LA Notary Property Law (Things, Ownership, and Usufruct) 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under Louisiana Civil Code, what is the difference between movables and immovables?
- Movables are rented; immovables are owned
- Immovables are tracts of land, component parts of land, and rights relating to land; all other things are movables (Correct answer)
- Movables are items under $500; immovables are over $500
- There is no legal distinction
Correct answer: Immovables are tracts of land, component parts of land, and rights relating to land; all other things are movables
Louisiana classifies all things as either immovable or movable.
Louisiana Civil Code Articles 461-475 classify all things as either movables or immovables. Different legal rules apply: immovables require authentic act for transfer, are subject to mortgage law, and have different prescriptive periods.
Question 2: What is accession in Louisiana property law?
- The right to access a public road
- The principle that the owner of a thing becomes the owner of everything produced by or united to that thing (Correct answer)
- A tax on property improvements
- The process of recording a deed
Correct answer: The principle that the owner of a thing becomes the owner of everything produced by or united to that thing
Accession gives the owner ownership of what is produced by or attached to their property.
Louisiana Civil Code Articles 482-497 govern accession. Under Article 493, buildings and constructions on land are presumed to belong to the landowner.
Question 3: Under Louisiana law, what rights does a usufructuary have regarding the property subject to usufruct?
- The right to sell the property
- The right to use the property and enjoy its fruits while preserving its substance (Correct answer)
- The right to destroy the property
- No rights beyond the right to live on the property
Correct answer: The right to use the property and enjoy its fruits while preserving its substance
The usufructuary can use the property and collect its fruits but must preserve the substance.
Louisiana Civil Code Articles 535-629 define the usufructuary's rights: use the property, collect natural and civil fruits, but preserve the substance and maintain the property.
Question 4: What is co-ownership (indivision) under Louisiana law?
- Joint ownership by married couples only
- Ownership of the same thing by two or more persons, each having an undivided share (Correct answer)
- A business partnership
- Ownership of adjacent properties
Correct answer: Ownership of the same thing by two or more persons, each having an undivided share
Co-ownership exists when multiple persons own undivided shares of the same thing.
Louisiana Civil Code Articles 797-818 govern co-ownership. Any co-owner may demand partition at any time (Art. 807). Management decisions require a majority of ownership interests.
Question 5: Under Louisiana law, what is a building restriction?
- A government zoning regulation
- A charge imposed on an immovable by a private party restricting the use of the property for the benefit of other property or a community (Correct answer)
- A building permit requirement
- A construction safety code
Correct answer: A charge imposed on an immovable by a private party restricting the use of the property for the benefit of other property or a community
Building restrictions are private charges that limit property use, commonly found in subdivisions.
Louisiana Civil Code Articles 775-783 govern building restrictions. They are charges imposed by the owner in pursuance of a general plan governing building standards, use, or aesthetic requirements.
Question 6: What is the concept of boundaries and boundary actions in Louisiana property law?
- Fences required by law between properties
- The legal process of establishing the exact limits between adjoining properties (Correct answer)
- Property tax assessments based on acreage
- Zoning classifications of property borders
Correct answer: The legal process of establishing the exact limits between adjoining properties
A boundary action allows adjoining landowners to have the exact boundary line established.
Louisiana Civil Code Articles 784-796 govern boundary actions. Any landowner may compel an adjoining landowner to fix the boundary. The action does not prescribe.
LA Notary Property Law (Things, Ownership, and Usufruct) 2
Under Louisiana Civil Code, what is the difference between movables and immovables?