Key Takeaways

  • In law, the word thing refers to any object—corporeal or incorporeal—that can be the subject of legal rights, excluding human beings.
  • Common law divides things into real property (land and immovable property) and personal property (movables and chattels).
  • Civil law distinguishes between things in patrimonio (capable of private ownership) and things extra patrimonium (belonging to all, such as air, seas, or sacred objects).
  • Corporeal things are tangible (land, houses, animals), while incorporeal things represent intangible rights (obligations, servitudes, patents).
  • Legal classification of things determines ownership, transfer, inheritance, and liability in both property and contract law.

Definitions of "Thing"

  1. Obs. The assembly of free-men and/or barons of Sweden.
  2. By this word is understood every object, except man, which may become an active subject of right. In this sense it is opposed, in the language of the law, to the word persons.

Historical Origins of the Legal Term “Thing”

The term thing has deep historical roots. In early Germanic and Scandinavian traditions, a thing referred to an assembly or court where disputes were decided and laws proclaimed. Over time, its meaning shifted in legal contexts to describe any object that could be the subject of ownership, rights, or obligations. This evolution highlights the dual sense of the word: both as a physical object and as a legal matter under consideration. Roman law heavily influenced this transition, laying the foundation for how civil law systems still classify property today.

Categories of Things

Things, by the common law, are divided into:

  1. Things real, which are such as are permanent, fixed and immovable, and which cannot be carried from place to place; they are usually said to consist in lands, tenements and hereditaments.
  2. Things personal, include all sorts of things movable which attend a man's person wherever he goes. Things personal include not only things movable, but also something more, the whole of which is generally comprehended under the name of chattels. Chattels are distinguished into two kinds, namely, chattels real and chattels personal.

It is proper to remark that sometimes it depends upon the destination of certain objects, whether they are to be considered personal or real property.

Formerly, in England, a very low and contemptuous opinion was entertained of personal property, which was regarded as only a transient commodity. But of late years different ideas have been entertained of it; and the courts, both in that country, and in this, now regard a man's personal property in a light, nearly, if not quite equal to his realty; and have adopted a more enlarged and still Iess technical mode of considering the one than the other, frequently drawn from the rules which they found already established by the Roman law, wherever those rules appear to be well-grounded and apposite to the case in question, but principally from reason and convenience, adapted to the circumstances of the times.

By the Roman or civil law, things are either in patrimonio, capable of being possessed by single persons exclusive of others; or extra patrimonium, incapable of being so possessed.

Legal Importance of Classifying Things

The legal definition of things is not just theoretical—it affects rights, remedies, and transactions. For example:

  • Inheritance law distinguishes between immovables (often governed by the law where the property is located) and movables (usually governed by the law of the deceased’s domicile).
  • Contract law depends on whether the subject of a contract is a corporeal thing (like the sale of goods) or an incorporeal thing (such as licensing intellectual property).
  • Liability law treats damage differently depending on whether it affects real or personal things.

This classification provides predictability in commerce and justice, ensuring consistent treatment of ownership, transfer, and dispute resolution across jurisdictions.

Things In Patrimonio

Things in patrimonio are divided into corporeal and incorporeal, and the corporeal again into movable and immovable.

Corporeal things are those which are visible and tangible, as lands, houses, horses, jewels, and the like; incorporeal are not the object of sensation, but are the creatures of the mind, being rights issuing out of a thing corporeal, or concerning or exercisable within the same; as, an obligation, a hypothecation, a servitude, and, in general, that which consists only in a certain right.

Corporeal things are either movable or immovable. The movable are those which have been separated from the earth, as felled trees, or gathered fruits, or stones dug out from quarries or those which are naturally separated, as animals. Immovable things are those parts of the surface of the earth, in whatever manner the way be distinguished, either as building, woods, meadows, fields, or otherwise, and to whomsoever they may belong. Under the name of immovables is included everything which adheres to the surface of the earth, either by its nature, as trees; or which has been erected by the hands of man, as houses and other buildings, although, by being separated, such things way become movables.

Corporeal vs. Incorporeal Examples

  • Corporeal Things: These include land, houses, crops, machinery, livestock, and consumer goods. They can be directly perceived by the senses and transferred through sale, lease, or inheritance.
  • Incorporeal Things: These consist of rights or interests attached to a corporeal object, such as mortgages, easements, copyrights, and trademarks. They exist in law rather than in physical reality.

The distinction is crucial in modern law. For instance, a parcel of land is corporeal, but the easement allowing neighbors to cross it is incorporeal. Similarly, a book is corporeal, but the copyright protecting its content is an incorporeal right.

Things Extra Patrimonium

Things extra patrimonium are:

  1. Common.
  2. Public.
  3. Res universitatis.
  4. Res nullius.

Things common are, the heavens, light, air, and the sea, which cannot be appropriated by any man or set of men, so as to deprive others from the. use of them.

Things public, res publicae, the property of which was in the state, and their use common to all the members of it, as navigable rivers, ways, bridges, harbors, banks, and the right of fishing.

Res universitatis, or things belonging to cities or bodies politic. Such things belong to the corporation or body politic in respect of the property of them; but as to their use, they appertain to those persons that are of the corporation or body politic: such may be theatres, market houses, and the like. They differ from things public, inasmuch as the latter belong to a nation. The lands or other revenue belonging to a corporation, do not fall under this class, but, are juris privati.

Res nullius, or things which are not the property of any man or number of men, are principally those of divine right; they are of three sorts: things sacred, things religious, and things sanct. Things sacred were those which were duly and publicly consecrated by the priests, as churches, their ornaments, etc. Things religious were those places which became so by burying in them a dead body, even though no consecration of these spots by a priest had taken place. Things sanct were those which by certain reverential awe arising from their nature, something augmented by religious ceremonies, were guarded and defended from the injuries of men; such were the gates and walls of a city, offences against which were capitally punished.

Modern Applications of Extra Patrimonium

Today, the category of things extra patrimonium continues to influence laws on environmental protection, cultural heritage, and public rights. Examples include:

  • Natural Resources: Air, oceans, and outer space are considered common to all and cannot be privately appropriated.
  • Public Infrastructure: Roads, waterways, and public parks remain accessible to the community at large.
  • Sacred and Cultural Objects: Certain religious sites, burial grounds, or UNESCO heritage properties are protected from private ownership.

These rules reinforce the principle that some resources are so vital or symbolic that they belong to humanity collectively, transcending private property rights.

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. What does “thing” mean in legal terms?
    In law, a thing refers to any object—tangible or intangible—that can be the subject of legal rights, excluding human beings.
  2. How are things categorized in common law?
    They are divided into real property (land and immovables) and personal property (movables and chattels).
  3. What is the difference between corporeal and incorporeal things?
    Corporeal things are tangible and perceptible (like land or goods), while incorporeal things are intangible rights (like patents or easements).
  4. What are “things extra patrimonium”?
    These are things outside private ownership, such as air, seas, rivers, and sacred or cultural objects.
  5. Why is the classification of things important in law?
    It determines ownership rules, inheritance laws, contract validity, and how damages or disputes are resolved.

If you need help identifying legal definition, you can post your legal need on UpCounsel’s marketplace. UpCounsel accepts only the top 5 percent of lawyers to its site. Lawyers on UpCounsel come from law schools such as Harvard Law and Yale Law and average 14 years of legal experience, including work with or on behalf of companies like Google, Menlo Ventures, and Airbnb.