Torts I

For defense of property, force is limited to what is reasonably necessary to the situation as it appears to defendant. What is reasonably necessary is determined by the jury.

The owner dispossessed of a chattel may use reasonable force to recover the chattel immediately after dispossession.

• Pursuit must be fresh
  • Discovery must be prompt
  • Efforts to recover must be prompt and persistent
• Under the majority rule, the owner must first demand back his property unless it reasonably appears that it would be useless.
• Force must be only what is reasonable to recover the property
• Repossessions are allowed as long as it would not cause a breach of the peace.