PARTITION

When title to real property is held by several persons as co- owners (e.g. tenants-in-common, joint tenants, life estate in one and remainder in another), one or more of the co-owners may bring an action for partition. See California Code of Civil Procedure section 872.020 et seq. Simply stated a co-owner has the absolute right to go to court and request division of the common property. This division or partition can be accomplished by a physical division of the property, a sale of the property and a division of the proceeds, or a partition by appraisal whereby one co-tenant acquires the interests of the other co-tenants based on a court ordered and supervised appraisal. Since a partition action is an action in equity, the court, unless there is agreement, will determine which method of division is fairest. 5 California Real Estate 2d 121, et seq. (Miller and Starr, 1989)

CAVEAT: Please consult an attorney for legal advice. Laws in the United States differ from one jurisdiction to another. Any law stated herein is for educational purposes only and may not apply to your particular circumstance.

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