Withdrawing after deposit

[LawSchoolHopeful2009]

hmmmm...you could be right. but they could argue that the money became theirs the minute you mailed the check out and since they stipulate it's non-refundable it's pretty much at their discretion whether or not they want to give it back to you.

[ivywhore]

What happens if you withdraw after paying a deposit? Do you just lose the deposit? Do you have to give them a really good reason why you're withdrawing?

Yes. Perhaps if you die.

[ivywhore]

hmmmm...you could be right. but they could argue that the money became theirs the minute you mailed the check out and since they stipulate it's non-refundable it's pretty much at their discretion whether or not they want to give it back to you.

I'm not sure that complies with general contract law.  I thought that putting the check in the mail is your formal acceptance of their offer.  However, you can withdraw your offer at any time before they accept (which occurs when they cash the check).

Boring lawyer talk. Be crative for God's sake its late at night. When do you let loose my lost Mohican? (is that how you spell Mohican?)

[LawSchoolHopeful2009]

hmmmm...you could be right. but they could argue that the money became theirs the minute you mailed the check out and since they stipulate it's non-refundable it's pretty much at their discretion whether or not they want to give it back to you.

I'm not sure that complies with general contract law.  I thought that putting the check in the mail is your formal acceptance of their offer.  However, you can withdraw your offer at any time before they accept (which occurs when they cash the check).

Good point but at that point it's not like they're negotiating a contract- they can't decline your offer (your deposit). By you sending in your application and application fee, you've offered them your presence as a student at their university. At that point they can accept that offer or decline. If they've accepted that offer they send you a contract to finalize their offering you a seat in the class. They've given you a contract (which in most cases is non-negotiable) with specific monetary stipulations that you must sign and return by a given deadline. The minute you signed that contract and mailed it to them, you've agreed to their contract and the money is now theirs-period. No one can accept or decline anything after that. Just my thought- I know nothing about contractual law...at least not yet

[ivywhore]

hmmmm...you could be right. but they could argue that the money became theirs the minute you mailed the check out and since they stipulate it's non-refundable it's pretty much at their discretion whether or not they want to give it back to you.

I'm not sure that complies with general contract law.  I thought that putting the check in the mail is your formal acceptance of their offer.  However, you can withdraw your offer at any time before they accept (which occurs when they cash the check).

Good point but at that point it's not like they're negotiating a contract- they can't decline your offer (your deposit). By you sending in your application and application fee, you've offered them your presence as a student at their university. At that point they can accept that offer or decline. If they've accepted that offer they send you a contract to finalize their offering you a seat in the class. They've given you a contract (which in most cases is non-negotiable) with specific monetary stipulations that you must sign and return by a given deadline. The minute you signed that contract and mailed it to them, you've agreed to their contract and the money is now theirs-period. No one can accept or decline anything after that. Just my thought- I know nothing about contractual law...at least not yet

You are acting like a boring lawyer.Cheer up. We must learn to talk like the common man/women if we aim to improve society. Nice haircut by the way.

[flydog]

stop payment on the check if you still can.

This is about the dumbest thing you could do. The State Bar will ask all your law schools for your file and when they find out you stopped payment on a check you will at the very least be subjected to a moral character determination hearing. Why would you spend $100,000 in tuition just to throw it away for a few hundred bucks which you agreed was not refundable when you paid it. It is unethical and grounds for being denied admission to the Bar.

The bar isnt going to care about explanations using contract law or why you stopped payment. Its not a death penalty case its just a cheap person with lack or moral character stopping payment on a check and the bar is not bound by common or statutory law in determining who gets in or not.

[law123]

stop payment on the check if you still can.

This is about the dumbest thing you could do. The State Bar will ask all your law schools for your file and when they find out you stopped payment on a check you will at the very least be subjected to a moral character determination hearing. Why would you spend $100,000 in tuition just to throw it away for a few hundred bucks which you agreed was not refundable when you paid it. It is unethical and grounds for being denied admission to the Bar.

The bar isnt going to care about explanations using contract law or why you stopped payment. Its not a death penalty case its just a cheap person with lack or moral character stopping payment on a check and the bar is not bound by common or statutory law in determining who gets in or not.

Why would it be unethical?  You thought you were going to go to the school and then you got into a school which is a better fit for you...if they haven't cashed the check, stop payment on it so you lose the $30 fee instead of the $400 check.  You simply had a change of mind and you'd rather not give them $400 have that change of mind.  I cannot envision a scenario in which this would be considered unethical, let alone grounds for being denied admission to the Bar.

[LawSchoolHopeful2009]

wow that's nuts. hopefully you kept a copy of the e-mail and have the name of the person to whom you spoke with regarding their agreement not to cash the check. I would think those two are enough to dispute the matter. hopefully they won't be pr!cks about it and report it to the credit bureau cuz as law students in need of loans, credit is a MAJOR deal. definitely call the school and ask, if you remember (and hopefully you do), to speak with the person who initially gave you the ok and go from there. btw, did you actually get a written response back stating they wouldn't cash the check?

[LawSchoolHopeful2009]

in by "written" i meant e-mail so it looks like you're fine. that's really sketchy though and doesn't make them look good at all. just to give them the benefit of doubt, i would say the person you spoke with and/or the individual that wrote you the e-mail flaked out in relaying the check cashing agreement to the proper people so it could just be bad communication in the admissions department. hopefully everything works out.

[aufhebung]

stop payment on the check if you still can.

This is about the dumbest thing you could do. The State Bar will ask all your law schools for your file and when they find out you stopped payment on a check you will at the very least be subjected to a moral character determination hearing. Why would you spend $100,000 in tuition just to throw it away for a few hundred bucks which you agreed was not refundable when you paid it. It is unethical and grounds for being denied admission to the Bar.

The bar isnt going to care about explanations using contract law or why you stopped payment. Its not a death penalty case its just a cheap person with lack or moral character stopping payment on a check and the bar is not bound by common or statutory law in determining who gets in or not.

Why would it be unethical?  You thought you were going to go to the school and then you got into a school which is a better fit for you...if they haven't cashed the check, stop payment on it so you lose the $30 fee instead of the $400 check.  You simply had a change of mind and you'd rather not give them $400 have that change of mind.  I cannot envision a scenario in which this would be considered unethical, let alone grounds for being denied admission to the Bar.

google "stop payment bad faith"

You can't just stop a check unless you have a legally valid reason - "I changed my mind" just ain't likely to cut it.