Bill Text: TX SB286 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Comm Sub
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relating to attorney's fees and other costs in guardianship proceedings.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2011-05-25 - House passage as amended reported [SB286 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB286-Comm_Sub.html
Bill Title: Relating to attorney's fees and other costs in guardianship proceedings.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2011-05-25 - House passage as amended reported [SB286 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB286-Comm_Sub.html
82R30511 KLA-D | ||
By: Harris | S.B. No. 286 | |
(Hartnett) | ||
Substitute the following for S.B. No. 286: No. |
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relating to attorney's fees and other costs in guardianship | ||
proceedings. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Section 665B, Texas Probate Code, as amended by | ||
Chapters 314 (H.B. 587) and 930 (H.B. 3080), Acts of the 81st | ||
Legislature, Regular Session, 2009, is reenacted and amended to | ||
read as follows: | ||
Sec. 665B. PAYMENT OF ATTORNEY'S FEES TO CERTAIN ATTORNEYS. | ||
(a) A court that creates a guardianship or creates a management | ||
trust under Section 867 of this code for a ward under this chapter, | ||
on request of a person who filed an application to be appointed | ||
guardian of the proposed ward, an application for the appointment | ||
of another suitable person as guardian of the proposed ward, or an | ||
application for the creation of the management trust, may authorize | ||
the payment of reasonable and necessary attorney's fees, as | ||
determined by the court, in amounts the court considers fair and | ||
just, to an attorney who represents the person who filed the | ||
application at the application hearing, regardless of whether the | ||
person is appointed the ward's guardian or whether a management | ||
trust is created, from[ |
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[ |
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management trust, if created, subject to Subsection (a-1) of this | ||
section and Section 669 of this code, if applicable. | ||
(a-1) The court may authorize amounts that otherwise would | ||
be paid from the ward's estate or the management trust as provided | ||
by Subsection (a) of this section to instead be paid from the county | ||
treasury,[ |
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(1) [ |
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management trust[ |
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(2) [ |
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for that purpose. | ||
(b) The court may not authorize attorney's fees under this | ||
section unless the court finds that the applicant acted in good | ||
faith and for just cause in the filing and prosecution of the | ||
application. | ||
(c) The court may authorize the payment of attorney's fees | ||
from the county treasury under Subsection (a-1) [ |
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section only if the court is satisfied that the attorney to whom the | ||
fees will be paid has not received, and is not seeking, payment for | ||
the services described by that subsection from any other source. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 665D(c), Texas Probate Code, is amended | ||
to read as follows: | ||
(c) The court shall set the compensation of an attorney | ||
described by Subsection (a) of this section for the performance of | ||
guardianship services in accordance with Section 665 of this code. | ||
The court shall set attorney's fees for an attorney described by | ||
Subsection (a) of this section for legal services provided in | ||
accordance with Sections [ |
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code. | ||
SECTION 3. Section 669, Texas Probate Code, is amended to | ||
read as follows: | ||
Sec. 669. COSTS IN [ |
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GENERALLY. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this | ||
section, in a guardianship matter, the cost of the proceeding, | ||
including the cost of the guardian ad litem, attorney ad litem, | ||
court investigator, [ |
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professionals, interpreters, and other attorneys, shall be set in | ||
an amount the court considers fair and just and shall be paid out of | ||
the guardianship estate, or, if the estate is insufficient to pay | ||
for the cost of the proceeding, the cost of the proceeding shall be | ||
paid out of the county treasury, except as provided by Subsection | ||
(c) of this section, and the judgment of the court shall be issued | ||
accordingly. | ||
(b) If a court finds that a party in a guardianship | ||
proceeding acted in bad faith or without just cause in prosecuting | ||
or objecting to an application in the proceeding, the court may | ||
require that party to pay all or part of the costs [ |
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(c) The court may order the applicant in a guardianship | ||
proceeding to pay the cost of the guardian ad litem or court visitor | ||
appointed in the proceeding if: | ||
(1) the guardianship estate is insufficient to pay | ||
that cost; and | ||
(2) the applicant's gross annual family income exceeds | ||
200 percent of the federal poverty level. | ||
SECTION 4. Section 875(i), Texas Probate Code, is amended | ||
to read as follows: | ||
(i) If the court appoints a temporary guardian after the | ||
hearing required by Subsection (f)(1) of this section, all court | ||
costs, including attorney's fees, may be assessed as provided in | ||
Section [ |
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SECTION 5. Section 665A, Texas Probate Code, is repealed. | ||
SECTION 6. The changes in law made by this Act apply to a | ||
guardianship created before, on, or after the effective date of | ||
this Act. | ||
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives | ||
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as | ||
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this | ||
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this | ||
Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |