116 votes

Stealing my own property back?

No. This would not be illegal. You are not trespassing or breaking and entering since you have permission to be on the premises, and you are the rightful owner of the guitar so you are not depriving ...
ohwilleke's user avatar
  • 194k
52 votes

Stealing my own property back?

Ohwilleke's answer is good, but there is a further point to consider. You say that Bob is your ex. Are there grounds for him thinking that this guitar was a joint purchase while you were a couple, ...
Graham's user avatar
  • 2,418
46 votes
Accepted

Is there a law against destroying works of art of historic importance when you are the owner?

In general, ownership of a thing includes the property right to dispose of or destroy the thing. However, there may be statutory prohibitions for special categories of property. Many countries have ...
Jen's user avatar
  • 43.2k
40 votes
Accepted

Who owns the washing machine?

The house Owner owns the washing machine. Paying the deductible on Owner's warranty has nothing to do with (changing of) the ownership of it. Effectively, the tenant has incurred expenses just for ...
Greendrake's user avatar
  • 25.6k
31 votes
Accepted

Concealing One's Identity from the Public When Purchasing a Home

Is this true? Yes. can someone explain how this might work? You can form an LLC, and then fund it with money that would be used to purchase the home, and buy the home in the name of the LLC. One ...
ohwilleke's user avatar
  • 194k
25 votes
Accepted

Do the police need probable cause or a search warrant to search a rental car being driven by someone who didnt rent the vehicle?

In general, people have less expectation of privacy in cars than in their homes. To challenge a search and/or seizure under the Fourth Amendment, a person must have standing - the right to sue (that ...
Erica's user avatar
  • 366
23 votes
Accepted

Who owns the ancient alien bases hidden underneath Antarctica?

The Antarctic Treaty doesn't establish ownership or sovereignty Article IV of the Antarctic Treaty makes clear that the Treaty is not a renunciation by any contracting party of any basis of claim to ...
Jen's user avatar
  • 43.2k
21 votes

Is there a law against destroying works of art of historic importance when you are the owner?

In japan a (nonliving) national treasure must be preserved The moment an item is declared a (physical) national treasure, exporting it becomes illegal, and you also must preserve it in good condition. ...
Trish's user avatar
  • 33.4k
17 votes
Accepted

What happens with the ownership of land where the landowner no longer exists?

In the general case, when a company is dissolved any assets still belonging to it becomes bona vacantia under Section 1012 of the Companies Act 2006 which means that it belongs to the Crown. The Crown ...
JBentley's user avatar
  • 6,315
15 votes
Accepted

Can a person hack bitcoin private keys and legally claim the bitcoins for himself?

In the UK it is an offence to cause a computer to gain unauthorised access to any program or data held in any computer (s1 Computer Misuse Act 1990). It seems likely that other European jurisdictions ...
Lag's user avatar
  • 14.7k
14 votes
Accepted

Is it illegal to take home a lost phone?

There are two issues, one is the legal issue of whether what you are doing is a crime, and the other is the evidentiary issue of proving that that is what happened. If you take the phone home with ...
Patrick Conheady's user avatar
14 votes
Accepted

Is the reading of website meta tags generally prohibited?

You are asking the wrong question. It should be: When you have downloaded the content and metadata, what are you allowed to do with it and what is forbidden? Somebody owns the copyright to the text ...
o.m.'s user avatar
  • 14.4k
14 votes

Is there a law against destroying works of art of historic importance when you are the owner?

In germany, there is the concept of nationales Kulturgut ("national heritage asset") - these are objects considered to have a special artistic, historical or archeological value. However, it ...
sleske's user avatar
  • 7,829
12 votes

Can someone's name be removed from software they created if they transferred ownership of the software?

Presumably Blue Team are all employees of some company ("the employer"), so the software is a work for hire and copyright is owned by the employer. However in the UK and some other countries (but not ...
Paul Johnson's user avatar
11 votes

Can my mom take away my phone on police order?

I guess you are interpreting the answer of the officer the wrong way. Minors do have rights. Plenty of them. But using a phone to contact people their legal guardian does not approve, or to consume ...
o.m.'s user avatar
  • 14.4k
11 votes

Property ownership of liquidated company

The company continues to own all its assets australia The appointment of a liquidator to does not change what the company owns - it just changes who is in control (the liquidator rather than the ...
Dale M's user avatar
  • 198k
10 votes

Concealing One's Identity from the Public When Purchasing a Home

This would not work in england-and-wales because companies are required (with some limited exceptions) to publish in a public register all "people with significant control" under Part 21A of ...
JBentley's user avatar
  • 6,315
10 votes

Concealing One's Identity from the Public When Purchasing a Home

I have heard, that in the United States, some individuals are able to conceal their identities from the public when purchasing a home by setting up a LLC and buying the house through the said ...
Harper - Reinstate Monica's user avatar
10 votes

When does money become money? (When is a debt "realized"?)

In general, a liquid account, denominated in monetary units (dollars, pounds, euros, etc) from which the owner has the right to make a withdrawal at any time is treated legally much the same as cash. ...
David Siegel's user avatar
10 votes

Is there a law against destroying works of art of historic importance when you are the owner?

france Most other answers have dealt with heritage / culture preservation criminal laws. However, there is another aspect from the artist’s rights in a civil trial. It (probably) goes against moral ...
KFK's user avatar
  • 101
9 votes
Accepted

Can a thief legally use force to prevent you from take your property back, in Germany

The Law The relevant sections of the German Civil Code (BGB) for posession and protection of posession of movable things (not land) are (semi-official translation): Section 858 Unlawful ...
K-HB's user avatar
  • 992
9 votes

Property ownership of liquidated company

united-states In most U.S. jurisdictions, a dissolved company continues to be the owner of any property not disposed of belonging to the company, notwithstanding the fact that a liquidation of its ...
ohwilleke's user avatar
  • 194k
8 votes

If I accidentally send a package to the wrong person, is it still my property?

I would think that this would be treated the same as lost property. In most places, if you notice lost property (for example because the postman hands it to you) you have the choice of ignoring it (...
gnasher729's user avatar
  • 32.9k
8 votes

Stealing my own property back?

In England and Wales, it is possible that you could be found guilty of theft. The "property belonging to another" includes where somebody has "posession and control" over somebody else's property. ...
AXH's user avatar
  • 122
8 votes

Who owns an un-documented cellar/bunker? (UK Law)

Who Owns The Bunker? Your relative obviously owns the cellar up to their land property boundary. The people who own the other land would have originally been the owners of that portion of the ...
ohwilleke's user avatar
  • 194k
8 votes

What does "this software is licensed, not sold" really mean?

Choice 2 is what the writers of the license have in mind. You own the physical media on which the copy is delivered, such as a DVD or floppy disk (if there was physical media). But you do not own the ...
David Siegel's user avatar
8 votes
Accepted

What is the legality of an individual of dismantling very clearly abandoned bikes locked to fixtures and fences in a public area?

There is an ordinance about abandoned bicycles which defines a derelict bicycle as well as a ghost bike (also "public property"). The key to removing the bicycle is that In the event that a ...
user6726's user avatar
  • 210k
8 votes
Accepted

What kind of objects can be reclaimed?

When selling a residential property in the UK, you normally fill out a form called the TA10 Fittings and Contents Form, which outlines everything in the property included in the sale. This isn't a ...
GeoffAtkins's user avatar
8 votes

When do I own a car (private sale)

It appears that title changes when both the seller and the buyer sign the reverse side of the vehicle registration certificate. While a vehicle registration with the government is prima facie evidence ...
ohwilleke's user avatar
  • 194k

Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible