(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), where there are divided interests in property acquired by eminent domain, the value of each interest and the injury, if any, to the remainder of such interest shall be separately assessed and compensation awarded therefor.
§ 1260.220.Divided Interests In Property Acquired
Title 7. Eminent Domain Law · Chapter 8. Procedures for Determining Right to Take and Compensation · Article 3. Procedures Relating to Determination of Compensation · Last amended 1978 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1260.220 requires the value of and injury to each divided interest in condemned property to be separately assessed and compensated, unless the plaintiff elects a two-stage trial that first determines total compensation and then apportions it among the defendants without cutting off a defendant's right to present evidence in either stage.
Full Text of § 1260.220
(b) The plaintiff may require that the amount of compensation be first determined as between plaintiff and all defendants claiming an interest in the property. Thereafter, in the same proceeding, the trier of fact shall determine the respective rights of the defendants in and to the amount of compensation awarded and shall apportion the award accordingly. Nothing in this subdivision limits the right of a defendant to present during the first stage of the proceeding evidence of the value of, or injury to, the property or the defendant's interest in the property; and the right of a defendant to present evidence during the second stage of the proceeding is not affected by the failure to exercise the right to present evidence during the first stage of the proceeding.
Plain-English Summary
When more than one person holds an interest in the property being condemned -- an owner and a lienholder, say, or a landlord and a tenant -- this section decides how the compensation gets sorted out among them. The default, in subdivision (a), is to assess the value of each interest and any injury to its remainder separately, awarding compensation interest by interest.
Subdivision (b) gives the plaintiff an alternative: a two-stage proceeding. In the first stage, the trier of fact determines the total amount of compensation owed between the plaintiff and all the defendants claiming an interest, treating them as a group. In the second stage -- still part of the same proceeding -- the trier of fact turns to how the defendants divide that award among themselves, apportioning it according to their respective interests.
The statute is careful to protect each defendant's evidentiary rights across both stages. Nothing about the two-stage structure stops a defendant from presenting evidence of the property's value or the injury to its interest during the first stage, and a defendant who doesn't exercise that right in the first stage keeps the right to present evidence in the second stage regardless.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is compensation handled when several people have interests in the same condemned property?
Ordinarily, the value of each interest and any injury to its remainder is separately assessed and compensated.
Can the plaintiff request a different procedure?
Yes. Section 1260.220(b) lets the plaintiff require a two-stage proceeding: first the total compensation is determined between plaintiff and all defendants together, then the trier of fact apportions it among the defendants.
Does choosing the two-stage procedure limit a defendant's right to present evidence?
No. A defendant can present evidence of value or injury in the first stage, and not doing so doesn't forfeit the right to present evidence in the second stage.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats. 1978, Ch. 294.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: divided interests condemnation compensation californiaapportionment eminent domain award california