posjed

Posjed is a legal concept used in several South Slavic languages to denote possession or actual control of a thing by a person, regardless of ownership status. It describes a factual relationship between a person and a thing, where the person has physical control and, in many cases, the intention to treat the thing as if they were its owner. The term is distinct from vlasništvo (ownership, property rights), though the two may coincide.

In civil law traditions, posjed rests on two elements: corpus, the physical control of the object, and animus, the intention to possess it as one’s own. Possession does not require ownership documents and may be protected by law against unlawful disturbance. Distinctions are made between factual possession (faktičko posjedovanje) and possession recognized by law (pravni posjed).

Acquisition and loss occur through taking control, transfer, or succession, and can end by voluntary relinquishment, loss of control, or transfer to another. Many systems provide remedies to restore possession, such as injunctions or evictions, and some allow possession to contribute to acquiring ownership through prescription or usucapione after a prescribed period and under specified conditions.

Posjed is not equivalent to vlasništvo; ownership is a broader entitlement. A person may possess without owning, and a true owner may not always possess. The concept serves to regulate real-world control of property and the possibility of stabilizing rights over time through possession, protection, and, in some cases, prescription.