Partition Lawyers in Emeryville
Our Emeryville partition litigation attorneys will work diligently to obtain a favorable outcome on your behalf, whether by negotiation or litigation.
Talkov Law’s attorneys serving Alameda County are exceptionally experienced in the area of California partition actions. California partition actions allows for the division of real property among co-owners. This statute provides a legal mechanism for co-owners to divide their real property into separate interests. The partition statutes allow for the court to order a partition of the property, either by physically dividing the property or by selling the property and dividing the proceeds among the co-owners. The partition statutes also provide for the court to award damages to any co-owner who has been wrongfully excluded from the property. The partition statutes also allows for the court to award attorney’s fees and costs to the prevailing party.
- Are there methods to resolve a partition situation without a court-ordered sale? The vast majority of partitions are solved without a court-ordered sale. Many times, the defendant will buy out the plaintiff's interest. Other times, the parties will agree to a voluntary sale on the open market. However, the filing of the partition action is generally what forces the defendant to see the wisdom of settlement. Under California's Partition of Real Property Act, a defendant can buy out the interest of the plaintiff at an appraised value, meaning that a court-ordered sale is only likely occur where the defendant simply can't afford to buy the property but still won't agree to sell.
- How to force the sale of jointly owned property? A partition action is the only statutory method to ensure the end of the co-ownership dispute.
- Are there ways to make my partition action less expensive? There are numerous ways to obtain a less expensive partition action in California. For example, having your documents organized can ensure you don't have to pay your attorney to go through a disorganized mess to get the information they need.
- How will the court in a California partition action determine how much each co-owner will receive from the sales proceeds? Generally, each co-owner will receive their fractional interest in the proceeds of sale based on their ownership interests. However, this amount can be enhanced or diminished by partition offsets whereby one co-owner paid more than their fractional interest for property expenses.
- Can you lose interest in a jointly owned home by moving out? Generally, co-owners maintain their ownership interests regardless of whether they live at the property. However, in rare cases, leaving the property for many years without paying taxes or other expenses may allow the co-owners in possession to argue that they have adversely possessed the property. Generally, these co-ownership disputes do not get easier with time, so it is important to act promptly.
For a free consultation with California’s first and largest team of partition attorneys at Talkov Law at (510) 999-3300 or contact us online today.
Call us at (510) 999-3300 or contact us below to schedule a free, 15-minute consultation.
Cummings v. Cummings - Partition Action Case Study
In the legal case of Cummings v. Cummings, 2016 WL 7077615, H041308 (23-Nov-2016) , the partition issues revolved around the division of a family-owned property. The property in question was owned by the parties’ parents, who had passed away. The parties had agreed to divide the property, but the agreement was not properly documented. The court had to determine how to divide the property in a fair and equitable manner. The court also had to consider the parties’ respective interests in the property, as well as the potential for future disputes between the parties. The court ultimately determined that the property should be divided in a manner that was fair and equitable to both parties.
