45
votes
A Swiss watch company seized my watch, saying it was stolen. I bought it 10 years ago. Is that legal?
switzerland
"Gutgläubiger Erwerb gestohlener Dinge" (buying of stolen goods in good faith) is a big topic in law. Different jurisdictions handle it differently, but most European (civil law) ...
- 4,815
37
votes
Accepted
Is it legal for a train company to create an art gallery using photographs of the graffiti on their locomotives and train cars?
Copyright law doesn't say the art isn't copyrighted if it was made unlawfully.
It seems the art can be copyrighted and the act of making it can be a criminal offence.
I'm not aware of any such ...
- 14.7k
36
votes
A Swiss watch company seized my watch, saying it was stolen. I bought it 10 years ago. Is that legal?
You describe a case with two or possibly three affected jurisdictions, Poland, Germany, and Switzerland.
First, you can of course demand that the Swiss company should give you documentation about the ...
- 14.4k
35
votes
Accepted
What law governs shopping carts?
Normal property law
When Aldi came to australia, they introduced their coin-in-the-slot model. The previous norm was that the trolleys were just available and people returned them. Some other chains ...
- 197k
31
votes
Is it legal for a train company to create an art gallery using photographs of the graffiti on their locomotives and train cars?
No
You are conflating two different ownership concepts: the art in which the copyright exists, and the artwork that is the expression of the art (my terminology).
The artist owns the art, the train ...
- 197k
27
votes
What are the minimum required legal obligations for US citizens?
Just because they don't use cash, doesn't mean they don't have income. Even if they have a barter economy, barter income is taxable. If Ebenezer gives Zachariah a dozen chickens to build a cowshed, ...
- 29k
25
votes
What are the minimum required legal obligations for US citizens?
This might be too broad to answer in the Stack Exchange format, but I'll give it a start, making this answer a community wiki for anyone to add on to. Obviously there's a long list of criminal ...
15
votes
Is it legal for a train company to create an art gallery using photographs of the graffiti on their locomotives and train cars?
I have been wondering that since a train company owns its locomotives and train cars, then I am assuming that this means that they own any graffiti that has been painted on their locomotives and train ...
- 35.1k
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 ...
- 14.4k
11
votes
A Swiss watch company seized my watch, saying it was stolen. I bought it 10 years ago. Is that legal?
england-and-wales
Not directly applicable to the OP, but in England and Wales (and I suspect most common-law jurisdictions), if the person that purported to sell/give it to you didn't have good title (...
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 ...
- 197k
11
votes
Accepted
Is it possible to sign a prenup after marriage (still married but post-nuptial)
united-states
If a couple is married, but now wants to ensure each keep their
respective properties, is this possible? Can a “post-nuptial”
agreement be made that ensures property is kept by the ...
- 194k
11
votes
What are the minimum required legal obligations for US citizens?
There are few truly compulsory actions required of US citizens, but there are a great number of conditional requirements, and of course there are many criminal and civil laws governing daily life. ...
- 619
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 ...
- 194k
9
votes
What are the minimum required legal obligations for US citizens?
If you haven't decided on a state yet, have a look at New Hampshire. The Free State Project selected New Hampshire in 2003 at the state with the fewest restrictions on living free in a libertarian ...
- 1,266
6
votes
What law governs shopping carts?
In germany, the legal situation is mostly the same as in Australia, as described in Dale M's answer.
One difference is the part about taking the cart with you:
I assume using the shopping cart to get ...
- 7,829
6
votes
Can parents no longer search my room once I am disowned?
Disowning is not a thing legally, at least in the United States. It is a symbolic expression of a person's feelings.
In and of itself, it has no legal effect, although actions taken based upon those ...
- 194k
6
votes
Accepted
Do wives get 50% of net worth after the divorce as well, or just the net worth at the time of divorce?
canada
The relevant date is rarely the date of divorce
About the relevant time, this will depend on the particular provincial statute. In British Columbia, the relevant time for identifying family ...
- 42.9k
6
votes
Do wives get 50% of net worth after the divorce as well, or just the net worth at the time of divorce?
united-states new-mexico
In New Mexico there is no single date at which the net worth of the marriage is considered. Rather, a distinction is drawn between community property and separate property of ...
- 217
6
votes
Does a pub have a right to control the pavement outside it even if they have permission to place tables and chairs on that section of the pavement?
If they have a pavement licence that says so, yes.
Web search "pavement licence". First result:
Guidance: pavement licences (outdoor seating) gov.uk
A pavement licence is a licence granted ...
- 14.7k
5
votes
Assuming a one trillion dollar coin exists, and is stolen, is there are sequence of events that could lead to someone legally owning it?
As current law stands, it would be property of the US Mint if coined, US Treasury, if printed as a treasury note, not federal reserve note.
This was decided by appellate court in regards to 1933 gold ...
- 1,473
5
votes
Who really owns extraterrestrial objects?
No one does and no one can
The Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, more conveniently ...
- 197k
5
votes
Is it possible to sign a prenup after marriage (still married but post-nuptial)
Whether and how courts will give affect to such an agreement varies by jurisdiction-specific statutes. For example, in British Columbia, the Family Law Act, s. 92 says:
spouses may make agreements ...
- 42.9k
4
votes
Accepted
Can someone tell me what this document is saying?
The document involves the bank cancelling the deed of trust (i.e. basically the mortgage) that you gave to the bank for the loan, because it was paid in full.
In a deed of trust, the legal fiction is ...
- 194k
4
votes
Assuming a one trillion dollar coin exists, and is stolen, is there are sequence of events that could lead to someone legally owning it?
Yes
The coin is currency, a holder in good faith who acquired the coin for consideration is the legal owner. So, if someone steals the coin and uses it to buy something without the seller knowing the ...
- 197k
4
votes
Does property include money in the sense of ECHR right of peaceful enjoyment?
The ECHR protocols are not meant (and not generally understood) to prohibit taxation or fines by the state in accordance with the rule of law. See e.g. this explanation by the Council of Europe. As to ...
- 14.4k
4
votes
Accepted
Does owning a house before the marriage exempt it from divorce asset division?
united-states
Overview
If someone owns a house before marriage, would that house be exempt
from asset division in divorce?
For simplicity, assume that otherwise, asset picture is fairly simple
and ...
- 194k
4
votes
Can I make an auto shop pay for oil damage from a defective oil filter?
You can sue the shop for defective installation, or you can sue the manufacturer for a defective part. You will have to prove that it is the fault of the person that you are suing, so the shop will ...
- 210k
4
votes
Is it legal for a train company to create an art gallery using photographs of the graffiti on their locomotives and train cars?
Maybe kind of (Speculative), but probably not, but it probably makes no difference.
If the fact that it is on the train forms part of the artwork, rather than being merely a canvas, the whole piece (...
- 169
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible