The judgment ordering the public sale or private sale of the property to effect a partition, and the sale made in compliance therewith, has the same force and effect as to the absentee, his succession representative and heirs, as if he had been served personally with process and the judgment had been rendered against him personally. Thereafter, the absentee, his succession representative and heirs are precluded from asserting any right, title, or interest in the property partitioned.
Art. 4627.Effect of Judgment and Sale
Book VII. Special Proceedings · Title IX. Partition Between Co-Owners · Chapter 2. Partition When Co-Owner an Absentee · Last amended 2020 · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 4627 gives the judgment ordering a partition sale, and the sale carried out under it, the same binding force against the absentee, and the absentee's succession representative and heirs, as if the absentee had been personally served and the judgment rendered against them personally, permanently barring any later claim to the partitioned property.
Full Text of Art. 4627
Amendment History
Amended by Acts 2020, No. 281, §2, eff. 6/11/2020.
Plain-English Summary
Because an absentee is represented only by a court-appointed attorney rather than in person, a fair question follows: does the resulting judgment and sale bind that absentee once they are found, or once their heirs surface? Article 4627 answers yes, without qualification.
The judgment ordering the sale, and the sale carried out in compliance with it, carries the same force and effect against the absentee, and against the absentee's succession representative and heirs, as if the absentee had been served personally and the judgment rendered against the absentee personally. The proceeding's use of published notice and an appointed attorney, rather than personal service, does not weaken its legal effect.
The consequence is permanent. Once the judgment and sale take effect, the absentee, the absentee's succession representative, and the absentee's heirs are precluded from ever asserting any right, title, or interest in the property that was partitioned. Whatever claim they might have had converts instead into the deposited share Article 4628 holds for their benefit.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is an absentee bound by a partition judgment they never personally participated in?
Yes. Article 4627 gives the judgment and sale the same force against the absentee as if they had been personally served and the judgment rendered against them personally.
Can an absentee's heirs later claim the property after it's sold in a partition?
No. Article 4627 precludes the absentee, the absentee's succession representative, and the absentee's heirs from asserting any right, title, or interest in the partitioned property once the judgment and sale take effect.
What can an absentee or their heirs claim instead of the property itself?
The absentee's share of the sale proceeds, held in the court registry under Article 4628 for the absentee's, or the absentee's heirs', benefit.
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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