George Lucas sues to secure San Anselmo parcel ownership

"Star Wars" director George Lucas has a net worth in the billions of dollars, but a recent court filing demonstrates that the movie mogul still keeps a close watch over even his smallest real estate holdings.

Lucas has filed a complaint in Marin County Superior Court to ensure that ownership of a strip of land that he has been using as a driveway to one of his many San Anselmo properties isn't claimed by the heirs of several of his deceased neighbors.

"The Strip is principally occupied by a paved driveway leading from Essex Avenue to the Parcel," the complaint filed in May states. The filing says the parcel is on Coogan Avenue.

"Until recently, plaintiff believed the Strip was part of the Parcel," the suit says. "Plaintiff has learned that the Strip is actually not within the Parcel's mete and bounds."

Lucas believes that four deceased neighbors might have been granted an easement over a portion of the strip and that two other deceased neighbors "may have had an interest in the Strip," the complaint says.

The heirs of these deceased neighbors are named as defendants in the complaint along with the town of San Anselmo. The deceased residents are Lyford Sinclair, Richard Brode, Mary Whelan, George Raymond, Emma Goodale and John and Pauline Richards.

According to the complaint, Lucas has "continuously and openly" occupied and used the strip since taking title to the parcel "in or about 1990."

The complaint says the driveway on the strip doesn't provide access to or from any other parcel and "is used exclusively by plaintiff and individuals whose use of the driveway plaintiff and/or his agents have authorized."

According to the filing, Lucas graded the driveway on the strip in the 1990s and paved it in October 2021.

"Plaintiff has erected and/or maintained enclosures that preclude the public from accessing the Strip," the filing states, "and he has consistently maintained signage identifying the Strip as private property."

Diego Flores, an attorney working for Lucas, wrote in an email: "We are taking this procedural action to clean up century-old surveying errors, so that they reflect the reality of use and ownership on the ground."

"We have been working closely with the Town of San Anselmo to resolve this issue and look forward to continuing those efforts," Flories added. "Our understanding is that the town does not claim any interest in the property and the town has not asserted a claim of ownership in the past."

San Anselmo Town Manager David Donery wrote in an email Friday that the "next step is for the town attorney to meet with the Town Council in closed session to discuss the matter and to determine whether a disclaimer of interest should be filed."

Riley Hurd, a San Rafael land-use attorney, said, "This is a garden variety quiet title action of which I have done a few myself in a situation like this."

This is not the first time Lucas has taken such an action. In 2020, he filed a similar lawsuit to prevent the town or the heirs of Frances Hamilton from claiming ownership over a sliver of property near his San Anselmo properties.

Marin County tax assessor documents show that Lucas owns at least 24 parcels in San Anselmo with a combined assessed value of more than $41.6 million. According to a 2019 article in Architectural Digest, Lucas' real estate portfolio "includes a large compound in San Anselmo with a 15,159-square-foot main house, several guesthouses, a pool and a tennis court."

The article reported that Lucas had just purchased a beachfront property, a $28 million home in Carpinteria next door to a house he purchased for $19.5 million in 2010.

The Coogan Avenue parcel has an assessed value of just over $1 million and includes a 1,170-square-foot house with one bedroom and one bathroom.

Lucas doesn't need the strip to access the parcel. A private road that branches off Coogan Avenue leads to a locked gate barring entry to the property by the public.