Bill Text: CA AB2844 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Chaptered

California Assembly Bill 2844 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: Guardians and conservators: duties: accountings.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2020-09-28 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 221, Statutes of 2020. [AB2844 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB2844-Chaptered.html

Assembly Bill No. 2844

CHAPTER 221

An act to amend Section 2620 of the Probate Code, relating to guardians and conservators.

[ Approved by Governor September 28, 2020. Filed with Secretary of State September 28, 2020. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 2844, Obernolte. Guardians and conservators: duties: accountings.

(1) The Guardianship-Conservatorship Law generally establishes the standards and procedures for the appointment and termination of an appointment for a guardian or conservator of a person, an estate, or both. Existing law requires a guardian or conservator to present the accounting of the assets of the estate of the ward or conservatee to the court at specified intervals and defines an “account statement” for these purposes to include an original account statement from any institution or financial institution.

This bill would expand the definition of “account statement” to include a verified electronic statement that is certified under penalty of perjury in a specified manner. The bill would also authorize a court to accept a computer-generated printout of an original verified electronic statement, under specified circumstances. By expanding the crime of perjury to include a verified electronic statement used in guardianship and conservatorship proceedings, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would also make related, conforming changes.

(2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YES

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

SECTION 1.

Section 2620 of the Probate Code is amended to read:

2620.

(a) At the expiration of one year from the time of appointment and thereafter not less frequently than biennially, unless otherwise ordered by the court to be more frequent, the guardian or conservator shall present the accounting of the assets of the estate of the ward or conservatee to the court for settlement and allowance in the manner provided in Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 1060) of Part 1 of Division 3. By January 1, 2008, the Judicial Council, in consultation with the California Judges Association, the California Association of Superior Court Investigators, the California State Association of Public Administrators, Public Guardians, and Public Conservators, the State Bar of California, and the California Society of Certified Public Accountants, shall develop a standard accounting form, a simplified accounting form, and rules for when the simplified accounting form may be used. After January 1, 2008, all accountings submitted pursuant to this section shall be submitted on the Judicial Council form.

(b) The final court accounting of the guardian or conservator following the death of the ward or conservatee shall include a court accounting for the period that ended on the date of death and a separate accounting for the period subsequent to the date of death.

(c) Along with each court accounting, the guardian or conservator shall file supporting documents, as provided in this section.

(1) For purposes of this subdivision, the term “account statement” shall include any original account statement or verified electronic statement from any institution, as defined in Section 2890, or any financial institution, as defined in Section 2892, in which money or other assets of the estate are held or deposited. A court may also accept a computer-generated printout of an original verified electronic statement if the guardian or conservator verifies that the statement was received in electronic form and printed without alteration. A verification shall be executed by the guardian or conservator pursuant to Section 2015.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure.

(2) The filing shall include all account statements showing the account balance as of the closing date of the accounting period of the court accounting. If the court accounting is the first court accounting of the guardianship or conservatorship, the guardian or conservator shall provide to the court all account statements showing the account balance immediately preceding the date the conservator or guardian was appointed and all account statements showing the account balance as of the closing date of the first court accounting.

(3) If the guardian or conservator is a private professional or licensed guardian or conservator, the guardian or conservator shall also file all original account statements or verified electronic statements, as described in paragraph (1), showing the balance as of all periods covered by the accounting.

(4) The filing shall include the original closing escrow statement received showing the charges and credits for any sale of real property of the estate.

(5) If the ward or conservatee is in a residential care facility or a long-term care facility, the filing shall include the original bill statements for the facility.

(6) This subdivision shall not apply to the public guardian if the money belonging to the estate is pooled with money belonging to other estates pursuant to Section 2940 and Article 3 (commencing with Section 7640) of Chapter 4 of Part 1 of Division 7. Nothing in this section shall affect any other duty or responsibility of the public guardian with regard to managing money belonging to the estate or filing accountings with the court.

(7) If any document to be filed or lodged with the court under this section contains the ward’s or conservatee’s social security number or any other personal information regarding the ward or conservatee that would not ordinarily be disclosed in a court accounting, an inventory and appraisal, or other nonconfidential pleadings filed in the action, the account statement or other document shall be attached to a separate affidavit describing the character of the document, captioned “CONFIDENTIAL FINANCIAL STATEMENT” in capital letters. Except as otherwise ordered by the court, the clerk of the court shall keep the document confidential except to the court and subject to disclosure only upon an order of the court. The guardian or conservator may redact the ward’s or conservatee’s social security number from any document lodged with the court under this section.

(8) Courts may provide by local rule that the court shall retain all documents lodged with it under this subdivision until the court’s determination of the guardian’s or conservator’s account has become final, at which time the supporting documents shall be returned to the depositing guardian or conservator or delivered to any successor appointed by the court.

(d) Each accounting is subject to random or discretionary, full or partial review by the court. The review may include consideration of any information necessary to determine the accuracy of the accounting. If the accounting has any material error, the court shall make an express finding as to the severity of the error and what further action is appropriate in response to the error, if any. Among the actions available to the court is immediate suspension of the guardian or conservator without further notice or proceedings and appointment of a temporary guardian or conservator or removal of the guardian or conservator pursuant to Section 2650 and appointment of a temporary guardian or conservator.

(e) The guardian or conservator shall make available for inspection and copying, upon reasonable notice, to any person designated by the court to verify the accuracy of the accounting, all books and records, including receipts for any expenditures, of the guardianship or conservatorship.

(f) A superior court shall not be required to perform any duties imposed pursuant to the amendments to this section enacted by Chapter 493 of the Statutes 2006 until the Legislature makes an appropriation identified for this purpose.

SEC. 2.

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.