Louisiana Civil Code

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SECTION 2 - RIGHTS OF THE USUFRUCTUARY

Art. 550. The usufructuary is entitled to the fruits of the thing subject to usufruct according to the following articles. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 551. Fruits are things that are produced by or derived from another thing without diminution of its substance.

There are two kinds of fruits; natural fruits and civil fruits.

Natural fruits are products of the earth or of animals.

Civil fruits are revenues derived from a thing by operation of law or by reason of a juridical act, such as rentals, interest, and certain corporate distributions. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 552. A cash dividend declared during the existence of the usufruct belongs to the usufructuary. A liquidation dividend or a stock redemption payment belongs to the naked owner subject to the usufruct.

Stock dividends and stock splits declared during the existence of the usufruct belong to the naked owner subject to the usufruct.

A stock warrant and a subscription right declared during the existence of the usufruct belong to the naked owner free of the usufruct. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 553. The usufructuary has the right to vote shares of stock in corporations and to vote or exercise similar rights with respect to interests in other juridical persons, unless otherwise provided. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1; Acts 2010, No. 881, §1, eff. Jul. 2, 2010]

Art. 554. The usufructuary's right to fruits commences on the effective date of the usufruct. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 555. The usufructuary acquires the ownership of natural fruits severed during the existence of the usufruct. Natural fruits not severed at the end of the usufruct belong to the naked owner. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 556. The usufructuary acquires the ownership of civil fruits accruing during the existence of the usufruct.

Civil fruits accrue day by day and the usufructuary is entitled to them regardless of when they are received. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 557. The usufructuary takes the things in the state in which they are at the commencement of the usufruct. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 558. The usufructuary may make improvements and alterations on the property subject to the usufruct at his cost and with the written consent of the naked owner. If the naked owner fails or refuses to give his consent, the usufructuary may, after notice to the naked owner and with the approval of the court, make at his cost those improvements and alterations that a prudent administrator would make. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1; Acts 2010, No. 881, §1, eff. Jul. 2, 2010]

Art. 559. The right of usufruct extends to the accessories of the thing at the commencement of the usufruct. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 560. The usufructuary may cut trees growing on the land of which he has the usufruct and take stones, sand, and other materials from it, but only for his use or for the improvement or cultivation of the land. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 561. The rights of the usufructuary and of the naked owner in mines and quarries are governed by the Mineral Code. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 562. When the usufruct includes timberlands, the usufructuary is bound to manage them as a prudent administrator. The proceeds of timber operations that are derived from proper management of timberlands belong to the usufructuary. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 563. The usufruct extends to the increase to the land caused by alluvion or dereliction. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 564. The usufructuary has no right to the enjoyment of a treasure found in the property of which he has the usufruct. If the usufructuary has found the treasure, he is entitled to keep one-half of it as finder. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 565. The usufructuary has a right to the enjoyment of predial servitudes due to the estate of which he has the usufruct. When the estate is enclosed within other lands belonging to the grantor of the usufruct, the usufructuary is entitled to a gratuitous right of passage. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 566. The usufructuary may institute against the naked owner or third persons all actions that are necessary to insure the possession, enjoyment, and preservation of his right. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1]

Art. 567. The usufructuary may lease, alienate, or encumber his right. All such contracts cease of right at the end of the usufruct.

If the usufructuary leases, alienates, or encumbers his right, he is responsible to the naked owner for the abuse that the person with whom he has contracted makes of the property. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1; Acts 2010, No. 881, §1, eff. Jul. 2, 2010]

Art. 568. The usufructuary may not dispose of nonconsumable things unless the right to do so has been expressly granted to him. Nevertheless, he may dispose of corporeal movables that are gradually and substantially impaired by use, wear, or decay, such as equipment, appliances, and vehicles, provided that he acts as a prudent administrator.

The right to dispose of a nonconsumable thing includes the rights to lease, alienate, and encumber the thing. It does not include the right to alienate by donation inter vivos, unless that right is expressly granted. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1; Acts 1986, No. 203, §1; Acts 2010, No. 881, §1, eff. Jul. 2, 2010]

Art. 568.1 If a thing subject to the usufruct is donated inter vivos by the usufructuary, he is obligated to pay to the naked owner at the termination of the usufruct the value of the thing as of the time of the donation. If a thing subject to the usufruct is otherwise alienated by the usufructuary, the usufruct attaches to any money or other property received by the usufructuary. The property received shall be classified as consumable or nonconsumable in accordance with the provisions of this Title, and the usufruct shall be governed by those provisions subject to the terms of the act establishing the original usufruct. If, at the time of the alienation, the value of the property received by the usufructuary is less than the value of the thing alienated, the usufructuary is bound to pay the difference to the naked owner at the termination of the usufruct. [Acts 2010, No. 881, §1, eff. Jul. 2, 2010]

Art. 568.2 The right to dispose of a nonconsumable thing includes the right to lease the thing for a term that extends beyond the termination of the usufruct. If, at the termination of the usufruct, the thing remains subject to the lease, the usufructuary is accountable to the naked owner for any diminution in the value of the thing at that time attributable to the lease. [Acts 2010, No. 881, §1, eff. Jul. 2, 2010]

Art. 568.3 If, at the termination of the usufruct, the thing subject to the usufruct is burdened by an encumbrance established by the usufructuary to secure an obligation, the usufructuary is bound to remove the encumbrance. [Acts 2010, No. 881, §1, eff. Jul. 2, 2010]

Art. 569. If the usufructuary has not disposed of corporeal movables that are by their nature impaired by use, wear, or decay, he is bound to deliver them to the owner in the state in which they may be at the end of the usufruct.

The usufructuary is relieved of this obligation if the things are entirely worn out by normal use, wear, or decay. [Acts 1976, No. 103, §1; Acts 2010, No. 881, §1, eff. Jul. 2, 2010]

 




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