Can we legally take the vessel and claim ownership? What do we do??

[sabythfay]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CALIFORNIA

A guy I'm seeing, RJ, has a friend whose wife owns a boat in California. She doesn't want the boat at all and hasn't touched it in over two years, leaving it abandoned in the harbor. RJ has sailed the boat to the current harbor for her and has done an extensive amount of work on the boat. RJ is the master of the vessel. His friend's wife is the owner and has, recently, ceded ownership to RJ via text. Since then, she has retracted ceding of the vessel, told him she wasn't interested in selling, told him she was selling to someone else, said she'd give the boat away but sell the motor and dinghy with it, not sell the motor or dinghy with it...she won't choose an option anymore and keeps flipping the coin on RJ every couple of days. We do have the texts stating she was giving it to RJ as well as all other texts. After all of the work he's done on the vessel and the fact that his friend and the wife owe him a lot in terms of the work done on the vessel, and the fact that RJ and I are the ones who have been cleaning, maintaining, and living aboard the boat lately...can we take ownership of the vessel? Is it our legal right to claim and live aboard it? What do we do?

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CALIFORNIA

A guy I'm seeing, RJ, has a friend whose wife owns a boat in California. She doesn't want the boat at all and hasn't touched it in over two years, leaving it abandoned in the harbor. RJ has sailed the boat to the current harbor for her and has done an extensive amount of work on the boat. RJ is the master of the vessel. His friend's wife is the owner and has, recently, ceded ownership to RJ via text. Since then, she has retracted ceding of the vessel, told him she wasn't interested in selling, told him she was selling to someone else, said she'd give the boat away but sell the motor and dinghy with it, not sell the motor or dinghy with it...she won't choose an option anymore and keeps flipping the coin on RJ every couple of days. We do have the texts stating she was giving it to RJ as well as all other texts. After all of the work he's done on the vessel and the fact that his friend and the wife owe him a lot in terms of the work done on the vessel, and the fact that RJ and I are the ones who have been cleaning, maintaining, and living aboard the boat lately...can we take ownership of the vessel? Is it our legal right to claim and live aboard it? What do we do?

You have no legal right to the boat.

 

[Mass_Shyster]

RJ may hold a valid maritime lien. He should talk to an attorney versed in maritime law.

 

[HighwayMan]

Why did you post this under small claims court?

Text messages do not give you ownership of anything. If you want a boat you and "RJ" will have to buy one. Move on and get over it - this boat is not yours and it looks like it never will be.

 

[justalayman]

RJ may hold a valid maritime lien. He should talk to an attorney versed in maritime law.

Maybe, if the work was at the request of the owner and there was compensation agreed to, um, compensation other than rj and friend living on the boat.