Re: Abandoning property (Was: Copyright Extension Bill Passes Congress)

From: Lance Purple <lpurple[_at_]netcom.com>
Date: Mon, 9 Nov 1998 06:42:34 -0800 (PST)

Thomas E. Workman <tworkman[_at_]erols.com> wrote:
>
> On Fri, 6 Nov 1998, Lance Purple <lpurple[_at_]netcom.com> wrote:
> >
> > On Thu, 5 Nov 1998, Moritz Roettinger <moritz.roettinger[_at_]dg23.cec.be> wrote:
> > >
> > > Abandoning property is a legal figure which is very rare in practice.
> >
> > Not in the US, it isn't.
>
> [...]
> I dont think anyone can name an American city where there is a
> full page of notices for abandoned property auctions, on any date
> past or present. Most auctions are for private sales (estates, etc.),
> bankruptcy, secured party auctions, foreclosures, or property taken
> by the government from criminals.

In the last week, the Austin American Statesman has published exactly three notices of public auction for 112 abandoned vehicles, which may be seen at <URL http://www.austinclassifieds.com/misc/publclass.htm> This is indeed not a "full page" and I apologize for the hyperbole; nevertheless I think it disproves Mr. Roettinger's claim of rarity.

> [...]
> All too often, the finder of property with the owner out of sight
> attaches the label "abandoned" to the property. To be abandoned,
> you must examine the motive of the owner when the property is separated
> from the owner. [...] Silence, after notification, may infer a motive
> to abandon. "Notification" requires that the owner actually receive
> the notice.

I disagree that the owner must actually recieve the notice: if they cannot be located (for example, if they have failed to register their current address with the Department of Motor Vehicles), then a public notice of auction, with the VIN and owner's name clearly indicated, should be sufficient. (Perhaps the WIPO ought to maintain a similar registry to help locate the owners of intellectual work rights?)

Moreover, the motive is almost always the former owner's unwillingness to pay for having the vehicle repaired or towed away to the junkyard. Similarly, the motive for leaving copyrighted works out-of-print is that they are no longer worth the expense of a print run.

Which goes back to my original analogy: if copyrights are going to be considered property like unto motor vehicles, then the owner and heirs shouldn't be allowed to leave them broken-down by the side of the road for 90+ years.

Lance Purple
<lpurple[_at_]netcom.com>

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Received on Mon Nov 09 1998 - 14:46:27 GMT