PEDIS POSSESSIO DOCTRINE

pedis possessio doctrine (pee-dis orped-is p[schwa]-zes[h]-ee-oh). [Latin “possession-of-a-foot doctrine”] The principle that a prospector working on land in the public domain is entitled to freedom from fraudulent or forcible intrusions while actually working on the site. [Cases: Mines and Minerals 27(1). C.J.S. Mines and Minerals §§ 63–64.]