Civil Law Property- Code Articles

Front 1

Art. 3473
Prescription of Ten Years

Back 1

Ownership and other real rights in immovables may be aquired by the prescription of ten years

Front 2

Art. 3474
Aquisitive Prescription runs against

Back 2

This prescription runs against absent persons and incompetents, including minors and interdicts

Front 3

Art. 3475
Aquisitive Prescription- Requisites

Back 3

The requises for aquisitive prescription of ten years are: possession of ten years, good faith, just title, and a thing susceptible of aquisition by prescription

Front 4

Art. 3476
Aquisitive Prescription-Attributes of Possession

Back 4

The possessor must have corporeal possession or vicil possession preceded by corporeal possession, to acquire a thing by prescription.
The possession must be continuous, uninterrupted, peaceable, public, and unequivocal

Front 5

Art. 3477
Aquisitive Prescription- precarious possessor

Back 5

Aquisitive prescription does not run in favor of a precarious possessor or his universal successor.

Front 6

Art. 467
Immovables by declaration

Back 6

The owner of an immovable may declare that machinery, appliances, and equipment owned by him and plced on the immovable, other than his private residence, for its service and improvement are deemed to be its component parts. The declaration shall be filed for registry in the conveyance records of the parish in which the immovable is located.

Front 7

Art. 468
Deimmobilization

Back 7

Component parts of an immovable so damaged or deteriorated that they can no longer serve the use of lands or buildings are deimmobilized.
Te owner may deimmobilize the component parts of an immovable by an act translative of ownership and delivery to acquirers in good faith.
In the absence of rights of third persons, the owner may deimmobilize things by detachment or removal.

Front 8

Art. 471
Corporeal movables

Back 8

Corporeal movables are things, whether animate or inanimate, that normally move or can be moved from one place to another.

Front 9

Art. 472
Building Materials

Back 9

Materials gathered for the erection of a new building or other construction, even though deriving from the demolition of an old one, are movables until their incorporation into the new building or after construction.
Materials seperated from a building oor other construction for the purpose of repair, addition, or alteration to it, with the intention of putting them back, remain immovables.

Front 10

Art. 473
Incorporeal movables

Back 10

Rigths, obligations, and actions that apply to a movable thing are incorporeal movables. Movables of this kind are such as bonds, annuities, and interests or shares in entities possessing juridical personality.
Interests or shares in a juridical person that owns immovables are considered as movables as long as the entite exists; upon its dissolution, the right of each individual to a share in the immovables is an immovable.

Front 11

Art. 474
Movables by anticipation

Back 11

Unharvested crops an ungathered fruits of trees are movables by anticipation when they belong to aperson other than the landowner. When encumberd with security rights of third persons, they are movables by anticipation insofar as the creditor is concred.
The landowner may, by act translative of ownership or by pledge, mobilize by anticipation unharvested crops and ungathered fruits of trees that belong to him.

Front 12

Art. 475
Things not immovable

Back 12

All things, corporeal or incorporeal, that the law does not consider as immovable, are movables

Front 13

Art. 461
Corporeals and Incorporeals

Back 13

Corporeals are things that have a body, whether animate or inanimate, and can be felt or touched.
Incorproeals are things that have no body, but are comprehended by the understanding, such as the rights of inheritance, servitudes, obligations, and right of intellectual property.

Front 14

Art. 470
Incorporeal immovables

Back 14

Rights an actions that apply to immovable things are incopreal immovables. Immovables of this kind are such as personal servitudes established on immovables, predial servtudes, mineral rights, and petitory or possessory actions.

Front 15

Art. 3421
Possession

Back 15

Possession is the detention or enjoyment of a corporeal thing, movable or immovable, that one holds or excercises by himself or by another who keeps or excercises it in his name.
The excercise of a real right, such as servitude, with the intent to have it as one's own is quasi-possession. The rules governing possession apply by analogy to the quasi-posession of incopreals.

Front 16

Art. 3422
Nature of possession; right to possess

Back 16

Possession is a matter of fact; nevertheless, one who has possessed a thing for over a year acquires the right to possess it.

Front 17

Art. 3423
Rights of possessors

Back 17

A possessor is considered provisionally as owner of the thing he possesses until the right of the true owner is established.

Front 18

Art. 3424
Acquisition of possession

Back 18

To acquire posssession, one must intend to possess as owner and must take corporeal possession fo the thing.

Front 19

Art. 3425
Corporeal possession

Back 19

Corporeal possession is the excercise of physical acts of use, detention, or enjoyment over a thing.

Front 20

Art. 3426
Constructive Possession

Back 20

one who possesses a part of an immovable by virtue of a title is deemed to have constructive possession whith the limits of his title. In the absence of title, one has possession only of the area he actually possesses.

Front 21

Art. 3427
Presumjption of intent to own the thing

Back 21

One is presumed to intend to possess as owner unless he began to possess in the name of and for another.

Front 22

Art. 3428
Acquisition of possession through another

Back 22

One may acquire possession of a thing through another who takes it for him and inhis name. The person taking possession must intend to do so for another.

Front 23

Art. 3429
Excercise of possession by another

Back 23

Possession may be excercised by the possessor or by another who holds the thing forhim and in his name. THus a lessor possesses through his lessee

Front 24

Art. 3430
Juridical person-possession

Back 24

A juridical person acquires possession through its representatives

Front 25

Art. 3431
Retention of possession; civil possession

Back 25

Once acquired, possession is retained by the intent to possess as owner even if the possessor ceases to possess corporealy. This is civil possession.

Front 26

Art. 3432
Presumptionof retention of possession

Back 26

The intent to retain possession is presumed unless thereis clear proof of a contrary intention.

Front 27

Art. 3433
Loss of possession

Back 27

Possession is lost when the possessor manifests his intention to abandon it or when he is evcited by another by force or usurpation

Front 28

Art. 3434
Loss of the right to possess

Back 28

The righ tto possess is lost upon abandonment of possession. In case of eviction, the right to possess is lost if the possessor does not recover possession whithin a year of the eviction.
When the right to possess is lost, possession is interrupted.

Front 29

Art. 3465
Interruption of Aquisitive Prescription

Back 29

Aquisitive prescription is interrupted when possession is lost.
The interruption is considered never to have occured if the possessor recovers possession within one year or if he recovers possession later by virtue of an action brought within the year.

Front 30

Art. 794
Determination of Ownership according to titles

Back 30

When both parties rely on titles only, the boundary shall be fixed according to titles. Whe the parties trace their titles toa common author preference shall be given to the more ancient title.

Front 31

Art. 936
Continuation of the possession of decedent

Back 31

The possession of the decedent is transferred to his sccessors, whether testate or intestate, and if testate, whether particular, general, or universal legatees.
A universal successor continues the possession of the decedent with all its advantages and defects, and with no alteration in the nature of the possession.
A particular successor may commence a new possession for the purpose of aquisitive prespecription.

Front 32

Art. 3435
Vices of possession

Back 32

Possession that is violent, clandestine, discontiuous, or equiviocal has no legal effect.

Front 33

Art. 3436
Consequences, definitions of vices of possession

Back 33

Possession if violent when it is aquired or maintained by violent acts. WHen the violence ceases, the possession ceases to be violent.
Possession is clandestine when it is not open or public, discontinuous when it is no excercised at regular intervals, and equivocal when there is ambiguity as to the intent of the possessor to own the thing.

Front 34

Art. 3437
Precarious Possession

Back 34

The exercise of possesion over a thing with the permissionof or on behalf of the owner of possessor is precarious possession

Front 35

Art. 3438
Presumption of Precariousness

Back 35

A precarius possessor, such as a lessee or a depositary, is presumed to possess for another although he may intend to possess for himself.

Front 36

Art. 3439
Terminiation of precarious possession

Back 36

A co-owner, or his universal successor, commences to possess for himself when he demonstrates this intent by overt and unambiguous acts sufficient to give notice to his co-owner.
Any other precarious possessor, or his universal succcessor, commences to possess for himself when he gives actual notice of this intent to the person on whose behalf he is possessing.

Front 37

Art. 3440
Protection of Precarious possession

Back 37

Where there is a disturbance of possession, the possessory acction is available to a precarious possessor, such as a lessee or a depository, against anyone except the person for whom he possesses.

Front 38

Art. 3441
Transfer of possession

Back 38

Possession is transferable by universale title or by particular title.

Front 39

Art. 3442
Tacking of possession

Back 39

The possession of the transferor is tacked to that of the transferee if there has been no interruption of possession.

Front 40

Art. 3443
Presumption of continuity of possession

Back 40

One who proves that he had possession at different times is presumed to have possessed during the itnermediate period.

Front 41

Art. 3444
Possessory action

Back 41

Possession of immovables is protected by the possessory action, as provided in Articles 3655 through 3671 of the COde of Civil Procedure.
Possession of movables is protected by the rules of the Code of Civil Procedure that govern civil actions.

Front 42

Art. 448
Division of Things

Back 42

Things are divided into common, public, and pricate; corporeals and incorporeals, and movables and immovables.

Front 43

Art. 449
Common Things

Back 43

Common things may not be owned by anyone. They are such as the air and the hih seas that may be freely used by everyone comformably with the use for which nature has intended them.

Front 44

Art. 450
Public Things

Back 44

Public things are owned by the state or its political subdivisions in their cpacity as public persons.
Public htings that belong to the state are such as running waters, the waters and botoms of natural naviable water bodies, the territorial sea, and ht esea shore.

Front 45

Art. 451
Seashore

Back 45

Seashore is the space of land over which the waters of the sea spread in the highest tide during the winter season.

Front 46

Art. 452
Public things and commonthings subject to public use

Back 46

Public things and common things are subject to public use in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. Everyone has the right to fish in the rivers, ports, roadsteads, and harbors, and the right to land on the seashore, to fish, to shelter himself, to moor ships, to dry nets, and the like, provided that he does not cause injury to the property of adjoining owners.
The seashore within the limits of a munipcality issubject to its police power, and the public use is governed by municipal ordinances and regulations.

Front 47

Art. 453
Private things

Back 47

Private things are owned by individuals, other private persons, and by the state or its political subdivisions in their capacity as private persons.

Front 48

Art. 454
Freedom of disposition by private persons

Back 48

Owners of private things may freely dispose of them under modifications established by law.

Front 49

Art. 455
Private things subject to public use.

Back 49

Private things may be subject to public use in accordance with law or by dedication.

Front 50

Art. 456
Banks of naviable rivers or streams

Back 50

The banks of navigable rivers or streams are private things that are subject to public use.
The bank of a navigable river or stream is the land lying between the ordinary low and the ordinary high stage of the water. Nevertheless, when there isa levee in proximity to the water, established according to law, the levee shall form the bank.

Front 51

Art. 457
Roads; public or private

Back 51

A road may be either public or private.
A public road is one that is subject to public use. the public may own the land on which the road is built or merely have the right to use it.
A private road is one that is not subject to public use.

Front 52

Art. 458
Works obstructing the public use

Back 52

Works built without lawful permit on pulic things, including the sea, the seashore and the bottom of natrula navigable waters, or on the banks of navigable rivers, that obstruct the public use may be removed at the expense of the perosns who built or own them at the instance of public authorities, or of any person residing in the state.
The owner of the works may not prevent their removal by alleging prescription or possession.

Front 53

Art. 499
Alluvion and dereliction

Back 53

Accretion formed successively and imperceptibly on the bank of a river or stream, whether navigable or not, is called alluvion. The alluvion belongs to the wonerof the bank, who is bound to leave public tha tportion of the bank which is required for hte public use.
The same rule applies to derliton formed by water receding imperceptibly from a bank of a river or stream. The owner of the land situated at the ednge of the bank left dry owns the deriction.

Front 54

Art. 500
Shore of the sea or of a lake- alluvion/dereliction.

Back 54

There is no right to alluvion or dereliction on the shore of the sea or of lakes.

Front 55

Art. 501
Division of Alluvion

Back 55

Alluvion is formed in front of the property of several owners is divided equitably, taking into account the extent of the front of each property prior to the fromation of the alluvion in isue. Eah owner is entitled to fair proportion of the are aof the alluvion and a fair proprotion of the new frontage on the river, depending on the relative values of the frontage and the acreage.