Q: does title renew with cash when transferred from one person to another.
with normal goods the title remains with rightful owner regardless of who posseses it, such as when it is stolen. that is one can only transfer as much title as they were given upon obtaining it. this would make a thifs title void. but is this the same with cash or does title start fresh merely with transfer of posession (as i beleive is the case with negotiable instruments). in other words as an example if a store owner were to recive stolen cash as payment without knowing it was stolen would he then take rightful title to it?
A:
Greetings. In New York, cash is not considered a good (unless it is a commodity, which in your given example it is not). Thus it may be transferred without civil implications in most factual situations (for example, an innocent casino receiving money that may or may not be stolen; an innocent car dealership receiving money that may or may not be stolen; an innocent building owner for the sale of an apartment receiving money that may or may not be stolen). There may however be criminal implications, which predominately depend on knowledge, which can be proven through circumstantial evidence. We suggest you ask this question on the criminal boards, rather than the civil boards, where you may get the input of a criminal lawyer.
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