Chapter 1: Acquiring Rights to Property by Possession Flashcards
Public vs. Private Place
-Is Xavier’s home, which he uses for Bible classes and for which he charges a fee, a public place or a private place?
-A public place is open to the public whereas a private place is one where the general public is excluded
Lost v. Mislaid
-Was the rare Bible found by the couch on the floor lost or mislaid?
-Lost property found in a private place belongs to the owner of the locus; lost property found in a public place belongs to the finder. Mislaid property belongs to the owner of the locus. Lost property is unintentionally separated from the dominion of the owner. Mislaid property is intentionally put in a certain place and later forgotten
Gift Causa Mortis: Cause of Death
-When Sally feared she was dying from a heart attack but she died, not from a heart attack but from another cause, did she die under circumstances that qualify for a gift causa mortis?
-A gift causa mortis is a gift made in contemplation of imminent death. Is it not clear if the cause of death must be the event that triggered the donor’s delivery.
Gift Causa Mortis: Constructive Delivery
-Did Sally make a constructive deliver of her house when she gave Xavier the key to her house?
-A constructive deliver arises when the donor gives the donee a key that gives access to the property that is too big, bulky, or otherwise unavailable for a manual delivery. Modernly, a constructive delivery arises whenever the donor does everything possible under the circumstances to effectuate a delivery and there is no issue of fraud or mistake.
Private-Public Domain
-When a non-paying patient finds a lost pen in a psychiatrist’s office, which also serves as the living room to his apartment, is the location deemed a public or private place?
-Lost property found in a public domain belongs to the dinger, whereas lost property found in a private domain belongs to the owner of the locus. A public domain is one wherein the general public is invited, whereas a private domain is one where the general public is excluded.
Delivery to Paramedic
-For purposes of a gift causa mortis, can there be a delivery when the donee is not present and the chattel is transferred to a reluctant third party?
-To make a gift causa mortis, the donor must be in imminent fear of death, intend to transfer property to the donee, make a delivery, and die soon thereafter. The delivery to the donee may be direct, indirect, as when the property is transferred to a trustee for the benefit of the donee.
Public Place v. Public Establishment
-For purposes of the law of finders, was the place of the find, a house partially converted into a restaurant, a private place or a public establishment?
-In the law of finders, lost property found in a public establishment belongs to the finder, whereas lost property found in a private place belongs to the owner of the locus. In determining whether the place of the find is a private house or a public establishment, we look to the totality of circumstances.
Symbolic Delivery
-Assuming that Baker owned the coin under the law of finders, for purposes of a gift causes mortis does a writing constitute a valid symbolic delivery when the chattel was small but not actually available for delivery?
-A symbolic delivery is a writing evidencing ownership of the chattel, which is not readily available for an actual delivery. Whether a chattel is available is dependent on the totality of the circumstances.
What are the elements for a gift causa mortis?
To constitute a gift causa mortis, the donor must make the gift in anticipation of imminent death, he must intend to transfer the property to the donee, he must make a delivery (Actual or symbolic/constructive), and die soon thereafter.
