All may not be lost...Did the check say deposit or anything of the like in the memo line? Deposits can be treated in 2 ways generally (1) as a true deposit to be held in escrow, or (2) as a surety from the buyer that they are going to buy--> think of it this way every contract in order to be valid must (1) have an offer showing that you are willing to enter into a binding agreement; here your offer to sell for $1800 (2) an acceptance the buyers manifestation of intent to accept your offer, the giving of the $500. Now she cannot back out of that contract for the most part, unless there is a legal reason to void or rescind the contract...I would not try to argue this however if you went to small claims...BUT every jurisdiction in the country regcognizes something called Promissory Estoppel. What that means is that when someone makes you a promise (including writing a check, gauranteeing to buy a pup) and you act in reliance on that promise to your detriment, but they fail to come through, you are entitled to the benefit of the bargain or they are estopped from failure to perform. I would guess in this case it would be limited to the consequences of the bad check. It is maybe worth a shot, small claims court does not cost a whole lot, and this person is so irresponsible sounding that they may just not show up in which case right or wrong you would get a default judgement. |