A lis pendens is a pending lawsuit or legal action, or a formal notice of a pending lawsuit or legal action. For example, a lis pendens is an official public notice that a piece of real property has a pending lawsuit or claim attached to it—which may be especially relevant to potential buyers of the property, as a sale of the property will probably not extinguish or resolve the pending claim.

Lis pendens might also refer to the jurisdiction (power, authority, control) a court acquires over property while a legal action is pending. Or lis pendens may refer to a notice recorded in the public records (often county records) in the chain of title to a piece of real property—which is required or permitted in some jurisdictions to put all persons on notice that the property is the subject of litigation or of a claim. This notice informs potential buyers of the property that their future ownership of the property may be subject to other claims.

Lis pendens is often used when spouses are going through the divorce process and their real property assets, for example, have not been finally divided by their agreement or by the court. Banks commonly use the lis pendens process to put the public on notice that a property is in foreclosure. And a homeowners’ association may file a lis pendens when it seeks to foreclose on a homeowner’s home to satisfy delinquent fees or assessments.

The procedure for a lis pendens is usually located in a state’s statutes—often in the property code or in the code of civil procedure, for example.

In New York, a lis pendens is a notice that a lawsuit involving a claim on a property has been filed, and it is recorded with the county clerk where the property is located. This notice serves to warn potential buyers or others dealing with the property that there is pending litigation that may affect the title or ownership of the property. Under New York law, specifically Article 65 of the New York Civil Practice Law and Rules (CPLR), the filing of a lis pendens is required in actions affecting the title to, or the possession, use or enjoyment of, real property. The notice of pendency, as it is also known, is effective for three years from the date of filing, although it can be extended. It is commonly used in cases of foreclosure, divorce proceedings where property division is in dispute, and in situations where a homeowners’ association may be seeking to enforce its rights against a property owner. The filing of a lis pendens is a critical step in protecting the rights of the party initiating the action and serves as a public record to inform interested parties of the ongoing legal dispute.