Unit 20- Property law Flashcards
What is property law
Property law is a branch of civil law that governs the various legal rights and interests associated with property. Encompasses the rules and regulations regarding the ownership, use, and transfer of real property and personal property
What is the economic view on property law?
- Rivalrous in consumption
- Non excludable
What is tragedy of the commons?
The tragedy of the commons is a concept that refers to a situation where individuals, acting in their own self-interest, deplete or degrade a shared resource that is available to all.
Why do we need to have property law?
- Incentive to work
- Incentive to maintain and improve things
- Avoidance of disputed and of efforts to protect things
- Property rights and market economy
Property rights
Property rights are valid erga omnes – considered absolute rights, meaning they are valid against anyone
What are the basic features of property rights?
-The right-holder is assigned an exclusive right on her items
-The right-holder may exclude anyone from interfering with her peaceful enjoyment of the items
-The right-holder is given specific recovery of her item
-Anyone who wishes to remove the entitlement from its holder must buy it from her in an involuntary transaction
What are property rights as rights ‘in rem’?
Regulate how individuals may use and dispose of things/ goods (they are enforceable against the world at large not necessarily only specific individuals)
What are movable goods?
Any property that can be moved from one location to another without being altered
What are immovable goods
Any property that cannot be moved from one location to another without destroying it or altering it
What is the civil law approach in property law?
In civil law there is a unitary system of property covering all types of assets. Both movable and immovable things represent the potential objects of the absolute right of ownership –> concept of absolute ownership
What are the two powers on ownership of goods?
Full fledged power: owner is free to do as he pleases
Exclusive power on goods: the owner of the thing has an absolute right, a claim against any other individual to refrain from interfering with the enjoyment deriving from the thing granted to them
How is property law in common systems structured?
Divided in:
- land law –> absolute right over immovables
- personal property –> absolute rights over movables
Difference in property rights between civil and common law
In common law, property rights are not as absolute as in civil law systems. Common law recognises various interests and limitations on property rights
Property of land in common law systems
No formal right of ownership: under the rules of common law, the crown is still considered as the owner of all land
What is the property act of 1925
It was the modernisation of english land law –> limitation and standardisation of available property rights in respect to land
