When the court lacks jurisdiction of, or when the venue is improper as to, one of the actions cumulated, that action shall be dismissed. When the cumulation is improper for any other reason, the court may:
Art. 464.Improper Cumulation, Effect
Title II. Actions · Chapter 2. Cumulation of Actions · Amendment history unavailable · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 464 spells out what happens when cumulation goes wrong: an action outside the court's jurisdiction or proper venue gets dismissed on its own, while other cumulation defects let the court order separate trials or force the plaintiff to choose which claims to pursue, on pain of dismissing the whole suit.
Full Text of Art. 464
(1) order separate trials of the actions; or
(2) order the plaintiff to elect which actions he shall proceed with, and to amend his petition so as to delete therefrom all allegations relating to the action which he elects to discontinue. The penalty for noncompliance with an order to amend is a dismissal of plaintiff's suit.
Plain-English Summary
Not every attempt at cumulation holds up, and Article 464 sorts the fixes by what went wrong. If one of the cumulated actions doesn't belong in the court hearing the case, because the court lacks jurisdiction over it or the venue is improper as to it, that action alone is dismissed. The rest of the case moves forward.
A different kind of problem, say, claims that aren't mutually consistent or don't share a community of interest, gives the court two options instead. It can order separate trials of the cumulated actions, letting the case stay together on paper while the claims are tried apart. Or it can order the plaintiff to elect which claims to pursue, and to amend the petition to drop the rest.
That second option carries a real penalty. If the plaintiff doesn't comply with an order to elect and amend, the consequence isn't a trimmed-down suit, it's dismissal of the entire suit. Improper cumulation, in other words, can cost far more than the specific claim that caused the problem if the plaintiff ignores the court's order to fix it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if one of my cumulated claims is in the wrong court?
That specific claim is dismissed for lack of jurisdiction or improper venue, while the rest of the cumulated action continues.
Will improper cumulation get my whole case thrown out?
Not automatically. The court may instead order separate trials, or order you to elect which claims to pursue and amend the petition. Dismissal of the entire suit is the penalty only for failing to comply with that order.
What's the difference between a jurisdiction or venue problem and other cumulation problems?
A jurisdiction or venue defect in one action leads to dismissal of just that action. Any other cumulation defect, such as inconsistent claims or a missing community of interest, gives the court broader remedies short of automatic dismissal.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the vLex (Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure, 2026 Edition). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: improper cumulation Louisianamisjoinder consequences civil procedureelection of claims orderseverance for improper joinder