01x113 - Remains of a 15-Year Relationship

[bunniefuu]

[Judge Judy]
You were together for 14 years?

Yes, ma'am.

[Judge Judy] Did you take out
from your joint account

any money prior to his leaving?

- And she just...
- Shush.

The only money put in the joint account
was his money?

- That's what...
- Exactly.

Here's...shh.

[Carl] Judge Judy, I watch you
all the time so I understand.

If you've watched you know.

Don't say a word.

[announcer] This is Judy Justice.

[theme music playing]

[announcer] Gina Baker
is suing her ex-boyfriend,

Carl Harper, for his portion of utilities,

rent, and half the value
of a peloton bike.

[Kevin] Court come to order.

Have a seat please.

Hello, Judge.

Case number 1153, Baker versus Harper.

- Thank you.
- [Kevin] You're welcome.

[Judge Judy] Ms. Baker, you
and Mr. Harper were together

for over 14 years
as a couple, lived together.

- Yes, ma'am.
- [Judge Judy] And separated sometime

- in September of this year.
Yes.

- [Judge Judy] You purchased a home.
- Yes. I...

[Judge Judy] In what year
did you purchase a home?

- Um 2016.
- [Judge Judy] Prior to that,

where did you and Mr. Harper live?

[Gina] We lived in another residence
in a town a few minutes away,

- in Anoka, Minnesota.
- [Judge Judy] Was it a rental?

[Gina] No. It was...I had owned
that property for 17 years.

So, Mr. Harper moved in with you?

Yes. In that residence, and then...

[Judge Judy] But he moved in
to your prior residence...

- Yeah.
- Judge Judy] ...that you owned.

- [Gina] Yes.
- [Judge Judy] When he moved in,

- was he working?
- [Gina] Yes. He's...yeah,

- he's always been employed.
- What kind of work do you do, Mr. Harper?

- I'm a pool builder.
- [Judge Judy] And when you moved in

to the prior residence,
prior to 2016,

were you contributing to the household?

Yes.

[Judge Judy]
How did you share your finances?

- Split 'em.
- Down the middle?

- [Carl] Down the middle.
- Did you have a joint bank account?

- No. No.
- At that time, no.

So, in what year
did you have a joint bank account?

- '17, maybe.
- [Gina] 2017. Yeah, we...

I cosigned for a Jeep.

So both of our names were on the,

the Jeep Wrangler vehicle.

And in order to do that,
we had to open a joint account

- for them to get the payments on AutoPay.
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

[Carl] Well, we had
a Harley that we were both on.

We had a BMW we were both on.

We were on a Range Rover.

So there was quite a few vehicles
that we both were on, so...

[Judge Judy]
That you're both on the title?

- Yes.
- Is that correct?

- [Gina] Yes. But they were all...
- Over the years?

- ...his vehicles. I just cosigned.
- [Judge Judy] That doesn't matter.

- Yes. Yes.
- [Judge Judy] Doesn't matter.

- And I paid all the bills.
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

So, you cosigned on the Jeep
but you didn't pay for the Jeep?

- He paid for the Jeep?
- [Gina] Right. Exactly.

[Judge Judy] Okay.
You opened up a joint bank account

- in 2017?
- Uh-hmm.

Who put the money
in the joint bank account?

- A very easy question. Who put the...
- I did.

- I thought you were asking her.
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

Ms. Baker, you have your own bank account.

- Yes.
- [Judge Judy] Your own checking.

- Yes, I do.
- And out of your bank account

- is paid the mortgage.
- Yes.

[Judge Judy] And out
of your bank account to pay the utilities,

taxes, et cetera,
your personal bank account.

Yes. We...

[Judge Judy]
So that...just say...so that's a yes?

- Yes. Yes.
- So since 2017,

you've had your own personal bank account

and you've had a joint bank account.

But in your bank account,

whatever moneys...
and I'm gonna find out what moneys

flow through that bank account.

You pay for all the household expenses,
out of that bank account?

[Gina] Mostly.

I had Mr. Harper
change the utilities into his name

because I moved out
for a month about four years ago.

And when I moved out,

I had the...
him put the utilities in his name.

And so what would happen
when we paid the mortgage payment

is we would split the utilities.

He would pay the utilities
with his credit cards

or however he paid the utilities
that were in his name,

and then I would deduct that
from the rent money that he...

was his half of the mortgage. And so...

Okay. But he would give you money?

- [Gina] Yes.
- My question is he would give you money

- from his own personal account...
- Yes.

[Judge Judy] ...what he earned
to put in your personal account

to pay for his share of the expenses

for the house since 2017

I'm...I mean,
I'm slightly confused about it

because I've had my own bank account
since high school, so...

- [Judge Judy] Oh, well that I understand.
- [Gina] I mean, we've...

[Judge Judy] That I understand.
But what I'm saying is,

you didn't open
this joint bank account as a vessel...

- No.
- [Judge Judy] ...to both put in money

- and pay your expenses?
- No.

He gave you money,
according to your complaint...

- And she...
- [Judge Judy] Shush.

Okay.

[Judge Judy] He gave you money.

You put the money
in your personal account...

- Yes.
- [Judge Judy] ...to pay

the household expenses...

his half of the household expenses.

- Yes.
- [Judge Judy] Fine. And, therefore,

I must assume that the only money

put in the joint account was his money?

[Gina] That's what I assumed.

I've given him eviction
notices prior to um June.

Anyway, in that process,
I found paperwork throughout the house,

two checks, one refinance refund,

one an insurance homeowner's refund

that somehow got deposited

into the "joint account"
that I never used.

Okay. Just one second.
Do you have proof of that?

- [Gina] Yes.
- Okay. How much did that total?

[Gina] The total...there was
one check for 665

which I have a photo of,
and there was another check for 705.

[Judge Judy] Okay. So let me add that up.

So this was an insurance...
these were refunds?

- Yeah. One from a homeowners...
- [Judge Judy] Shh.

Yes. Uh-hmm.

One from homeowners.
But you had split, correct?

[Gina] No. We didn't split
those refunds because...

[Judge Judy] No, no, no.
Not the refunds.

I'm not talking about the refunds.

I'm talking about the expenses
that were originally paid.

So if I add up these two figures.

[Sarah] Thirteen seventy.

Thirteen seventy.

And divide that by two, Sarah.

Six eighty-five.

So, if you split expenses...

- Uh-hmm.
- [Judge Judy] ...you would have been

entitled to $685
and he would have been entitled to 685.

- That's a yes.
- Well...no.

[Judge Judy] That's a yes.

Oh, that would be a yes.
If you split expenses

and you got these two refunds...
and you got these two...

- [Carl] That is...yeah.
- Shh. Just a second.

You don't have to agree with me.

You would have been entitled
to half of them.

So he shouldn't have taken those checks

and put them
into a personal account, if...

Given your statement
in its most favorable light...

- Uh-hmm.
- [Judge Judy] ...he should not have

put those in a joint account,

and if he did, he should have said to you,

"I'm putting these in the joint account,

but here's your...
for your personal account,

$685 which is your share of the refund."

Correct. However, I am the only person...

Which is how it happened.

...that ever pays
for any of the repairs in the house

because when it comes down to the repairs,

- the house is in my name.
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

Okay. So let me explain this to you.

- Let me explain this to you.
- [Carl] No. No.

We're not getting into those weeds.

- May I see...
- [Carl] I don't have records

- 'cause I tried to get record...
- [Judge Judy] You...

But I have a phone number
that they said I can...

Never mind.

Judge Judy, I watch you
all the time so I understand.

[theme music playing]

[announcer] Gina Baker
claims her ex-boyfriend, Carl Harper,

owes for his portion of utilities, rent,

and half the value of a peloton bike.

Carl is countersuing for money taken

from their joint bank account.

[Judge Judy] Okay.
I'm not getting into those weeds with you.

Courts don't get into those weeds.

'Cause I remodeled
the whole bathroom downstairs, so...

[Judge Judy] Shh. Just a second.
Just a second.

- Okay.
- [Judge Judy] That's why I said

I'm not getting into those weeds.

The best thing that can happen

as a result of this is that you get 685.

Now, what I gather is,
this is what you're suing him for.

You say that he lived in the house
for 13 days in September...

- Yes.
- [Judge Judy] ...and he didn't pay



Or the August utility bills
'cause when you get a utility bill,

it's billed the month...

[Judge Judy] So he didn't pay for 13 days?

- [Gina] Right. For rent.
- And then...just a second.

- Uh-hmm.
- [Judge Judy] And then...

- so...don't shuffle.
- [Carl] Okay.

- It's a bad idea to shuffle.
- [Carl] I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

[Judge Judy] And then when he left,

he took a peloton bike?

- Yes.
- And I don't know what your position is

with regard
to who bought the peloton bike.

I know it's Mr. Harper's position

that he purchased the peloton bike.

I don't know who used the peloton bike.

- Do you use it?
- Yes, I do.

- [Judge Judy] Do you use it?
- I have used it. A few times.

But he did purchase the bike.

- I did pay him half for the bike.
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

I have a copy of that check also.

[Judge Judy] Okay. So, at best,

you would be entitled to half

of what the peloton bike cost,
when it was purchased.

- It was purchased in 2017?
- '20,

- I think, according to the check.
- 2017.

- May I see? May I see?
- [Carl] I don't have records

'cause I tried to get records

and they said they had sent them out
and it'll take seven to ten days.

- Okay. You...
- [Carl] But I have a phone number

that they said I can...

- [Judge Judy] Uh-uh.
- I...never mind. Okay.

Judge Judy, I watch you
all the time so I understand.

[Judge Judy] Okay.
You say you bought it in 2017.

- Just a second.
- [Carl] Yes.

And you say you gave him a check

- for half the peloton in 2020?
- Yes.

- No.
- May...

I'd like to see the check.

- This has no statement to...
- [Gina] It has no memo on it.

- [Judge Judy] What?
- It doesn't have...

- I didn't write it in the memo.
- [Carl] She did...

- But it's the check that...
- She didn't give me a check.

- [Judge Judy] Just a second. Just...
- It's just a check that I paid him

- for half of the peloton bike.
- I don't believe that.

- Could you give this back to her?
- [Gina] Well, his delusion...

- I don't believe...
- ...to not giving me the half

of the money back
was to cut it in half with a Sawzall.

So I said, "It'd be better
if you took the bike.

- I'll take the money. Thank you."
- No.

[Judge Judy] Just a second.
I'm not getting involved in the weeds.

True.

[Judge Judy] Now how much were his half

of the expenses arranged

within $200 a month?

His half.

So far, she would be entitled to $685.

- That's...just a second.
- Okay. All right.

[Judge Judy] Just a second.

If that money was deposited
in your joint account.

She says it was.
Let's say that that's true.

Okay. How were his half of expenses?

His half is 720 for rent,

$103.50 for the association fee
which is 207.

According to the utilities
that I had copies made,

the total was about 500
so 250 in utilities.

I think that's...would be...

[Judge Judy] Okay. So that would be the...

- ...about the total.
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

So that's the expenses.

And $720, Sarah, $103, and $250.

One thousand seven-three dollars
without the cents.

Cut it in half.

[Sarah] $536.50.

[Judge Judy] Add $536.50 and $685.

[Sarah] $1,221.05.

[Judge Judy] Okay.

Now, did you take out
from your joint account

any money prior to his leaving?

- Yes. I took out...
- [Judge Judy] Shh. Just a second.

How much...'cause you have a counterclaim.

Yes.

[Judge Judy] How much
money did you take out?

I took out...

[Judge Judy] There's a number. So look...

- [Gina] Yes.
- There's a number,

'cause he has the exact number.

So either you tell me or he tells me.

[Carl] Fifty nine
hundred and forty-two dollars.

- That is not correct.
- [Judge Judy] How much...

- Because...
- [Carl] That's how much...

that's how much she took out.
She got two cashier checks.

- That is not correct.
- [Judge Judy] Just a second.

How much did you...look
and tell me how much you took out.

[Gina] Well, I took...I closed the account.
That's the total of the account.

[Judge Judy] Just a second.
No. Just...so how much did you...

- I took...I took $3,000 out. I took...
- [Judge Judy] You took...

- [Gina] ...July rent...
- No, no, no, no, no.

[Gina] Okay. I took...well, the rent...

- [Judge Judy] On what date...
- July 15th.

[Judge Judy]
...you took out what total amount?

You closed the account.
You took out what total amount?

- Well, if the...
- [Judge Judy] No. Don't...not a well.

- The close...
- That's not a well.

- That's a number.
- [Gina] Okay. Okay.

The closed total amount
for the account was $5,943.

[Judge Judy] Okay.
Just a second.

- I'm a very, very simple person.
- I know you are.

[Judge Judy]
Total of the amount was $5,900.

What did you do
with the $5,900

that was in the joint account

that only he put money in?

What did you give him from that $5,900?

[Gina] $29...or $2,942.

[Judge Judy] $2,942.
So you kept $3000?

- Yes. And I can break that down for you.
- [Judge Judy] Shush.

So...and you had never done that before?

- No, I had not.
- [Judge Judy] Okay.

So you closed out the joint account,

gave him $2,900 out of it,

kept 3000.

And I'm sure that you had
sort of arguments about it.

His total expenses in the house

were $1,073 a month,

and you closed out the account in June.
June what?

- July 16...15th.
- [Judge Judy] July 15th.

Okay. Had he paid you
any rent the 1st of July?

- No.
- [Judge Judy] Do you have any proof

- that you paid any expenses?
- [Carl] No. I...I'm saying I paid.

[Judge Judy] Okay. Great.

So you paid no expenses
in July and you lived there?

[Carl] Well, I paid utilities.

- I don't care about utilities.
- [Carl] Well...

- Give me a break. Give me a break.
- [Carl] ...you want me to break it down?

I'm not...I had to break it down.

- But you did...
- But the utilities included in there,

- Your Honor.
- [Judge Judy] Mr. Harper. Mr. Harper.

- Oh, okay.
- You do understand.

- You've watched a long time.
- [Carl] Right.

So, you were having disagreements in July.

What did you give her in July?

- I gave her utilities for pay...
- Show me.

I...It's...

I don't have anything showing you
but she knows I gave utilities.

- Mr. Harper.
- [Carl] Because our utilities...

- Mr. Harper.
- [Carl] ...were always paid up.

[Judge Judy] Mr. Harper. Mr. Harper.

The utilities you paid
because they were in your name.

- Yeah.
- [Judge Judy] Yes.

So I wanna know in what month
you stopped paying your...

[Carl] Well, I can show you August
and saying

- that we didn't have a balance in July.
- Shh. Shh. Shh. No.

- In July for what?
- For utilities.

[Judge Judy] I don't...listen to me.
Mr. Harper, there's a movie.

There's an old movie
where somebody keeps saying,

- "Mr. Harper. Mr. Harper."
- [Carl] Yeah. I remember that movie.

Maybe that's not a movie.
Maybe that was a court case or

somebody Mr. Harper was probably one of
Poppy's cases.

- Mr. Harper.
- Yes.

- [Judge Judy] Listen to me carefully.
- Okay.

If you've watched you know

that I have a good memory.

Whitney is going to confirm to me

that what was said was you put
the utilities in your name.

So there was no question,
you weren't gonna pay the utilities.

The utilities...Mr. Harper, don't speak.

- [Carl] Okay.
- Just listen.

Uh...

I'm trying to, despite the fact
that I hate cases that are all math,

trying to weed this out
because it all amounts

to a lot of nonsense
after a 15-year relationship.

- Exactly.
- I don't need any help, Mr. Harper.

[theme music playing]

[announcer] Gina Baker
is accusing her ex-boyfriend

of 14 years, Carl Harper,

of leaving without paying
his portion of expenses.

Carl says Gina wrongfully took
all the money

from their joint bank account.

[Judge Judy] Okay. I wanna know
in what month you stopped paying rent?

- We're not gonna get if...
- What month? July.

- [Judge Judy] July.
- July.

- [Judge Judy] So July...
- August.

- [Judge Judy] ...August. Just a...
- Half of September.

[Judge Judy] July and August.

So the rent was $720.

- And the association fee was $103.
- Was paid. Was paid.

- By whom?
- [Carl] By her after I gave her half.

[Judge Judy] No, just a second.
Did you give her half of the...

- [Carl] Association fee? Yes.
- [Judge Judy] Did he give you?

- In July. July.
- [Judge Judy] In July?

- In July, yes.
- [Judge Judy] Okay. So he owes $720

for rent in July?

- And what about in...
- [Carl] I have no idea, Your Honor.

Shh. And what about in August?

[Gina] In August,
I have received nothing from him.

- [Judge Judy] Okay. So in August...
- No. No. Not...that's not true. I'm sorry.

In August, I um took...

- well, part of the money...
- [Judge Judy] No, no, no.

- Don't say part of the money I took.
- [Gina] Okay.

I wanna know what you received.
That's where we're at now.

[Gina] I received the August
association fee and the August rent.

[Judge Judy] Rent. Okay. So you're not out

- the seven twenty and the hundred?
- [Gina] No. No.

So you're not out the 820.
So he's paid in...

- August.
- [Judge Judy] ...August.

And he did not pay in July?

- No. But...
- [Judge Judy] Just a second.

He did not...I'm just figuring out

how much he owes you and how much
he gets on his counterclaim?

You have to understand
that's where we're at.

- Right.
- Okay.

[Judge Judy] That's where we're at.

I'm trying to explain to you
what I took out of the bank...

- [Judge Judy] I just...no.
- ...in July and August.

I understand exactly
what you're saying to me, madam.

And I'm trying to, despite the fact
that I hate cases that are all math,

trying to...trying to weed this out
because it all amounts

to a lot of nonsense
after a 15-year relationship.

Exactly.

[Judge Judy] After a 15-year relationship.

So, $720 for July,

he paid August,
and half of what September is,

because he didn't pay for September
when he was there

and he lived there for half the month.

Less than half the month
which is $500.

And he owes you $685

for half of the rebates, whatever it is.

Unless you're gonna tell me
that you gave her half.

- Half of?
- [Judge Judy] Whatever the rebates were

- from insurance, from...
- [Gina] The two checks that were taken.

[Judge Judy] The two...
the two checks that you deposited.

- [Judge Judy] Just say yes.
- Yes.

- [Judge Judy] "Yes. I put them..."
- Yes, Your Honor.

All right. That makes my life much easier.

Sarah Rose, add up 720, 500, and 685.

- Your Honor, I'm not...
- [Judge Judy] Don't speak.

$1,905.

[Judge Judy] Subtract that from $3,000.

That's what she took out of the account,

the joint account to pay these expenses.

$1,095.

[Judge Judy] On the claim,
the claim is dismissed.

On the counterclaim,
I am awarding you, sir, $1,095.

That's the difference
of the money that she took out

preemptively from your account

when you started to have difficulties.

$1,095.
And I'm telling you now,

you're both very...

you're both really lucky.

- Your...
- [Judge Judy] Because most of the time,

the vast majority of the time,

courts don't get involved with people
who are trying out living together.

However, in your case,

you lived together for 15 years.

Clearly, you had
very defined parameters

of what your financial obligations were

and you pretty much stuck
to those financial parameters

- for most of those 15 years.
- Every year.

I don't need any help, Mr. Harper.

You stuck to those parameters,

and it was only within the last few months

that we got kind of wonky,

when things were going south,

and I gather Ms. Baker
decided to evict you.

Well, if you evict someone,

that would mean
that they're a tenant, Ms. Baker.

And so you sort
of can't have it both ways.

You can't wanna be treated
as sort of a spouse

and property divided,

and then treat him as a tenant

by taking him
to housing court for an eviction.

I mean, it's duplicitous.

It's unreasonable.

So you're both very lucky
that I took the time.

Don't say a word.

You're a very lucky man.

- $1,095. We are through.
- [Carl] Thank you, Your Honor.

[Kevin] Court is adjourned.

He has taken advantage of me for years

and I just woke up to it.

I loved her to death
and still love her to death,

but it is what it is.

Sobriety.

I have two and a half years
of sobriety now

and I'm a completely different person.

And, either way, I'm winning.

For her, I was still her rock,

and it still will be, so...

It's past time to part ways.

I don't wish him anything, you know, ill.

I didn't. I just wanted to be adults
in the first place.

And, unfortunately,
we got to this point.

But, you know, it is what it is
and, like I said, I'm still winning.

That's what happens when you lie.

And I just stick to the truth,

and it all comes out at the end.

[Judge Judy] That was an interesting case.

They really had, what was in effect,

a relatively long-term marriage.

They were together for almost 15 years.

- Probably most of that good time.
- Uh-hmm.

It is clear...it's clear
that they were different

from other couples that sort of
lived together with this wonky

sort of financial arrangement.

They had a very clear

financial arrangement
that both parties lived up to.

So, it's too bad
that in the final months of a relationship

when things go south,
it ends up in a court.

And I think in the end of that case,

I found it interesting
that rather than treating him

as a mate of 15 years,

she went to court to have him

evicted as if he were a tenant.

- Yeah.
- And it was that mediation

that they made an arrangement

for him to leave by September.

Anyway, they were nice people.

And, ordinarily in those cases,

you're not married,
we don't handle almost married.

But they really were...

They had a good structure set up.

[Judge Judy] They had
a good structure set up.

- Uh-hmm.
- Which is important.

So, you know,
that's a good lesson for people.

If they're gonna live together

as a responsible couple,

keep things organized.

- Yeah.
- It made it much easier for me.

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