Royal Palm Beach Partition Action Attorney

Most people who file for partition want one of two things: a fair share of the money tied up in a property, or a clean break from a co-owner they can no longer work with. The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team handles partition actions, title disputes, and the business and real estate conflicts that usually sit behind them, and we help co-owners in Royal Palm Beach and throughout Palm Beach County get to a result that makes sense for them. If you are looking for a Royal Palm Beach partition action attorney, you are probably holding a property with someone who will not sell, will not buy you out, or will not stop treating the asset as theirs alone.

Florida gives every co-owner the right to ask a court to end the shared ownership. The court can divide the land physically or, when that cannot be done fairly, order it sold and split the proceeds. Which route applies, how long it takes, and what each owner walks away with depends on decisions made early, including how the complaint is drafted, who is named, and whether the property qualifies for special protections under Florida’s heirs property statute.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for Partition Disputes

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents business owners, investors, and families in South Florida’s difficult business and real estate disputes, serving Royal Palm Beach, West Palm Beach, and the rest of Palm Beach County, along with Broward County and clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who hold property here. Our founder, Andrew M. He earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University in 1986 and his law degree from the University of Miami in 1989. His career has centered on contract disputes, business divorces, and conflicts among partners, LLC members, shareholders, and family co-owners, which is exactly the population that ends up in partition court.

Andrew is joined by Senior Counsel Sundeep Nath, a Northwestern-trained litigator with years of experience in business and real estate cases in state and federal courts. We work as a true legal team, so everyone on your matter knows the file, and we keep a strict 24 hour return call policy. If you live out of state, we handle the local court appearances so you do not have to travel for every hearing.

Our results in real estate disputes include a 32-page final judgment issued by the Broward County Circuit Court after a 5-day bench trial, awarding our client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. That kind of trial work matters in partition cases, where valuation, ownership percentages, and credits between owners are often contested with real evidence. We also work with mediation and arbitration, because many co-owner disputes settle faster and cheaper once both sides see where a judge is likely to land. Much of our practice comes from referrals by other attorneys, and we communicate with referring counsel throughout.

Who Files Partition Actions and Why

• Former Business Partners: A company that bought a building or lot through an LLC or as individuals often leaves the owners holding real estate after the business falls apart. Partition separates the property from the broader business dispute.
• Siblings and Heirs: A parent’s home passes to several children as co-owners, and one wants to sell while another lives there or wants to keep it. Florida’s Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act can change how these cases are handled, including who gets the first chance to buy out a cotenant.
• Unmarried Couples: Partners who bought a home together without marrying have no divorce court to divide it. Partition is how one owner exits when the other will not cooperate.
• Investment Co-Owners: Investors who pooled money into rental property or land sometimes disagree about holding, selling, or refinancing. An owner who wants out can ask the court to end the arrangement.
• Owners Who Paid More Than Their Share: One co-owner may have carried the mortgage, taxes, insurance, or repairs alone. Those payments can be raised as credits when the court divides the property or proceeds.
• Owners Locked Out or Squeezed Out: A co-owner who has been excluded from the property, or whose share is being treated as abandoned, may need partition alongside claims for an accounting or an injunction.
• Title Clouds and Competing Claims: Sometimes the first fight is about who owns what. Florida courts can quiet title and remove competing claims, and those issues often need to be resolved before or alongside partition.

What to Do Now If You Co-Own Property You Cannot Resolve

Start by pulling the paper. Gather the deed, any closing documents, the mortgage, tax bills, insurance policies, and any agreement among the owners, including an LLC operating agreement if an entity holds title. Who is on title, and in what form, drives everything else. Write down who has paid what since you took ownership: mortgage payments, property taxes, repairs, and improvements, with dates and proof. Those numbers become credits and offsets later.

Next, decide whether the dispute is really about the property or about something larger. If the co-owners are also business partners, a partition filing may collide with an operating agreement, a buy-sell clause, or a pending dissolution. If one owner is draining rents or moving money, you may need emergency relief before partition even gets going. Do not assume the property is the only claim. Getting that sequence right is one of the most valuable things a lawyer does at the start.

Do not take self-help steps. Changing locks, cutting off a co-owner’s access, or collecting all rent without sharing it can create claims against you. Do not sign a quitclaim deed or agree to a sale price without understanding what you are giving up. If you are inclined to wait because the situation feels stable, remember that carrying costs keep running and the relationship rarely improves with time.

Partition cases in Royal Palm Beach are filed in the Circuit Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Palm Beach County, and Florida law treats partition as an action in chancery. Our practice reaches Broward County too, where the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit sits and where a property split across county lines may require its own filing strategy. A complaint must describe the land, name the owners and where they live, and state what share each holds. Mistakes in who is named or what share is claimed can slow a case or force amendments, so the filing deserves care.

How Florida Partition Works, and How a Judge Decides Division or Sale

Once a court grants partition, it appoints three commissioners, chosen by the court unless the parties agree on them. The commissioners look at whether the property can be divided without prejudicing the owners. A vacant parcel with room for two lots may divide. A single-family home or a condominium usually cannot. When the commissioners report that division is not workable and the court agrees, the court can order a public sale to the highest bidder and divide the proceeds according to ownership shares. The court can also allow a sale on credit for good cause, but at least one-third of the purchase money must be paid at the start unless all parties agree otherwise.

Heirs property gets different treatment. Florida’s Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act applies to partition cases filed on or after July 1, 2020. Property qualifies if it is held as tenants in common with no binding agreement on partition, at least one cotenant got title from a relative, and further conditions are met, such as twenty percent or more of the interests being held by relatives. When the act applies, the court must follow its procedures unless every cotenant agrees otherwise. A partition in kind cannot be entered unless the court is satisfied that commissioners considered the statutory factors and found that dividing the land would prejudice the cotenants as a group. For families who inherited a home and want to keep it, these rules can matter enormously.

Title is the other piece. A court with jurisdiction over land can determine competing claims and enter judgment quieting title, and a plaintiff generally must trace title back at least seven years before filing unless the court orders otherwise. Quiet title can be filed in any county where any part of the land sits. If the real dispute involves a fraudulent attempted conveyance, Florida law allows summary procedure and the court is directed to move the case up the calendar. Seven years also shows up in adverse possession: a claimant generally needs seven years of continuous possession, and a person cannot recover land without showing possession within seven years before filing. These rules come up when one co-owner claims the other lost rights by staying away.

When the Property Is Tied to a Company or a Money Dispute

Many of our partition clients are also fighting about the company that owns or used the property. If an LLC holds title, a member can ask a circuit court to dissolve the company on specific statutory grounds, including deadlock that threatens irreparable injury, misappropriation or waste of assets, or a situation where it is not reasonably practicable to carry on the business under the operating agreement. The court can appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing, or order a purchase of the petitioning member’s interest. If the operating agreement has a deadlock sale provision that is started before the court finds grounds for dissolution, that provision can take the place of a dissolution order.

For corporations, a shareholder can seek judicial dissolution on statutory grounds, and the corporation or other shareholders may elect to buy the petitioner’s shares at fair value. If the parties agree on value and terms within 60 days after the first election is filed, the court enters an order directing the purchase. These are not partition cases, but they often run alongside one, and a single strategy has to cover both. We also pursue claims for an accounting, breach of fiduciary duty, and recovery of diverted funds, and we seek emergency injunctions when assets are at risk of being moved or spent.

Royal Palm Beach Partition Questions Answered

Can one co-owner force the sale of a property in Florida?

Generally, yes. A co-owner has the right to ask the court to end the shared ownership. Whether the court divides the land or orders a sale depends on whether division can be done without prejudice to the owners. For houses and condominiums, a sale is the usual result.

Do I need the other owners’ agreement to file?

No. A partition action exists precisely because owners cannot agree. You do need to name all owners with an interest and describe the property and each owner’s share correctly.

Which court handles partition in Royal Palm Beach?

Partition is an action in chancery and is brought in the Circuit Court of the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Palm Beach County. Hearings are generally held at the Palm Beach County courthouses, and cases may be assigned under the circuit’s case management tracks.

What is the difference between partition in kind and partition by sale?

Partition in kind divides the land physically among the owners. Partition by sale orders the property sold and splits the money by ownership shares. Courts lean toward sale when a physical division would leave owners worse off.

What does a public sale mean for the value I receive?

A court-ordered sale at auction can bring less than a negotiated market sale. That is one reason many owners use the pending case as leverage to agree on a buyout or private sale, and why mediation is worth considering.

Can I get credit for mortgage and tax payments I made alone?

Often you can raise them as credits or offsets when proceeds are divided. Keep records of every payment and improvement. How those claims are treated depends on the facts, including who lived in the property and who collected rent.

What if the property was inherited and one sibling lives there?

If it qualifies as heirs property, the Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act can give cotenants buyout rights and require the court to consider factors beyond a quick sale. Whether it qualifies depends on how title is held and who the cotenants are.

My co-owner is also my business partner. Does that change things?

It can. An operating agreement or shareholder agreement may govern what happens to the property, and a buyout or dissolution proceeding may need to be coordinated with partition. We look at both before recommending a path.

How long does a partition case take in Palm Beach County?

It depends on whether the owners are contesting ownership shares, whether title issues exist, and whether the property can be sold smoothly. Uncontested cases move faster; cases with disputed title, valuation fights, or a business dispute attached take longer. Settlement through mediation can shorten the timeline considerably.

I live in New York or New Jersey. Do I have to come to Florida?

Not for every step. We handle the local court appearances and keep you informed, and we schedule calls at times that work for you. Some events may require your participation, and we tell you in advance when they do.

Is a partition action worth it for a small property interest?

Often, yes, because partition is the only route when an owner will not cooperate. But cost matters. We weigh the expected recovery against fees and look at whether a negotiated buyout or mediation will get you there for less.

Partition Action Representation Across Royal Palm Beach and Palm Beach County

We represent co-owners in Royal Palm Beach and the villages and towns around it, including Wellington, Loxahatchee, Loxahatchee Groves, Acreage, Westlake, and Greenacres. Our clients also come from Lake Worth Beach, Boynton Beach, Delray Beach, Boca Raton, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, Wellington, Belle Glade, and West Palm Beach. Across Palm Beach County, we handle partition and title disputes involving residential homes, condominiums, vacant land, and commercial buildings.

Our work extends into Broward County as well, including Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Coral Springs, Plantation, Hollywood, and the surrounding communities. We also serve clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut who share ownership of South Florida real estate with relatives, former partners, or investors.

Talk to a Royal Palm Beach Partition Attorney Today

If you share ownership of property with someone who will not move forward, the right time to get advice is before positions harden. Call the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team to speak with a Royal Palm Beach partition lawyer about your deed, your co-owners, and what the court is likely to do. We will tell you plainly whether partition, a buyout, mediation, or a broader business claim gives you the best path, and we will return your call within 24 hours.