I u"~~ - PA GE 12, WEDNESDAY. APRIL 16. 1976, WHITBY FREE PRESS Sh Law and You Q. I'm a working mother with a problem. My husband has been doing some drinking lately and spending a little too much of his salary. I try to put most of my cheque into the bank. But my husband says I have a legal duty to give the money to him because he's my husband. Is he right? -0 » A. Your husband would-have been right 90 years ago. But in 1884 a statute called the Married Women's Property Act was passed. This act for the first time allowed married women to own and enjoy their own property as something separate and apart from their husband's property. It established that "Every married women shall have and hold as her separate property and may dispose of as such, the wages, earnings, money and property gained or acquired by her in any employment, trade or occupa- tion in which she is engaged or which she carried on and in which her husband has no propriety interest". The result is that, unless you are in partnership with your husband in business, he has no claim to your pay cheque. Q. I was in a large discount store shopping for a birth- day present for my father. I paid for the gift, but as I was leaving a man in a blue uniform stopped me. He flashed a "security guard" badge at me and told me to come along. I didn't want to go but I thought I had better. They searched me but I hadn't stolen anything - so they let me go. But it ruined a good day. Why do they let security guards have so much power. A. They do not. Security guards have no greater powers than anyone else. Their powers of arrest are exactly what is referred to as "citizen's arrest", under the Criminal Code. -Under s. 449 (2), of the Code, "Anyone who is the owner.....of property or a person authorized by the owner.....may arrest without warrant a person whom he finds committing a criminal offence on or in relation to that property." He may also arrest without a warrant anyone who, on reasonable and probable grounds he believes has committed a criminal offence. If the guard does not catch you in the act and cannot show good grounds for believing you are a shoplifter, then you can sue him for false imprisonment. So the very first thing you should do in'a case like this is ask if you are under arrest. If you are not, then you don't have to go along. If the guard tries to detain you without arresting you, create a disturbance. Even if you are arrested by the guard, he lias no power to search your person. If he tries without your consent, again, you have a civil action against him. He may ask you to let him search y'our person or clothing. Before you agree, remember that you do not have to and that he cannot require you to. Q. I am a single girl living alone. One night, a couple of weeks ago, the building superintendant walked unan- nounced into my apartment. He had used his master key to let himself in. When I protested lie said that since he represented the owner he could come in any time he pleased. After all, the owner could go anywhere at all in his own building. Is this true? A. It certainly is not. In the case of an çmeergency the landlord or his agent may enter your apartment, or if your lease provides for it, he may (at reasonable hours) enter your place to show it to prospective tenants. In other cases the landlord or his agent is required by the Landlord and Tenant Act to give twenty-four hours written notice of entry. Under these circumstances, the entry must be during daylight and usually must b. for some legitimate purpose, such as maintenance. No land- lord has the right to trespass in his tenant's premises. Q. - In June of 1973, I was involved in a car accident. Everything happened so fast, I really don't know who was to blame. The damage to my car was so minimal, I didn't even get it fixed. I heard nothing more from,the other driver and gradually forgot about it. A few days ago I received a letter from an insurance company stat- ing that the accident.was my fault and that I was going to be sued for damages. Everything happened so long· ago, I can't remember the details. What can I do?, A. Don't worry. Section 146 of the Highway Traffic Act imposes a limit of twelve months in bringing a suit as a result of an auto accident. In that, more than twelve months has elapsed since the accident, you can't be sued for damages even if you were at fault. Reply to the letter, pointing out section 146 and the twelve- month limitation it imposes. "These questions and answers, based on Ontario law, are published to infôrm and not to advîse. No one should try to apply or interpret the law without the aid and advice of a trained expert who knows the facts, since the facts of each case may change the applicatiorr of the law." "HE BELIEVES IN HONEST ADVERTISING... DOESN'T KNOW HIMSELF WHAT'S IN THE 'CHEF'S SURPRISE'." . CLIP THIS COUPON. - -- MACH.INE ER Reg. 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