Provides for the partition of property

House Bill 668 amends Louisiana's partition statutes to modify the procedure and requirements for partitioning co-owned property when one or more co-owners are absent or nonconsenting. The bill changes the valuation standard for private sales from appraised value to fair market value in Civil Code Article 811 and Code of Civil Procedure Article 4607. It permits a court-appointed representative to be a co-owner executing sale documents on behalf of all co-owners rather than only on behalf of absentee or nonconsenting owners. The legislation enacts new Code of Civil Procedure Article 4607.1, which establishes a comprehensive framework requiring partition sale judgments to order reimbursement to co-owners for taxes and property preservation expenses, payment of amounts due from co-owners who have retained fruits and revenues of the property, and payment of reasonable sale costs including real estate commissions, appraisal fees, and closing costs. The bill also removes the requirement that partitions by private sale be granted first priority status in court proceedings and eliminates the mandate that payment be made within twenty-four hours using certified funds.

The practical effects of this legislation extend to co-owners involved in partition disputes, courts handling partition cases, and third-party purchasers. Co-owners will now be subject to disclosure requirements regarding whether sale costs will be paid to persons related to petitioning co-owners within the fourth degree or to entities in which co-owners have financial interests, enhancing transparency and preventing self-dealing in partition sales. The new reimbursement framework in Article 4607.1 provides clearer guidance on how courts must allocate sale proceeds among co-owners' competing claims for taxes, preservation expenses, and retained revenues. Petitioners seeking partition by private sale must now include specific information in their petitions regarding the proposed purchaser's identity and any related-party cost arrangements. Courts gain authority to require commercial marketing of the property before sale and to consider whether costs should be borne by particular co-owners. Additionally, for corporeal immovables, petitioners must now affix notice copies in at least one prominent location on the property itself, in addition to publication requirements.

House Bill 668 operates within Louisiana's civil law framework governing co-ownership and indivisible property under Civil Code Article 811 and the comprehensive partition procedures established in Code of Civil Procedure Chapter 48. The legislation refines the existing statutory scheme that allows courts to order partition by licitation or private sale when property is not susceptible to physical division among co-owners. By establishing fair market value as the minimum sale price rather than appraised value, the bill aligns partition proceedings with contemporary valuation standards. The authorization for co-owners to serve as court-appointed representatives reflects Louisiana's civil law tradition while streamlining administration compared to requiring external representatives. The new Article 4607.1 explicitly addresses equitable distribution issues inherent in partition of indivisible property by statutorily requiring consideration of various co-owner claims against sale proceeds. These modifications preserve the fundamental partition structure while enhancing procedural clarity, transparency requirements, and protections against self-dealing arrangements that could disadvantage absentee or nonconsenting co-owners in co-ownership disputes.