The California Partition Law begins at Code of Civil Procedure section 872.010 and ends at Code of Civil Procedure section 874.323. Within the Partition Statute, section 872.140 clarifies the court’s power to make equitable compensatory adjustments.
Code of Civil Procedure section 872.140 states
The court may, in all cases, order allowance, accounting, contribution, or other compensatory adjustment among the parties according to the principles of equity.
A partition action occurs when there are two or more title holders to a piece of property, and these title holders are unable to reach an agreement on splitting the subject property. Typically, a litigant brings a partition action to have the court force the sale of or split the subject property.
Generally, an action for partition can be brought forth by a co-owner of real property and a co-owner of personal property. Notably, a court can partition not only real property or real estate but also personal property of any kind. (CCP § 872.230(a).)
Indeed, courts in California have partitioned all types of personal property, including ownership of crops, shares of stock, and businesses. At the Underwood Law Firm, our attorneys are more than familiar with partition actions.
California Partition Law Blog