Judicial division of property between heirs and former spouses in Bulgaria

When relatives inherit an apartment in central Sofia, one of the most common scenarios looks like this: one heir lives in the property and uses it exclusively, another wants to sell and receive their share in cash, and a third lives abroad and insists on “liquidating” their share at full market value. This creates a classic inheritance partition dispute. When a voluntary partition cannot be achieved, the only remaining solution is judicial partition of real estate — a formal court procedure with clearly defined stages, costs, and legal consequences.

This topic raises a wide range of practical questions:
what is the cost of judicial partition proceedings, how attorney fees are calculated, which expenses are admissible in a partition case, how proceedings may be terminated, what constitutes a judicial partition judgment, and how partition of property held in ideal shares is legally completed.

Another common scenario involves inherited agricultural land in the Burgas region, where boundaries are unclear and co-owners dispute who is entitled to cultivate the land. In such cases, ownership issues intersect with administrative ones — cadastral identifiers, registrations, and title acts. Here, acquisitive prescription, use rights, and possession become legally decisive.

BSLC (Black Sea Law Counsel) through its competent real estate and property attorneys, provides comprehensive legal assistance throughout this complex process — from ownership analysis and preparation of a judicial partition claim, to registration of the final court decision in the Property Register under Art. 3(2) of the Cadastre and Property Register Act. Our lawyers assess whether preliminary or out-of-court partition is possible, arrange professional valuation through licensed experts, calculate all judicial partition costs (court fees, expert fees, notarial expenses, and attorney remuneration), and provide clients with a clear procedural roadmap: when and how the claim is filed, expected timelines, settlement options during proceedings, and the legal effects of partition of ideal shares followed by sale of a real portion.

What is judicial partition in Bulgaria?

Judicial partition is a special constitutive civil procedure, regulated in Chapter 29 of the Civil Procedure Code (Arts. 341–355 CPC), through which the potestative right to partition is exercised.

In practical terms, when several persons jointly own a property (for example, an inherited apartment) and cannot agree on how to divide it, each co-owner has the unilateral right to ask the court to terminate the co-ownership and distribute the property. This is a classic potestative right — it does not depend on the consent of the other co-owners. Even if another heir or former spouse opposes division, you are legally entitled to initiate judicial partition proceedings.

Filing a claim for partition – which court is competent?

Proceedings begin with filing a claim before the district court.

Inheritance-related partition

Local jurisdiction is determined under Art. 110(1) CPC, which provides that claims concerning inheritance, reduction of wills or donations, partition or annulment of voluntary partition of inherited property must be filed before the court at the place where the inheritance was opened. Under Art. 1 of the Inheritance Act, inheritance is opened at the deceased’s last place of residence.

Practical example:
If the deceased parent lived in Burgas, but the inherited property is located in Tsarevo, jurisdiction lies with Burgas District Court, not Tsarevo.

If the inheritance was opened abroad but the deceased was a Bulgarian citizen, Art. 110(2) CPC allows a choice between the court of the deceased’s last permanent address in Bulgaria or the court where the inherited property is located.

Partition of marital community property

Where the property formed part of the matrimonial property regime, jurisdiction is governed by Art. 109 CPC — the court at the location of the property. If the property spans two judicial districts, Art. 116 CPC allows the claimant to choose between them.

Example:
If former spouses seek partition of a family home located near the boundary between two court districts, the claimant may choose either competent court.

Why is jurisdiction so important?

A decision issued by a court lacking subject-matter, functional, or mandatory territorial jurisdiction under Art. 109 CPC is inadmissible and subject to annulment on appeal. In contrast, defects in ordinary territorial jurisdiction only lead to inadmissibility if an objection is raised in time under Art. 119(3) CPC.

In plain language:
If the wrong type of court or a court outside mandatory jurisdiction hears the case, the decision is voidable. But if jurisdiction is merely local and no timely objection is raised, proceedings remain valid.

How does the court determine who receives which share?

Judicial partition unfolds in two distinct phases.

Phase One – Admission of partition

This phase concludes with a decision under Art. 344(1) CPC, determining:

• who the co-owners are,
• what shares they hold,
• which properties are subject to partition.

Without this decision, no actual distribution can occur.

At this stage, the court resolves preliminary ownership issues, including challenges to wills, donations, inheritance rights, share sizes, and inclusion or exclusion of property from the partition pool under Arts. 343 and 324 CPC.

All co-owners must be parties to the proceedings — mandatory joinder applies under Art. 216(2) CPC and Art. 75(2) of the Inheritance Act. If any co-owner is omitted (for example, an heir living abroad), the partition decision is invalid as to them.

Phase Two – Actual distribution of the property

The second phase begins once the admission decision enters into force. The court prepares a draft partition protocol under Art. 347 CPC, relying on expert valuation and distribution proposals.

A licensed expert assesses market values and proposes allocation ensuring proportionality. If exact equality is impossible, monetary equalisation applies. Claims arising from improvements, rent collection, or expenses are settled through partition accounts under Art. 346 CPC.

The draft protocol is presented to the parties in court under Art. 350 CPC, where objections may be raised. After deliberation, the court issues a final partition protocol, which is binding and only subject to appeal.

If equal distribution is feasible, the court may directly allocate shares. Otherwise, a public draw (lot) is conducted under Art. 352 CPC.

Once allocation is final, the constitutive legal effect occurs: exclusive ownership arises for each co-owner with respect to their allotted property. Co-ownership is terminated by the court decision itself, not by physical possession.

What happens if the property is indivisible?

If the property subject to partition is physically indivisible — meaning it cannot be divided without violating the rights of one or more co-owners — the court applies Art. 348 of the Civil Procedure Code, under which the property is ordered to be sold at public auction, unless it is allocated (awarded) to one of the co-owners under Art. 349(2) CPC.

An indivisible property is typically a small apartment, a single-family house, or another object that cannot be split into independent units without breaching legal, technical, or functional requirements. In such cases, the court must choose between auction and allocation.

Allocation instead of public sale

Allocation is possible when one of the co-heirs lived in the property at the time the inheritance was opened and does not own another dwelling. If these conditions are met, the court may award the entire property to that heir, provided they compensate the remaining co-owners financially.

If multiple heirs meet the allocation criteria, preference is given to the one who offers the higher price.

The request for allocation must be submitted at the first hearing after the decision admitting the partition has entered into force, and the valuation must reflect the actual market value of the property, as explicitly required by Art. 349(2) CPC.

This strict procedural rule exists to prevent abuse and to guarantee fair economic balance among the co-owners.

Judicial partition of inherited property

Judicial partition is most frequently applied in cases of inheritance-based co-ownership, where several heirs own ideal shares in a property but cannot agree on its use or management. Partition terminates this property community regardless of the will of the other heirs.

Example:
Three brothers inherit an apartment in Sofia. One lives in it and refuses to sell or vacate. The others may file a claim for judicial partition. The court will either distribute the property or order its sale and divide the proceeds according to the shares.

Termination of partition proceedings

Judicial partition proceedings may be terminated:

• by mutual agreement if the parties reach an out-of-court settlement, or
• due to legal impediments, such as lack of co-ownership.

In such cases, the court either dismisses the claim or terminates the proceedings by order.

This typically occurs when the parties voluntarily divide the property during the case or when it is proven that the claimant is not a co-owner, for example because their title derives from a null and void transaction.

Attorney fees and costs in judicial partition proceedings

Costs in judicial partition cases include court fees, expert fees, attorney remuneration, and other procedural expenses. According to settled judicial practice, these costs are distributed among the co-owners proportionally to their shares, unless the court rules otherwise.

Example:
If a property is valued at BGN 150,000 and is partitioned among three heirs with equal shares, each bears one-third of the total costs.

When proceedings are complex — for example involving challenges to a will or valuation of multiple properties — costs can increase significantly.

Attorney remuneration

Attorney fees are determined under Ordinance No. 1 on Minimum Attorney Fees. The amount depends on the value of the dispute and the procedural stage — each court instance (first, appellate, cassation) entails separate remuneration.

A critical legal effect of judicial partition is its preclusive nature: once the right to partition has been exercised and resolved by a final judgment, no new partition claim may be brought for the same property between the same parties, unless a new property community arises later.

Example:
If a court admitted partition of a parcel between three heirs in 2020, the same dispute cannot be reopened unless a new heir appears or an additional share is discovered.

Partition of property held under matrimonial community (SIO)

Property acquired during marriage is governed by a special regime known as matrimonial property community, regulated in Arts. 21 et seq. of the Family Code. This is joint, shareless ownership, distinct from ordinary co-ownership, because neither spouse holds an ideal share while the community exists.

Under Art. 21(1) FC, rights over property acquired during marriage through joint contribution form matrimonial community, and under Art. 21(3) FC, individual rights arise only upon termination of the community.

When is partition possible?

Partition of matrimonial community property is possible only after termination of the marriage, through divorce or death. While the marriage exists, no spouse may request partition, because no divisible shares exist — the community is legally indivisible.

After termination, partition may be:

• Voluntary, by agreement formalized in a notarial deed under Art. 18(1) Obligations and Contracts Act, or
• Judicial, under Arts. 341–355 CPC, if no agreement is possible.

Court assessment in SIO partition

In judicial partition of former matrimonial property, the court:

• identifies property acquired during marriage,
• examines joint contribution (Art. 21(2) FC),
• presumes equal shares unless unequal contribution is proven (Art. 28 FC),
• allocates or orders auction of indivisible property (Arts. 348–349 CPC).

Example:
After divorce, former spouses cannot agree on their jointly acquired apartment. Either may seek judicial partition. The court will assess circumstances (including children’s residence), allocate the apartment or order auction, and divide proceeds equally.

Must all properties be partitioned at once?

No. Judicial partition may concern only part of the jointly owned property. The law allows partial partition, provided it does not violate equality and fairness of shares (Art. 342 CPC).

This is especially relevant in large inheritances involving multiple properties where parties wish to retain joint ownership over some assets.

Is there a limitation period for partition?

There is no statute of limitations for the right to partition itself. Any co-owner may seek partition at any time, regardless of how long the co-ownership has existed.

Example:
If you inherited an apartment jointly with a sibling 25 years ago and never partitioned it, you may still file a claim today.

However, contractual claims between co-owners (for expenses, improvements, rent) are subject to the five-year limitation period under Art. 110 Obligations and Contracts Act.

Example:
If a co-owner collected rent exclusively for 10 years, you may claim compensation only for the last five years.

Under Art. 34 Ownership Act, every co-owner may demand partition despite any agreement to the contrary, unless the law provides otherwise or partition is incompatible with the nature of the property. This establishes the fundamental rule that co-ownership cannot be imposed indefinitely.

Difference between voluntary and judicial partition

Voluntary partition is a contract between co-owners allocating property by agreement. Under Art. 18(1) OCA, partition involving real estate must be formalized by notarial deed.

Judicial partition applies when agreement is impossible or voluntary partition is defective (for example, missing a co-owner). It is a constitutive court process under Chapter 29 CPC.

If a voluntary partition excludes a co-owner, that person may challenge it and file a judicial partition claim, rendering the prior agreement ineffective.

What does a judicial partition judgment contain?

A judicial partition judgment is a constitutive court act terminating the property community and creating exclusive ownership rights. Issued in the second phase, it must include elements specified in Arts. 350–352 CPC.

The judgment:

• approves the final partition protocol,
• assigns properties to specific parties,
• orders public sale if applicable,
• awards equalisation payments,
• resolves inter-party accounting claims (Art. 346 CPC),
• rules on allocation of indivisible property (Art. 349 CPC).

It has constitutive effect, unlike the admission decision, which is declaratory.

Is partition of ideal shares possible?

Yes — partition always concerns ideal shares, because co-ownership exists precisely over such abstract portions.

Under Art. 34(1) Ownership Act, the subject of partition is the co-ownership expressed in mathematical quotas (½, ⅓, etc.), not physical parts.

Example:
Three heirs each own ⅓ of an apartment. Before partition, none owns a specific room. Partition replaces abstract shares with exclusive ownership or monetary value.

Therefore, the term “partition of ideal shares” is legally precise and conceptually correct.