Feedback from a landlord tenant hearing that changed how I document everything

I had a landlord tenant dispute hearing about 2 years ago here in Edmonton. The arbitrator basically told me that my word against theirs wasn't worth much without paper trails. She specifically said "if you didn't write it down or take a photo, it didn't happen" during a break. So I started keeping a binder with dated entries for every repair request, inspection, and communication. Now I even snap time-stamped photos of the mailbox after I send notice letters. Has anyone else had a similar wake up call about documentation from a legal situation?

2 comments

2 Comments

hannaht2910d ago

Oh boy, lisat60 that's exactly what the arbitrator said to me during a break! She was blunt about it too, not even trying to soften the blow. I think they say stuff like that because they've seen so many cases where someone's whole argument falls apart over a missing date or a blurry photo. It's honestly scary how much weight a simple time-stamped photo of a mailbox with a letter sticking out can carry compared to someone saying "yeah I mailed it.

lisat6011d ago

Oh come on, judges don't actually say "if you didn't write it down it didn't happen" do they?