The action shall be commenced by the filing of a verified complaint. The party commencing the action shall be named as plaintiff, and the defendants shall be described as "all persons claiming any interest in, or lien upon, the real property herein described, or any part thereof." The complaint shall contain a statement of the facts enumerated in Section 751.02, a particular description of the real property, and a specification of the estate, title, or interest of the plaintiff in the property.
§ 751.04.Complaint Commencing Action; Plaintiff and Defendants
Title 10. Actions In Particular Cases · Chapter 3.5. Actions to Re-establish Destroyed Land Records · Enacted 1953 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 751.04 requires the action to begin with a verified complaint naming the filer as plaintiff and describing the defendants as all persons claiming any interest in or lien on the property, and requiring the facts under § 751.02, a description of the property, and a specification of the plaintiff's claimed interest.
Full Text of § 751.04
Plain-English Summary
This section sets the shape of the pleading that opens a Chapter 3.5 action. The complaint has to be verified — sworn to, not merely alleged — and it names the person bringing the action as plaintiff. The defendants get a generic description rather than individual names: "all persons claiming any interest in, or lien upon, the real property herein described, or any part thereof." That phrasing is what makes the in rem structure of § 751.02 work — nobody with a potential claim is left out merely because their identity is unknown.
Substantively, the complaint has to lay out the facts that satisfy § 751.02 — the lost or destroyed records, the plaintiff's estate and possession — along with a particular description of the property and a specification of the plaintiff's estate, title, or interest in it. Those same building blocks then carry forward into the summons under § 751.05 and the affidavit under § 751.09.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the complaint have to be verified?
Yes. Section 751.04 requires the action to be commenced by a verified complaint.
How are the defendants identified if their names aren't known?
The complaint describes them collectively as all persons claiming any interest in, or lien upon, the real property described in the action, or any part of it.
What facts must the complaint include?
The facts required by § 751.02 showing the property qualifies, a particular description of the property, and a specification of the plaintiff's estate, title, or interest in it.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1953, Ch. 52.
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: verified complaint destroyed records action california