Conflicts Between Co-Owners; Marital Interests Flashcards
1
Q
Co-Ownership
A
- most basic method of sharing ownership
- might be useful for risk-spreading + multiple uses
- may include marriages, but also partnerships + corporations
2
Q
Forms of Co-Ownership
A
- joint tenancy
- tenancy in common
- tenancy by the entirety
3
Q
Co-Ownership and Right to Possess
A
- all co-owners have an equal right to possess the whole (whenever the interest is possessory)
4
Q
Tenancy in Common
A
- each tenant in common has a separate but undivided interest
- no right of survivorship -> each interest is descendible, conveyable, + devisable
- only requires unity of possession
- interests need not be equal
5
Q
Forming Tenancy in Common in a Grant
A
- simple - would just say “to A and B”
- can also have one co-T who starts w/ a fee simple and creates a concurrent interest in someone else
6
Q
Join Tenancy
A
- like the tenancy in common but w/ right of survivorship - whoever dies first, their interest disappears + the other in the joint tenancy gets the sole ownership
7
Q
Unities Required for Joint Tenancy
A
- unity of possession (all must have right to possess the whole)
- unity of time (must get the joint tenancy at the same time)
- unity of title (all must acquire title by same instrument or by joint adverse possession, never by intestate succession or other act of law)
- unity of interest (must have equal interests in terms of duration + basic package of rights, even though doesn’t need to be equal shares)
8
Q
Tenancy by the Entirety
A
- basically joint tenancy for married people - requires the four unities plus the unity of marriage
- similar right of survivorship, but no unilateral exit option as long as the couple stays married (could get out of it through divorce, or could convey to a straw and convey back as tenants in common, although would need both to do this -can’t do this unilaterally)
- no longer exists in many states
9
Q
Severing Joint Tenancy
A
- can be done by destroying unity of time, title, or interest
- can usually do this through some sort of unilateral act - either transfer to a straw, or transfer to self as a tenant in common
10
Q
Property Rights of Co-Owners Towards Each Other
A
- they basically have no property rights towards each other under the common law - can’t exclude another or use/possess a portion of the property exclusively
- no identification of parts with specific co-Ts - each has equal + undivided right to whole
11
Q
Property Rights of Co-Owners Towards outside World
A
- basically the same as a regular owner (can exclude third-parties, sell interest, use property for enjoyment/profit) EXCEPT if in join tenancy, you lack inheritability (right of survivorship)
12
Q
What happens when there’s conflict between co-owners?
A
- courts reluctant to get involved - love it or leave it (don’t arbitrate fights over use, management, + control)
- co-T can exit via automatic right of partition at any time
- co-Ts more likely to work out their problems via contract
13
Q
Partition
A
- court order dissolving the co-ownership
- court will grant at the request of any of the co-owners, without requiring any justification
- not available to tenants in the entirety (can’t sever unilaterally)
14
Q
Partition in Kind vs. Partition by Sale
A
- partition in kind traditionally favored by courts (preserved subjective values + courts don’t like to get involved in valuation issues)
- BUT recent trend towards sale (w/ personal property + urban land, parcels not as easily split)
15
Q
Delfino v. Vealencis - Facts
A
- action for partition in which tenants in common have unequal shares
- Pls own 69% interest + Def owns 31% interest on 20.5 acre parcel on which Vealancis operates garbage hauling business (long in the family) + has her dwelling
- rest of the land is undeveloped - Pls want to develop the entire site as a subdivision, + def wants to keep her home and business
