1. Whenever the public records in the office of any county official in this state have been or shall hereafter be lost or destroyed in any material part, the said county on relation of said public officer or the owner of any real estate affected thereby, may bring an action in rem in equity in the district court of the state in and for the county in which said real estate is situated against all known and unknown persons, firms, or corporations that might have any interest in said real estate affected by said record, to have said lost or destroyed records restored in whole or in part.

Terms Used In Iowa Code 647.1

  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. See Iowa Code 651.1
  • Records: includes probate and other official public records, as well as records in the office of the county recorder. See Iowa Code 614.29
  • State: includes any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any territory or possession subject to the legislative authority of the United States. See Iowa Code 633D.2
 2. Any number of parcels of land may be included in the same suit; and whenever said action is brought by the owner, the public official in whose office said lost or destroyed public records are required by law to be kept shall be made a defendant therein.
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