Problem for Class Discussion
You are an attorney and Mr. Wright comes to seek your advice
with a lost animal story as follows:
A yellow canary flew onto my property. I fed the bird for
several weeks and the bird eventually walked into a cage I put
outside. I took the bird inside where he has been living for
several months. I named him Caruso after the opera singer
because he sings beautifully and I love to listen to him sing. I
didn’t see any signs about lost canaries in the neighborhood.
One of my neighbors saw my bird. The neighbor said he looks like
his friend’s pet canary that flew away when the bird escaped
from his cage. The friend, Mrs. Traynor, came to see Caruso and
said he was her canary. I wouldn’t let her have the bird. She
has now sued me and brought an action for something called
replevin. I need legal advice.
Before offering your legal opinion, what questions do you want
to ask Mr. Wright?