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My son* found a ball on the school bus; may he keep it?

If we find a lost object we may keep it only if we are absolutely sure that the owner was already meyaeish (despaired) of ever finding it—thereby relinquishing his ownership—which allows us to acquire it. Otherwise, we are obligated in the mitzvah of hashavas aveidah (returning a lost object to its owner). Even if the owner was meyaeish, it’s still proper to go beyond the letter of the law and return the item to whoever provides a siman (description or distinguishing characteristic) or is otherwise proven to be the owner.

In order to be absolved of the mitzvah of hashavas aveidah, yiush must be proven to have occurred prior to the moment it was found. Whereas in a case of yiush shelo mida’as (if the owner didn’t realize that he lost the item until after we found it)—even if there’s no doubt that he will be meya’eish when he does realize, we are obligated to return it to the owner.

On his part, the owner must bring witnesses who testify that they saw him losing it, or give a siman to confirm that the lost object is his. If no one comes forward to claim the item, or the item has no siman, it should be set aside ad she’yavo Eliyahu (indefinitely, until Moshiach comes and Eliyahu Hanavi will resolve all doubts, including the ownership of lost objects).

However, if we find money—in which case a siman usually wouldn’t prove anything since money changes hands many times—we may keep it, since it’s assumed that people regularly check the money in their pockets and would realize immediately if they lost it, thereupon being meya’eish before it’s found by others. The same applies to other items without a siman that a person would immediately be aware of losing, such as an important item, a heavy object they were carrying or an item that was in their pocket.

What is the halachah if a child finds a ball on the school bus and another child claims that it’s theirs? Assuming that the ball doesn’t have a siman, does it mean that the finder may keep it? On one hand, it’s safe to assume that when a child loses a ball he immediately realizes that he lost it and would be meya’eish right away. Furthermore, it's possible that the limitation of yiush shelo midaas doesn’t apply when a child finds something, and the finder may keep the ball once the owner was meya’eish—even if yiush occurs after the ball is found. On the other hand, since the ball was lost by a katan (halachic minor), yiush may not apply because, according to many opinions, a katan isn’t capable of relinquishing ownership by being meya’eish, therefore keeping the ball might be problematic. Then again, it’s possible that the ball never really belonged to the child in the first place, but to his father, since a katan doesn’t halachically own anything, unless certain specific conditions are met. Additionally, by giving the ball to his child, the father might have committed aveidah mida’as (negligently allowing his possession to be lost), in which case hashavas aveidah doesn’t apply, and there is no obligation to return it. Finally, it's important to note that whatever a child living at home finds actually belongs to his father.

In view of the above, the halachah is that if a ball is found by a child it should be set aside ad she’yavo Eliyahu. Alternatively, the finder may keep the ball if they make a note of its current value, so that when Eliyahu comes and reveals the true owner they will give the owner its equivalent in cash or another ball to replace the one they kept. #539^⁠1

Halacha #539: My child found a ball on the school bus; can he keep it?