Venue for Real Estate Litigation: In which county are lawsuits involving disputes over land to be filed and litigated?

       
Where should disputes over land -- or interests in land -- be taken to  court? Does it depend on where the real estate is located, where the opposing party and/or owner lives or has its office, or on some other facts or circumstances? The CPRC has a rule on it.

    

VENUE FOR REAL ESTATE LITIGATION

   

Section 15.011 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code applies to: (1) actions for recovery of real property or for recovery of an estate or interest in real property; (2) actions for partition of real property, (3) actions to remove encumbrances from the title to real property; (4) actions for recovery of damages to real property; and (5) actions to quiet title to real property. TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. § 15.011. Any of these specified types of actions must be brought in the county in which part or all of the property is located. Id.

 

MANDAMUS RELIEF AVAILABLE TO ENFORCE MANDATORY VENUE

  

A party may file a petition for writ of mandamus to enforce the mandatory venue provisions of chapter 15 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. See TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. § 15.0642 (West 2002).

  

Under section 15.016 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code, an action governed by any other statute prescribing mandatory venue must be brought in the county required by that statute. See id. § 15.016 (West 2002).

  

Section 115.002 of the Texas Property Code is a mandatory venue statute, so it is enforceable by mandamus. See TEX. PROP. CODE ANN. § 115.002 (West 2007); TEX. CIV. PRAC. & REM. CODE ANN. §§ 15.016, 15.0642; In re Transcon. Realty Investors, 271 S.W.3d 270, 271 (Tex. 2008) (orig. proceeding); In re Tex. Dep’t of Transp., 218 S.W.3d 74, 76 (Tex. 2007) (orig. proceeding). In the case of mandatory venue, relators are not required to show that appeal is an inadequate remedy. In re Transcon. Realty Investors, 271 S.W.3d at 271.

SOURCE: CORPUS CHRISTI / EDINBURG COURT OF APPEALS - 13-11-00707-CV – 12/3/11

RELATED TERMS AND PHRASES: motion to transfer venue | determination of proper venue | mandatory and permissive venue | venue vs. contractual forum selection |  appellate review of venue rulings by the trial court |