When it appears that the occupant, or those under whom he claims, entered into the possession of the property under claim of title, exclusive of other right, founding such claim upon a written instrument, as being a conveyance of the property in question, or upon the decree or judgment of a competent Court, and that there has been a continued occupation and possession of the property included in such instrument, decree, or judgment, or of some part of the property, under such claim, for five years, the property so included is deemed to have been held adversely, except that when it consists of a tract divided into lots, the possession of one lot is not deemed a possession of any other lot of the same tract.
§ 322.Property Deemed Been Held Adversely By Occupant Under Claim of Title Founded Upon Written Instrument Or Decree Or Judgment
Title 2. Of the Time of Commencing Civil Actions · Chapter 2. The Time of Commencing Actions for the Recovery of Real Property · Enacted 1872 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 322 deems property held adversely when an occupant continuously possesses it for five years under a claim of title founded on a written instrument, decree, or judgment, though possessing one lot of a divided tract does not extend to the tract's other lots.
Full Text of § 322
Plain-English Summary
Section 322 is the first of the chapter's adverse possession rules for occupants who claim under a written instrument, such as a deed or conveyance, or under a court's decree or judgment. If the occupant, or those under whom the occupant claims, entered under such a claim of title and continuously occupied the property, or part of it, for five years, the property covered by that instrument, decree, or judgment is deemed held adversely.
The tract-and-lots exception matters for larger parcels: when the property described in the instrument is divided into separate lots, occupying one lot does not, by itself, count as occupying the others. Each lot's adverse possession is measured on its own.
Section 325(b) layers an additional requirement onto every adverse possession claim in this chapter, including one built on this section's written-instrument theory: the occupant, or predecessors and grantors, must also have timely paid all state, county, or municipal taxes assessed on the land for the full five-year period, proven by certified county tax records.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as adverse possession under a written instrument in California?
Section 322 requires an occupant to enter under a claim of title founded on a written instrument, decree, or judgment, and to continuously occupy the property it describes for five years.
If my deed covers several separate lots, does occupying one lot secure the whole tract?
No. Section 322 specifically excludes that result; possession of one lot in a divided tract does not count as possession of the tract's other lots.
Do I also have to pay property taxes to establish adverse possession this way?
Yes. Section 325(b) requires timely payment of all state, county, and municipal taxes on the property for the full five-year period, and that requirement applies to a written-instrument claim under this section as much as to any other adverse possession claim in this chapter.
Amendment History
Enacted 1872.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: adverse possession written instrument californiacolor of title adverse possession california