Traig Case Summary

The issue to be dealt with from the scenario presented is whether Craig has a right to claim the objects that have been found. The key principle for lost and found objects is the principle of priority of entitlement. Priority of entitlement starts with the "true owner who has the best claim; then the finder; the landowner; and the employees of the landowner." A claim to the ownership of lost or abandoned objects depends on where the object was found and the extent to which it was attached to the ground. The landowner may however, have a better claim to the item found over the finder and this depends (depending) on where the object was found and the extent to which the object was attached to the ground. When an object is found 'in' land, …show more content…
In this instance, with reference to, based on the scenario presented, if Donald interfered with the land when picking up the ring, then his position would change in the law as the finder of an object in the land. As discussed above, the landowners have a better claim over objects that have been found 'in' the land. Also, Donald would be referred to as a trespasser, although Donald was not a trespasser when he walked into the garden as he was a guest in the farm, he became a trespasser the moment he began to dig for the ring. Catharine MacMillan states that the digging is problematic and it is hard to see how digging is a permissible activity incidental to the recreation. In Waverley BC v Fletcher , the claimant although lawfully had a right to be in the park, but became a trespasser the moment he began to dig. The digging was seen as an "interference with the enjoyment of other recreational users." Applying the law to the facts given, Donald would become a trespasser the moment he had to dig for the ring, thus making him have limited rights to lay claim over the ring. Trespassers will not be permitted to benefit from