CONTENTS 
List of figures xi 
List of contributors Xi 
Introduction 1 
FUN-CHIEN CHANG 
I Foundation 7 
Ownership and possession 
THOMAS W. MERRILL 
I. Introduction 9 
2. How possession differs from ownership 11 
3. The law protects possession independently of ownership 18 
4. Previous explanations for legal protection of possession 20 
5. Possession in the material world 24 
6. Possession, ownership, and information costs 27 
7. The interaction of ownership and possession 34 
Conclusion 37 
The law is nine-tenths of possession: an adage turned 
on its head 40 
CAROL M. ROSE 
[. Introduction 40 
2. Theorists and jurists 41 
3. Possession as a legal concept 49 
4. The independent normative claims of acting like an owner 55 
5. Adverse possession revisited: the claim of right 57 
Conclusion 60 
The elements of possession 
£ 
HENRY E. SMITH 
|. Introduction 65 
7Y.