In addition to the requirements of Article 4271, a petition for authority to sell property of a minor at public sale shall set forth a description of the property and the reasons which make it advantageous to the minor to sell at public sale. The court shall render an order authorizing the sale at public auction after publication, when it considers the sale to be to the best interest of the minor. The order shall specify the minimum price to be accepted.
Art. 4321.Petition; Order
Book VII. Special Proceedings · Title VI. Tutorship · Chapter 9. Alienation of Minor's Property · Amendment history unavailable · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 4321 requires a petition for public-sale authority to describe the property and explain why a public sale benefits the minor, on top of Article 4271's general requirements, and directs the court to authorize a published auction with a fixed minimum price once satisfied the sale serves the minor's best interest.
Full Text of Art. 4321
Plain-English Summary
Article 4321 opens Section 2 of Chapter 9, the public-sale procedure, and marks the point where the chapter shifts from the general rules of Section 1 to a specific, competitive-bidding method of alienating a minor's property. Public sale is Louisiana's auction-style approach: the property is advertised, offered openly, and sold to the highest qualifying bidder, a method that parallels the public-sale procedure used to dispose of succession property elsewhere in Louisiana law.
Getting there starts with the petition. In addition to whatever Article 4271 already requires of a petition affecting a minor's interest, a petition for public-sale authority has to describe the property being sold and explain the reasons that make a public sale advantageous to the minor -- why competitive bidding, rather than a negotiated private sale, is the better route for this particular property.
If the court finds the sale is in the minor's best interest, it renders an order authorizing sale at public auction after publication. That order does more than green-light the sale: it fixes the minimum price the property must bring. Articles 4322 and 4323 then take over, governing how the sale gets publicized and what happens if the bidding falls short of that floor.
Frequently Asked Questions
What must a petition for a public sale of a minor's property include in Louisiana?
Beyond Article 4271's general requirements, the petition must describe the property and explain the reasons that make a public sale advantageous to the minor.
Who decides whether a public sale is in a minor's best interest?
The court does. Article 4321 directs the court to render an order authorizing a public auction only when it considers the sale to be in the minor's best interest.
What does the court's order authorizing a public sale have to include?
It must specify the minimum price the property has to bring at auction, a floor that Article 4323 later enforces if bidding falls short.
How is a public sale different from a private sale of a minor's property?
A public sale is a competitive, advertised auction open to any bidder, governed by Articles 4321 through 4323. A private sale, governed by Articles 4341 and 4342, is a negotiated transaction with a specific proposed buyer and price set out in the petition itself.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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