Past, Present, and Future of the French “possession vaut titre”-Rule

Abstract

The maxim « En fait de meubles, la possession vaut titre » is recognised world-wide as one of the most central rules of French personal property law. Taking account of the various proposals regarding the interpretation of this rule in national legal literature and court rulings, as well as of recent developments in French law such as the draft proposal for a reform of French property law submitted by the Association Henri Capitant in 2008, this article undertakes to analyse in which direction French law should preferably develop in a possible future legislative reform project. The main focus will be on the “acquisitive function” of the possession vaut titre-rule. DOI 10.1515/eplj-2014-0008