§523A-58 Petition for determination of State's right to custody of unclaimed property; venue; service not required. (a) Within one hundred twenty days following the date of publication by the director, or whenever it appears, after investigation by the director or otherwise, that there exists or may exist property subject to this part, the attorney general may take action to recover such property. Any proceeding by the attorney general shall be commenced by filing a petition to determine the State's right to custody of all property mentioned in the report and unclaimed within the time and in the manner provided by section 523A-56. The petition shall name as respondents all persons known to have been interested and "all persons unknown claiming any title or interest" in or to the property described or referred to in the petition. Known owners may be described as a class when: (i) they own or claim property of the same nature and the value of such property as shown on the account of each such owner or claimant in the records of the United States does not exceed $500 in value, or (ii) the records of the United States show more than ten such owners or claimants for a particular fund, item, or category of property, or (iii) the records of the United States fail to disclose the number of owners or claimants for a particular fund, item, or category of property with a reasonable degree of certainty. If the records of the United States fail to disclose with reasonable certainty the identity or number of owners or claimants of particular funds or other personal property, or the extent of their interests therein, such persons may be designated and described as a class of "all unknown owners or claimants to the funds or property mentioned in or affected by" the proceeding, and, as the case may be, the petition shall identify and set forth the court actions or proceedings to the credit of which such funds or other property are held, or the accounts or other identifying references under which they are carried upon the records of the United States. The petition shall describe or refer to the property, and may include one or more items, as the attorney general may be advised, without prejudice to the right of the attorney general to commence subsequent proceedings relating to other items not included. The petition shall also state the name of the owner and the last address of the owner as known or as presumed under this part, and shall set forth the facts and circumstances by virtue of which it is claimed that such funds or property are subject to custody by the State. When known owners or claimants are described as a class, the requirements of section 523A-59 must be met. Any number of respondents may be joined whether they reside in the same or different counties; and any number of causes of action may be joined and need not be separately stated.

(b) The proceeding shall be commenced and heard in the circuit court of the first circuit of the State and venue shall not be affected by the provisions of any other statute.

(c) No summons or other process shall issue to direct the appearance and answer of a respondent. [L 1988, c 93, pt of §2]