Cal. Codes » Financial Code / DIVISION 8. PAWNBROKERS / CHAPTER 2. Pawnbroker Regulations
California Codes

Cal. Financial Code § 21206.8 (2026)

Pawnbroker Regulations

✓ leginfo export of Sept. 26, 2026 (applied Oct. 1, 2026)
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section CA-LEGleginfo.legislature.ca.gov JustiaCode on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

(a)Notwithstanding the provisions of Chapter 12 (commencing with Section 1407) of Title 10 of Part 2 of the Penal Code, whenever property alleged to have been lost, stolen, or embezzled is taken from a pawnbroker, the peace officer, magistrate, court, clerk, or other person having custody of the property shall not deliver the property to any person claiming ownership unless the provisions of this section are complied with.

(b)(1)If any person makes a claim of ownership, the person shall file a written statement, signed under penalty of perjury, stating the factual basis upon which they claim ownership or an interest in the property with the person having custody of the property, and the person having custody of the property shall notify the pawnbroker of the claim by providing a true and correct copy of the claim to the pawnbroker.

(2)If the pawnbroker makes no claim with respect to the property within 10 days of such notification, the property may be disposed of as otherwise provided by law.

(3)In adjudicating the competing claims of a pawnbroker and a person claiming ownership or an interest in the property seized from a pawnbroker, the adjudicating court shall give due consideration to the effect Section 2403 of the Commercial Code may have on the claims.

(4)At least 30 calendar days before any hearing adjudicating any competing claims of a pawnbroker and a person claiming ownership or an interest in the property, the person having custody of the property shall deliver to the pawnbroker a true and correct copy of the police report, redacted as may be required by law and consistent with due process of law, substantiating the basis of the seizure of the property from the pawnbroker.

(c)If property alleged to have been stolen or embezzled is taken from a pawnbroker, prior to any disposal of the property pursuant to Section 1411 of the Penal Code, the notice to be given to the owner and owner of a security interest pursuant to Section 1411 shall be given to the pawnbroker. Such property shall not be disposed of pursuant to Section 1411 until three months after such notice has been given.

(d)A pawnbroker shall not be liable to any person for any property seized from the pawnbroker on account of the pawnbroker’s inability to return the property to that person because of the seizure.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 5 cases, 1996–2013 · leading case: People v. Hernandez, 172 Cal. App. 4th 715 (Cal. Ct. App. 2009).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
People v. Hernandez, 172 Cal. App. 4th 715 (Cal. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 2× “Under these statutes, if any person makes a claim of ownership, the custodian of the seized property must notify the *721 pawnbroker of the competing claim (Fin. Code, § 21206.8, subd. (b)(1)) and the pawnbroker then has 10 days to assert a claim to the property (id.”
Sanders v. City of San Diego, 93 F.3d 1423 (9th Cir. 1996). · cites it 4× “Cal. Fin.Code § 21206.8. 10 Accordingly, under Financial Code § 21206.”
Zeltser v. City of Oakland, 325 F.3d 1141 (9th Cir. 2003). · cites it 6× “When law enforcement officers seize allegedly stolen property, Cal. Fin.Code § 21206.8 and Cal.Penal Code §§ 1407 et seq.”
P. v. Rocker, No. D062458 (Cal. Ct. App. July 31, 2013). · cites it 5× “3 Financial Code section 21206.8 provides in part: "(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of Chapter 12 (commencing with Section 1407) of Title 10 of Part 2 of the Penal Code, whenever property alleged to have been stolen .”
Sasin v. Cnty. of Kings, 67 F. App'x 413 (9th Cir. 2003). “Sasin also alleged post-deprivation due process violations, stating that the man’s ring was wrongfully withheld by the defendants under California Financial Code § 21206.8. This is not a situation in which defendants gave the property to a third-party who claimed original…”
Cal. Financial Code § 21206.8(b)(1): 2 cases
Sanders v. City of San Diego, 93 F.3d 1423 (9th Cir. 1996). “Cal. Fin.Code § 21206.8. 10 Accordingly, under Financial Code § 21206.”
Zeltser v. City of Oakland, 325 F.3d 1141 (9th Cir. 2003). “When law enforcement officers seize allegedly stolen property, Cal. Fin.Code § 21206.8 and Cal.Penal Code §§ 1407 et seq.”
Cal. Financial Code § 21206.8(b)(2): 1 case
Zeltser v. City of Oakland, 325 F.3d 1141 (9th Cir. 2003). “When law enforcement officers seize allegedly stolen property, Cal. Fin.Code § 21206.8 and Cal.Penal Code §§ 1407 et seq.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.