Trespass
Exclusion
Unprivileged, inten onal (voluntary) interference, or (physical) Broad, common law right to exclude, protected through
intrusion into a property interest of another
trespass tort and criminal trespass (Jacque)
•Jury may award puni ve damages (Jacques v. Steenberg)
Cons tu onal limits: Only against state ac on (Lloyd)
1. Privileged trespass: through authoriza on (consent)
Common law limits:
2. Necessity Defense to Trespass: Entry jus ed by need to
Actual Damages for Cha el (Hamidi– trespass to cha els
prevent serious harm to persons or property
requires actual damages)
Basic Human Needs (Shack- cannot refuse access to govt
workers providing services to workers on prop)
Extreme Necessity (Magadini)
Statutory limits: Public Accommoda ons Laws
“Equal” Protec on (Limits on Exclusion)
Possession
Ad Coelum Rule: Owners of Land have rights from the heavens Civil Rights Act of 1964 47 U.S.C. § 2000a
to the depths (i.e. mineral and air rights)
NO Discrimina on on the basis of race, color, religion, or
na onal origin in access to place of public accommoda on
Wild Animals Pierson v. Post (fox hun ng case)
(Incl. sex, sexual orienta on, disability)
Pursuit of a wild animal alone does not vest property rights
Public Accomoda on:
1. Unequivocal inten on of individual use of animal;
• list of types of facili es named or implied
2. Depriva on of [animal's] natural liberty; and
• Must “serve the public”; not a “private establishment…not
3. Brought [animal] within his certain control
open to the public.”
• Must: “a ect commerce” OR “be supported by state
First Possession Popov v. Hayashi (baseball case)
ac on.”
A Person has pre-possessory interest in their abandoned
Monetary damages not available under ADA (Antonine v.
property that cannot be thwarted by another
Chipotle)
• Court may decide for equitable division of property
Presump on of Title by Possession Wilcox v. Stroup
assump on is person in possession is righ ul owner.
Possession of Natural Resources
Finders
Rule of Capture: Elli v. Texon Drilling Co
Ways to Obtain Property w/o First Possession
Ownership of oil and gas lies with the party that brings it to
Contract
the surface, regardless of where the resource lay in its natural Death
state or has migrated
Family inheritance (intestacy laws)
Negligent waste or destruc on not a legal appropria on of
Wills & Trusts
those minerals. (Texon deprived Elli of the reasonable
Gi s (inter vivos)
opportunity to produce fair share of the oil beneath land)
Present intent to provide gi
Actual, construc ve (i.e. keys), or symbolic delivery (i.e.
deeds)
Finders De ni ons
“Discovery”
“Discovery” Johnson v. M'Intosh
Property law re ts what may be stealing as lawful and
establishing rights to property to another. “All tles easier
when traced back to overall US government ownership”
• Discovery brings right to tle by purchase or conquest,
subject to Indigenous right of occupancy (right to remain on
their land, but subject to rule of the United States.)(Na ve
American tles aren’t recognized by U.S. courts)
Lost: owner accidentally misplaced item
Mislaid: owner inten onally le item somewhere, and then
forgets where it was put
Abandoned: owner forms intent to relinquish all rights in
the property (does not include items buried with the
deceased (Charrier v. Bell))
ti
tti
ti
tt
ti
ti
fi
ti
ti
tf
ti
ti
ti
ff
ft
ft
ti
ti
tt
ti
ti
ti
ti
ti
ff
ti
ti
ti
ti
fi
ti
ti
fi
ti
ff
ti
ti
ti
ti
ti
ti
ft
ti
1