Delray Beach Real Estate Title Dispute Attorney

A cloud on title has a way of surfacing at the worst moment: a closing that stalls when the title company finds a competing deed, a co-owner who claims the property was never really yours, or a lien and a recorded instrument nobody can explain. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team handles business and real estate litigation for owners, investors, and families in Delray Beach and throughout Palm Beach County and Broward County, including quiet title actions, partition cases, and ownership conflicts over South Florida property.

A Delray Beach real estate title dispute attorney is usually brought in when the problem cannot be solved by a phone call to the other side. Title disputes are decided on recorded documents, the order in which they were recorded, and the history of who possessed the property and for how long. Florida gives circuit courts sitting in equity the power to determine who actually holds title and to cancel instruments that wrongly cast doubt on it. The value of that power depends on how carefully the claim is built before it is filed.

These cases also carry consequences beyond the deed itself. A property that cannot be sold or refinanced loses its value to you every month the dispute stays open, and a co-owner who controls rents or possession can drain a shared asset while the paperwork is sorted out. Deciding early whether the right tool is a quiet title complaint, a partition action, a contract claim, or an emergency injunction often determines how the whole case goes.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for a Title Dispute

The Andrew M. Andrew M. Schwartz, the firm’s founder, was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989 and has spent 37 years in litigation, with a career built around complex contract disputes, business divorces, and conflicts among partners, LLC members, shareholders, and co-owners. He earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1986 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1989. Senior Counsel Sundeep Nath, a Northwestern-trained litigator, brings years of experience in business and real estate cases in state and federal courts.

The firm practices as a true legal team, so everyone working on a title matter knows the file and can answer when a client calls. There is a strict 24 hour return call policy when attorneys are in court. Clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who own Delray Beach property or hold a share of South Florida real estate can rely on the firm to handle local court appearances without traveling for every hearing. A significant part of the practice also comes from referrals by other attorneys, including out of state lawyers whose clients have Florida property disputes.

Relevant results matter in real estate cases. After a 5-day bench trial in Broward County Circuit Court, the firm obtained a 32-page final judgment awarding its client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. That outcome reflects the kind of detailed, document-driven trial preparation title cases demand. The attorneys are also experienced in mediation and arbitration, and they look for the resolution that fits the client’s goals and budget rather than prolonging a case for its own sake.

Types of Title and Ownership Disputes We Handle

• Quiet Title Actions: A suit asking the court to determine who owns the land and to remove competing claims. It fits situations where someone holds a recorded deed, mortgage, or other instrument that clouds your ownership and will not release it voluntarily.
• Partition Actions: When co-owners cannot agree, a court can divide the property or order it sold and split the proceeds. Common among former business partners, siblings who inherited property together, unmarried couples, and investors who want out of a shared deal.
• Heirs Property Conflicts: Property held in common among relatives who inherited it is subject to special partition rules in Florida that can limit forced sales and give other co-owners a chance to buy out a petitioner.
• Fraudulent or Forged Conveyances: A deed that was signed under false pretenses, forged, or recorded without authority can be attacked through a quiet title proceeding, and Florida provides a faster summary procedure for these claims.
• Adverse Possession Claims: Someone who has occupied land openly and exclusively for the statutory period may assert ownership, and record owners need to know how to defend against it. Boundary encroachments and abandoned parcels are typical triggers.
• Failed Closings and Contract Disputes: When a buyer or seller will not close, the dispute can turn on specific performance, damages, or rescission, and the deadline to sue depends on which remedy is sought.
• Entity-Owned Property Disputes: Property held through an LLC or corporation often becomes a title fight when members disagree about who had authority to sign a deed or whether the entity should be dissolved.
• Landlord and Tenant Possession Disputes: Where a tenancy intersects with a competing ownership claim, notice requirements and termination procedures control how possession can be recovered.

What to Do When Your Ownership Is Challenged

Start by gathering the documents that prove your chain of ownership: your deed, the closing statement, your title insurance policy, any prior surveys, and every recorded instrument you can find against the parcel. A title search from a title company or a review of the official records at the Palm Beach County Clerk’s recording office will show what is actually of record, which is often different from what the other side says is there. If you own the property through an entity, collect the operating agreement or corporate records as well, because authority to convey is frequently the heart of the dispute.

Notify your title insurer promptly if you have a policy. Many owner’s policies carry a duty to defend covered claims, and delay can complicate coverage. Do not sign anything the other party sends you, do not record anything yourself without advice, and avoid conversations with the competing claimant that could later be characterized as an admission or an agreement. If someone is collecting rent, changing locks, listing the property, or taking steps to convey it, tell your attorney immediately, because those facts may justify seeking a temporary injunction to freeze the situation while the court decides ownership.

Deadlines depend on the claim. A suit founded on a written contract generally must be brought within five years, while contract claims not founded on a written instrument have four years. A fraud claim runs four years from discovery, subject to a 12-year outer limit, and rescission claims carry four years. A specific performance action has only one year, which is the deadline that most often catches buyers and sellers off guard after a failed closing. A claim to recover real property is barred unless the claimant or a predecessor was in possession within seven years before suit. Because several of these periods can apply to the same set of facts, the safest approach is to have the dates reviewed before assuming any claim is still open.

For property in Delray Beach, cases are filed in the Circuit Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Palm Beach County. A quiet title or partition complaint may be filed in any county where part of the land lies, so parcels that straddle county lines, or ownership questions that touch Broward County property, can involve the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit as well. Disputes that exceed the county court limit belong in circuit court, and larger business and entity disputes in Broward County may be eligible for the Seventeenth Circuit’s complex business division. Federal court becomes an option only when jurisdictional requirements are met.

How Quiet Title and Partition Cases Actually Proceed

In a quiet title action, Florida’s chapter 65 gives the circuit court authority over claims of legal or equitable title, including cases where two or more people claim the same land from a common source. The complaint can ask the court to cancel a conveyance or other evidence of title held by someone who is not the rightful owner. Plaintiffs are generally required to trace title back at least seven years before filing unless the court orders otherwise, which is why a thorough title search is the first real task in the case. Where the dispute rests on an allegedly fraudulent conveyance, the statute provides a summary procedure and directs the court to advance the case on its calendar, which can shorten the timeline considerably.

Adverse possession deserves separate attention because it works both ways. A person claiming ownership by possession without color of title must show actual, continuous possession for seven years under a claim of title exclusive of any other right, and must also file a return identifying the property by full legal description with the property appraiser. Claims under color of title require recording of the instrument on which the claim rests. Owners defending against these claims should look closely at whether each statutory element, including exclusivity and continuity, can truly be proved.

Partition follows a different path. All partition actions are heard in equity, and the complaint must describe the land, identify each owner, and state the share each one holds. After a judgment of partition, the court appoints three commissioners, chosen by the court unless the parties agree. If the commissioners report that the land cannot be divided without prejudice to the owners, the court may order a sale at public auction with proceeds divided according to ownership interests. A court may allow sale on credit for good cause, but at least one-third of the purchase price must be paid at the outset unless everyone consents otherwise. Where the property qualifies as heirs property, the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act applies to cases filed on or after July 1, 2020, and it adds protections, including a requirement that partition in kind not be refused unless commissioners have weighed the statutory factors and found it would prejudice the cotenants as a group.

When the co-owners are business partners and the property is held through a company, the title dispute often sits inside a larger entity dispute. Florida’s LLC statute allows a member to seek judicial dissolution on grounds that include deadlock with threatened irreparable injury, misappropriation or waste of assets, and impracticability of carrying on under the operating agreement. The court can appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing, or order a buyout of the petitioning member. For corporations, shareholders have parallel dissolution rights, and the corporation or other shareholders may elect to buy out the petitioner at fair value. Where an operating or shareholder agreement has a deadlock sale provision, it may control instead. Knowing which framework governs can decide whether the property is sold, bought out, or retained.

Frequently Asked Questions About Delray Beach Title Disputes

What is a quiet title action?

It is a lawsuit that asks a court to declare who owns a parcel and to eliminate competing claims. In Florida, circuit courts hear these cases and can cancel a deed or other instrument held by someone who is not the rightful owner, clearing the record so the property can be sold or financed.

How is a title dispute different from a partition case?

A title dispute asks who owns the property. A partition case assumes the people involved all own it and asks how to separate their interests, either by dividing the land or by selling it and splitting the proceeds. Some cases involve both questions.

Can a co-owner force me to sell my property?

In many situations, yes. Florida allows a co-owner to petition for partition, and if the land cannot reasonably be divided, a court may order it sold. Protections exist in some cases, particularly for heirs property, and an operating or other written agreement may limit the right.

Does title insurance cover a title dispute?

Often, but not always. An owner’s policy may cover certain defects and carry a duty to defend, but exclusions, exceptions, and notice requirements matter. Report the claim to the insurer promptly and have the policy reviewed against the specific challenge.

What if someone has been living on part of my land for years?

A claim of adverse possession generally requires seven years of actual, continuous, exclusive possession under a claim of title, along with a filing with the property appraiser. An owner who acts before those elements are met, or who can disprove one of them, is in a much stronger position.

How long do I have to sue over a failed real estate closing?

It depends on the remedy. A written-contract claim has a five-year period, but an action for specific performance has only one year. Because those periods differ, waiting to see whether a deal can be revived can cost you the stronger remedy.

What happens if a deed was forged or signed by someone without authority?

You can bring a quiet title action to have the instrument cancelled. Florida provides a summary procedure for claims based on a fraudulent attempted conveyance, and the court is directed to move such a case forward on its calendar. Related claims for fraud may carry their own deadlines.

Can I stop a co-owner from selling or encumbering the property while the case is pending?

Possibly. Courts can issue temporary injunctions, including early and emergency relief, to preserve property and prevent a transfer that would make the eventual judgment hollow. The request must be supported by evidence and prompt action.

Does it matter that I live in New York or New Jersey?

Not for jurisdiction. A suit about Florida land is brought in Florida, and an out of state owner can be represented by counsel who handles local filings and hearings. The firm regularly works with clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut and keeps them informed without requiring travel for every proceeding.

How long does a quiet title or partition case take?

There is no fixed timeline. Uncontested or default matters can move quickly, while cases with multiple parties, disputed chains of title, or contested valuation take longer. Summary procedure for fraudulent conveyances, an agreed buyout, or mediation can shorten the process considerably.

Is a partition sale always at auction?

Not necessarily. The statute contemplates a public sale to the highest bidder when the land cannot be fairly divided, but co-owners often reach agreement on a private sale, a buyout, or other terms through negotiation or mediation, which can produce a better price.

Will I lose title if my LLC partner conveyed our property without my approval?

Not automatically. The answer depends on the operating agreement, who had signing authority, and whether the buyer had notice of limits on that authority. These cases often involve a title claim alongside claims for breach of fiduciary duty or an accounting.

Serving Title Dispute Clients Across Delray Beach and South Florida

Our work begins in Delray Beach, including the downtown area around Atlantic Avenue, the beach side communities, and the neighborhoods west of the Intracoastal. We represent property owners in nearby Boynton Beach, Highland Beach, Gulf Stream, and Ocean Ridge, and we regularly handle cases for owners in Boca Raton, Lake Worth Beach, Lantana, Wellington, and Royal Palm Beach. Our reach extends north to West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, and Riviera Beach, and across Palm Beach County to the western communities of Belle Glade and Loxahatchee.

We also serve clients in neighboring Broward County, including Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, Coral Springs, Parkland, Fort Lauderdale, Plantation, Hollywood, and Davie. Many of our title and partition clients live out of state in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut and own homes, investment property, or shares of commercial real estate throughout this region. Whether the parcel is a single-family home, a condominium, a commercial building, or vacant land, the same attention to recorded documents and ownership history applies.

Talk With a Delray Beach Title Dispute Lawyer

If someone is contesting your ownership, refusing to release a recorded claim, or standing in the way of a sale you need to complete, speak with a Delray Beach title dispute lawyer before the dispute hardens. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can review the documents, identify the claims and deadlines that apply, and advise whether a negotiated resolution, a quiet title or partition action, or emergency relief is the right path.

Call to schedule a consultation. The team will respond promptly, and attorneys are available to arrange conference calls at times that work for you, including for clients who live outside Florida.