Since 2007, Louisiana Appleseed volunteers have been working on title issues involving inherited property in Louisiana.
Legal Partners:
Malcolm Meyer
Adams and Reese LLP
Patty McMurray
Baker Donelson
Jones Walker
Community Partners:
Alabama Appleseed, First American Title, Georgia Appleseed, Louisiana Bar Foundation, Louisiana Civil Justice Center, South Carolina Appleseed, Stanley Ray Trust, Texas Appleseed, The Pro Bono Project, Southeast Louisiana Legal Services, The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Greater New Orleans Foundation, Baton Rouge Area Foundation, LSU Law Center, Southern University Law Center, Louisiana Association of Volunteers Active After Disasters, Entergy Charitable Foundation, Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center, JP Morgan Chase Foundation, Ourso Foundation, Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and numerous community groups.
After the 2005 hurricanes, 2016 floods and subsequent disasters, some Louisiana residents were unable to receive federal and state aid for property damage. They owned their homes. They even paid property taxes. But legal documents didn’t list them as owners. So, they lacked “clear title.” Their homes were passed down through generations by family agreement, but not through the legal system. They owned “heir property” and couldn’t receive government aid or finance repairs. Louisiana Appleseed volunteers have been working on title issues involving inherited property through legislative advocacy and by educating community members and policy makers about the serious consequences that happen when people do not take the necessary legal steps to transfer title to homes and land into the name of the person who inherited the property. In addition to helping residents in New Orleans area preserve homeownership, Louisiana Appleseed and project partners have helped residents in the Baton Rouge area via the Flood Proof Project and in Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes via the Protect Your Property Project.
Protect Your Property (English)
Protect Your Property (Vietnamese)
Protect Your Property (Spanish)
Small Succession Affidavit (Docx)
affadiat for small succession