2007 Minnesota Statutes

345.72 ACQUIRING TITLE TO ABANDONED PROPERTY.
    Subdivision 1. Acquisition. Property loaned to a museum or archives repository whose
loan has an expiration date is abandoned when there has not been written contact between the
owner and the museum or archives repository for at least seven years after that expiration date.
If the loan has no expiration date, the property is abandoned when there has not been written
contact between the owner and the museum or archives repository for at least seven years after
the museum or archives repository took possession of the property.
    Subd. 2. Notice. (a) If a museum or archives repository wishes to acquire title to abandoned
property, the museum or archives repository shall, not less than 60 days after property is
abandoned under subdivision 1, send a notice by certified mail with return receipt requested to the
owner's last known address. The notice shall contain all of the following:
(1) a statement that the loan is terminated and that the property is abandoned;
(2) a description of the property;
(3) a statement that the museum or archives repository will become the owner of the property
if the present owner does not submit a written claim to the property to the museum or archives
repository within 60 days after receipt of the notice; and
(4) a statement that the museum or archives repository will make arrangements with the
owner to return the property to the owner or dispose of the property as the owner requests if
the owner submits a written claim to the property to the museum or archives repository within
60 days after receipt of the notice.
(b) The notice in paragraph (a) shall be substantially in the following form:

	NOTICE OF ABANDONMENT OF PROPERTY
	To: ............................ (name of owner)
		............................ (address of owner)

Please be advised that the loan agreement is terminated for the following property (describe
the property in sufficient detail to identify the property):
.....
.....
The above described property that you loaned to .... (name and address of museum or
archives repository) will be considered abandoned by you and will become the property of
..... (name of museum or archives repository) if you fail to submit to the museum or archives
repository a written claim to the property within 60 days after receipt of this notice.
If you do submit a written claim to the property within 60 days after receipt of this notice,
..... (name of museum or archives repository) will arrange to return the property to you or dispose
of the property as you request. The cost of returning the property to you or disposing of the
property is your responsibility unless you have made other arrangements with the museum or
archives repository.

	.....
	.....
	(name of person to contact at museum or archives repository and address of museum or archives repository)

    Subd. 3. Publication. If the notice sent by the museum or archives repository under
subdivision 2 is returned to the museum or archives repository undelivered, the museum
or archives repository shall give notice of the abandoned property by publication, and the
organization's Web site, if applicable, containing the following:
(1) the name and last known address of the present owner;
(2) a description of the property;
(3) a statement that the property is abandoned and that the museum or archives repository
will become the owner of the property if no person can prove their ownership of the property;
(4) a statement that a person claiming ownership of the property shall notify the museum
or archives repository in writing of that claim within 60 days after publication of the last legal
notice; and
(5) the name and mailing address of the person who may be contacted at the museum or
archives repository if a person wants to submit a written claim to the property.
    Subd. 4. Claims for the property. (a) If the museum or archives repository receives a timely
written claim for the property from the owner or the owner's agent in response to the notice sent
under subdivision 2 or 3, the museum or archives repository shall return the property to the owner
or dispose of the property as the owner requests. The owner shall advise the museum or archives
repository in writing as to how the property shall be disposed of or returned to the owner. Costs of
returning the property or disposing of the property shall be the responsibility of the owner unless
the owner and the museum or archives repository have made other arrangements.
(b) If the museum or archives repository receives a timely written claim for the property
from a person other than the person who loaned the property to the museum or archives repository
in response to the notice sent under subdivision 2 or 3, the museum or archives repository shall,
within 60 days after receipt of the written claim, determine if the claim is valid. A claimant shall
submit proof of ownership with the claim. If more than one person submits a timely written claim,
the museum or archives repository may delay its determination of ownership until the competing
claims are resolved by agreement or legal action. If the museum or archives repository determines
that the claim is valid, or if the competing claims are resolved by agreement or judicial action,
the museum or archives repository shall return the property to the claimant submitting the valid
claim or dispose of the property as the valid claimant requests. Costs of returning the property or
disposing of the property shall be the responsibility of the valid claimant.
(c) If the museum or archives repository does not receive a timely written claim to the
property or if the museum or archives repository determines that no valid timely claim to the
property was submitted, the museum or archives repository becomes the owner of the property.
The museum or archives repository becomes the owner of the property on the day after the
period for submitting a written claim ends or on the day after the museum or archives repository
determines that no valid timely written claim was submitted. The museum or archives repository
owns the property free from all claims.
History: 2004 c 213 s 3