"Legal Rites" is a fantasy short story by American writers Isaac Asimov and Frederik Pohl, originally published in the September 1950 issue of Weird Tales, and included in the 1972 collection The Early Asimov.
After John W. Campbell of Unknown rejected "Legal Rights" in July, Asimov gave it to Pohl, who rewrote it (using the name James MacCreigh) and renamed it "Legal Rites", which Asimov agreed was a much better title.
He sold it seven years later to Weird Tales which published it in September 1950, after Asimov had forgotten about it.
In a bar, he is accosted by a mysterious stranger known only as Nicholls, who persuades Harley to let him place magical paraphernalia in and around the house in an effort to control the ghost.
Under the pressure of the proceedings, Harley breaks down and admits that he did know of the presence of the ghost and therefore is willing to clear out of the house.