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Possessions

Possession is having some degree of control over something else. Generally, to possess something, a person must have an intention to possess it. A person may be in possession of some property (although possession does not always imply ownership). more...

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Like ownership, the possession of things is commonly regulated by states under property law. Languages have several means to indicate possession.

Control

Control (sometimes called factual possession) means physical control. Only tangible things, such as a book, dog, or parcel of land, can be controlled in this way. Intangible things, such as a copyright, cannot be controlled and thus cannot be possessed. The methods used to control something will be dictated by factors such as the size of the thing, its situation, and whether it is moveable. The essential question is whether the person is able to control access to the thing. With some things, such as animals or fluids, there is an additional problem of preventing the thing from escaping.

Controlling a space allows people to control the smaller things within that space. Generally speaking, things located in a private home are controlled by the people in possession of that home. There are places, however, to which the public enjoys relatively free access, such as public roads and parks. In Waverley Borough Council v Fletcher, the defendant used a metal detector to find a medieval gold brooch nine inches beneath the surface of the plaintiff's public park. The plaintiff, as the possessor of the land, controlled the brooch because public access to the park did not include the right to dig in the soil.

Once someone has obtained enough control of a thing to be in possession of it, that control can be relaxed without losing possession. For example, you can go on vacation and still have possession of your home. Possession will be lost if you lose something or throw it away.

Intention to possess

An intention to possess (sometimes called animus possidendi) is the other component of possession. All that is required is an intention to possess something for the time being. In common law countries, the intention to possess a thing is a fact. Normally, it is proved by the acts of control and surrounding circumstances.

It is possible to intend to possess something without knowing that it exists. For example, if you intend to possess a suitcase, then you intend to possess its contents, even though you do not know what it contains. It is important to distinguish between the intention sufficient to obtain possession of a thing and the intention required to commit the crime of possessing something illegally, such as banned drugs, firearms or stolen goods. The intention to exclude others from the garage and its contents does not necessarily amount to the guilty mind of intending to possess stolen goods.