Amended  IN  Senate  June 19, 2017
Amended  IN  Assembly  April 20, 2017
Amended  IN  Assembly  April 06, 2017

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill No. 1290

Introduced by Assembly Member Obernolte

February 17, 2017

An act to amend Section 953 of of, and to add Section 953.5 to, the Evidence Code, relating to evidence.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 1290, as amended, Obernolte. Lawyer-client privilege: holder of the privilege.
Existing law provides that the client of a lawyer has a privilege to refuse to disclose, and to prevent another from disclosing, a confidential communication between the client and lawyer if the privilege is claimed by the holder of the privilege. Existing law defines “holder of the privilege” to include a guardian or conservator of the client, if the client has a guardian or conservator.
This bill would clarify that if the conservatee or ward has appointed counsel or the conservatee has retained counsel to represent him or her in the conservatorship proceeding, the “holder of the privilege” is the conservatee or ward with respect to communications with that counsel. This bill would also direct the California Law Revision Commission to conduct a study and prepare a report addressing who holds the lawyer-client privilege if a client is a conservatee or ward. This bill would repeal that provision on January 1, 2024.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NO   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 953 of the Evidence Code is amended to read:

953.
 As used in this article, “holder of the privilege” means:
(a) The client, if the client has no guardian or conservator.
(b) A guardian or conservator of the client, if the client has a guardian or conservator, except as provided in subdivision (e).
(c) The personal representative of the client if the client is dead, including a personal representative appointed pursuant to Section 12252 of the Probate Code.
(d) A successor, assign, trustee in dissolution, or any similar representative of a firm, association, organization, partnership, business trust, corporation, or public entity that is no longer in existence.
(e) If the conservatee or ward has appointed counsel or the conservatee has retained counsel to represent him or her in the conservatorship proceeding, the conservatee or ward is the holder of the privilege with respect to communications with that counsel.

SEC. 2.

 Section 953.5 is added to the Evidence Code, to read:

953.5.
 The California Law Revision Commission shall conduct a study and prepare a report addressing who holds the lawyer-client privilege if a client is a conservatee or ward. The report shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code on or before January 1, 2020. Pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section is repealed on January 1, 2024.