‘Belonging to another’

‘Belonging to another’

Section 6 of the Theft Ordinance defines what is meant by ‘belonging to another’ under the definition of theft. Property shall be regarded as belonging to any person having possession or control of it, or having in it any proprietary right or interest (not being an equitable interest arising only from an agreement to transfer or grant an interest), or having a charge in it. Put simply, the law recognises that the legal owner has proprietary rights; a person holding the property with the owner’s consent has a right of possession; and a person authorised by the owner to keep or manage the property is said to have control.

Section 6(4) of the Theft Ordinance states that where a person gets property by another’s mistake and is under an obligation to make restoration of the property, its proceeds, or their value, then to the extent of that obligation, the property or its proceeds shall be regarded as belonging to the person entitled to restoration. An intention not to make restoration would be regarded as an intention to deprive the person of the property or its proceeds (for the purpose of theft). 

In short, if a person obtains an item by mistake (e.g. if one picks up a wallet off the street) and did not return or restore the value of the wallet to its original owner, he may be regarded as having committed theft. If an employer mistakenly paid too much salary to an employee, the employee is required to pay the sum back or he may be charged with theft, as the overpaid sum is regarded as ‘belonging to another (the employer). 

If property is ‘abandoned’, it is incapable of being stolen because it no longer belongs to anyone.