None of the following persons shall be appointed a referee under this title:
§ 873.050.Persons Not to Be Appointed
Title 10.5. Partition of Real and Personal Property · Chapter 4. Referees · Article 1. General Provisions · Enacted 1976 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 873.050 bars the court from appointing as referee any clerk or deputy clerk of the court, any current or former partner or employee of the judge, any relative within the third degree of the judge or the judge's spouse, or any owner of an interest in the property being partitioned.
Full Text of § 873.050
(a) A clerk or deputy clerk of the court.
(b) A former or present partner or employee of the judge.
(c) A relative within the third degree of the judge or the judge's spouse or the spouse of such a relative.
(d) An owner of any interest in the property that is the subject of the action.
Plain-English Summary
This section protects the neutrality of the referee by ruling out four categories of people from serving in that role, no matter how well qualified they might otherwise be. A clerk or deputy clerk of the court can't serve, and neither can a former or present partner or employee of the judge.
The third bar reaches relatives within the third degree of the judge, or of the judge's spouse, along with the spouse of such a relative — a rule aimed squarely at avoiding the appearance of favoritism between the bench and the referee.
The fourth bar is the most direct: an owner of any interest in the property being partitioned can't serve as referee for that action. A referee dividing or selling property has to act for all the parties, not for one of them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is barred from serving as a partition referee under this section?
A clerk or deputy clerk of the court, a current or former partner or employee of the judge, a relative within the third degree of the judge or the judge's spouse, and an owner of any interest in the property.
Why does the statute bar relatives of the judge?
To avoid conflicts of interest and the appearance of favoritism in an appointment the judge makes.
Can a co-owner of the property serve as the referee dividing or selling it?
No. Section 873.050(d) bars anyone who owns an interest in the property from appointment as referee.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1976, Ch. 73.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: who cannot be a partition referee californiareferee conflict of interest partition