Within ten days after the filing of the complaint, plaintiff shall file or cause to be filed in the office of the recorder of the county where the property is situated, a notice of the pendency of the action, containing the title and object of the action and a description of the property in that county affected thereby. From the time of filing such notice of record only, shall all persons have constructive notice thereof.
§ 801.5.Notice of Pendency of Action
Title 10. Actions In Particular Cases · Chapter 4.6. Actions Concerning Real Property Titles Affected by Public Improvement Assessments · Enacted 1949 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 801.5 requires the plaintiff to record a notice of pendency of the action, describing the action's title, object, and affected property, within ten days after filing the complaint, with constructive notice running only from the date it's recorded.
Full Text of § 801.5
Plain-English Summary
Filing the complaint alone doesn't warn the world that title is in dispute. Within ten days after filing, the plaintiff has to file, in the recorder's office of the county where the property sits, a notice of pendency of the action stating the action's title, its object, and a description of the affected property in that county.
Timing matters here in a specific way: constructive notice to everyone runs only from the moment that notice is recorded, not from when the complaint was filed. Anyone who deals with the property before recording won't be charged with knowledge of the pending action.
Frequently Asked Questions
How soon must the notice of pendency be recorded?
Within ten days after the complaint is filed.
What must the notice of pendency contain?
The title and object of the action and a description of the property in that county affected by it.
When does constructive notice of the action begin?
Only from the time the notice of pendency is recorded — not from when the complaint itself was filed.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1949, Ch. 1108.
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: notice of pendency assessment action californialis pendens assessment lien california