Chapter 13 Real, Personal, and Intellectual Property
Ownership describes one interest in property
Ownership and possession separated
“real property” refers to land and things permanently attached to the land, such as buildings
Fixed and immovable
Personal Property: movable and divided into two categories
Chattels (or goods): tangible personal property, consisting of movable, can be weighed and measured
Intellectual property: intangible, such as right to claim one person has right against another (chosen in action= right to sue)
Copyrights; author control over the use and reproduction of own work
Patents; inventor the right to profit from own inventions
Trade-marks; protect the name or logo
Industrial designs; protect the distinctive shape or design
Trade secrets
REAL PROPERTY
Land or anything attached to land
Interest in Land
Owner’s rights will probably be restricted by local zoning regulations, may limit type/size of buildings, and activity that can take on that land
Can’t sue against noise made by aircrafts but can sue against power lines/overhanging buildings
Crown has retained the mineral, oil, gas rights
Property owner is entitled to compensation for surface disturbance but to share a profit coming from oil/gas/mineral
Estate in Land
Fee Simple
Greatest interest a person can have in land today (ownership)
Crown technically still owns the land, a fee simple gives holder an infinite right to use the land or sell it
Subject to governmental regulations, including buildings on that land
Life Estate
Life estate is more restrictive and cannot be willed to others (fee simple estate can be inherited)
Upon the death of the life tenant, life estate reverts back to the original owner or that owner’s heirs
Called reversionary interest (right to take back the property)
If transferred to a third party, then called the remainder-man
Dower/homestead rights; gives the spouse a claim to a substantial portion of all family assets in case of marriage breakdown
Leasehold Estates
Leases are limited to a specific period of time, after which property reverts back to the landowner
May be short or long-term (99 years)
Periodic tenancy; no definite termination date and continues to be renewed until terminated by notice
Lesser Interests in Land
Do not convey the give to exclusive possession of the property
Easement; a person the right to use a portion of another’s land
Right of way; common form, allows people to cross another’s land, to reach another point of interest, such as lake or sea
The owner cannot stop people with right of way but right of way holder cannot stop
The property that has the advantage of the right of way(the destination) = dominant tenement
Property subject to it (the crossing land) = servient tenement
Statutory easements gives utilities or other bodies similar rights to run power lines, sewer lines across private property
Licences; a person is given permission to use another’s land, such as the invitation to the public to attend at a shopping mall
Property rights may be acquired by a) prescription
Land is unabated over a long period of time; becomes a permanent enforceable right
Acquiring such a right over property through use = easement acquired by prescription
To prevent this, landowner must periodically exercise some control over land
B) by adverse possession
Occurs when someone has had the possession of land for a significant number of years in an open fashion, tolerated by the actual owner
Restrictive Covenant
The seller of the land can impose regulations as to how the property should be used
Will bind future owners
Building scheme; placing the same restrictive covenants on all the properties in a large development
Tenancy in Common and Joint Tenancy Tenancy in Common; people own property together with undivided interested in land
Co-owners; if one dies, that person’s heirs inherit his interest
Joint tenancy; if one dies, the others will be left
