Before undertaking litigation over real estate in California, title insurance can help to provide clarity as to important ownership questions. Title insurance is not just nice to have, in many instances, the law specifically envisions that the parties will obtain a title report of some type. For example, the Partition…
The California Partition Law begins at Code of Civil Procedure section 872.010 and ends at Code of Civil Procedure section 874.323. Section 872.220 requires that the plaintiff state the existence and location of a title report if they have procured one. A title report includes a preliminary report, guarantee, binder,…
The significance of the differences between legal and equitable title is an outright confusing topic, requiring some knowledge of constructive trusts, beneficial interests, and seller’s liens. That said, the concept can be made digestible by boiling it down to its essential elements. When done, this simplification reveals how often we…
When a title owner sues to partition the property, then the matter is relatively straightforward. On the other hand, when a person claims to be an owner of the property but does not appear on the title, can they still sue to partition the property? Who can sue for partition?…