The property shall not be sold if the price bid by the last and highest bidder is less than the minimum price fixed by the court. In that event, on the petition of the tutor, the court may order another offering, with the same formalities as for an original offering, at a lower minimum price.
Art. 4323.Minimum Price; Subsequent Offering
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 4323 blocks a public sale from closing if the highest bid falls below the court-fixed minimum price, and lets the tutor petition for a second offering at a lower minimum, using the same formalities as the original sale, when that happens.
Full Text of Art. 4323
Plain-English Summary
The minimum price Article 4321 requires the court to set is not a suggestion. Article 4323 gives it force: if the last and highest bidder offers less than that fixed floor, the property is not sold. The auction can proceed and generate bids, but no sale closes below the number the court approved in advance.
That protects against exactly the risk public sale otherwise creates -- a thin market on auction day, a small pool of bidders, or simple bad luck producing a price that undersells the minor's interest. Rather than letting the tutor accept a disappointing high bid just to get the transaction done, Article 4323 forces a pause.
The tutor is not stuck, either. On the tutor's petition, the court can order another offering, conducted with the same formalities that governed the original sale -- meaning the publication requirements of Article 4322 apply again -- but this time at a lower minimum price the court sets. That built-in second chance lets a sale that failed to clear the floor come back to market at a more realistic number, rather than forcing the tutor to abandon the public-sale route entirely and start over under a different section of the chapter.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if the highest bid at a minor's property public sale is too low?
The property is not sold. Article 4323 bars closing the sale if the last and highest bid comes in below the minimum price the court fixed in its order.
Can the tutor try again if the bidding falls short of the minimum price?
Yes. On the tutor's petition, the court can order a second offering at a lower minimum price, conducted with the same formalities as the original sale.
Does the second offering need to be republished the same way as the first?
Yes. Article 4323 requires the same formalities as the original offering, which includes the publication requirements set out in Article 4322.
Can a tutor accept a below-minimum bid to avoid delay?
No. The minimum price set under Article 4321 is binding; a bid below it cannot result in a completed sale, regardless of how the auction otherwise went.
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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