Grothe

Defendants Cortlandt Corporation and James S. Davis (hereafter referred to collectively for convenience as defendant) appeal from an order of the Superior Court of Riverside County, granting a preliminary injunction restraining the sale of certain real property held by plaintiff Laurene Grothe, to satisfy a judgment against David Daniel Ribis. Plaintiff held the property in joint tenancy with Ribis, the judgment debtor. Defendant, as assignee of the judgment creditor, began proceedings to collect the judgment; however, Ribis died before the property could be sold at execution. Plaintiff maintains that Ribis’s interest passed to her as the surviving joint tenant and extinguished any interest against which defendant may satisfy its judgment lien. Defendant argues that the sheriff’s levy severed the joint tenancy. For the reasons stated below, we reject defendant’s contention.

Statement of Facts

In 1983, plaintiff and Ribis purchased real property in Riverside County, taking title as joint tenants. In 1987, Julio Acosta and Lucille Acosta obtained default judgments against plaintiff and Ribis. Plaintiff successfully moved to set aside the default judgment as to her;…