Opinion ID: 1598986
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Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Alternative Remedy to Section 644.12 Determination.

Text: At the outset of our inquiry, we must settle a question involving our jurisdiction to hear this appeal. The Church initiated the statutory notice procedure which has been established for the finders of lost or misplaced property under section 644.8. If this statutory procedure had been carried to a conclusion, culminating in a summary adjudication of ownership under section 644.12, the decision of the district court would have been final. Iowa Code § 644.12 (there shall be no appeal from the decision). The latter statute also provides, however, that it does not bar any other remedy given by law. Id. We conclude that a declaratory judgment action under Iowa Rule of Civil Procedure 261 is a sanctioned alternative to a summary adjudication under section 644.12. When a declaratory judgment action is utilized to settle ownership of lost or mislaid property and that action proceeds to a final judgment, this court may review such judgment pursuant to Iowa Rule of Civil Procedure 267.