The complaint shall set forth:
§ 872.230.Requirements of Complaint
Title 10.5. Partition of Real and Personal Property · Chapter 2. Commencement of Action · Article 1. Complaint and Lis Pendens · Enacted 1976 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 872.230 lists what a partition complaint must contain -- a description of the property, the plaintiff's interests, other known or record interests that will be materially affected, the estate for which partition is sought, and, if sale is requested, the facts justifying it.
Full Text of § 872.230
(a) A description of the property that is the subject of the action. In the case of tangible personal property, the description shall include its usual location. In the case of real property, the description shall include both its legal description and its street address or common designation, if any.
(b) All interests the plaintiff has or claims in the property.
(c) All interests of record or actually known to the plaintiff that persons other than the plaintiff have or claim in the property and that the plaintiff reasonably believes will be materially affected by the action, whether the names of such persons are known or unknown to the plaintiff.
(d) The estate as to which partition is sought and a prayer for partition of the interests therein.
(e) Where the plaintiff seeks sale of the property, an allegation of the facts justifying such relief in ordinary and concise language.
Plain-English Summary
This section is the checklist for a partition complaint. It has to describe the property -- for tangible personal property, including its usual location; for real property, including both the legal description and the street address or common designation, if there is one. It has to lay out all interests the plaintiff has or claims in the property, and separately, all interests of record or personally known to the plaintiff that other people have or claim, whenever the plaintiff reasonably believes the action will materially affect those interests -- whether or not the plaintiff knows those people's names.
The complaint also has to identify the estate for which partition is sought and include a prayer for partition of the interests in it. And if the plaintiff wants the property sold rather than divided in kind, subdivision (e) requires an allegation, in ordinary and concise language, of the facts justifying that relief.
These requirements connect directly to later stages of the case. The interests pleaded here get tested and confirmed at trial under §§ 872.610 and 872.620, and the sale-justifying facts pleaded under subdivision (e) anticipate the manner-of-partition determination the court makes under § 872.820.
Frequently Asked Questions
What has to be in the property description in a partition complaint?
For real property, both the legal description and the street address or common designation, if any. For tangible personal property, a description that includes its usual location.
Do I have to name every person who might have an interest in the property?
You have to disclose all interests of record or personally known to you, and that you reasonably believe will be materially affected, whether or not you know the person's name.
Can I ask the court to order the property sold instead of physically divided?
Yes, but subdivision (e) requires the complaint to allege, in ordinary and concise language, the facts justifying that relief.
What if I want to partition both real and personal property in the same case?
Section 872.240 allows that, and the complaint should address the description and interest requirements for each type of property involved.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1976, Ch. 73.
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: what must a partition complaint contain californiapartition complaint requirements california