Chapter 2

The Nature of Property Real and Personal Property Real estate law intertwines with contract law In a sense, property means things—real or personal, immovable or movable, corporeal or incorporeal, visible or invisible, and tangible or intangible In a legal sense , property describes: the relationship between people and things—that is, the right of a person to possess, use, or own things. legal meaning of property was described by the English jurist Sir William Blackstone as "the free use, enjoyment, and disposal of all his acquisitions, without any control or diminution, save only by the laws of the land." Chapter case: In re Marriage of Graham; is a MBA degree "property"? ○ finds that such exchange value, or the ability to sell property, is a critical factor in deciding whether an MBA degree is "property." Blackstone's definition: the concept of general property under the common law does not differ substantially from its meaning under Roman law... ○ "Property in its nature is an unrestricted and exclusive right. Hence it comprises in itself the right to dispose of the substance of the thing in every legal way, to possess it, to use it, and to exclude every other person from interfering with it." Is It Ethical to Sell Human Organs as Property? ○ Proponents argue that the public policy underlying the law protects sellers, particularly the poor, from being exploited by the rich. ○ others argue that people own their bodies just like they own a piece of property, and thus they should be able to sell parts of them, even their vital organs. ○ it is legal to sell blood plasma, sperm, eggs, and hair ○ despite health risk associated with selling a kidney, people take greater risks of incurring injuries to their bodies and even death in jobs that are often government regulated such as fishing, construction, and mining "basis of expectation, the expectation of deriv- ing certain advantages from a thing which we are said to possess, in consequence of the relation in which we stand towards it." law of property might be considered one of the keystones of civilized society, for the rights and duties that define the "basis of expectation" distinguish modern humans from the savage who must use force to acquire and retain property Cuba changed its laws beginning in 2011 to allow the buying and selling of real estate in order to capitalize, expand, and hopefully alleviate a dire housing shortage only when countries develop a legal system in which a person's private property rights and expectations are respected will a foundation for economic prosperity be established The classification of slaves as property was even sanctioned by the U.S. Supreme Court in the Dred Scott case in 1857, when it ruled that slaves were chattel (personal property) and could therefore be owned, bought, sold, and collateralized just like any other personal property Are Frozen Embryos People, or Are They Property?

○ The Tennessee Supreme Court was asked to rule on, among other issues, whether frozen embryos were persons protected by the state or property governed by the wishes of their owners private property: belongs to an individual who has the exclusive right of disposition, while public property includes those things owned by the public through a federal, state, or local government body Literary property: is the natural common law right of an author to the profits resulting from her composition. ○ theatrical property: includes everything used in producing a play with the exception of the actors' costumes and painted scenery Real property is property that is fixed, immovable, and permanent ○ includes land; structures affixed to the land; property affixed to the structures (fixtures, which are discussed in detail later in this chapter); and in some cases, things growing on the land. ○ includes the right to the air space above the earth's surface and to the soil and minerals below ○ cujus est solum ejus est usque ad coelum et ad inferos "the owner of the soil owns also to the sky and to the depths." ○ Mobile home is real property ( U.S. v. One 1989 Stratford Fairmont) Personal property : includes everything that is not real property ○ the basic characteristic of personal property is its movability The word movabl e is the legal term for personal property, while real property is called immovable property . Tangible personal property refers to things that can be touched, such as books, automobiles, or chairs intangible property includes property that has little or no value in itself but represents something of value. a corporation owns one asset, such as a 100-acre farm, and if Smith owns all of the stock in the corporation, Smith's interest would be classified as intangible personal property. As a separate entity, the corporation owns the tangible real property. Smith's stock certificates, which are intangible personal property, represent evidence only of her interest in the corporation Intellectual property , which includes patents, copyrights, and trademarks, is also a type of intangible personal property. statute of frauds: A law that disallows any suit or action involving certain classes of contracts, such as those concerning interests in land, unless the agreement is evidenced by a note or memorandum in writing signed by the party to be charged or his authorized agent.' Real property=Real estate taxes , due to it being a primary source for the gov to fund things such as schools ○ Personal property isn't taxed Real v Personal property ○ Annual Cultivated Props - personal

■ If you own agriculture and sell land in the spring, you are entitled to come back in the fall to harvest ○ Orchard / Vineyard - real ■ Goes with the sale, need to make allowance for its transfer in the real estate contract Real property is conveyed by Deed Personal property requires a bill of sale When you turn personal property into real property -> annexation ○ (process of buying supplies to make cement is personal property, creating cement and making a sidewalk is real property) Real property into personal -> Severance ○ (picking an apple from a tree makes the apple personal property) Sources of Law uniform commercial code: A code of law (adopted in its entirety by all states except Louisiana) that governs commercial transactions. If someone were selling or leasing tangible personal property, the law would be found in the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) UCC was the work of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws and the American Law Institute (ALI) PA first to adopt the UCC in 1953 Article 2 of the Code covers the sale of goods definition of goods is identical to the definition of personal property the law relating to real property is derived mainly from common law case decisions rather than from the Code. Statute of Frauds: provides that certain contracts must be written to be enforced Section 2-201 of the UCC states that only contracts for the sale of goods priced at $500 or more must be in writing. However, the code contains a number of exceptions to the requirement of a written contract even when the value exceeds $500. ■ ex.) a party admits in court that an oral contract for more than $500 was made, the contract is enforceable only the defendant must sign the written contract since the plaintiff, by bringing the lawsuit, is acknowledging his willingness to be bound by the agreement Statue of frauds ... "any contract for the sale of land or for an interest in land must be written" ■ Kyra's contract for the sale of the car can be oral, but the contract for the sale of the land must be written Form of Transfer