REFORM HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PROPOSED UNIFORM PARTITION OF HERIS PROPERTY ACT

The proposed Uniform Act will accomplish a number of modest, but important protections for low-wealth owners of tenancy-in-common land, or heirs property.

Transparency and Notice. People living on family property need to know if their property is vulnerable to a forced sale. The Uniform Act would improve the notice a defendant would receive that a partition action had been filed.

Thoughtful Judicial Consideration before Sale. The proposed uniform law would broaden the considerations a court must review in determining whether to order that the land be physically divided or sold.

Among other things, courts would consider not only the economic value but  how long the family has owned the land. Courts also would consider whether the family would be rendered homeless if the land were sold.

Home Preservation. Current law generally forces the sale of the property; the uniform act would have that as the last option.

The first option is that the family members could buy out the interests of the person forcing the sale, thus making the lawsuit go away. The next option is physical division of the land, so that family members keep as much property as possible.

Conflicts of Interest. Conflict of interest provisions, lax in many states, would be strengthened. Officers of the court and their families would be prohibited from purchasing heir property in a forced sale.