Robert A. Spann lived in his Paradise, Arizona home until he passed away. Karen Spann Grande became the personal representative of the estate, and she and her sister Kim Spann took charge of the house. They knew that their father hid gold, cash, and other valuables in cans and other unusual places in the house. Over the course of 7 years, they found stocks, bonds, and hundreds of military-style ammunition cans hidden throughout the house, some of which contained gold or cash.

Mr. Spann's daughters sold the house to Sarina Jennings and Clinton McCallum. They hired Randy Bueghly and his company, Trinidad Builders, Inc., to remodel the dilapidated house. Shortly after work began, Rafael Cuen, a Trinidad employee, discovered 2 ammunition cans full of cash in the kitchen wall and found 2 more cash-filled ammunition cans inside the framing of an upstairs bathroom. After Cuen reported the find to his boss, Bueghly took the ammo cans that contained $500,000 cash but did not tell the new owners of the find.

Cuen eventually told the new owners of the discovery, and the police immediately took control of the cash. Bueghly claimed the money as the finder, Jennings/McCallum asserted that the cash had been abandoned and was therefore theirs, and Grande claimed that the cash was mislaid and therefore belonged to her father's estate. The trial court ruled that the cash was mislaid property and awarded it to Mr. Spann's estate. Jennings/McCallum appealed.

Do you agree with the court's findings? Why or why not?

Did Bueghly act ethically? Why or why not?

Do you think Jennings/McCallum have a rightful claim to the money?

Do you think Mr. Spann's daughters abandoned the money? Why or why not?