Civil Code, Article 602 — Costs of Suits

What this article means

The expenses, costs and liabilities in suits brought with regard to the usufruct are borne by the usufructuary.

Because litigation over the usufruct arises from the usufructuary's use and enjoyment of the property rather than from the owner's underlying title, this article places the financial burden of any related lawsuit — whatever its expenses, costs, or liabilities — squarely on the usufructuary. The owner's ownership is not itself what is typically being contested in such suits; it is the exercise of the usufruct that is at stake, which is why the obligation to shoulder the litigation follows the usufructuary rather than the owner.

Questions about this provision

• Who must pay the expenses and costs of lawsuits filed about a usufruct?

Related provisions

• Article 601 — Duty to Notify the Owner.
• Article 603 — How Usufruct Is Extinguished.

Cases interpreting this article

• Authorities on this article will be added here as each is verified against primary sources.