The City of Alameda was founded on June 6, 1853 following the Mexican American War. Originally, William Worthington Chipman and his friend Gideon Aughinbaugh purchased the land containing the City of Alameda in 1851. Frequently, such co-ownership of land can lead to disputes between owners. These co-ownership disputes are often best resolved by a partition action. The top Alameda Partition Attorneys find partition actions to be the best remedy for disputes between co-owners in four broad categories:
The best Alameda Partition Lawyers are knowledgeable on both public and private partition sales. There is no preference between public auction or private sale. (CCP § 873.520.) The court determines the manner in which the property will be sold depending on which will be more beneficial to the parties, whether at a public auction or private sale. (CCP § 873.520.) The property may also be sold in parts at both public auction and private sale if it would be more beneficial to the parties. (CCP § 873.530.)
To make this determination, the court may refer the matter to a referee and consider the referee’s report. (CCP § 873.520.) In addition to this, the court may also combine a reference to determine whether a partition by sale or partition by division is more equitable. (see Cal. L. Rev. Comm. Com to CCP § 873.520.) An Alameda Partition Lawyer will be familiar with this process.
Property sold at a public auction to the highest offer must be held in the county where the action is taking place or the location that the court prescribes. (CCP § 873.670(a).) Personal property must be present at the sale unless the court specifies otherwise. (CCP § 873.670(b).) The referee may postpone the sale by public declaration as provided for sales on execution. (CCP § 873.670.) A dispute with another party in another action regarding a party’s title to an undivided interest is not grounds for postponement. (see Schoonover v. Birnbaum (1907) 150 Cal. 734.) The court may allow the referee to hire an auctioneer who is authorized to act at the place of the sale to hold a public auction and to obtain purchasers for the property to be sold. (CCP § 873.140.) The best Alameda Partition Lawyers can assist with this process.
Property cannot be sold at a private sale before the specified date as provided in the notice of sale, but can be sold within a year thereafter. (CCP § 873.680(a).) Bids and offers are required to be in writing and left at the designated place as provided in the notice any time after the first publication or, if none, the posting of the notice. (CCP § 873.680.) In private sales, this designated place is usually the referee’s place of business.
The limitation of partition by appraisal is that it may only occur when there is a written agreement between parties. Partition by private sale transactions would be the same as partition by appraisal transactions if the statutes for partition by private sale were understood to be limit potential bidders to the parties. (see Cal. L. Rev. Comm. Com to CCP § 873.520.)
At Underwood Law Firm, our Alameda Partition Attorneys are well-versed in the legal remedy of partition, and are ready to discuss your legal issues. (CCP § 873.30(b).)