6 CLASSIFICATIONS OF PROPERTY 



7. Fundamental Distinctions Between Realty and 

 Personalty. The fundamental difference between land 

 and personal property in their legal relations which must 

 be accentuated arises from the fact that the one class of 

 property is fixed or "immovable" in nature while the other 

 class consists of "movable" things. Thus it happens that 

 one person may enjoy the ownership of a piece of land while 

 another contemporaneously enjoys certain privileges of 

 use and possession, and the owner need under ordinary 

 circumstances have no particular concern as to the possi- 

 bility of the value of his property right being diminished 

 as a result of the advantages which the other person enjoys 

 through possession, nor need he generally feel disquietude 

 lest the' one in possession, through evil purpose, attempt 

 to deprive him permanently of the subject of his right. 

 Such is not the case, however, with personalty, for the 

 enjoyment of the advantages of such property is relatively 

 much more dependent upon possession and because of its 

 movable character personalty is more exposed to the danger 

 of an appropriation by the one in possession to the per- 

 manent loss of the rightful owner. From this difference 

 in character it occurs that there is no counterpart in per- 

 sonal property law, to the doctrine of "estates" as developed 

 in real property law, through which different persons are 

 enabled to enjoy separate and distinct rights in the same 

 property contemporaneously, which rights may not com- 

 prise the enjoyment of present possession. 



Statute law usually makes a distinction between real 

 and personal property as b o the form of creation and trans- 

 fer of rights therein. Delivery of possession coupled with 

 an intention to part with the property right is generally 

 sufficient to transfer a right of property in movables; while 

 a written instrument is required for the transference of an 

 interest in land of any importance. 1 



Agaifeall legal rights pertaining to land are determined 

 by the law of the place where the land is situated, (the 

 lex rei sitae). All legal rights pertaining to movable chattels 



1. Williams, Pers. Prop. 36; Browne, Statute of Frauds, C. 1; 1 Stimson Am. St. 

 Law, Sec. 4143. 



