In Brief
A woman sought partition of a flat purchased by her and her now-deceased ex-husband. The trial court awarded her a 50% share and ordered a commissioner to divide it physically or, if impossible, arrange a public sale. After the commissioner reported physical division was impossible, a public auction was initiated. The High Court halted proceedings, ruling that the original decree was merely "preliminary" and couldn't be executed without a separate "final decree." The Supreme Court reversed this, holding that the decree functioned as both preliminary and final by incorporating a fallback sale mechanism. It rejected the High Court's formalistic focus on nomenclature, emphasizing substance over procedure and directing immediate auction completion to end the 15-year litigation.
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