Chapter Seven Property Law Property Law o Property acquired without force theft or fraud legal right to exclude others from resources that are originally possessed or are Legal right to exclude someone from using something you own Must have legal right to property Resource anything that someone may need or want o Methods of Allocating Resources 2 1 Communism socialism gov t redistributes wealth gov t owns everything and does what they want with it can even control the labor ex N Korea Soviet Russia socialism will not be as productive as a private property system with little to no incentive to own property progress is stifled 2 private property market decides reallocation resources go to whoever wants to pay or wants it the most imminent domain the power of the state to take private property for public use with payment of compensation to the owner o Types of Property 2 1 Real property ownership and interest in land real estate buying selling land includes fixtures anything attached to land not easily moveable house tree plants fixtures are expected to stay with land if UGA sold a classroom they probably wouldn t remove the desks and the projector screen 2 Personal property all other types of moveable resources moveable resources Tangible property property which can be touched has a physical existence Intangible property property with no physical existence stock patent trademark o Methods of Acquiring Property Acquisition through exchange most common 99 regulated by contract law trade contract law helps provide certainty in resource exchanges Acquisition through possession 4 finder of lost property becomes the owner of the property after a statutory period in which the true owner must be sought 1 Rule of first possession some resource with no owner ever in recorded history belongs to person who originally found it Meteor landed in guy s apartment guy in apartment owns meteor not the land lord because the apartment is guy s property 2 Abandonment someone owned it before but abandoned it first person to come and take it gets it DEPENDS ON THE INTEND OF THE ORIGINAL OWNER guy leaves wallet on table abandonment guy walking and drops wallet accident 3 Lost property inadvertently give up mislaid property set somewhere without intent of abandonment or losing goes to owner of property or land LAND IS NOT LOST 4 Adverse possession obtaining ownership of land belonging to another through continuous possession Can take someone s property if you stay there long enough 20 years in GA Requirements for Adverse Possession possession must be 5 1 open and notorious not hiding 2 actual and exclusive actually have to be there 3 continuous must be there for continuous amount of time 4 wrongful must be there illegally 5 last for the prescribed period of time 20 years in GA Wrongful is easiest to prove Time is hardest to prove Acquisition through confusion property that is totally identical and was mixed up ex Gasoline from two sources mixed into one holding tank each get fair share of property either accidentally or by agreement 2 farmers share a stack of corn meal 50 50 Acquisition through accession not common add something to someone else s property occurs when value is added to personal property if original property was improperly take in most cases the original owner retains ownership including the improvements If original property was not improperly taken the property may be forfeited with the original owner compensated for their loss Acquisition through gift more common giving away delivery much include that the gift be intended and actually physically transferred to the other party constructive deliver includes intention but physical handing the gift over doesn t occur donor person giving gift need to act donee person receiving gift testamentary gift gift made through a will right to give gift isn t given when it is given in a will donee must go get it fee simple do whatever you want with your land fee simple absolute absolute title to land fee simple defeasible same thing as absolute with built in restrictions ex Lumpkin house at UGA life estate measured by a certain person s lifetime you have it for your lifetime but when you die it goes to charity Leasehold estate mostly deals with renting don t own it so you can t sell it but you can possess it sublease it or use it for business as long as there is no restriction in lease cannot tear it down or destroy it notice specific term at will no determined amount of time one party just decides to end 30 day s o Types of Ownership mostly applies to land concurrent ownership multiple people own property at the same time ex You and sister inherit farm together o Title and Property Registration Title document serving as evidence of ownership of property Deed document of title transferring ownership of land restrictions are listed in deed Warranty deed no one will ever come back for this property I promise not to challenge your ownership of the house nor will anyone else ever Special warranty deed some claims to the property exist but guarantees against Title insurance insurance policy that guarantees the seller of land was the other unnamed claims complete 100 owner Quitclaim deed I promise I won t come back for this house but I m not promising someone else won t come back to prove that they are the real owner Neighbor watches guy s house for a few years guy decides to sell house Neighbor comes back and proves house was his all along Buyer of the house must move out o Special applications of property Easement right to cross over someone else s land right to use someone else s property legal right for driveway ONLY can t build a pool there How to get an easement 1 buy it parcel 1 goes to parcel 2 and asks to buy easement 2 50 years ago parcel 1 and 2 were one land Owner takes parcel 1 and sells parcel 2 Owner keeps easement for access to highway through driveway on parcel 2 3 prescription owner of land fails to interfere with a trespasser s adverse use of land for a statutory period of time easement through adverse possession use someone s land for so long you gain right to use that piece of land Don t own it but still use it Bailment temporary transfer of possession of personal property from one person to another temporarily letting someone hold your property personal property not real property ex Borrowing neighbor s car bank holds money for customers Bailee must voluntarily take possession of property Bailee not responsible for acts of god weather