When declaratory relief is sought, all persons shall be made parties who have or claim any interest which would be affected by the declaration, and no declaration shall prejudice the rights of persons not parties to the proceeding. In a proceeding which involves the validity of a municipal ordinance or franchise, such municipality shall be made a party and shall be entitled to be heard. If the law, ordinance, or franchise is alleged to be unconstitutional, the attorney general of the state shall also be served with a copy of the proceeding and be entitled to be heard. If the law is alleged to be unconstitutional, pleadings shall be made pursuant to the requirements in Articles 855.1 and 1845.
Art. 1880.Parties
Book II. Ordinary Proceedings · Title VI. Judgments · Chapter 2. Declaratory Judgments · Last amended 2024 · Last verified July 30, 2026
In one sentenceArticle 1880 requires that everyone whose interest would be affected by a declaratory judgment be made a party, protects nonparties from being bound by the declaration, and adds special notice requirements when a suit challenges a municipal ordinance, franchise, or the constitutionality of a law.
Full Text of Art. 1880
Amendment History
Amended by Acts 2024EX2, No. 12, §1, eff. 4/29/2024.
Plain-English Summary
A declaration only binds the people who had a chance to contest it. Article 1880 starts from that principle: when declaratory relief is sought, everyone who has or claims an interest that the declaration would affect must be made a party, and no declaration can prejudice the rights of anyone who was not a party to the proceeding. That protects both the integrity of the judgment and the due process rights of people who were never given notice or a chance to be heard.
The article then singles out two situations for extra protection. When a proceeding involves the validity of a municipal ordinance or franchise, the municipality itself must be made a party and is entitled to be heard, since it has the clearest stake in defending its own enactment. When a law is alleged to be unconstitutional, the attorney general must be served with a copy of the proceeding and is likewise entitled to be heard, giving the state's chief legal officer a chance to defend the statute.
Where a law's constitutionality is at issue, Article 1880 also requires that pleadings meet the requirements of Articles 855.1 and 1845. That cross-reference reinforces those articles' warning: a constitutional challenge that skips the required notice and pleading steps risks producing a judgment with no legal effect.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who has to be joined as a party in a Louisiana declaratory judgment case?
Everyone who has or claims an interest that the declaration would affect must be made a party under Article 1880.
Does a Louisiana declaratory judgment bind people who were not made parties?
No. Article 1880 provides that no declaration can prejudice the rights of persons who were not parties to the proceeding.
When must the Louisiana attorney general be notified of a declaratory judgment suit?
When the suit alleges that a law is unconstitutional, the attorney general must be served with a copy of the proceeding and is entitled to be heard.
What happens if a suit challenging a municipal ordinance leaves out the municipality?
Article 1880 requires that the municipality be made a party and given the chance to be heard whenever the validity of its ordinance or franchise is at issue.
Source & verification. Article text is reproduced verbatim from
the Louisiana Code of Civil Procedure (legis.la.gov). Enacted by the Louisiana Legislature.
Last verified July 30, 2026.
· Official source
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