- Someone who finds a lost item that bears a siman, that is, some way that the owner can prove his ownership, must return the item if it was found in a place where most people return lost objects (see Shulchan Aruch Choshen Mishpot 259:3).
- Someone may ignore a lost item if there is no way that it will be returned to its owner anyway.
- After the owner of a lost object despairs of recovering the object, we treat it as ownerless.
- Something found in a place where most of the population does not return lost objects may be treated as ownerless even if it has a siman.
- In the last three situations, if the item has a siman, it is preferred, but not required, to return the item.
- Someone who picks up an item before the owner was me’ya’eish may not keep it, even if he kept it until we are certain that the owner was me’ya’eish.
- One should not touch an item that an owner placed down intentionally unless the item will disappear.
- If one finds an item, such as a pacifier, and the owner will be embarrassed to claim it, there is no mitzvah of hashovas aveidah and if one ignores it, he doesn’t violate the prohibition of lo suchal l’hisalem either.
- The halachah of zokein v’eino lefi kavado applies not only to a talmid chocham, rather it applies to anyone who finds it beneath his dignity to busy himself returning such an item, and therefore, in a case where a woman feels it is a breach of tznius to busy herself with returning the item she is exempt.
- Even if an item is insured by a non-Jewish company, there is still a mitzvah of hashovas aveidah.
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