Waverley Borough Council v. Fletcher
England and Wales Court of Appeal
Q.B. 334 (1995), 4 All ER 756 (1995)
- Written by Kelli Lanski, JD
Facts
Ian Fletcher (defendant) took a metal detector into a park in Surrey, England. The park was owned by the Waverley Borough Council (council) (plaintiff), and the public had free access to it. Fletcher found a medieval gold brooch several inches under the surface of the soil and reported it to a park ranger. After a coroner’s inquisition, the brooch was awarded to Fletcher. The council filed suit against Fletcher, seeking a declaration that the brooch belonged to the council. Fletcher argued that because he found the brooch while a lawful visitor to the park and the true owner had not been found, the brooch was his property under the principle of finders keepers (or finder’s rights). Fletcher also justified his right to dig and remove the brooch by arguing that the park’s bylaws permitted recreational activity, and metal detecting was a recreational activity. The court agreed, holding that the brooch belonged to Fletcher because a landowner does not own lost or abandoned objects and because Fletcher found the brooch while visiting the park lawfully. The council asked for an appeal.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Auld, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 832,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,500 briefs, keyed to 994 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
