Real Estate's Version of Joint and Several Liability
Thursday, July 28, 2011
"Joint and several liability" is related to the law, like many terms you encounter in the field of real estate. Despite the illusion of being self-explanation, it's not quite as intuitive with how it relates to real estate and affects you as a home owner.
The term is often described in law dictionaries as a way to make two or more people who enter into an obligation liable severally and jointly at the same time. Its meaning is actually quite simple. In non-legalese, joint and several liability simply explains how a creditor can sue anyone who enters jointly into a contract, at their option. The entire amount can be sued upon by the creditor against the group as a whole or solely one member of the group for the entire amount. For it to apply, though, the contract terms must state this.
A course in Tort Law is how most law students learn about joint and several liability. How it relates to the property they own is how most homeowners will understand it themselves. When a guest is injured on their property and subsequently sues for damages, homeowners can be held jointly and severally liable. Other times, the other homeowner can hold the first homeowner jointly and severally liable for property damage committed against property that both homeowners own.
A different way to think about it is how people can jointly apply for a credit card. The credit card company can attempt to obtain money from both card holders or, a more likely scenario, they can go after the one person who is in a better financial situation to pay the bill. Property owned jointly often ends up coming out the same way. The situation described above is where this most commonly comes into play. The lender can sue the owner in default, the owner who isn't, or both jointly, just like in the credit card scenario above.
Liability for a civil wrongdoing is not where this legal concept ends, although joint and several liability may sound as though it's entirely unrelated to property. To ensure that their property is safe for guests and others who might find themselves making use of it, homeowners who co-own property need to take care. You should also consider ensuring anyone with whom you'd like to co-own is financially stable so the mortgage continues getting paid.
The term is often described in law dictionaries as a way to make two or more people who enter into an obligation liable severally and jointly at the same time. Its meaning is actually quite simple. In non-legalese, joint and several liability simply explains how a creditor can sue anyone who enters jointly into a contract, at their option. The entire amount can be sued upon by the creditor against the group as a whole or solely one member of the group for the entire amount. For it to apply, though, the contract terms must state this.
A course in Tort Law is how most law students learn about joint and several liability. How it relates to the property they own is how most homeowners will understand it themselves. When a guest is injured on their property and subsequently sues for damages, homeowners can be held jointly and severally liable. Other times, the other homeowner can hold the first homeowner jointly and severally liable for property damage committed against property that both homeowners own.
A different way to think about it is how people can jointly apply for a credit card. The credit card company can attempt to obtain money from both card holders or, a more likely scenario, they can go after the one person who is in a better financial situation to pay the bill. Property owned jointly often ends up coming out the same way. The situation described above is where this most commonly comes into play. The lender can sue the owner in default, the owner who isn't, or both jointly, just like in the credit card scenario above.
Liability for a civil wrongdoing is not where this legal concept ends, although joint and several liability may sound as though it's entirely unrelated to property. To ensure that their property is safe for guests and others who might find themselves making use of it, homeowners who co-own property need to take care. You should also consider ensuring anyone with whom you'd like to co-own is financially stable so the mortgage continues getting paid.
About the Author:
Searching for real estate listings or considering to buy real estate marketing plan? You can find more information and access real estate listings from any region or city in Colorado.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment