possession

Possession means the ownership, control, or occupancy of any object, asset, or property, by a person.

In the case Farm Property Holdings, LLC v. Lower Grassy Creek Cemetery, Inc., 208 SW 3d 922 (2006), it is explained that “possession is defined as the detention and control, or the manual or ideal custody, of anything which may be the subject of property, for one's use and enjoyment, either as owner or as the proprietor of a qualified right in it, and either held personally or by another who exercises it in one's place and name.”

The two most common types of possession are:         

  1. Actual possession, also called possession in fact, is used to describe immediate physical contact. It is what is generally understood as possession; having something in-hand, in your personal custody, and/or on your person. See: U.S. v. Nenadich, 689 F. Supp. 285 (1988).
  2. Constructive possession, also called possession in law, exists when a person has knowledge of something, and the ability to control the it, even when the person has no physical contact with it. Constructive possession is often used in criminal cases. See: U.S. v. Derose, 74 F. 3d 1177 (1996). 

[Last reviewed in April of 2026 by the Wex Definitions Team]

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