The Mitzvos
1. Hashovas aveidoh includes three mitzvos: the mitzvas asei of "השב תשיבם לאחיך" (Devarim 22:1), the lav of "לא תוכל להתעלם" (ibid. 22:3), and potentially the lav of "לא תגזול" (Vayikra 19:13).
Chiyuv Hashovoh
2. One who sees a Jew's lost item with a simon and ignores it transgresses the lav of "לא תוכל להתעלם" (Shulchan Aruch Choshen Mishpat 259:1) and is mevateil the mitzvas asei of "השב תשיבם".
3. If one saw a lost item, but did not pick it up, some say he transgresses the asei and the lav (Rambam Hilchos Geneivah VaAveidah 11:1, Taz 259, Shulchan Aruch HaRav 259:1); others say if he merely saw it, he only transgresses the lav. If he picked it up and did not return it to its owner, he also transgresses the asei (Sema ibid. 1).
4. Waited to pick it up. If one waited until the owner lost hope of finding it and then picked up the item for himself, he only transgresses the lav of "לא תוכל להתעלם" (Shulchan Aruch ibid.).
5. Delayed returning it. If one picked up the item planning to return it, but did not publicize that he found it before the owner gave up hope, and then kept it for himself, he only transgresses the asei of "השב תשיבם" (Shulchan Aruch ibid.). Therefore, after picking up a lost item, one must hurry to announce it. Otherwise, the owner may give up hope before the announcement and if he keeps it, he transgresses the asei of "השב תשיבם".
6. No simon. Most poskim hold that one is potur from picking up a lost item without a simon (Shulchan Aruch ibid. 2, R' Akiva Eiger D"H אמנם).
7. Memory stick/card. If one finds a memory card without an external simon, he may insert it into a computer or camera enough to identify who it belongs to based on the contents. If it does not contain any simon, he may keep it and record it in a 'hashovas aveidoh notebook' (see below, 41).
Worth Less than a Prutoh
8. One is only chayov to announce and return a lost item that was worth a prutoh when the owner lost it and when he found it (Shulchan Aruch Choshen Mishpat 262:1). The poskim argue whether the finder of an item worth less than a prutoh may acquire it (see Machaneh Efraim Gezeilah 1, Even HaEzel Hilchos Geneivah VaAveidah 11, Shaar Mishpat 6:1).
9. Paper. Thus, one who finds a piece of paper or a tissue does not need to search for its owner since these items are worth less than a prutoh.
10. Worth a prutoh only to its owner. Certain items, e.g., a single shoe, a glasses lens, family photos, medical documents, and passports, despite having great value to their owners, are worthless to anyone else. Some say that an item must have a market value – not personal value – of a prutoh to incur a chiyuv hashovoh. Accordingly, one would not have to return these items (Netivot HaMishpat 148:1, Beit Yitzchak Even HaEzer 87:7).
11. However, most poskim hold that the owner's perspective is the determining factor, and thus, one must also return items which only have value to their owner (Chazon Ish Choshen Mishpat Bava Kama 6:3, Mishpat HaAveidah 262:1).
Cheap Items in a Public Place
12. It is very common today to find all sorts of small objects on the street or in a public place, which may have a simon, but are of slight value, e.g., a cheap scarf, a single sock, a plain baby hat, a baby bottle or pacifier, a gartel, a cheap pen, toy parts etc. Oftentimes, even if the finder announces these items or hangs up signs, the owner does not bother to claim them since they are cheap and available everywhere, and he is embarrassed to come and take them. In such cases, many poskim hold that since "עד דרוש אחיך אותו" [the mitzvoh to hold on to the item until its owner comes searching for it] is not realistic, "השב תשיבם" does not apply and the finder is potur from attending to these items (Hashavas Aveidah KeHalachah, Shaarei Mishpat Aveidah UMetzia 2:4).
13. There is an additional rationale not to pick these items up: if one would pick them up, it is near certain that the owner will not search for them, whereas if one leaves them where they are, there is a chance that the owner will come back to look for them. The Torah wants to save people's money. Therefore, the Torah would not command one to do hashovas avedoh if picking something up will make it less likely that the owner will recover it (ibid.).
After Picking It Up, One Must Attend to It
14. There are situations where one is potur from picking up an item that fell – some say also in a case of a sofeik if it fell – but if he picked it up, he must return it (Shulchan Aruch 260:9,10) and may not put it back. Therefore, if one picks up a lost item, he should not hang it up on a bulletin board.
15. If a cheap item which one is potur from picking up (above, 12) is resting in a hard-to-see spot, or somewhere it is liable to get damaged, e.g., a pen on the beis medrash floor, or a ball on the street, one may pick it up in order to place it back down nearby, but more visibly or safely since he is only picking it up to make it easier for its owner to recover it.
Non-Jew's Item
16. The chiyuv of hashovas aveidoh only applies to items belonging to a Jew. It is an aveiroh to return something which one knows belongs to a non-Jew since doing so supports wrongdoers (Shulchan Aruch 266:1).
17. Nevertheless, if not returning it will cause a chillul Hashem, e.g., it was lost in a place where there is a Jewish majority and the non-Jewish owner will suspect that a Jew stole it, one must return it (Beit Yosef, Sema 3).
18. Similarly, it is praiseworthy to return something with intention to create a kiddush Hashem by causing its owner to praise Jews and know that they are trustworthy (Shulchan Aruch ibid.). This is only true if the owner will praise Jews, not just the finder personally (Yesh Shlomar Bava Kama 10:20).
Yi'ush [Giving Up, Losing Hope]
19. Yi'ush. If the owner gave up on finding the item he lost, whether it had a simon or not, and afterwards, the finder picked it up, he acquires it (Shulchan Aruch 262:5). 'Yi'ush' means that we heard the owner say, "What a shame about my loss" or any similar expression which demonstrates that he gave up on searching for it.
20. Yi'ush in the heart. Yi'ush in the heart is valid even if the owner did not verbally express it. Therefore, if a finder comes to return an item, but the owner knows that he already gave up on it, he must tell that to the finder, and it technically belongs to the finder (Morenu B'Petachai Choshen Aveidah 2:1). Nevertheless, he can go beyond the letter of the law and return it (based on Shulchan Aruch 259:5).
21. Yi'ush after it was picked up. Yi'ush is only effective prior to the finder picking up the object. If it was picked up before yi'ush, the finder is chayov to return it despite the owner's subsequent yi'ush. The yi'ush does not exempt him since the object came into his hand b'issur.
22. There for a long time. If it is clear that the object was there for a long time, it can be assumed that the owner gave up on finding it and the finder acquires it, even if it has a simon (Shulchan Aruch 262:5).
23. Non-Jewish majority. If the item was lost in a place with a non-Jewish majority and it is possible that a non-Jew found it, it may be assumed that there was yi'ush.
'Yi'ush Shelo Mida'as'
24. Yi'ush shelo mida'as is not considered yi'ush (Halacha like Abaye in Bava Metzia 21b). In other words, if a person found something before its owner realized that he lost it and gave up on finding it, even if it is clear that the owner will immediately give up upon realizing he lost it – and he indeed did so – since, at the moment he picked it up, the finder was not allowed to keep it for himself and was chayov to return it, the subsequent yi'ush does not allow him to keep the item (Shulchan Aruch 262:3).
25. If one picked up a lost item before the owner's yi'ush – even if it is just a sofeik if there was yi'ush – he should put it away until Eliyahu comes (Shulchan Aruch ibid.).
Lost Objects with Definite Yi'ush
26. There are certain items that we assume with certainty that the owner is aware he lost before the finder picks it up. Therefore, if there is no simon on them or their location, the finder may keep them.
27. Money. People generally check their money pouches frequently. Therefore, when a person loses money, whether a large sum or a small sum (Igros Moshe YD 4:23), we assume that he knows it fell and the finder may keep it since the owner presumably had yi'ush (Shulchan Aruch 262:6). Even nowadays that people generally keep their money in their trousers pocket and do not constantly check it, this halochoh remains in place, at the very least due to hefker beis din (R' Chaim Kanievsky in the name of Chazon Ish, Hashavas Aveidah KeHalachah 5:7).
28. Ring. A ring is also considered something which is felt right when it falls. Therefore, if there is no simon on it, it may be assumed that there was yi'ush (Ben Ish Chai Year 1, Parshas Ki Savo 4).
Publicizing
Putting up a Sign
29. One who finds a lost object with a simon must announce it (Shulchan Aruch 262:3), i.e., publicize that he found it. He may put up a sign where many people will see it, e.g., in a shul (Shulchan Aruch 267:3), in the area where it was found. If it is something generally owned by women, e.g., jewelry, he should put up a sign in the shul's ezras noshim. He should also put up a sign in the place he found the object (R' Moshe Feinstein, Kuntres Hashavas Aveidah).
30. Reading a sign on Shabbos. One may read hashovas aveidoh signs on Shabbos; it is not an issue of shtorei hedyotos (Teshuvos V'Hanhagos 3:764).
31. Notice in a newspaper. One may also publicize the finding of an item in a local Chareidi newspaper which is read by most people (Chasam Sofer Choshen Mishpat 122). If that entails payment, he does not need to publicize it since we pasken that one is not required to spend money on hashovas aveidoh (Shulchan Aruch 265:1). If it is the type of item that the owner may be willing to reimburse the cost of publicizing, he must pay to publicize it (Shulchan Aruch HaRav 33).
How Long to Publicize
32. The notice must be posted for an amount of time that is reasonable to assume everyone saw it. Some say this is a week (Teshuvos V'Hanhagos 3:764); others say the longer, the better (R' Moshe Feinstein ibid.). Afterwards, if it was removed, he does not need to post it again.
33. At a time when many visitors come from out-of-town, e.g., at a beis medrash of a Chassidus during special Shabbosos, such as Shabbos Chanukah or Shabbos Shira, one must publicize the finding of an object until the next time many people come.
34. Owner never came. After informing the owner of a lost item that he found, the finder is not required to bring it to him. Rather, the owner must come or send someone to get it (Mishpat HaAveidah p. 230). If the owner procrastinated on coming to pick it up, the finder may set a reasonable time limit for the owner to come, after which he may make it hefker (R' Nissim Karelitz, Hashavas Aveidah KeHalachah p. 48).
Intentional 'Lost' Item
35. If an item was intentionally 'lost', e.g., someone threw his wallet into a public area, or is aware that something of his is somewhere unsafe and does not retrieve it, some say there is no chiyuv to return it, yet one should not take it for himself (Shulchan Aruch 261:4). Others hold it is like hefker and whoever comes first may take it (Rema ibid., Shach 3).
36. If the item is in a somewhat secure place, it does not have hefker status and may not be taken. Therefore, a baby stroller in a building's stairwell, or building materials left unguarded on the street are not considered intentionally lost and may not be taken (Mishpat HaAveidah).
37. Child's object. Anything which clearly belonged to a child below the age of da'as [until six or seven] need not be returned since his parents, by giving him this object, intentionally 'lost' it. Still, all agree that one may not take an object from a child's hands (Morenu B'Petachai Choshen Aveidah 4:13).
Upstairs Neighbor's Item Fell onto Balcony
38. Things which fall into a yard or onto a balcony from an upstairs neighbor, e.g., clothing from a clothesline or the like, have the status of an aveidoh, and one who finds them may inform the neighbors by hanging a note in the building. The neighbor should make the effort to collect his things from the yard/balcony-owner. The finder may not leave them in the stairwell or toss them since he is chayov to safeguard them until he informs his neighbors.
39. Nevertheless, small children's toys or games thrown onto a balcony need not be returned; since the parents gave them the games knowing that they throw things down (Morenu B'Shevet HaKehati 4:304).
Putting Aside Until Eliyahu Comes
Hashovas Aveidoh Notebook
40. There are several circumstances under which the halochoh is that the finder must put the object aside until Eliyahu comes, e.g., if one found something with a simon and publicized it, but the owner never came, or if one found something without a simon and picked it up before the owner's yi'ush. Due to our many sins, we are in a prolonged golus and move from place to place, making it difficult to hold on to the many items whose owners were never located that can accumulate over generations. Although Eliyahu can come at any moment and all lost items will be returned to their owners, people still have a hard time saving so many amassed items.
41. Therefore, the great poskim advise every family to make their own 'hashovas aveidoh notebook'. If, some time after finding an item, it appears that its owner is not coming and a replacement can easily be bought, they should record the particulars of the item, e.g., a description, any simonim it may have, when and where it was found, its value etc., in a notebook. They should stipulate that if the owner comes to claim his item, they will give him its monetary value and be able to keep and use the item for themselves. If they have no need for it, they may throw it away.
42. Fruits or vegetables. If one finds fruits, vegetables, or anything which will spoil shortly, he may take them for himself and record their particulars in a notebook, and then give the owner their monetary value. The same is true if one mistakenly took vegetables from a store's checkout counter and doesn’t know whom they belonged to.
43. Evaluation. Some say that the item must be evaluated in front of a beis din (Shulchan Aruch 267:24); others say he does not need a beis din and may evaluate it himself (Rema ibid.) since by returning the item, he has a chezkas kashrus (Sema 137). One may rely on this and evaluate it himself if its value is commonly known. If it is not, he should at least have it evaluated in front of three people who are familiar with that type of item (Igros Moshe Choshen Mishpat 2:45).
44. Valuable items. Items that have a special value or cannot be easily replaced, e.g., mehudar tefillin, rare manuscripts or seforim, heirlooms etc., may not be evaluated and sold. Rather, one must safeguard them until Eliyahu comes.
Place with Many People
45. One who finds an object without a simon, such as money, in a place frequented by many people, e.g., a beis medrash, mikvoh, store, yeshivoh, bus, soda machine etc., may keep it, even if there is a Jewish majority (Shulchan Aruch 262).
