slow down while driving on the roads during the harvest season when farm vehicles are present. Farmers have the same rights to operate their equipment on the roads as other motorists do. Drivers should move over, slow down and if necessary, stop and allow the farm equipment to pass. Farm Bureau agencies teamed up with law enforcement to spread public awareness of the dangers in rural areas while the harvest of potatoes, corn, onions, sugar beets, wine grapes and seed crops continues for the next several weeks.

According to the Idaho Department of Transportation, there were 12,383 aggressive driving crashes in 2015; 77 resulted in fatalities. 70% of the fatal aggressive driving crashes occurred in rural areas. Aggressive driving can include failure to yield the right of way, exceeding the posted speed limit, driving too fast for conditions, and following too closely. The Idaho State Police urges motorists to: “Be alert, be patient, stay alive.” In most instances, accidents can be prevented: take your time, yield to slow-moving vehicles, allow a safe stopping distance, and be mindful of changing road conditions.

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By Joseph G. Ballstaedt

To properly draft a contract, a person usually needs to step into the future and understand unfavorable or damaging possibilities that could result as the contract is performed. Some possibilities may be extremely unlikely, and others may be difficult to discern on the surface, but a good contract will include terms that either prevent or minimize these harms. Certainly the stakes are higher in complex contracts involving millions of dollars, but even simple contracts where just a few hundred dollars pass hands can result in thousands (or even millions) of dollars of liability.

Recently, I met someone who made a minor revision to a standard residential lease agreement, failed to fully contemplate how that provision would play out, and ended up with thousands of dollars of liability. Sadly, the rent at issue under the lease was almost a non-issue compared to the overall liability.

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