Getting Acquainted with a Quiet Title

A quiet title action is a lawsuit that is filed in court and relates to a claim over the ownership of a piece of property (be it land and the buildings situated on it or so forth). This action suit takes place in a court that holds jurisdiction over disputes related to land issues. The purpose of this land related lawsuit is to eliminate all claims that have been placed against the real estate in question. A quiet title suit is also called a suit of legal frameworks that is used to remove a cloud.

An individual who decides to bring an action to a quiet title is referred to as the applicant in the case (or also sometimes called the plaintiff). In some courts this process is referred to as simply a title or as a violation to try the title. If eviction from a property could result from a title suit then this is known as an ejectment action. The individual with whom the ejectment action has been filed against is known as the respondent or defendant.

The general rule as it pertains to a quiet title is that the applicant or plaintiff in the case may only succeed based upon the strength of the claim he has to the property and not based upon the weakness of the claim that the respondent has. The burden of proof falls upon the shoulders of the plaintiff to prove his case to the court. In other words, the plaintiff must prove that it is he who owns the title to the property and not the respondent. Even if the plaintiff has less than full ownership of the property he can still go for the quiet title lawsuit.

There are different grounds for bringing a title lawsuit. If the title or ownership is defective in some manner then the plaintiff may have grounds for a case. For instance if the title to the property contains some ambiguities then a claim for ownership may need to take place.

Adverse possession may be another reason that a title needs to occur. In this instance the new possessor of the real estate may decide to sue in order to obtain the title in his name.

Fraudulent conveyance of a piece of land or real estate is another reason that a quiet title action may take place. If a deed was forged or took place under coercion then the lawsuit might be an absolute necessity.

When questions of title registration arise then a title lawsuit must be undertaken. There is also tax taking issues. If back taxes on a property are owing then this is something that the courts must look closely at when determining ownership. When errors are uncovered in a property dispute or boundary issues then a title action needs to take effect.