Bill Text: CA SB329 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Wills and trusts: no contest clauses.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2021-06-17 - Re-referred to Com. on RLS. pursuant to Assembly Rule 96. [SB329 Detail]
Download: California-2021-SB329-Amended.html
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Amended
IN
Assembly
June 01, 2021 |
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Amended
IN
Senate
February 26, 2021 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Bill
No. 329
| Introduced by Senator Jones |
February 05, 2021 |
An act to amend Section 425.17 of the Code of Civil Procedure, and to add Section 21316 to the Probate Code, relating to wills and trusts.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 329, as amended, Jones.
Wills and trusts: no contest clauses.
Existing law, in relation to wills, trusts, and other instruments, regulates no contest clauses, which are provisions in otherwise valid instruments that, if enforced, penalize beneficiaries if the beneficiaries file a contest with the court. Existing law specifies that a no contest clause will be enforced only against the following types of contests: a direct contest, as defined, that is brought without probable cause, a pleading to challenge a transfer of property on the grounds that it was not the transferor’s property at the time of transfer, and the filing of a creditor’s claim or prosecution of an action based on it.
This bill would require a person who has notice of a contest and wishes to enforce a no contest clause to file a pleading to enforce the no contest clause by the later of 120 days prior to the date initially set for commencement of the evidentiary hearing or trial on the contest, or 60 days after the date of the setting of the evidentiary hearing or trial. The bill would provide that where possible, and
subject to the court’s discretion as to the order of proof, the contest and the proceeding to enforce a no contest clause should be adjudicated in the same evidentiary hearing or trial.
Existing law provides that a cause of action against a person arising from any act of that person in furtherance of the person’s right of petition or free speech in connection with a public issue, as specified, shall be subject to a special motion to strike, also known as an anti-strategic lawsuit against public participation (anti-SLAPP) motion, unless the court determines there is a probability that the plaintiff will prevail on the claim. Existing law specifies additional requirements for the court’s adjudication of an anti-SLAPP motion. Existing law exempts from these anti-SLAPP provisions any action brought solely in the public interest or on behalf of the general public, under specified conditions, and any cause of action brought against a person primarily
engaged in the business of selling or leasing goods or services, as further specified.
This bill would also exempt from the anti-SLAPP provisions an action to enforce a no contest clause in a will, trust, or other instrument, instrument.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: NO Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 425.17 of the Code of Civil Procedure is amended to read:425.17.
(a) The Legislature finds and declares that there has been a disturbing abuse of Section 425.16, the California(b) Section 425.16 does not apply to any action brought solely in the public interest or on behalf of the general public if all of the following conditions exist:
(1) The plaintiff does not seek any relief greater than or different from the relief sought for the general public or a class of which the plaintiff is a member. A claim for attorney’s fees, costs, or penalties does not constitute greater or different relief for purposes of this subdivision.
(2) The action, if successful, would enforce an important right affecting the public interest, and would confer a significant benefit, whether pecuniary or nonpecuniary, on the general public or a large class of persons.
(3) Private enforcement is necessary and places a disproportionate financial burden on the plaintiff in relation to the plaintiff’s stake in the matter.
(c) Section 425.16 does not apply to any cause of action brought against a person primarily engaged in the business of selling or leasing goods or services, including, but not limited to, insurance, securities, or financial instruments, arising from any statement or conduct by that person if both of the following conditions exist:
(1) The statement or conduct consists of representations of fact about that person’s or a business competitor’s business operations, goods, or services, that is made for the purpose of obtaining approval for, promoting, or securing sales or leases of, or commercial transactions in, the person’s goods or
services, or the statement or conduct was made in the course of delivering the person’s goods or services.
(2) The intended audience is an actual or potential buyer or customer, or a person likely to repeat the statement to, or otherwise influence, an actual or potential buyer or customer, or the statement or conduct arose out of or within the context of a regulatory approval process, proceeding, or investigation, except where the statement or conduct was made by a telephone corporation in the course of a proceeding before the California Public Utilities Commission and is the subject of a lawsuit brought by a competitor, notwithstanding that the conduct or statement concerns an important public issue.
(d) Subdivisions (b) and (c) do not apply to any of the following:
(1) Any person enumerated in subdivision (b) of Section 2 of Article I of the California Constitution or Section 1070 of the Evidence Code, or any person engaged in the dissemination of ideas or expression in any book or academic journal, while engaged in the gathering, receiving, or processing of information for communication to the public.
(2) Any action against any person or entity based upon the creation, dissemination, exhibition, advertisement, or other similar promotion of any dramatic, literary, musical, political, or artistic work, including, but not limited to, a motion picture or television program, or an article published in a newspaper or magazine of general circulation.
(3) Any nonprofit
organization that receives more than 50 percent of its annual revenues from federal, state, or local government grants, awards, programs, or reimbursements for services rendered.
(e) Section 425.16 does not apply to an action to enforce a no contest clause contained in a will, trust, or other instrument. As used in this subdivision, “no contest clause” has the meaning provided in Section 21310 of the Probate Code.
(f) If any trial court denies a special motion to strike on the grounds that the action or cause of action is exempt pursuant to this section, the appeal provisions in subdivision (i) of Section 425.16 and paragraph (13) of subdivision (a) of Section 904.1 do not apply to that action or cause of action.
(a)A person who has notice of a contest and wishes to enforce a no contest clause shall file a pleading to enforce the no contest clause on or before the later of the following dates:
(1)One hundred twenty days prior to the date initially set for commencement of the evidentiary hearing or trial on the contest.
(2)Sixty days after the date of the setting of an evidentiary hearing or trial on the contest.
(b)When possible, and subject to the court’s discretion as to the order of proof, the contest and the proceeding to enforce a no contest clause should be adjudicated at the same evidentiary hearing or trial.
