Plantation Real Estate Litigation Attorney

A failed commercial closing, a co-owner who will not sell, or a cloud on title can freeze a property worth more than the lawsuit it takes to fix it. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team handles real estate litigation for owners, investors, and families in Plantation and across Broward County and Palm Beach County, as well as clients in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who hold South Florida property.

A Plantation real estate litigation attorney is usually retained once a dispute has hardened: the buyer or seller has walked away from a signed contract, the tenant has stopped paying, or the people who share title can no longer agree. Real estate disputes in Florida run on short, statute-driven clocks, and the remedies available depend on choices made early. Waiting a year to see whether a seller will relent, for example, can extinguish the one remedy that would have forced the sale.

Plantation cases are generally filed in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Broward County, and the West Regional Courthouse sits in Plantation itself. Disputes over $50,000 belong in circuit court; smaller ones go to county court. That split affects cost, speed, and the kind of judge who will hear the case.

Contract Remedies and the One-Year Clock on Specific Performance

Most real estate litigation starts with a contract. Florida gives five years to sue on a written contract, but the picture changes for the remedy that matters most in real estate. An action for specific performance, where a court orders the other side to actually close the deal, carries only a one-year period. A buyer who assumes the five-year window governs can lose the property, and the only realistic path to it, while negotiating in good faith.

Specific performance is the remedy that turns a lawsuit into a transfer of the property itself rather than a check. Our firm obtained a 32-page final judgment from the Broward County Circuit Court granting specific performance of a commercial real estate contract after a five-day bench trial. Cases like that are won on the contract language, the parties’ course of dealing, and a record built before trial, not on rhetoric.

Other contract-related periods are worth knowing. Claims on oral or implied agreements run four years, rescission actions run four years, and fraud claims run four years from discovery, subject to an outer limit of twelve years. Negligence claims, including some brought against professionals involved in a transaction, run two years following the 2023 reform, and professional malpractice claims run two years from when the claim was or should have been discovered. Which clock applies depends on how the claim is framed, which is why the framing is a strategic decision and not a formality.

What We Litigate: Real Estate Disputes in Plantation and Broward County

• Failed Closings and Purchase Contract Disputes: Buyers who cannot obtain the property they contracted for and sellers who cannot collect on a defaulted deposit or sale. Remedies include specific performance, damages, and rescission, and the choice drives the filing deadline.
• Commercial Lease Disputes: Plantation’s office, retail, and mixed-use properties generate disputes over rent obligations, build-out responsibilities, personal guaranties, and lease terminations that turn on exact lease wording.
• Landlord and Tenant Matters: Residential evictions follow rigid notice rules. Nonpayment requires a written three-day demand excluding weekends and court-observed holidays; curable lease violations require a seven-day notice to correct; incurable violations allow a seven-day notice to vacate without a chance to cure. A defective notice can sink an otherwise valid case.
• Partition Actions: Co-owners who inherited a home together, former business partners, and unmarried couples can ask the court to divide the property or order it sold and the proceeds split. These cases are heard in equity under Chapter 64.
• Quiet Title and Title Disputes: Competing ownership claims, defective conveyances, and clouds on title are resolved by a court judgment that cancels the competing claim and confirms who owns the land.
• Adverse Possession Claims: A claimant must show seven years of continuous, exclusive possession under a claim of title. Without color of title, the claimant must also file a return with the property appraiser containing a full legal description.
• Co-Owner Disputes Inside a Company That Holds Property: When real estate sits inside an LLC or corporation, the fight is often really a business divorce, with claims for dissolution, an accounting, or a court-supervised buyout.
• Injunctions Protecting Property: Emergency relief to stop a sale, a transfer, a demolition, or the diversion of rents while the case is pending.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for Real Estate Litigation

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team is a South Florida business and real estate litigation firm representing clients in Plantation, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, and throughout Broward and Palm Beach Counties. Founder Andrew M. Schwartz has spent 37 years in litigation and has practiced in Florida since being admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989. He earned his undergraduate degree at Emory University in 1986 and his law degree at the University of Miami in 1989. Senior Counsel Sundeep Nath, a Northwestern-trained litigator, brings years of business and real estate experience in both state and federal courts.

A strict 24-hour return call policy applies when the attorneys are in court. The firm also handles mediation and arbitration alongside courtroom work, and aims for the resolution that fits the client’s goals and budget rather than prolonging a case for its own sake.

For real estate clients, that experience shows up in practical ways. The firm has tried contract cases to judgment, including the specific performance victory described above. It takes referrals from other lawyers, including out-of-state counsel whose clients own Florida property, and it handles local court appearances so clients in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut do not have to travel for every hearing. Through its outside general counsel program, the firm also serves as registered agent and advises property-holding companies before disputes start.

What to Do When a Plantation Property Dispute Turns Adversarial

Start by gathering the paper: the signed contract and every amendment, the deed and any title commitment, correspondence and texts with the other side, closing statements, leases, and proof of payments. In real estate cases the document that controls the outcome is often an addendum or an email that modifies the original deal, so nothing should be discarded or deleted. Avoid new written admissions to the other side while you are still sorting out your position.

Next, identify which deadline governs, because they differ sharply: one year for specific performance, four years for oral contracts and rescission, five for written contracts, and shorter periods for negligence or professional malpractice theories. A claim that looks like a contract case may also carry a fraud or fiduciary component with a different clock. Getting the framing right before filing prevents a defense motion later.

If assets or property are at risk of being moved, sold, encumbered, or stripped of rents, raise injunctive relief immediately. Courts consider emergency requests quickly, but only when the record shows the harm is real and imminent. Landlords should confirm that their notices follow the statute precisely and should be careful about accepting partial rent after serving a nonpayment notice, since the law requires specific steps (a dated receipt, a registry deposit, or a fresh notice) to preserve the case.

Venue matters in Broward. Cases above the county court threshold are filed in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which also has a complex business division that handles large business and construction litigation and certain entity dissolutions; direct filing into it follows a specific administrative order and form. Federal court in Fort Lauderdale or West Palm Beach is available in cases with diversity or federal questions. Common mistakes include missing the one-year specific performance window, serving a defective notice, signing a settlement without addressing title, and letting a co-owner’s occupancy continue without documenting objections.

Partition, Quiet Title, and Co-Ownership Fights in Depth

A partition complaint must describe the land, identify each owner and their residence, state each owner’s share, and set out anything else the court needs to decide the parties’ rights. If the court enters judgment, it appoints three commissioners, chosen by agreement or by the court, to determine whether the land can be divided fairly. When division would prejudice the owners, the court may order a public sale to the highest bidder and divide the proceeds by ownership share. If the court approves a sale on credit for good cause, at least one-third of the price must be paid down unless everyone consents otherwise.

Family property gets special treatment. Under the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act, property held by cotenants who received title from relatives, where at least twenty percent of the interests are held by relatives or other statutory conditions are met, must be partitioned under a more protective process. Partition in kind is only entered after commissioners have weighed statutory factors and found that a sale would otherwise harm the cotenants as a group. These rules can change the strategy for a sibling who wants out and one who wants to stay.

Quiet title suits are brought in equity and may be filed in any county where part of the land lies. A plaintiff generally must trace title back at least seven years unless the court orders otherwise, and the suit can cancel a conveyance or other evidence of title held by someone who is not the rightful owner. Where the claim rests on an alleged fraudulent conveyance, summary procedure is available and the court is directed to advance the case on its calendar.

When the property is held by an LLC, the remedy may lie in company law rather than partition. A court may dissolve an LLC on a member’s petition where management is deadlocked and irreparable injury is threatened, where assets are being misappropriated or wasted, or where carrying on in conformity with the operating agreement is not reasonably practicable. The court can appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing, or order a purchase of the petitioner’s interest. If the operating agreement has a deadlock sale provision that was properly started before the court finds deadlock, that provision takes priority. For corporations, shareholders can seek judicial dissolution, and the corporation or other shareholders may elect to buy the petitioner’s shares at fair value, with a 60-day window to agree on terms.

Plantation Real Estate Litigation Questions Answered

How long do I have to sue over a breached real estate contract in Florida?

For a written contract, five years. For an oral or implied agreement, four. But a claim seeking specific performance, an order forcing the other side to close, must be brought within one year. Which period applies depends on the remedy you actually need.

Can a court force a seller to complete the sale?

Yes. Specific performance is available when the contract is enforceable and money damages would not make the buyer whole, which is often true for unique property. Our firm has obtained a final judgment granting specific performance of a commercial real estate contract after a bench trial in Broward County.

What is a partition action?

It is a lawsuit asking the court to divide jointly owned real estate or, when division is impractical, to order it sold and the proceeds shared according to each owner’s interest. Co-owners of any type can bring one.

Can one co-owner force a sale if the others refuse?

Generally, yes. A co-owner has the right to seek partition. The court may divide the property or order a sale, though heirs property receives additional protections that can slow or reshape the outcome.

What does a quiet title action accomplish?

It produces a judgment determining who owns the land and cancelling competing claims or defective conveyances that cloud title. It is the usual route to clean up title when a conveyance is invalid or ownership is contested.

Which court will hear my Plantation case?

Disputes above $50,000 are heard in circuit court, here the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit for Broward County. County court handles claims from $8,000.01 up to that limit, and small claims handles smaller amounts. Federal court in Fort Lauderdale or West Palm Beach is possible when federal jurisdiction exists.

Can I claim a property through adverse possession in Florida?

Possibly, but the requirements are demanding: seven years of continuous, exclusive, open possession under a claim of title, plus a filed return with a complete legal description if you have no color of title. Where color of title is claimed, the instrument must be recorded in the county.

My tenant stopped paying rent. How quickly can I evict?

The landlord must first serve a written demand for payment or possession and wait three days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and court-observed holidays. If you accept partial rent after serving the notice, you must follow the statutory steps to avoid weakening your case. Accepting partial rent does not by itself waive your right to terminate.

Do I have to come to Florida for every hearing if I live in New York or New Jersey?

No. We regularly represent clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, handling the local court appearances and proceedings and keeping you informed throughout.

Can a real estate dispute be settled without a trial?

Often, yes. Many matters resolve through negotiation, mediation, or arbitration, particularly when the parties still need a working relationship or when the cost of a trial would exceed the stakes. Our attorneys are experienced in both alternative dispute resolution and courtroom litigation.

Is an injunction possible before the case is decided?

Yes. Courts can issue temporary and, ultimately, permanent injunctions to stop a sale, transfer, or diversion of property or funds while the case is pending, provided you show the harm cannot wait for a final judgment.

What if my dispute involves a business partner and the property is held by our company?

You may have claims beyond ordinary real estate law, including judicial dissolution, an accounting, breach of fiduciary duty, or a court-supervised buyout. These claims often work together with the property claims, and the sequencing matters.

Serving Plantation Real Estate Litigation Clients Across Broward and Palm Beach Counties

We represent owners, investors, landlords, and families from Plantation and the surrounding Broward County communities, including Sunrise, Davie, Lauderhill, Lauderdale Lakes, Tamarac, Weston, Pembroke Pines, Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale, and Coral Springs. We also serve clients in Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, Parkland, Margate, Coconut Creek, Cooper City, and Oakland Park.

Across the county line in Palm Beach County, the firm handles real estate disputes in Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, Wellington, and Royal Palm Beach. Clients with property interests in South Florida who live in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut work with us from a distance, with our team covering the courtroom work here.

Speak With a Plantation Real Estate Litigation Lawyer Before the Deadline Decides for You

Real estate disputes reward early, accurate decisions and punish drift. If you are weighing a suit over a failed closing, a partition, a title claim, or a tenant or co-owner who will not cooperate, a Plantation real estate litigation lawyer at the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can review your documents, identify the controlling deadline, and tell you which remedy fits your goals and budget. Call us to schedule a consultation.