Go to the Clerk of Court and Comptroller's website and search in recorded documents for a Lis Pendens against this property. You must search by owner's name. This can be tricky because the owner may own multiple properties and there may be hundreds of recorded documents with that name if it is a common name.
The suit or proceeding must be pending before a competent court of jurisdiction. A right to immovable property is directly or specifically involved in the suit. The suit or proceeding must not be collusive. The property in dispute must be transferred or otherwise dealt with by any party to suit.
(2) A notice of lis pendens is not effectual for any purpose beyond 1 year from the commencement of the action and will expire at that time, unless the relief sought is disclosed by the pending pleading to be founded on a duly recorded instrument or on a lien claimed under part I of chapter 713 against the property ...
A notice of lis pendens must contain the following: a. The names of the parties. b. The date of the institution of the action, the date of the clerk's electronic receipt, or the case number of the action. c. The name of the court in which it is pending. d. A description of the property involved or to be affected. e.
A lis pendens is a common tool used in Florida to put third parties on notice of a pending lawsuit against real estate. If filed properly, a lis pendens protects the plaintiff in a lawsuit from any intervening liens on the property filed after the lis pendens.
In Latin, the term lis pendens means pending litigation; it is a legal notice recorded for the public disclosure that a lawsuit is ongoing and claims a specific property. Such an action is called a “notice of pendency of action” under California Code of Civil Procedure § 405.2.
Common Legal Grounds for Lis Pendens We typically see lis pendens recorded in several types of cases, including: quiet title, specific performance, easement cases, partition, adverse possession, wrongful eviction, and several other types of real property claims.
The party seeking to dissolve the lis pendens must file a motion defining why the lis pendens is neither one of right nor one with a nexus to the real property. The movant will normally also ask for a bond in the event that the judge does find a nexus exists.
A wrongfully filed lis pendens can be removed by the judge in the case in which it was filed. The party seeking to remove it must file a motion and address why the lis pendens is improper under Florida law.
Other than resolution of the pending lawsuit, the only way to remove a lis pendens is by expungement, which requires a court order from a circuit judge. If you refuse service or the action is otherwise delayed, the lis pendens remains intact, making it difficult to sell or otherwise transfer a property.