Statewide Registry of Private Conservators, Guardians and Trustees
Under California law, a private conservator or guardian may be appointed by a court to care for a person who is unable to provide properly for his or her personal needs or is substantially unable to manage her or his own financial resources. In 1999, the law was amended to establish the Statewide Registry of Private Conservators, Guardians and Trustees in the California Department of Justice. The law requires all private conservators and guardians who were required to register in any county in which they operated to also register with the Statewide Registry. Registrations must be renewed every three years.
Through the Statewide Registry, judges have access to centralized information about private conservators and guardians, including information about their performance in multiple counties. Judges are required to check the information in the Statewide Registry before appointing private conservators or guardians. Judges also are required to send to the Statewide Registry any meritorious complaint against a conservator or guardian filed in the court.
Trustees who administer six or more trusts at the same time were added to the Statewide Registry. Now, these trustees must register with the Statewide Registry whether they are appointed by the court or not, unless exempted from the registration requirement by state law. State law requires court-appointed trustees who fail to register by January 1, 2005, to be removed. (See Probate Code sections 2850-2854 for exemptions)
Persons who already are registered as a conservator or guardian, and who are required by the new law to register as a trustee, must submit a new registration to serve as a trustee and must pay a new fee. However, such trustees may opt to consolidate registration applications to pay a single registration fee at the time of renewal. For details, please refer to the registration application instructions.
State law specifies that all information in the Statewide Registry is confidential, except for the individual registrant's name, the fact that he or she is registered, and the registrant's education and professional experience.
Senate Bill 1248 (Bowen), which amends Probate Code section 2850 et seq., was signed by the Governor and chaptered on September 16, 2004. This legislation, which will take effect January 1, 2005, changes the registration requirements for trustees and professional conservators and professional guardians who must register in the Statewide Registry of Private Conservators, Guardians and Trustees which is maintained by the Department of Justice. The new legislation also expands the amount of information in the Statewide Registry that will be available to the public.
There is a change to one of the trustee exemptions from registration. Instead of exempting from registration those trustees who administer fewer than six trusts at the same time, the new law exempts trustees serving for the "benefit of three or fewer persons, families, or a combination of the two." For purposes of this amended exemption, "family" is defined as persons related by blood, marriage, adoption, registered domestic partnership or a relationship meeting the basic requirements of a domestic partnership.
Also exempted from registration are persons related to the conservatee, ward or trustor by blood, marriage, adoption, registered domestic partnership or a relationship meeting the basic requirements of a domestic partnership. This exemption is broader than existing law.
The public will have access to complaint information regarding trustees, professional conservators and professional guardians when a court has made a finding that any of the foregoing has not properly performed their duties, and the court's finding results in an order for a surcharge other than nominal damages or for removal of the conservator, guardian or trustee. The law provides that courts shall forward such complaints to the Statewide Registry.
This is a summary of the new legislation's essential changes. However, it is not a substitute for reading the actual statute. You may see the entire statute by clicking on the link below. The statute should be reviewed carefully in order to determine if you are required to register and to ensure that you follow all of the statutory requirements.