Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1249 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	By: West S.B. No. 1249
2		-	(Schofield)
	1	+	S.B. No. 1249
3	2
4	3
5		-	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	4		AN ACT
7	5		relating to adverse possession of real property by a cotenant heir
8	6		against other cotenant heirs.
9	7		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	8		SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 16, Civil Practice and
11	9		Remedies Code, is amended by adding Section 16.0265 to read as
12	10		follows:
13	11		Sec. 16.0265. ADVERSE POSSESSION BY COTENANT HEIR: 15-YEAR
14	12		COMBINED LIMITATIONS PERIOD. (a) In this section, "cotenant heir"
15	13		means one of two or more persons who simultaneously acquire
16	14		identical, undivided ownership interests in, and rights to
17	15		possession of, the same real property by operation of the
18	16		applicable intestate succession laws of this state or a successor
19	17		in interest of one of those persons.
20	18		(b) One or more cotenant heirs of real property may acquire
21	19		the interests of other cotenant heirs in the property by adverse
22	20		possession under this section if, for a continuous, uninterrupted
23	21		10-year period immediately preceding the filing of the affidavits
24	22		required by Subsection (c):
25	23		(1) the possessing cotenant heir or heirs:
26	24		(A) hold the property in peaceable and exclusive
27	25		possession;
28	26		(B) cultivate, use, or enjoy the property; and
29	27		(C) pay all property taxes on the property not
30	28		later than two years after the date the taxes become due; and
31	29		(2) no other cotenant heir has:
32	30		(A) contributed to the property's taxes or
33	31		maintenance;
34	32		(B) challenged a possessing cotenant heir's
35	33		exclusive possession of the property;
36	34		(C) asserted any other claim against a possessing
37	35		cotenant heir in connection with the property, such as the right to
38	36		rental payments from a possessing cotenant heir;
39	37		(D) acted to preserve the cotenant heir's
40	38		interest in the property by filing notice of the cotenant heir's
41	39		claimed interest in the deed records of the county in which the
42	40		property is located; or
43	41		(E) entered into a written agreement with the
44	42		possessing cotenant heir under which the possessing cotenant heir
45	43		is allowed to possess the property but the other cotenant heir does
46	44		not forfeit that heir's ownership interest.
47	45		(c) To make a claim of adverse possession against a cotenant
48	46		heir under this section, the cotenant heir or heirs claiming
49	47		adverse possession must:
50	48		(1) file in the deed records of the county in which the
51	49		real property is located an affidavit of heirship in the form
52	50		prescribed by Section 203.002, Estates Code, and an affidavit of
53	51		adverse possession that complies with the requirements of
54	52		Subsection (d);
55	53		(2) publish notice of the claim in a newspaper of
56	54		general circulation in the county in which the property is located
57	55		for the four consecutive weeks immediately following the date the
58	56		affidavits required by Subdivision (1) are filed; and
59	57		(3) provide written notice of the claim to the last
60	58		known addresses of all other cotenant heirs by certified mail,
61	59		return receipt requested.
62	60		(d) The affidavits required by Subsection (c) may be filed
63	61		separately or combined into a single instrument. The affidavit of
64	62		adverse possession must include:
65	63		(1) a legal description of the property that is the
66	64		subject of the adverse possession;
67	65		(2) an attestation that each affiant is a cotenant
68	66		heir of the property who has been in peaceable and exclusive
69	67		possession of the property for a continuous, uninterrupted period
70	68		during the 10 years preceding the filing of the affidavit;
71	69		(3) an attestation of cultivation, use, or enjoyment
72	70		of the property by each affiant during the 10 years preceding the
73	71		filing of the affidavit;
74	72		(4) evidence of payment by the affiant or affiants of
75	73		all property taxes on the property as provided by Subsection (b)
76	74		during the 10 years preceding the filing of the affidavit; and
77	75		(5) an attestation that there has been no action
78	76		described by Subsection (b)(2) by another cotenant heir during the
79	77		10 years preceding the filing of the affidavit.
80	78		(e) A cotenant heir must file a controverting affidavit or
81	79		bring suit to recover the cotenant heir's interest in real property
82	80		adversely possessed by another cotenant heir under this section not
83	81		later than the fifth anniversary of the date a right of adverse
84	82		possession is asserted by the filing of the affidavits required by
85	83		Subsection (c).
86	84		(f) If a controverting affidavit or judgment is not filed
87	85		before the fifth anniversary of the date the affidavits required by
88	86		Subsection (c) are filed and no notice described by Subsection
89	87		(b)(2)(D) was filed in the 10-year period preceding the filing of
90	88		the affidavits under Subsection (c), title vests in the adversely
91	89		possessing cotenant heir or heirs in the manner provided by Section
92	90		16.030, precluding all claims by other cotenant heirs.
93	91		(g) A bona fide lender for value without notice accepting a
94	92		voluntary lien against the real property to secure the adversely
95	93		possessing cotenant heir's indebtedness or a bona fide purchaser
96	94		for value without notice may conclusively rely on the affidavits
97	95		required by Subsection (c) if:
98	96		(1) the affidavits have been filed of record for the
99	97		period prescribed by Subsection (e); and
100	98		(2) a controverting affidavit or judgment has not been
101	99		filed during that period.
102	100		(h) Without a title instrument, peaceable and adverse
103	101		possession is limited in this section to 160 acres, including
104	102		improvements, unless the number of acres actually enclosed exceeds
105	103		160 acres. If the number of enclosed acres exceeds 160 acres,
106	104		peaceable and adverse possession extends to the real property
107	105		actually enclosed.
108	106		(i) Peaceable possession of real property held under a duly
109	107		registered deed or other memorandum of title that fixes the
110	108		boundaries of the possessor's claim extends to the boundaries
111	109		specified in the instrument.
112	110		SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.
	111	+	______________________________ ______________________________
	112	+	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
	113	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1249 passed the Senate on
	114	+	April 5, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 29, Nays 0, one
	115	+	present not voting.
	116	+	______________________________
	117	+	Secretary of the Senate
	118	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1249 passed the House on
	119	+	May 24, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 146, Nays 0, two
	120	+	present not voting.
	121	+	______________________________
	122	+	Chief Clerk of the House
	123	+	Approved:
	124	+	______________________________
	125	+	Date
	126	+	______________________________
	127	+	Governor