sold my California-registered car to another person in California in late August of this year. It was a private party sale, so I signed the back of the title, so did the new guy, and I left it with him to send in to the DMV (this is the procedure I followed when I bought the car, fwiw).
Just a few days ago, a friend of mine who now lives at my former address found that an unpaid parking ticket notice had been sent to me for a ticket incurred on September 3—at least a week, and I think more like 2, after I finalized the sale.
Obviously I would rather not pay this ticket, and I will follow up with whatever official department I need to via web or phone at the beginning of this upcoming week. But my real concern is that I’m planning to take the California bar in July—and I can’t have some guy running around getting parking tickets and god knows what else in my name in the meantime. What else should I do to follow up on this? How can I prove I no longer own a car when it was a private party sale and I left the title with the new owner? I’m sure the Character & Fitness committee would not hold this against me once it was explained, but I’m doing all my registration from across the country so I’d rather avoid even the long-winded explanation if possible. How do I make really really sure this guy has switched the title and is no longer doing anything bad under my name?
