Constructive possession

Article summary

Constructive possession is a legal fiction to describe a situation in which an individual has actual control over chattels or real property without actually having physical control of the same assets. At law, a person with constructive possession stands in the same legal position as someone with actual possession. For example, if A's car is in his driveway, A has physical possession. However, if B has (honestly or otherwise) acquired a key to the car, she has constructive possession of the car because B can convert it from A's use to her own without A's consent. Constructive possession is an important concept in both criminal law, regarding theft and embezzlement, and civil law, regarding possession of land and chattels. For example, if someone steals your credit card number, the credit card never leaves your actual possession, but the person who has stolen the number has constructive possession and could most likely be charged with theft of your credit card information. Constructive possession is also essential in the seizure of goods by private or government authorities. Take, for example, a large piece of equipment such as an aircraft. Should a loan be issued with the aircraft as collateral, and the loan goes into default, the creditor may find it difficult to take possession of it.…

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