Fisher v. Steward
New Hampshire Supreme Court
1 Smith 60 (1804)
Relevant factsFree
Abraham Fisher (plaintiff) discovered a swarm of bees in a tree on land owned by Jonas Steward (defendant), marked the tree, and notified Steward of the discovery. Steward instead cut down the tree and used the honey for himself. Fisher sued in trover for the bees and 200 pounds of honey, claiming his discovery and marking of the tree gave him a property right; Fisher did not claim any ownership or occupancy interest in Steward's land, the tree itself, or the bees beyond his act of discovery.
IssueFree
Whether a person's discovery of a wild animal gives that person a property right to the animal when the discovery is made on land owned by another person.