Straight Dope Staff Report: What does possession is 9/10ths of the law mean?

2007-02-14 13:49 - Links

One of the best known cases on when possession begins is Pierson v. Post (1805). Post was chasing a fox with his dogs "upon a certain wild and uninhabited, unpossessed and waste land, called the beach." Pierson spotted the fox Post was after and snagged it for himself. Post sued Pierson for the value of the fox.

Above is a quote from an interesting Straight Dope article on the "possession is nine tenths of the law" phrase. This was a a bit of a side-track, just a minor supporting point. I find it interesting, though, if only to show: Americans have been too litigious for a long long time. Suing someone because they snagged a fox before you? How petty!

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