Real Property – Case Law Wire

Guam Estate Administration Pro Se Litigation Probate

Supreme Court of Guam

In re Estate of Pangelinan — Supreme Court of Guam Holds Pro Se Executor Need Not Retain Counsel to Petition for Letters Testamentary

/ July 17, 2026

The Supreme Court of Guam unanimously reversed a probate court’s refusal to appoint a named executor, holding that neither a law license nor retained counsel is required to petition for letters testamentary under the Guam Probate Code, and that the statutory grounds of “improvidence” or “want of understanding” cannot be established solely by the petitioner’s failure to retain an attorney — even where the probate court acknowledged a severe attorney shortage on the island.

South Carolina Administrative Law Real Property Statutory Interpretation

Court of Appeals of South Carolina

Uncategorized

Mt. Pleasant Investments v. Charleston County Assessor — ATI Exemption Caps Tax Value at Pre-Sale Baseline, Not Pre-Sale Plus Pre-ATI Improvements

/ July 17, 2026

The South Carolina Court of Appeals reversed the Administrative Law Court’s property tax ruling, holding that the “current fair market value” floor for the ATI exemption is the pre-sale value on the assessor’s books—not that value inflated by improvements the prior owner completed before the sale closed. Because the improvements were already incorporated into the ATI fair market value of $8,034,000 used to compute the exemption value, the Assessor’s approach of re-adding them to the current fair market value floor impermissibly double-counted them. The taxable value for tax year 2022 was $6,063,000, not $6,821,000.

New York Church Property Constitutional Real Property

Appellate Division, Second Department

Uncategorized

Presbytery of Long Island v. Central Presbyterian Church — Denominational Property Trust Enforceable After Congregation Leaves PCUSA

/ July 10, 2026

Second Department affirms that the Presbytery holds a trust interest in a departing congregation’s 240 Main Street property under PCUSA’s constitutional trust clause and New York’s neutral principles of law approach.

New York Civil Procedure Real Estate Real Property

Appellate Division, Second Department

Uncategorized

16011, LLC v. Bank of America — Notice of Pendency Bars Quiet Title Action by HOA Lien Foreclosure Purchaser

/ July 10, 2026

Second Department affirms that a HOA lien foreclosure purchaser who recorded its deed after a bank notice of pendency was filed had constructive notice of the bank foreclosure and cannot pursue a quiet title claim under RPAPL article 15.

Utah Municipal Law Real Estate Real Property

Court of Appeals of Utah

Uncategorized

Johnson v. Moab City — Utah’s 1886 Townsite Plat Vested Title Before the 1890 Federal Patent, Defeating a Century-Long Adverse Possession Claim

/ July 4, 2026

The Utah Court of Appeals reversed a partial summary judgment that had quieted most of a disputed downtown Moab parcel to a private landowner, holding that the 1886 Moab Townsite Plat vested title in the municipality before the 1890 federal Luster Patent issued, that Utah’s rebuttable presumption of official regularity supplies the missing historical documentation, and that adverse possession cannot run against government land designated for public use regardless of how long the private use has continued.