possession is nine-tenths of the law

English

Alternative forms

• possession is nine points of the law

Etymology

From possession is nine points of the law.

Proverb

possession is nine-tenths of the law

1. One who has possession of a thing has some right to it; a popular statement of the doctrine of adverse possession.

See also

• use it or lose it
• Adverse possession on Wikipedia.Wikipedia:Adverse possession
• finders keepers