Legal Definitions - non detinet

Non detinet is a historical legal defense used in a specific type of lawsuit known as a "detinue action." In Latin, it means "he does not detain."

Historically, a detinue action was a legal claim brought by someone seeking the return of specific personal property (like a valuable item or a document) that they believed was wrongfully withheld by another person. When a defendant faced such a lawsuit, pleading non detinet was a way to issue a general denial.

Specifically, the defense of non detinet denied two key things:

• That the defendant was actually detaining the goods in question.
• That the plaintiff had a rightful claim to possession or ownership of those goods.

Essentially, by pleading non detinet, the defendant was asserting, "I am not wrongfully holding your property, either because I don't have it, or because it's not yours to begin with (or both)."

Examples:

• Scenario 1: The Returned Loan

  Imagine a situation where Ms. Chen lends her antique vase to her neighbor, Mr. Davies, for a special event. A week later, Mr. Davies returns the vase to Ms. Chen. However, a month passes, and Ms. Chen mistakenly believes she never got the vase back and sues Mr. Davies in a detinue action for its return. Mr. Davies would plead non detinet. His defense would be that he does not detain the vase because he already returned it, and therefore Ms. Chen has no current right to demand its return from him.

• Scenario 2: The Disputed Ownership of a Found Item

  Suppose Mr. Kim finds an old, seemingly abandoned boat washed ashore after a storm. He invests time and money to repair it, believing it to be salvage. A year later, Ms. Lee comes forward, claiming the boat was hers, stolen years ago, and sues Mr. Kim for its return. Mr. Kim could use the defense of non detinet. He would argue that he is not wrongfully detaining the boat (as he found it abandoned and improved it) and might also contest Ms. Lee's current right to possession, perhaps arguing that she abandoned her claim or that too much time has passed.

• Scenario 3: The Valid Purchase

  A rare book collector, Dr. Evans, sells a valuable first edition to another collector, Ms. Patel, for an agreed price. Later, Dr. Evans claims there was a misunderstanding about the condition of the book and sues Ms. Patel for its return, alleging she is wrongfully detaining it. Ms. Patel's defense would be non detinet. She would assert that she does not wrongfully detain the book because she is its rightful owner through a valid purchase, thereby denying Dr. Evans's claim to possession.