What is a Partition Suit?
A partition action filed with the court can force the sale or division of a property. Typically, the partition action can take anywhere from three to nine months. Depending on the complexity of the case, however, it can take even longer. The costs of a partition action will also depend on the complexity and length of the case. If the action proceeds to trial, it will be more expensive than actions that are settled through negotiation.
A partition action can result in one of two ways, either a partition by sale or partition by kind. Partition by sale is when the court or negotiation concludes in selling the property and dividing the proceedings. Partition by kind is when the property is physically divided. Partitions by kind are more common on land property sales, not single-family homes,
Who Can File a Partition?
Anyone that owns real estate property with one or more other individuals can file a partition action. The action can be filed by anyone in a joint tenants, tenants in common, or coparceners relationship. The easiest way to differentiate the three is via example. If three siblings own a property as joint tenants, the ownership is equal, and if one sibling dies, the property does not go to that sibling’s heirs, but rather the other two siblings. Tenants in common, on the other hand, would allow the property to go to the deceased siblings’ heirs. Coparceners are people who inherit the land or estate as a coheir with others; they are typically family members.
Partitions are quite common amongst family members. When siblings, for example, inherit the land as coparceners, and cannot agree what to do with it, they will sue for partition and the court will ultimately determine the rights and interests of the parties to come to a conclusion.
What Happens When the Partition is Granted?
If keeping the property is in your interest, and your co-tenant would like to pursue a partition, you would be able to request a buyout option of the property. This means you offer your co-tenant the money he is seeking from court partition proceedings. This is usually a better option than continuing with the partition and having the court sell it on the open market.
When the judge grants the partition, the court assigns three commissioners who will handle the following matters. If a party believes the partition is unjust, they have 10 days to file an objection after they have been served, and once the 10 days have passed, the court will assume their allegations are correct and the partition moves forward. Real estate properties like family-homes are usually ordered to be sold and proceedings divided amongst the coparceners, or in our example, the siblings.
