Schnell v. Schnell

Robert (plaintiff) and Joan (defendant) Schnell owned a roughly 4,400-acre model ranch as tenants in common after their divorce; the ranch's buildings, pastures, and machinery had been planned together to maximize operational efficiency, and each ex-spouse lived in a separate home on the property. Robert, a successful auctioneer, wanted the ranch sold so he could buy and continue operating it, while Joan, who had spent most of her adult life developing and running the ranch and whose net worth depended almost entirely on her ranch interest, wanted the property physically divided and offered to lease her portion back to Robert. The trial court found that a partition would yield each cotenant substantially less value than a sale and would destroy the ranch's planned operational efficiency, and ordered a sale.