Articles Tagged with partition action California

underwood-recover-value-time-services-300x300The purpose of this article is to explain whether a property owner can recover value of time or services in a partition action. Understanding whether an owner can recover the value of time or services is important because it directly affects the compensation they are entitled to recover in a partition action. 

What is a partition action?

A partition action is a court-ordered process that occurs when a property owner forces the sale of jointly owned real estate property. Partitions are designed to determine the final equitable sum of a property owner’s interest in real estate, allowing each co-worker to take their fair share of equity, before going their separate ways. Each owner is entitled to recover their fair share of the property’s value. This means each co-owner is guaranteed to receive their equal share of rents and profits from a property they co-own through an equal division process performed by the court. (Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 872.510.)

underwood-guide-necessary-parties-partition-action-300x300The purpose of this blog post is to discuss who must be named in a partition lawsuit. It is important to name all the necessary parties so that the Court can properly issue a judgment at the conclusion of the partition action. As partition lawsuits involve rights to property, it is pretty obvious that the owners of the property and the mortgage broker should be joined. But the question becomes more difficult as the interests become less connected, like easement holders or other persons who have liens against the individual owners. As such, this article aims to provide clarity on the process. 

What Does the Law Say?

Under Code of Civil Procedure section 872.510, the plaintiff must join as defendants all persons having or claiming interests in the estate, persons who are actually known to the plaintiff to have such interests, or persons who, from an inspection of the property, appear to have such interests. Sections 872.510 to 872.550 define “interest,” as situations, includes liens, and a “lien” means a mortgage, deed of trust, or other security interest in property whether arising from contract, statute, common law, or equity. According to the Legislative Committee Comment, under Section 872.510, only persons having interests in the estate or estates as to which partition is sought need to be joined. 

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