🏛️ ADVERSE POSSESSION PROCEDURE – CALIFORNIA

🔑 I. LEGAL REQUIREMENTS (All Five Are Mandatory in CA)

Under California law, to succeed in an adverse possession claim, you must prove:

1. Actual possession – You physically used the property (e.g., lived on it, fenced it, farmed it).

2. Open and notorious – Use must be obvious to the legal owner and public.

3. Hostile – Possession must be without permission of the legal owner.

4. Exclusive – You must be the only one in possession (not shared with the owner or public).

5. Continuous for 5 years – Uninterrupted for the entire statutory period.

🔒 PLUS one special California requirement:

✅ You must have paid all state, county, or municipal taxes levied on the property for 5 years.

Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 325(a)

📋 II. STEP-BY-STEP PROCEDURE IN CALIFORNIA

✅ Step 1: Confirm Eligibility

Make sure:

• You’ve had exclusive, continuous, hostile, and visible possession for at least 5 years

• You’ve paid property taxes for all 5 years

✅ Step 2: Collect Evidence

Gather:

• Receipts for property taxes

• Utility bills or service records in your name

• Photographs showing improvements, fences, signage

• Affidavits from neighbors attesting to your possession

• Building permits or repair records (if applicable)

✅ Step 3: Prepare Quiet Title Action

You must file a civil lawsuit to obtain legal title:

Action Type: Quiet Title
Basis: Adverse Possession
Code Section: Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 760.010 et seq.

You must include:

• Verified Complaint to Quiet Title

• List of Defendants (record owner and anyone with a recorded interest)

• Verification under penalty of perjury

• Legal Description of the property

• All evidence of possession and tax payment

✅ Step 4: File the Action in Superior Court

• File in the county where the property is located

• Pay the filing fee or file a Fee Waiver (FW-001) if indigent

✅ Step 5: Serve the Lawsuit

• Personally serve the current record owner(s)

• If unknown or missing, use publication service under Cal. Civ. Proc. § 763.010

✅ Step 6: Litigate or Default

• If contested, you’ll need to present evidence of possession and tax payments

• If unopposed, request default judgment and proposed quiet title judgment

✅ Step 7: Record the Judgment

• Once you obtain a judgment quieting title, record it with the County Recorder

• Update the Assessor’s Office to reflect your ownership

📎 REQUIRED DOCUMENTS (CA EXAMPLES)

• ✅ Verified Complaint for Quiet Title (Adverse Possession)

• ✅ Declaration of Plaintiff (with exhibits like tax receipts, photos, etc.)

• ✅ Proof of Service

• ✅ Proposed Judgment

• ✅ Request for Judicial Notice (e.g., grant deed, property history)

• ✅ Notice of Pendency of Action (Lis Pendens) – recorded with the county

⚠️ IMPORTANT NOTES

• Permission = Fatal to adverse possession. Any lease, license, or owner approval kills your claim.

• No squatters' rights without tax payments. Payment of taxes is mandatory in California.

• Adverse possession does not work against government-owned property (e.g., parks, city land).

Would you like me to generate the actual Quiet Title Complaint and related documents for California based on your facts?

If yes, please provide:

• 📍 Address or legal description of the property

• 📆 How long you've possessed it

• 🧾 Whether you paid property taxes

• 🛠️ What kind of possession/use you’ve exercised

• 👤 Name of the current owner (if known)

📄 I’ll generate the full package:

• Verified Complaint

• Declaration of Plaintiff

• Judicial Notice

• Proof of Service

• Lis Pendens

• Proposed Judgment

• ​

⚖️ KEY CASES IN CALIFORNIA

• West v. Evans (1946) – Adverse possession requires tax payment for full 5 years.

• Mehrtash v. Mehrtash (2001) – Quiet title requires clear and affirmative proof.

• Applegate v. Ota (1983) – Explained prescriptive easement vs. adverse possession.