Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Forcing a sale of co-owned property is done by a "partition" lawsuit. Initially, each party will pay its own costs and fees, including attorney fees. There are some provisions in various sections of the Code of Civil Procedure covering partition suits whereby the Court can shift the burden of attorney fees and other costs between the parties - for example, CCP 874.010(a) and 874.020, but for the most part, each party will end up bearing whatever costs and fees he or she incurs. I might add that if one party has paid a disproportionate share of certain costs such as mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance, necessary repairs, etc., the court can and probably will reapportion the net proceeds of sale to make an equitable reimbursement to the party that overpaid. This is less likely to include most legal fees, however.