Legal Definitions - spuilzie

Spuilzie

In Scots law, spuilzie (pronounced 'spool-yee') refers to two interconnected concepts:

• The wrongful act of taking physical, movable property from another person's possession without their consent or legal authority. This property must be tangible, such as a vehicle, furniture, money, or equipment.
• The legal action that can be brought by the person whose property was wrongfully taken. This action aims to recover the property itself, or to seek financial compensation for its value, any profits the taker made while possessing it, or damages for the unjust deprivation of possession.

Here are some examples illustrating spuilzie:

• Example 1: A homeowner lends their expensive power tools to a neighbor for a specific weekend project. After the project is completed, the neighbor refuses to return the tools, claiming they now own them due to a misunderstanding. This act constitutes spuilzie because the neighbor has wrongfully taken and retained possession of the homeowner's movable property without legal right. The homeowner could initiate a legal action of spuilzie to compel the return of the tools or seek their monetary value.
• Example 2: A small business owner leaves a valuable piece of machinery, like a specialized 3D printer, at a shared workshop facility. Another workshop user, without permission, takes the printer and starts using it for their own commercial projects, generating income. This is an instance of spuilzie. The business owner could pursue a legal action not only to recover the printer but also to claim the profits the other user made from its unauthorized use.
• Example 3: During a property dispute between two siblings over their deceased parent's estate, one sibling enters the family home and removes several antique paintings and pieces of jewelry that were designated for the other sibling in the will, moving them to their own home. This unauthorized removal and retention of the specific, movable items constitutes spuilzie, as the items were taken wrongfully from the possession (or rightful future possession) of the other sibling. The aggrieved sibling could seek their return or compensation for their value.