When any person, natural or artificial, claims, either in his own right or in any representative capacity whatsoever, to own any lands or any interest therein, and is in the actual, peaceable possession of the land, or if neither he nor any other person is in the actual possession of the lands and he holds, and has held, color of title to the lands, or interest so claimed, for a period of 10 or more consecutive years next preceding and has paid taxes on the lands or interest during the whole of such period, or if he, together with those through whom he claims, has held color of title and paid taxes on the land or interest so claimed during the whole of such period of time, or if he and those through whom he claims have paid taxes during the whole of such period of 10 years on the lands or interest claimed and no other person has paid taxes thereon during any part of said period, he may, if no action is pending to test his title to, interest in or his right to the possession of such lands, file a verified complaint in the circuit court of the county in which such lands lie against said lands and any and all persons claiming, or reputed to claim, any title to, interest in, lien, or encumbrance on said lands, or any part thereof, to establish the right or title to such lands or interest and to clear up all doubts or disputes concerning the same.
(Acts 1923, No. 526, p. 699; Code 1923, §9912; Code 1940, T. 7, §1116; Acts 1951, No. 882, p. 1521, §1.)
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
26
cases (
2 in the last 5 years), 1980–2025 · leading case:
Stokes v. Cottrell, 58 So. 3d 135 (Ala. 2010).
Stokes v. Cottrell, 58 So. 3d 135 (Ala. 2010).
· cites it 38× “to own any lands or any interest therein, and is in the actual, peaceable possession of the land” to commence an in rem action “to establish the right or title to such lands or interest and to clear up all doubts or disputes concerning the same.”
Frazier v. CitiFinancial Corp., LLC, 604 F.3d 1313 (11th Cir. 2010).
· cites it 4× “Frazier’s quiet title action, finding that it was barred under Alabama Code § 6-6-560 4 because the pending arbitration proceeding was an “action” that tested her title to the subject property.”
Historic Blakeley Found., Inc. v. Williams, 40 So. 3d 698 (Ala. 2010).
· cites it 9× “(hereinafter sometimes referred to collectively as “the plaintiffs”), filed in the circuit court a bill to quiet title pursuant to Ala.Code 1975, § 6-6-560, alleging that they are the fee-simple owners of nine parcels of real property (“the property”), designated as parcels…”
Whitehead v. Hester, 512 So. 2d 1297 (Ala. 1987).
· cites it 4× “The Whiteheads and Champion contend that this was an action to quiet title under the provisions of the Grove Act, Code 1975, § 6-6-560, et seq., and that Hester and Farned failed to allege and prove that they came within the provisions of that statute.”
David Childers & Robert DeShawn Childers v. Leroy Darby, 163 So. 3d 323 (Ala. 2014).
· cites it 8× “Section 6-6-560 provides: "When any person, natural or artificial, claims, either in his own right or in any representative capacity whatsoever, to own any lands or any interest therein, and is in the actual, peaceable possession of the land, or if neither he nor any other…”
Sanchez v. McKinney, 87 So. 3d 502 (Ala. 2011).
“, writing specially and expressing disagreement with the conclusion in the main opinion that a failure to prove the peaceable possession required under § 6-6-560, Ala. Code 1975, deprives the circuit court of subject-matter jurisdiction, suggesting instead that “such a failure…”
Ralph v. Dep't of Nat. Resources, 343 P.3d 342 (Wash. 2014).
“, Ala. Code § 6-6-560 (Any person claiming to own lands or an interest therein may file a verified complaint in the circuit court of the county in which such lands lie to establish the right or title to such lands and to clear up all doubts or disputes concerning the same.”
Southside Cmty. Dev. Corp. Ex Rel. Galloway v. White, 10 So. 3d 990 (Ala. 2008).
“Section 6-6-562 provides that "[o]n the filing of a complaint as authorized under Section 6-6-560, ... should the identity of some, or all, of said defendants be unknown, the court shall forthwith appoint a guardian ad litem to represent and defend the interest of such .”
Thrift v. McConnell, 564 So. 2d 431 (Ala. 1990).
· cites it 3× “It is the character of the possession at the time the suit is commenced which is decisive.”
Green v. Cottrell, 188 So. 3d 656 (Ala. Civ. App. 2012).
· cites it 2× “w as to that portion of this' court’s decision in Stokes I affirming the trial court’s judgment awarding the farmed parcels to the heirs of Larenda Jenkins, the supreme court quashed its writ granting Cottrell’s petition as to that aspect of our decision because, it concluded,…”
In re Washington, 551 B.R. 644 (Bankr. M.D. Ala. 2016).
· cites it 2× “CODE § 6-6-560. Because the limitations period of § 40-10-82 does not begin to run against the tax debtor unless the purchaser adversely possesses the land, the right of judicial redemption under § 40-1083 is preserved “without a time limit, if the owner of the land seeking to…”
Stokes v. Cottrell, 188 So. 3d 661 (Ala. 2014).
· cites it 2× “3d at 146-49 (citing § 6-6-560, Ala.Code 1975). On remand from the Court of Givil Appeals, the circuit court did not revisit its original division of the land between the plaintiffs and Stokes but did hold a hearing to further allocate the three parcels, settling 50% of that…”
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