In vitro fertilization (IVF) is a fertilization process through which people implant a fertilized ovum into the uterus and is often used for people who have struggled to conceive. My parents used IVF to have my brother and me after facing a number of fertility struggles in the early 2000s. However, the question of who actually owns the pre-embryo prior to implantation can be complex, especially in cases of divorce. Embryos that have not been implanted into a uterus, pre-embryos, seem to sit in an intermediate space between property and individual rights because of their “potential for life”. For the sake of this article, pre-embryos will be treated as property.

In the 2026 Olympic gold medal men’s ice hockey game, American player Jack Hughes scored the overtime game-winning goal, clinching the gold medal for Team USA. His goal was reminiscent of when Sidney Crosby, captain of Team Canada, scored the “golden goal” in overtime against Team USA in 2010. However, these stories diverge beyond just the country each represented because the respective national heroes disagree about who should own the infamous pucks for each of those goals. Crosby said that he never even thought about owning the puck and was simply happy to have scored the goal. He was delighted that the puck would rest in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. Hughes, on the other hand, believes that he should receive the puck because he is the one who scored the goal.

Western Apache Natives know the land at Oak Flat, also known as Chi’chil Biłdagoteel, in Phoenix, Arizona as part of their home. The natives have used the land for centuries to conduct ceremonies, which are part of their religious and tribal belief that are tied specifically to Oak Flat. The problem that comes from Oak Flat is that the land is situated on top of a massive deposit of copper, around 20 million tons of it valued at around $200 billion. In 1955, President Eisenhower closed off all mining operations on Oak Flat, which was later reaffirmed in 1971, and since then, the area has been used by the tribe and other ancestors with the guarantee that their rights to the land would not be intruded upon.

Who really owns the legendary pirate ship known as the Black Pearl? This dispute centers on the ownership of the infamous pirate ship. Originally known as the Wicked Wench, the vessel was owned by the East India Trading Company (EITC) and captained by Jack Sparrow. After Sparrow disobeyed orders and freed enslaved individuals, the Company, led by Cutler Beckett, had the ship destroyed. Years later, Sparrow reclaimed the wreck by making an agreement with Davy Jones, who raised the ship from the sea. Sparrow renamed it the Black Pearl, transformed it, and became an infamous pirate captain. The EITC never reclaimed or repaired the wreck, and it was lost to the sea.

A Canadian company, The Metals Company (TMC), recently applied for U.S. government approval to mine the deep seabed. Specifically, parts of the Pacific Ocean outside any country’s borders. Instead of going through the usual international process run by the United Nations International Seabed Authority, TMC is asking for a license under U.S. law called the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (DSHMRA), which allows U.S. companies to explore the ocean floors.

Taken in 1801 by Lord Elgin, then British Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, the Parthenon Marbles remain encased in the British Museum, nearly 2,000 miles away from their original home in Athens, Greece. In a lost firman (permit), Elgin allegedly obtained permission from the imperial Ottoman Authorities to cast, draw, and erect scaffoldings of the Parthenon’s statues. However, debate surrounds whether he was actually authorized to remove the Marbles, including almost half of the famed frieze. After falling into severe debt, Elgin sold the sculptures to the British government in 1816.

Pierson v. Post is perhaps the most celebrated case in American property law, and scholars have delighted in debating its history and theory. Among other things, research has shown that the case’s presentation of the facts is incomplete and likely misleading. This post collects some of the academic literature to reconstruct a brief history of events, challenging the presentation of the facts as recited by the court.