A bona fide purchaser is someone who buys something in good faith and is not held liable if the seller behaves fraudulently. To be considered a bona fide buyer, they must pay for the property, not be aware of any conflicting claims, and not receive it as a gift. If a conflicting claim arises, the buyer can keep the property, and the claimant must seek damages from the seller. However, the original owner may offer to buy back the property and file a lawsuit against the fraudulent seller. If a buyer knew of problems with the transaction, they will not be considered a bona fide buyer and will transfer the property to the rightful owner.
A bona fide purchaser or BFP is someone who buys something in good faith, believing they have clear ownership rights after the purchase and having no reason to think otherwise. In situations where a seller behaves fraudulently, the bona fide buyer is not held liable. Someone with a conflicting claim to the property in question would have to discuss it with the seller, not the buyer, and the buyer could keep the property.
To be considered a bona fide buyer, someone must actually pay for the property in question; she or he cannot be the recipient of a gift or bequest. In addition, the BFP may not have been notified of a conflicting claim or you were reasonably believed to have been aware of a problem with the title to the property. The bona fide buyer is, in other words, innocent, even if the transaction was fraudulent in nature.
If the true owner of the property or someone with a conflicting claim of another nature surfaces after the transaction is completed and the bona fide buyer can demonstrate unawareness of the situation, they are permitted to retain title to the property. The person with the conflicting claim must seek damages from the seller in a civil suit in court, and there may be instances where sellers may also face criminal penalties for fraud.
While buying in good faith may retain title, there are situations where people buying property in such transactions offer to sell it back to the original owner. The original owner can buy back the property and file a lawsuit against the fraudulent seller to recover the funds used for the purchase. However, people cannot be compelled to sell such property and there may be instances where someone with a conflicting claim will need to accept a settlement payment from the seller with no repossession change on the property itself.
There may be instances where someone claims to be a bona fide buyer, but in fact knew of problems with the transaction and chose to proceed anyway. If this can be proven in court, the buyer will transfer the property to the rightful owner and will not be able to receive compensation for the funds paid at the time of the purchase because he participated in the fraudulent transaction, rather than being an innocent victim.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
