Abandonment (legal)

In law, abandonment is the relinquishment, giving up, or renunciation of an interest, claim, privilege, possession,[1] civil proceedings, appeal, or right, especially with the intent of never again resuming or reasserting it.

Common law abandonment is "the relinquishment of a right [in property] by the owner therefore without any regard to future possession by himself or any other person, and with the intention to forsake [sic] or desert the right...."[2] or "the voluntary relinquishment of a thing by its owner with the intention of terminating his ownership, and without [the intention of] vesting ownership to any other person; the giving up of a thing absolutely, without reference to any particular person or purpose...."[2] By contrast, an example of statutory abandonment (albeit in a common law jurisdiction) is the abandonment by a bankruptcy trustee under 11 U.S.C. § 554.

[6] The relinquishment by a nonuser, for a specified period, of some accommodation or right in another's land, such as right-of-way or free access to light and air.

[1] In the United States, a tenant is generally understood to have abandoned a property if they have fallen behind in rent and shown a lack of interest in continuing to live there.

The landlord can keep the money up to the costs incurred as a result of the abandonment; the rest must be set aside for the former tenant, should they eventually return.

[7] Owners who wish for the public to make free use of their work often seek to do so by using a Creative Commons license and retaining copyright rather than relinquishing ownership entirely.

[13] Abandonment is permission sought by or granted to a carrier by a state or federal agency to cease operation of all or part of a route or service.

[1] Likewise, in the United States, the Surface Transportation Board grants permission to abandon railway lines.

Desertion refers to intentional and substantial abandonment, permanently or for a period of time stated by law, without legal excuse and without consent, of one's duties arising out of a status such as that of husband and wife or parent and child.