District of Columbia Code Division VIII. General Laws. § 47-1371. Parties.

(b)(1) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, the defendants in an action to foreclose the right of redemption shall be:

(2) The plaintiff shall certify, under penalties of perjury, to the Superior Court that a search for the defendants has been performed in accordance with generally accepted standards of title examination of the records of the Recorder of Deeds and probate decisions of the Superior Court.

(2A) The plaintiff shall certify to the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, under penalties of perjury, that a search was conducted for the record owner in bankruptcy records.

(3) The plaintiff may elect not to include as a defendant any of the persons named in paragraph (1) of this subsection. However, the rights of any person not included as a defendant shall not be affected by the action.

(4) The plaintiff shall not be required to name as defendant any other person that has, or claims to have, any right, title, interest, claim, lien, or equity of redemption in the real property sold by the Mayor. Any of these persons shall be included as defendants by the designation “all persons that have or claim to have any interest in real property ․․․ (giving a description of the real property in substantially the same form as the description that appears on the Mayor's certificate of sale along with the street address, if any).” Any of these persons shall be designated throughout the action by the above designation, may participate as defendants in the action, and the action may proceed against them by publication under order of court as provided in this chapter.