Before You Buy or Sell

I wish everything was clear cut.  This person's right.  This person's wrong.  End of story.  Unfortunately, it's hardly ever that easy - which is why it's so important to try to avoid problems by being upfront.  If you're going to sell used items (like a car):
- Make sure everything's in writing.  This is to protect both the buyer and seller. 
- If it has a problem and is being sold "as-is", make sure that it's disclosed - in writing.  The attorneys we talked to say if it's not in writing, it's not going to do you a bit of good.
- If it's a big purchase, have an expert take a look at it.

When it's not clear, a judge is going to have to make the final ruling.  If what you're suing over is less than 6 thousand dollars, you can take it to small claims court.  You can file it yourself and you do not have to have an attorney.  It usually costs between 60 and 200 dollars, depending how much you're suing for and how hard it is to have the person served.

Here's a link to Oklahoma County's Small Claims Court FAQ:
http://www.oklahomacounty.org/courtclerk/SmallClaimsFAQ.htm

Also, the attorneys we talked to say if you have just a few questions for an attorney, call them before you get into trouble!  Sometimes, they'll even answer your questions for free. 

Sources for tonight's story:
Consumer Attorney:  Libby Mercer - 525-8858
Attorney Rick Rose - 236-0478