What is a finder’s fee? And does it apply in this situation? 

When I was thirteen, I was on a caravan trip with my family, and I found a big stack of rolled bills someone had dropped near our campsite. I was so excited, I thought I had won the lottery. It was a lot of money, much more than my teenage brain could comprehend or decide what to do with. I felt like I could buy a house right there and then.

Five minutes after my grand discovery, I hear my mom and dad fighting. Apparently, Dad lost the cash he took out for the caravan trip, and Mom was furious that her let that happen. I realized immediately what happened, and since I was a good daughter, I brought my cherished findings to my parents and told them I found the lost cash.

Did I expect some kind of prize, a finder’s fee if you will, for my contribution? Definitely. I was already thinking of all the clothes I could buy. But all my parents did was give me a kiss on the head and thank me profusely. And I get it. The money was never mine to begin with, and my parents needed it much more than I did. Not to mention that they used it for the trip I was on, something that I also happily benefited from.

Does the mother in the story below have any claim to the money she found for her son? After all, she was the one who discovered it sitting unclaimed on a property website, and she was the one who informed her son about its existence.

Well, just like I didn’t have a claim to my dad’s money, this mom doesn’t have a claim to her son’s. If he wants to reward her for her help, he totally can, but that is his decision to make, and not a demand that should come from her. Unfortunately, she doesn’t see it like that, as she is sure she deserves at least half the findings.