Practical guide · 2026-11-09
The civil action to recover property
Reivindicación is the owner’s action: the owner of a specific thing, who is not in possession, sues the possessor for restitution. Civil Code article 946. The Civil Cassation Chamber has fixed the elements with a constancy that does not admit improvisation.
Elements and proof
The Chamber requires title in the plaintiff, current possession in the defendant, identity of the thing, and that it be a specific thing or a determined undivided share (among others SC15644-2016; SC1833-2022). Article 762 presumes the possessor to be owner until someone else proves title. Immovable title is shown by the recorded chain of conveyances. A promise of sale is not title. The action lies against a possessor, not a mere holder.
How I can help
I served as Judicial Procurator II in civil matters. These files are won on the registry extract, the survey, and proof of the other’s possession. WhatsApp +57 318 887 7711.
Sources
Civil Code arts. 669, 762, 946–952. Supreme Court, Civil Cassation Chamber, SC15644-2016, SC1833-2022.
This text is general information, not legal advice on a particular case.
Ronald Valencia
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